Modality and Evidentiality in Akan: A Corpus-Based Study

Modality and Evidentiality in Akan: A Corpus-Based Study

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Thesis submitted for the degree of doctor in linguistics at the University of

Antwerp to be defended by

Joana Portia SAKYI

Promotor: Prof. dr. Jan Nuyts

Faculty of Arts and Philosophy

Department of Linguistics

Antwerp, 2019

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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Modaliteit en Evidentialiteit in Akan: Een

Corpusgebaseerde Studie

Proefschrift voorgelegd tot het behalen van de graad van doctor in de taalkunde

aan de Universiteit Antwerpen te verdedigen door

Joana Portia SAKYI

Promotor: Prof. dr. Jan Nuyts

Faculteit Letteren en Wijsbegeerte

Department Taalkunde

Antwerpen, 2019

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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Niets is geheel waar, en zelfs dat niet.

Frederik Van Eeden

‘Nothing is completely true, and not even that is true.’

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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Acknowledgements

I give honor to whom honor is due. I have the obligation to thank a host of people

for their diverse forms of assistance towards the accomplishment of this project,

and I do so with all sincerity and humility.

“What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me? I will take the

cup of salvation and call upon the name of the LORD.” My gratitude to Him knows

no bounds.

I am indeed grateful to my abled promotor, Jan Nuyts, who accepted this rather

tedious and adventurous challenge to supervise my work. His commitment,

dedication and hard work kept me on track, even when different circumstances

brought me down at different times. I must confess the frustrations he had to go

through to be able to harness the unfamiliar language and these two complex

categories I worked on. Jan’s good works cannot be overemphasized.

The formal chair of my doctoral commission, Johan van der Auwera, who went on

retirement at the very end of my dissertation was such an instrumental force! His

fatherly guidance throughout my stay in the university kept me going and his

intellectual capacities shaped this work to get to this stage. Tanja Mortelmans, my

new IDC chair-person had to squeeze time out of her tight schedule and work

assiduously to make sure we beat time. Mark Van de Velde, member of my IDC,

to whom I refer to as the ‘mid-fielder’ was an amazing player. In fact, he knew his

stuffs and he was a good advocate for more details on the language itself.

I appreciate their constructive comments and suggestions for my work. I couldn’t

get this far without their incisive eagle’s eyes which could see the minute faults I

couldn’t see myself. All I can say is ‘Esie ne Kagya nni aseda.’ Meda mo ase!

Hartelijk bedankt!

My sincere gratitude also goes to Reinhild Vandekerckhove, the chair of my

jury, and Maud Devos, an extra external member (from the Africa Museum in

Tervuren). They accepted the challenge at a hectic period of the semester and

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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agreed to work under unusual conditions, all in a bid to meet the deadline set

for my defence.

It has never been easy getting PhD supervisors and that is why I cannot hide my

gratitude for my colleague, Nada Gbegble of blessed memories, who believed so

much in me to the extent of looking for a dedicated professor for me at a time when

I myself had not decided to move out of my cocoon. Nada brought back the fire in

me to take this bold step. I appreciate it more than what anyone can ever imagine.

May she rest in peace.

‘The lonely, tallest and shady tree, they say, cannot be a forest’. I could not have

come this far if it had not been the cooperation, direction, friendship and the

encouragement from my professors, lecturers, colleagues and members of the

Centre of Grammar, Cognition and Typology of the University of Antwerp. I

should be able to mention Professors and Doctors Frank Brisard, Walter De

Mulder, Ann Kelly, Pieter Byloo, Daniel Van Olmen, Karolien Janssens, Lauren

Van Alsenoy, Frens Vossen Astrid De Wit, Pedro Gras and Sara Budts for the

various assistances I received from them directly and indirectly.

I also thank, Prof. dr. Gilles-Maurice de Schryver and his team from University of

Ghent and Dr. Jacky Maniacky, Head of Culture and Society, Royal Museum for

Central Africa, Tervuren, for their contribution to my data collection and other vital

information.

My colleague lecturers, management and workers of the University of Education

(UEW) were supportive and encouraging. Professors and Doctors, Jophus

Anamuah-Mensah, Lawrence Addae Boadi, Kwesi Yankah, Nicholas Abakah, J.

Y. Sekyi-Baidoo, Charles Owu-Ewie, Regina Caesar and all the rest, cannot be left

out of my gratitude. My students from the Department of Akan-Nzema Education,

Ajumako Campus (especially, the class of 2010, whose creative writing texts

formed part of my electronic data) always spurred me on. They kept reminding me

of my beloved UEW. I appreciate you all.

I remain forever indebted to University of Antwerp and the Belgian government

for the opportunity given to me to study for free in their university. Of course, I


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couldn’t have afforded it if I were to pay for my studies the way my other

colleagues are paying elsewhere. Thank you.

‘Dua kɔntonkye a ɛno so na nea ɛteε gyina’ University of Education, Winneba, I

am grateful for the study leave and part of financial support I received, at least, to

get my program started. It went a long way. Meda mo ase.

I surely would have abandoned my course long before the end of the first year had

it not been my new family here in Antwerp. Jef Maex, Germaine Vangenechten

and Rik Maex were solidly behind me. Their financial assistance, respect, love and

care encouraged me to forge ahead in this rather sucking endeavor.

‘Blood, they say, is thicker than water’. This is what my family in Ghana, UK, US,

Germany and elsewhere demonstrated to me as I embarked on this long journey of

studies. Their support cannot be enumerated here. I sincerely appreciate everything

they did for me.

My late mother, Eva Asamoah, affectionately called Ↄbaa, should have been here

to touch my certificate for her immense contribution in my life in general, and in

this course, in particular. I can’t be more grateful for her support. Damirifa Due

wae, Ↄbaa!

