LANGUAGE IS EVERYWHERE

Kwei--Wednesday

My mystery novels all take place in Ghana, and so I often include Ghanaian colloquialisms in my dialogue. It's interesting to see the reaction from my editors. They range from "correcting" the sentence so it becomes familiar to western readers to asking, "What do you mean here?"

Those who have edited my manuscripts more than once eventually begin to sense when I'm writing idiomatically, but a freelance editor I had apparently almost had a stroke. I could tell she was so flummoxed by some of the dialogue that in the margins she made comments like, "This makes no sense at all;" "What are you trying to say?" "I don't understand this;" "Why would you write something like this?"

In the large cities of Ghana, itinerant vendors roam the streets of big cities selling food, hardware, clothes, household items--you name it. In one of my scenes, I described one of these vendors selling a bunch of puppies. The freelance editor asked in disbelief, "Do they really sell puppies?" as in, "You're kidding, right?" No, my dear. I am not.

Vendors with apples, plantain chips and laundry detergent, Accra (Photo: Kwei Quartey)

(Unfortunately, I hadn't been quick enough to get a photo of the puppy seller, as we were moving in traffic.)

I've listed some of Ghanaian colloquialisms here with their translations. You can imagine how they might give the appearance that my manuscript had not been copy edited:

1. On/off the light. Switch the light on/off. (Why bother with unnecessary verbs?) I tried putting that line in my manuscript and the editor assumed I'd omitted a word.
2. Spark the car. Start the car. (It may have been way back in colonial days, a Brit said, "Start the car," and a Ghanaian misheard it.
3. Wait, I'm coming. I'll be right back. Here you might actually be walking away as you say, "I'm coming." Incidentally, I've heard the same expression from Spanish speakers: "Ahorita vengo," which means literally, "I'm coming now," but signifies, "I'll be right back."
4. I won't even mind you / don't mind him. I'm going to ignore you / ignore him. This can have either a humorous or caustic quality, as in, "You're full of it." It's a common reaction to government promises and declarations that no one believes for even a second. Ghanaians waste little time on empty words.
5. Dash me something small. Give me a tip.
6. Branch left. Preferred to, "Turn left."
7. From today going. From now on.
8. Flash me. Not rude at all. It means, "Call my number and hang up immediately." That way, I have your number. People who "flash" you often don't have enough credit on their phone. They flash you so you'll call them back and use your credit. Btw, no one uses voice mail in Ghana and numbers are freely traded without a second's thought. Giving out someone else's number without their permission is not a big deal at all.
9. It's just here. This direction means something isn't far from here, as in when traveling to a destination. If you hear that, it really means you'll never get there. 
10. Go straight. This is another common phrase given by someone you stop at the roadside to get directions. It means nothing.
11. It won't reach. Probably a literal translation from indigenous languages, meaning "It's not enough." That can apply to money, supplies, and also to something that really won't reach as far as you want it, like a length of rope.
12. I'm having tea. That could be coffee, chocolate milk, or real tea.
13. I'm serious, oo! / You see, oo! The "oo" is a long "oh" sound and is an interjection that adds emphasis to the declaration. It took me a long time to persuade my editors to leave this in, because they were afraid it would look like a typo.
14. You have tried. Well done! Although this seems to imply that you have somehow failed in your attempt at something, it's really a congratulatory statement. My late mother, who was American, always told the story of how when she first went to Ghana, she tried a traditional meal of groundnut (peanut) stew, and one of the guests said, "You have tried, oo!" Mom felt awful, because she thought that after all the work she had put in, her meal wasn't up to snuff. Fortunately, my father (Ghanaian) was there to explain that in fact the person was giving high compliments to Mom the chef! Btw, my late mother was an incredible cook, both western and African dishes. Her paprika chicken and coq au vin were amazing!

So, there you go. You are now armed with some Ghanaian expressions and fully prepared for your trip to Ghana, which is not far. It's just here. Go straight.