I dedicate this work to Ↄbaa, Jef and Sammy.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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Abstract

The existing literature has focused on the functional use of modality in terms of its

qualification of propositions. The use of modal auxiliaries to express these

qualifications has received quite an attention. This issue, sometimes leads people

to equate the study of modality to the study of modal auxiliaries only. In recent

years, however, writers have shown that other word classes (adverbs, adjectives

and verbs) are also used to express propositional qualifications in languages (see

Nuyts 2001; Simon-Vandenbergen et al 2007; Squartini 2008; Saah & Agbedor

2004 among others). As regards evidentiality, various studies have demonstrated

the use of both grammatical and lexical paradigms for indicating the source of

information.

The current study is motivated by the lack of detailed discussion on these topics in

the language and thus makes the effort to explore, describe and discuss the

expression of modality and evidentiality by the use of available forms in Akan

discourse. In line with the views writers have expressed on these topics, we

demonstrate in this study that Akan uses modal auxiliaries, modal adverbs,

predicative modal adjectives, verbs and verbal constructions to express epistemic,

deontic and dynamic modalities. Further, we have pointed out that the language

utilizes only lexical verbs, verbal and adjectival constructions to express

evidentiality.

On the relationship existing between modality and evidentiality, the study has

proceeded on the common linguistic premise that everyone speaks based on a kind

of evidence, knowledge or experience. Thus, whatever information one gives (be

it stating a fact (non-modalized) or speculating (epistemically modalized) etc.) is

based on evidence (see Nuyts 2001b; 1993). As such, forms and constructions in

this study have been analyzed according to which modal or evidential meanings

they express. In all instances, none of the forms identified and discussed in the

study, expresses both modality and evidentiality. Of course, there are forms which

can express two or more modal meanings or different degrees of modality in

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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different contexts. Others too can express different forms of evidence but not both

notions.

Three of the Akan dialects, viz. Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi and Fante are involved

in the discussions as a result of their literary status. From time to time, we indicate

how a form or a construction is represented in the new Akan orthography we have

renamed as Akanwa.


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Samenvatting

In de voor hande zijnde literatuur werd sterk de nadruk gelegd op het functionele

gebruik van modaliteit in de betekenis van kwalificatie van proposities. Het

gebruik van modale hulpwerkwoorden om deze kwalificaties uit te drukken heeft

heel wat aandacht gekregen.

Dit heeft sommigen er soms toe aangezet om de studie van modaliteit gelijk te

stellen aan het louter bestuderen van modale werkwoorden. De voorbije jaren

echter startte onder auteurs het debat over het gebruik van andere modale

uitdrukkingsvormen om aan te tonen dat andere vormen van woordklassen

(bijwoorden, adjectieven en werkwoorden) ook gebruikt worden om mededelende

kwalificaties in talen uit te drukken (zie Nuyts 2001; Simon-Vandenbergen et al

2007; Squartini 2008; Saah and Agbedor 2004 e.a.).

Met betrekking tot evidentialiteit hebben meerdere onderzoeken het gebruik van

zowel grammaticale als lexicale paradigma’s aangetoond om bronnen van

informatie aan te duiden.

Dit onderzoek gaat uit van deze algemene opvattingen en concentreert zich erop

om de uitdrukking van modaliteit en evidentialiteit door het gebruik van

voorkomende vormen in het Akan taalgebruik te beschrijven, te onderzoeken en te

bespreken.

In deze studie wordt aangetoond dat in het Akan gebruik wordt gemaakt van

modale hulpwerkwoorden, modale bijwoorden, modale predicaat adjectieven,

werkwoorden en werkwoordelijke constructies, om epistemische, deontische en

dynamische modaliteiten uit te drukken. Verder wordt vastgesteld dat de taal alleen

van lexicale werkwoorden, werkwoordelijke en adjectieven constructies gebruik

maakt om evidentialiteit uit te drukken.

In de relatie tussen modaliteit en evidentialiteit heeft dit onderzoek zich gefocust

op het uitgangspunt dat iedereen spreekt op basis van een soort van evidentie,

kennis of ervaring. Daarom, wat ook de informatie moge zijn die iemand geeft

(weze het het poneren van een feit (niet modaal) of speculatie (epistemische

modaal) enz.), is gebaseerd op evidentie. (zie Nuyts 2001b; 1993). Zodoende

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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worden vormen en constructies in dit onderzoek geanalyseerd in hun eigen

bestaansrecht naar gelang welke modale of evidentiële betekenis zij uitdrukken. In

alle onderzochte gevallen, drukten geen van de geboekstaafde en behandelde

vormen in deze studie zowel modaliteit als evidentialiteit uit.

Natuurlijk waren er vormen die twee of meer modale betekenissen konden

uitdrukken, of verschillende gradaties van modaliteit in verschillende context en

anderen die verschillende vormen van bewijs konden uitdrukken, maar niet beide

begrippen.

Drie van de Akan dialecten, Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi en Fante werden in dit

onderzoek betrokken, dit omwille van hun literaire status. Soms geven we aan hoe

een vorm of constructie verschijnt in de nieuwe orthografie van het Akan die we

hier Akanwa hebben genoemd.


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Mmoano

Akwan ahorow wͻ hͻ a yεfa so kyerεkyerε yεn nnimdeε ne yεn adwene wͻ biribi

ho wͻ ͻkasa mu. Modality yε ͻkwan a obi fa so da n’ahonim anaa n’adwene a ͻwͻ

wͻ nsεm bi ho adi. Modality wͻ nkyekyεmu abiesa titiriw a yεadi ho dwuma wͻ

nhoma yi mu, wͻne epistemic modality, deontic modality ne dynamic modality.

Etumi ba sε ͻkasa mu no obi tumi kyerε nea osusuw sε εwͻ hͻ, nea εresisi anaa nea

ebetumi aba mu (epistemic) nea ͻpε sε εba mu, nea eye, nea ehia anaa sε nea εsε sε

εba mu (deontic) anaa mpo tebea, nimdeε ne ahoͻden a ͻkasafo no anaa ͻfoforo

wͻ (mu) (dynamic). Evidentiality yε fapem, nnyinaso, nimdeε anaa osuahu a obi

gyina so kasa de kyerε n’ahonim anaa n’adwene.

Wͻ mmere dodow a abetwam yi mu no annimdefo a wͻyε ͻkasa mu nhwεhwεmu

no abͻ mmͻden akyerεkyerε sεnea adesuade modality di dwuma wͻ ͻkasa mu. Ne

titiriw no, wͻde wͻn ani sii sεnea adeyε aboafo a wͻfrε no auxiliaries wͻ brͻfo

kasa mu no di saa dwuma yi so. Eyi maa εkͻyεε ebinom adwene mpo sε gyama

adeyε aboafo nko ara na wͻde kyerε modality wͻ kasa mu. Mmom nnansa yi de,

abenfo binom akyerε sε εnyε adeyε aboafo nko na mmom adeyε kyerεfo,

edinnkyerεkyerεmu, adeyε ne ͻkasasin ahorow binom nso tumi di dwuma koro no

ara bi (hwε Nuyts 2001; Simon-Vandenbergen et al 2007; Squartini 2008; Saah &

Agbedor 2004 ne wͻn a wͻkeka ho a wͻakyerεw afa akwan horow yi ho no).

Evidentiality a εyε fapem a obi gyina so si ne bo kasa anaa ͻkyerε n’adwene wͻ

nsεm bi ho no nso, abenfo akyerε sε kasa ahorow bi mu no wͻde mͻͻfim a ennyina

ne ho so na εkyerε na afoforo nso de nsεmfua ahorow na εkyerε wͻn nnyinaso.

Adwene ahorow a abenfo ada no adi wͻ kasa horow mu yi so na yεn nso yεagyina

de ayε yεn nhwehwεmu yi ahu ͻkwan a Akanfo fa so kyerε wͻn ahonim, wͻn

adwene ne wͻn nnyinaso wͻ ͻkasa mu no. Nhwεmu yi mu no na ada adi sε sεnea

εte wͻ kasa ahorow bi mu no, Akanfo nso de adeyε aboafo, adeyε kyerεfo,

edinnkyerεkyerεmu, adeyε ne ͻkasasin ahorow na εkyerε wͻn ahonim ne wͻn

adwene. Afei nso, wͻde adeyε, adeyε kasasin ne edinnkyerεkyerεmu kasasin

ahorow na εkyerε wͻn nnyinaso, wͻn nimdeε ne wͻn suahu a wogyina so de wͻn

adwene to gua no.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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Ɛnyε eyinom nko, na mmom yεsan yεε nhwehwεmu faa ͻkwan a modality ne

evidentiality di nkitaho no ho. Eyi mu no yehuu sε ansa na obiara bebue n’ano aka

asεm bi no (sε ebia ͻresi pi aka asεm anaa mpo sε ͻrekyerε sε tebea bi betumi aba

mu anaa εremma mu no, n.a.) na ogyina ne nnimdeε anaa osuahu so na ͻde asεm

ko no ato gua (kenkan Nuyts 2001b; 1993). Ne saa nti no, yεhwehwεε nsεmfua

anaa nsεm ahorow a yεde di dwuma ahorow yi na εno nso daa adi sε adesuade

modality nko εna evidentiality nso nko. Obiara gyina ne ho so. Etumi ba sε

adwenepͻw abien yi nyinaa pue wͻ ͻkasamu biako mu, na εtͻ da bi nso a wͻn mu

biako pε na εba.

Akan kasa mu no, nsεmfua bi wͻ hͻ a wotumi kyerε modality ahorow no nyinaa

bi, na adwenepͻw bi nso wͻ hͻ a yetumi fa akwan ahorow pii so na εda no adi, na

mmom yεanhu nsεmfua biara a etumi kyerε modality na εsan kyerε evidentiality

wͻ bere koro no ara mu.

Nea enti a yεde Akan kasakwaa ahorow abiesa yi (Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi ne

Fante) dii dwuma ne sε wͻn na aban agye ato mu a wͻkyerεw na wosua wͻ sukuu

mu, enti εno mu na yenyaa yεn nhwεso a εyε corpus no fii. Edu baabi a, yεkyerε

nsonsonoe a εda ͻkasakwaa bi nkyerεwee ne abεεfo ͻkasakyerεw Akan, a yεato ne

din foforo wͻ adesuade yi mu sε Akanwa, no mu. Nea yehuu wͻ nhwehwεmu no

mu no de εkͻ ma Akan kasa ahorow no nyinaa ara.


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Table of Contents

Acknowledgement …………………………….………………….....….....…..7

Abstract ……………………….…………..……………………………..….. 11

Samenvatting……………...………………..……..……………………....… 13

Mmoano ……………...……………………..…………..….....................….. 15

Table of Contents ………...……………………………...……………....….. 17

Maps and Tables ……………………………………….…………..…,.……. 25

Abbreviations ……………...……………………………...………………… 27

Linguistic Notation Conventions …………………....…...…………….….… 29

1 Introduction ……………………….…..…...…….....……..… 31

1.1 Introduction ………………………………….…..….....………31

1.2 Background and Research Questions………………..….…….. 31

1.3 Aims and Limitations ………………………..……...........…... 33

1.4 Analytical framework ………….……………….…….………. 34

1.5 Outline of the Study ……………………..…….………..…..… 34

2 Preliminaries ………………………….......…………...…….. 37

2.1 Introduction ………………………………….………….....…. 37

2.2 Review of Literature ……….……………..…..….………...… 37

2.2.1 Modality …………………….................................................... 39

2.2.1.1 Epistemic Modality …………………...…………............….... 41

2.2.1.2 Deontic Modality ……………………..……………….......…. 43

2.2.1.2.1 Directives ……………………………..………….....…......…. 44

2.2.1.2.2 Moral Desirability/Acceptability ………..………....………..... 45

2.2.1.3 Dynamic Modality …………………………......................…....46

2.2.1.4 Related Notions ……………………………………...…...…... 50

2.2.1.4.1 Boulomaic Attitude ……………..……...…..………….……... 50

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2.2.1.4.2 Desiderative …………………………...….......................……. 51

2.2.1.4.3 Volition …………………..…………...…………….........…… 51

2.2.2 Evidentiality ……………………………...…………......……. 54

2.2.3 The Relation between Epistemic and evidential meaning ……. 56

2.2.4 Expression of modality and evidentiality in languages ………. 61

2.2.5 Some Aspects of Semantic Theory ……..…..………………… 63

2.2.5.1 Polysemy and homonymy …………………………………….. 63

2.2.5.2 Vagueness ………………………………………….…………. 64

2.2.5.3 Ambiguity ………………………………………….……….… 66

2.2.5.4 Synonymy …………………………………………………….. 70

2.3 Methodological Procedures .……….….……..………..…….… 71

2.3.1 Data Collection Methods……… …….…………………….…. 71

2.3.1.1 Collection of Written Data ……………… .……….........…….. 72

2.3.1.2 Collection of Spoken Data ………………….………….……... 73

2.3.2 The Corpora and Forms………………….……..……………... 74

2.3.3 Glossing ………………………………………………………. 75

2.4 Overview of Forms …………………..…………………….…. 76

2.5 Conclusion ……………………………………….…………... 78

3 Akan .......................................................................................... 79

3.1 Introduction ……………………………………..………....…. 79

3.2 Overview of Akan People and Language …………................... 79

3.3 Some Phonological and Morphological Features …….……… 82

3.3.1 Vowel Harmony …………...……………………….….……... 82

3.3.1.1 Exceptions ……...…………………..………………………… 86

3.3.2 Vowel deletion ………………………………………..…….… 88


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3.3.3 Consonantal Assimilation ……………………………...……... 90

3.3.4 Tone System …………………………………...…………...… 93

3.3.4.1 Tone Assimilation ………………………………..........……… 95

3.3.4.2 Downstep and Downdrift …………………………….…….…. 96

3.3.5 Analyzing tone and other properties ……….……………….… 99

3.4 Word Classes ……...….…………..…………………...…….. 100

3.4.1 Auxiliary Verbs …...………………………………………… 101

3.4.2 Verbs ……………………………………..…………...….…. 104

3.4.2.1 Regular and Irregular Verbs …………………………………. 105

3.4.2.2 Combination of Verbs …………………………...………….. 106

3.4.2.3 The Copular Verbs ………………………..…………………. 113

3.4.3 Nouns ……………………………………………………..… 114

3.4.4 Pronouns ……………………………………………..…..…. 115

3.4.5 Adjectives ……………………………………………..……. 121

3.4.6 Adverbs …………………………………………………...… 122

3.5 Formation of some verbal and adverbial/predicative adjectival

constructions …………………………………………..…….. 123

3.6 Word Order ………………………………….….……..……. 126

3.7 Verbal Affixes …………………………………………...….. 127

3.7.1 Mood …………………………………………….……..…… 128

3.7.1.1 The indicative mood ……………………………..……..…... 129

3.7.1.2 Jussive mood …………………………………….....….….... 129

3.7.1.2.1 Imperative mood ………………………….……..………….. 130

3.7.1.2.2 Subjunctive mood …………………………………......……. 131

3.7.2 Tense and Aspect ……..……………………………..…..….. 131

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3.7.2.1 Tense/Aspect Markers in Constructions …………..…….…... 136

3.7.2.2 Relative Time Marking ………………………….………….. 144

3.7.2.2.1 (Sε) … a …………………………………..……..……….…. 146

3.7.2.2.2 Yi as a subordinator …………………………….…….……... 147

3.7.2.2.3 No as a subordinating conjunction ………………….…….… 148

3.7.3 The Consecutive marker ……………………………..…..….. 151

3.7.4 Negation ……………………………………………….…..... 154

3.7.4.1 Scope of Negation ……………………………….………….. 163

3.8 Conclusion ………………......................……….……..…..… 165

4 Expressing Modality with Auxiliaries …………………..… 167

4.1 Introduction …………..…………………..………............…. 167

4.2 The affix bε- ………………..…….……….………...………..167

4.2.1 Bε- as a Motional Prefix ………………………….……..…... 169

4.2.2 Bε- as a Prospective marker ………………………..…..….… 172

4.2.3. Future tense affix bɛ- ……………….…..…………..……...… 173

4.2.4 Bɛ- as a Modal Auxiliary ………………………….…….…... 175

4.2.4.1 Bɛ- as an Epistemic Possibility marker ……...…….……….…175

4.2.4.2 Bԑ- + Stative Aspect Constructions ….………........……….....176

4.2.4.3 Bɛ- in combination with wᴐ and other stative verbs ................ 177

4.2.4.4 Bԑ- + yԑ + adjectival or nominal predicates …........................ 178

4.2.4.5 Expressing Directive meaning with bɛ- ………...………..….. 181

4.2.4.6 Expressing Dynamic modality with bɛ- …………..…………. 182

4.2.4.7 Discussion ………………………..…………………...…….. 183

4.3 The Modal Auxiliary tumi ……………………...................… 187


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4.3.1 Dynamic modality ………………….…….…......................... 188

4.3.1.1 Ability/capacity ………...……………………....…….....……188

4.3.1.2 Dynamic Potentiality (Possibility) ……….…………….....…. 201

4.3.2 Directives – Permission …………..………….…………..….. 207

4.3.3 Tumi as an Epistemic Marker ………………….………....… 210

4.4 Ma as an Auxiliary Verb …………………….……...……..... 212

4.5 The Modal Auxiliaries ɛsɛ sɛ and etwa sɛ ..………................. 215

4.5.1 Ɛsɛ sɛ as a Deontic Form …………………….………..…..… 217

4.5.2 Expression of Dynamic modality with ɛsε sε ….………....…. 223

4.5.3 Expressing Epistemic modality with ɛsε sε ……….......….…. 225

4.6 Etwa sɛ ……………………………………..…......……….… 226

4.7 Conclusion ……………………………………………….…. 232

5 Modal Adverbs and Adjectives …...……...………..…...… 235

5.1 Introduction ………………………………...…..........…...…. 235

5.2 Adverbs …………………………………...…......……...…... 237

5.2.1. The Adverb Ebia …………………………….............…..…. 237

5.2.2. The Adverb Sesεε/sεsεε ………………...……......……..…... 240

5.2.3 The Modal Adverb Gyama ………………….....…….....…... 246

5.2.3.1 Expression of Epistemic Possibility with Gyama ………....... 246

5.2.3.2 The Non-modal Use of the Adverb Gyama …........................ 249

5.2.3.2.1 Gyama in Quotations/reported Speeches …….…………..… 250

5.2.3.2.2 Gyama in Factual utterances ……..…...…………….……..... 252

5.2.3.2.3 Gyama in Directive Utterances …………...…........……..….. 254

5.2.3.2.4 Gyama in Interrogative Sentences …..……..……...............…. 254

5.3 Predicative Modal Adjectives …………….…….…..….….... 259

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5.3.1 The Predicative Adjective Eye ……….………..…….……..... 259

5.3.2 The Predicative Adjective Ehia ……..…...……..………….... 263

5.3.3 (Sɛ) (wo)anhwε a ……………………………..…………..….. 266

5.3.4 Akyinnye nnim sɛ ……………………………….....……...….. 270

5.3.5 (me) hwε a as an Evidential Marker ………………..…….….. 274

5.3.6 Biribiara kyerε sε as an Evidential Marker ……………...…... 277

5.4 Conclusion ……………………………………..……......…. 279

6 Verbs and Verbal Constructions ….………….....………... 281

6.1 Introduction ……………………...……...……….....……….. 281

6.2 Epistemic Verbs/Verbal Constructions ….....……....……..… 282

6.2.1 The Mental State Predicate dwene ………………………..… 282

6.2.2 The Mental State Predicate gye di …………………….…….. 289

6.2.3 The Mental State Predicate susuw ……….………..…….…... 294

6.2.4 The Verbal Construction εyε me sɛ ……...……..….……...… 301

6.2.5 The Verbal Construction- fa no sε ……………...………....… 304

6.2.6 The Verbal Construction wobɛka sɛ ……...………….…....... 306

6.2.7 The Verbal Construction ɛbԑyԑ sɛ ………..…….........…….... 311

6.3 Indicating Evidentiality with Verbs .……………………….. 314

6.3.1 The Evidential form ka/se and ka kyerε………..........………. 315

6.3.2 The Evidential te …………………………….…………...…. 319

6.3.3 Hu as an Evidential Marker …………………………....…… 321

6.3.4 The Evidential Form nim ……………….........……………... 325

6.3.5 Evidentiality and Attenuation ………………….……...…...... 329

6.4 Conclusion ……………………………………..............……. 334

7. Review of Previous Analysis of Some so-called

Epistemic Forms ……………………………………..……... 337


23

7.1 Introduction ……………………….……………………..….. 337

7.2 Ɛwom, ampa and nokware as ‘Modes of Truth’ ……….…….. 338

7.3 The particle – Anka …………………….……………..….….. 345

7.4 Conclusion ………………………………………….…….… 357

8 Conclusion ………...……………………….…….………..... 359

References …………………………….………………………...…....…… 363

Appendices ……………………………………..………...............…....….. 379

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

24


25

Maps and Tables

Table 2.1 An overview of the modal domains and their conceptual

categories as presented in the literature – Linden (2012) …...... 41

Table 2.2 Type of Books and other sources with their estimated

number of words …….…………………………..…………… 74

Table 2.3: List of modal and evidential forms in Akan …….………….… 76

Table 2.3 Alethic and counterfactual markers ………………..……….… 77

Map 3.1. Map of Ghana indicating the ten regions and where Akan is

spoken…………………....................................................…..... 80

Table 3.1 Assimilation table …………………………………………...…91

Table 3.2 Conjugation of irregular verbs ………………………………. 106

Table 3.3 Akuapem, Asante and Fante Subject Pronouns …………....... 116

Table 3.4 Inherent tense and aspect of verbal affixes ………..….…….... 134

Table 3.5 Affirmative and Negative T/A affixation ……….………...... 163

Chart 3.1 ‘The Negation Wheel’ - affirmative tense/aspects affixes …. 158

Chart 3.2 ‘The Negation Wheel’ - negative tense/aspects affixes…….. 158

Table 4.1 Frequency of bɛ- in written and spoken data ……....…..…….. 168

Table 4.2 Meanings of bɛ- …………………………...….……..........…. 168

Table 4.3 Frequency of tumi in written and spoken data ……...….....… 188

Table 4.4 Modal Meanings of tumi …………………………...……...... 188

Table 4.5 Frequency of ma in written and spoken data ……...……....… 213

Table 4.6 Modal Meanings of ma …………………………...………..... 213

Table 4.7 Frequency of ɛsɛ sɛ and etwa sε in wrt and spkn data ….....… 216

Table 4.8 Modal Meanings of ɛsɛ sɛ and etwa sε ……………...…….… 216

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

26

Table 5.1 Frequency of Modal Adverbs/Predicative Modal

Adjectives and Constructions in written and spoken data …... 236

Table 5.2 Modal Meaning of Modal Adverbs/Predicative Modal

Adjectives and Constructions ……………………..………. 236

Table 6.1 Frequency of verbs/verbal constructions in written and

spoken data ………………………………………..………. 282

Table 6.2 Modal and Evidential meanings of verbs/verbal

constructions. ……………………………………………....... 282

Table 7.1 Frequency of forms expressing modes of truth in spoken

and written data. ……………………………………..…...... 338

Table 7.2 Frequency of anka in written and spoken data ……………… 345


27

Abbreviations

1SG First person

2SG Second person singular

3PL Third person plural

ADJ Adjective

ADV Adverb

AK Akuapem Twi dialect

AKN Akanwa (the new Akan orthography)

AS Asante Twi dialect

AUX Auxiliary

CAUS Causative marker

CM Conditional marker

COMP Complementizer

COMPL Completive Aspect

CONJ Conjunction

CON Constructed Examples

CONS Consecutive marker

COP Copula

DEON Deontic

DEF Definite Article

DET Determiner

DYN Dynamic

EMPH Emphatic particle

EPI Epistemic

EVI Evidentiality

FA Fante dialect

FUT Future Tense

HAB Habitual

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

28

IMP Imperative

IND Indicative

INTER Interrogative Morpheme

MOD Modal

MP Motional Prefix

NEG Negation Morpheme

NON Non-modal/evidential

NP Noun Phrase

OBJ Object

OBS Observed Examples

PART Particle

PAST Past Tense

PERF Perfect Aspect

PL Plural

POSS Possessive Marker

POSP Post-position

PREP Pre-position

PROG Progressive

PROS Prospective marker

Q Question particle/Marker

RED Reduplication

REFL Reflexive

REL Relative Clause Marker

SBJV Subjunctive

SG Singular Person

SPK Spoken data

TOT Total number of occurrence

WRT Written data


29

Linguistic Notation Conventions

< … > Orthographic letters or graphemes

[ … ] Sounds, allophones

/ … / Phonemes, allomorphs

{ … } Morphemes

‘ … ’ Translation of examples or paraphrases

“ … ” Quotations

… Deleted materials or incomplete utterances

Italics Local language word of interest

? Redundant items

* Ungrammatical or unaccepted utterances

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

30


31

1 Introduction

1.1 Introduction

There has been renewed interest in the study of modality and evidentiality and their

relevance in linguistics. Modality is considered as the semantic domain which

expresses notions such as possibility, necessity, ability, need, potentiality,

inevitability and many others (see Nuyts 2016: 1). Evidentiality, on the other hand,

deals with the linguistic expression of source of information. Like Faller (2002),

we adopt a narrow definition of evidentiality as the linguistic encoding of the

speaker’s grounds for making a speech act, which in the case of assertions

corresponds with his or her source of information.

Discussing these two linguistic categories in one study is the first of its kind in the

Akan language. We examine the various ways, and with which forms Akans

express these notions and discuss their relationships. In the sections that follow,

we give the background information to the study, pointing out what prompted our

interest in the study and our research questions. We also present our aims,

limitations, analytical framework and finally, the outline of the study.

1.2 Background and Research Questions

The linguistic categories of modality and evidentiality are relatively young

compared to categories such as mood or tense. Boas (1938) mentioned an aspect

of evidentiality but it was not studied rigorously until Chafe & Nichols (1986).

This volume on evidentiality set the pace for renewed interest which led to more

investigations into other languages. Aikhenvald (2004) has also been a major

contributor to the study of evidentiality in this regard.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

32

The popularity of modality is also recent, although writers have mentioned it along

with discussions of mood and other notions (see Nuyts & van der Auwera (eds.)

2016; for a comprehensive outline of the history of modality and mood).

Despite their young existence as autonomous categories, they have received much

attention in the literature over these few decades. Nevertheless, writers consider

these two categories among the most complex topics in linguistics. We see the

complexities in definitions various authors provide which sometimes conflate the

notions with other clausal qualifications. Most of the definitions we draw attention

to attest to the fact that there has not yet been a consensus on any acceptable

definition which is encompassing enough to embrace all possible meanings of

modality or evidentiality.

Aside from the issue of definition, complexities exist in the way languages express

these notions in the sense that there is a lack of consistent analysis of forms by

some writers, which also trigger a lack of unanimity in what constitutes the

semantic as well as the syntactic domains of these categories. For modality, this

observation is in line with Palmer’s (1979) comment on modals and modality

which states that “the fact that different scholars have dealt with modals and

modality in so many ways is a clear indication of the complexity of the issues

involved and of the difficulty of arriving at any completely simple and completely

convincing analysis” (1979: 17). In surveying modality and mood, Nuyts also notes

that in spite of the intensive research mood and modality have enjoyed, the two

categories remain among the intriguing and puzzling linguistic domains. He points

out that the issue

“… also signals that they often concern very “slippery” phenomena that are hard

to grasp. Hence they remain subject to substantial controversy, disputes ranging from

the precise definition and delimitation of the complex semantic dimensions they cover

to the question of which (systems of) linguistic devices are used in languages to

express them and how these and their sometimes highly remarkable linguistic

properties should be analyzed” (2016: 2).

Whereas a number of languages have distinct forms for expressing modality or

evidentiality, other languages have forms which express both modality and


33

evidentiality. This is an issue which probably leads a few linguists to analyze the

two concepts as though they were one. There are also instances where a single

marker expresses more than one type of modality or both modality and something

other than modality or evidentiality. For instance, in some languages the future

tense form/marker is believed to be expressing modality or that the same form is

used to express future a state of affairs in one context, and in another, to express

modality (see Comrie 1976; Essegbey 2008; Ameka 2008; Salkie 2010, Berbeira

Gardon 2006).

In spite of the considerable body of research on these two categories in different

languages, it is amazing that there is only one extensive study on modality in the

Akan language and that is Owusu (2014), which discusses some of the strategies

available for the expression of modality in Akan. A few other writers have

discussed some aspects of modality in the language, though (see Saah & Agbedor

2004; Amfo 2005; Boadi 2005; Sakyi 2013 a; b). As for evidentiality, there is close

to none in Akan literature. The first question then is whether the forms mentioned

by these writers are exhaustive in the language or there are some others. Secondly,

what strategies are there for the expression of evidentiality in the language? And

thirdly, what is the relationship between modality and evidentiality in Akan and in

linguistics in general?

1.3 Aims and Limitations

The aims of this study are to identify all possible forms used to express modality

and evidentiality in the language, to discuss their semantic and syntactic functions

and to examine how modality and evidentiality are related. This is to contribute to

the ongoing discussions in the linguistic world in general and specifically to add to

the study of these two categories in Akan.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

34

Although we are considering all possible forms and how they contribute to the

meanings of modality and evidentiality in the language, we do not intend to exhaust

all areas of debate in linguistics. Issues of the relationship between

modality/modals and conditionals as well as epistemic indefinites, which explore

modality beyond the verbal (and probably adjectival and adverbial) domains, will

not receive attention here. See Iatridou 2000; von Fintel & Iatridou 2005 and

Kratzer 2012, for modality and conditionals, Haspelmath 1997; for indefinites, and

Alonso-Ovalle & Menendez-Benito 2015; for epistemic indefinites.

1.4 Analytical framework

To answer the questions put forward concerning all possible forms used to express

modality and evidentiality, their syntactic and semantic components as well as their

relationship, it was imperative to use empirical data from reliable sources. We used

a self-created corpus backed with constructed examples to identify, describe and

classify forms/constructions according to which modality or evidentiality meaning

they express. This was achieved through the application of a descriptive method,

taking cognizance of the semantic, syntactic and pragmatic components of the

forms and constructions, on one hand, and considering their contextual bases, on

the other, to arrive at their modal/evidential meanings.

1.5 Outline of the Study

This section presents the outline of the study. The preliminary chapter following

this introduction presents the review of relevant literature, and sketches the

methodological processes adopted in the study. In chapter 2.2 we discuss previous

studies and relate them to our current study. The section presents how some writers


35

define the two notions of modality and evidentiality, and what they include under

each. In the latter part of the section, we discuss the relationship between Akan

modality and evidentiality based on our corpus data. We note divergent and

convergent meaning expressions in some of the forms. This is where a single form

may express varied meanings of modality, and several forms or constructions may

also express one semantic notion. For this reason, we have also examined semantic

notions such as ambiguity, vagueness, polysemy and synonymy of forms and

described them accordingly. Most of them are analyzed as ambiguous rather than

vague. Chapter 2.3 describes the process of data collection and further presents an

overview of the forms and constructions used in the dissertation.

Chapter 3 offers essential information on what we mean by Akan in this study, and

our motivation for choosing three of its dialects (Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi and

Fante), for the study. This chapter further presents vital information on the

phonology and grammar of the language, taking cognizance of notions and

processes such as tone, consonant assimilation and vowel harmony. In addition,

we point out which word classes are available and how clauses are structured in

the language. Essentially, we look at nouns (especially personal pronouns),

adjectives, adverbs and verbs. For its complexity and importance in the study, we

elaborate on types of verbs and their formation as well as verbal affixes which

impact our analysis of modality/evidentiality. We also point out how these affixes

appear in the standard writing systems of the three dialects used. Specifically, we

discuss concepts such as mood, tense/aspect, negation, and the consecutive and

illustrate how they are marked. Further, we examine the issue of relative time

marking, pointing out how the segment na is used, among others.

The thrusts of the study are from chapters 4 to 7. Chapter 4 deals with an affix,

auxiliary verbs and verbal constructions argued to function as forms contributing

modal meanings to clauses they occur in. These forms express epistemic, deontic

and dynamic modalities. Chapter 5 examines the use of adverbs and predicative

adjectives/adjectival constructions to express epistemic, deontic and dynamic

modality meanings as well as evidentiality. In chapter 6, we discuss the use of

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

36

verbs and verbal constructions to express epistemic modality, on one hand, and the

indication of evidentiality, on the other. Earlier writers describe certain forms as

expressing epistemic modality, but their meanings do not fit into our framework of

epistemic modality, so we do not include them in our main epistemic modal

markers. These are adverbial/adjectival forms and a counterfactual marker which

we treat in Chapter 7. Chapter 8 offers the summary and the conclusions of the

study.

The last pages in the dissertation present references and appendices. The

appendices include the list of books and electronic sources which make up our

corpus, transcription of parts of radio discussions, excerpts from some of the books

from which we extracted the forms within the contexts. Further, we have excerpts

of passages translated into English and written in Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi and

Fante to assist readers to understand some of the similarities and differences in the

writing system of the three dialects.


37

2 Preliminaries

2.1 Introduction

This preliminary chapter covers two vital parts of the study – the literature and the

methodology. In the literature review, we examine definitions proposed by writers

on modality and evidentiality. We look into the relationship between these two

categories, especially between epistemic modality and evidentiality, and relate

them to the study in Akan. Languages differ in how they express these two

categories, so we have a section on how they may be expressed in languages. Since

most of the forms we discuss here code several notions, and other notions are

expressible with several forms or structures, we discuss the issue of ambiguity,

vagueness and polysemy etc., in this section as well. The second part of the chapter

presents an outline of our methodology, touching on data collection methods,

giving an overview of modality and evidentiality forms identified, and indicating

the glossing style adopted in the study.

2.2 Review of Literature

A study of modality and evidentiality in a language is, no doubt, quite bulky,

considering the complexities each of these semantic domains exhibit. One might

think that handling these two complex topics in one study might only present

shallow analyses. But since there is a close relationship between the two categories,

especially between evidentiality and epistemic modality, handling them together

actually leads to a better understanding of both categories. The close relationship

used here does not suggest they are the same, though. Nuyts (2001: 27-28) states

categorically that epistemic modality does not include evidentiality. He points out

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

38

how sometimes these categories are conflated, by mentioning writers like Bybee

(1985) and Palmer (1986), who include evidentials in the category of epistemic

modality. He also mentions Hengeveld’s (1988 & 1989), which discuss the

category of ‘epistemological modality’ to cover subjective epistemic modality next

to evidential categories such as quotative, inferential, experimental, hear-say, etc.

In any case, expositions from several writers support the fact that these two

categories are distinct. Despite their distinctions, the way they are expressed and

the functions they play in propositions accord them a special bond, which makes

their studying together relevant. For Nuyts (ibid.), their different categorial status

and their similarity as clausal qualifications support that even if someone is

studying one of these notions, one can keep an eye on the other because they relate

and interact in intricate ways.

Of course, undertaking this detailed analysis for these linguistic categories has not

been easy at all it being the very first of its kind in the language. However, we

benefited greatly from the methods used by Nuyts (2001a); Byloo (2009); and

especially, Gbegble (2012), which are similar in many respects, although they

concern different languages. Concerning some of the Akan forms, Christaller

(1875); Saah & Agbedor (2004); Boadi (2005); Amfo (2005); Sakyi (2012 a; b)

and Owusu (2014) were of great benefit to the success of the current dissertation.

In the sections that follow, we present various definitions and explanations given

by writers regarding modality and evidentiality.


39

2.2.1 Modality

The bulk of the literature on modality (see von Wright 1951a; Lyons 1977; Palmer

1979; 1986; 1990; 2001; Perkins 1983; Coates 1983; Bybee et al. 1994; van der

Auwera & Plungian 1998; Nuyts 2001; 2005; 2006; De Haan 1994; 1999, Ameka

2008; Nuyts & van der Auwera (eds.) 2016; and many others) attests to the fact

that modality has received much attention.

Various writers have given explanations of modality. In most of the works, we find

epistemic, deontic and dynamic modalities occurring as its types. Some

terminological differences exist among these types, though, sometimes due to the

elements one puts under each notion, and so there is little consensus on how to

define these notions. Aside these three main types, notions like alethic, volitive,

and boulomaic are discussed as subtypes of modality as well (see Lyons 1981;

Nuyts 2005; 2006; von Fintel 2006).

In discussing sentence adverbs with evaluative functions, Lyons (1977: 451-2),

relates them to modality and comments that the speaker uses these adverbs to

express parenthetically his ‘opinion or attitude’ towards the proposition that the

sentence expresses or the situation that the proposition describes. Palmer (1986:

2), on his part, sees the notion of modality as much vaguer, compared to notions

such as tense and aspect or even gender, and remarks that the nature of modality

leaves open a number of possible definitions. Nonetheless, he finds Lyons’

‘opinion or attitude’ of the speaker promising, explaining that modality is “the

grammaticalization of speakers’ (subjective) attitudes and opinions” toward the

propositional content of the utterance (Palmer 1986: 16). Linguists such as Kratzer

(1978) and van der Auwera & Plungian (1998), define modality as a category of

linguistic meaning having to do with the expression of ‘possibility’ and ‘necessity’.

Other studies point out how insufficient these definitions or explanations may be,

considering the variety of notions that have to fall under modality. For instance, it

is argued in Nuyts (2005) that dynamic modality is not attitudinal at all. (This idea

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

40

could go a long way to eliminate dynamic modality from the list if we relate

modality to only attitude). He further argues that deontic and epistemic modalities

do not appear to be exhaustively definable in terms of the two notions of

‘possibility and necessity’. He therefore proposes that modality should be seen as

“qualification of states of affairs” (Nuyts 2006: 1). Although this definition covers

all the three traditional modality meanings as well as other semantic notions which

are often included under modality, it also covers more linguistic notions and

categories such as time and aspect, and so it does not delineate the notion of

modality as such.

In the discussions that follow, we cite a table from Van linden (2012: 26) to give a

glimpse of the types of notions authors have identified as expressing modality and

related notions as well as evidentiality. As indicated above, the five writers we

present in the table are not the only proponents of modality and/or evidentiality but

the details they present are interesting for our discussions. It is evident from the

table that although not all these writers consider the same notions or modal

meanings, and they do not have the same labels for them, some notions run through.

Among these notions are epistemic, deontic and dynamic modalities (even if they

have different labels). We will discuss these three as the main modality meanings

and notions like volitive, boulomaic and others under ‘related notions’.

Evidentiality is discussed as a separate category in this study.


41

Nuyts 2005; 2006 Palmer 2001 Coates 1983 Bybee et al. 1994 van der Auwera

& Plungian

1998

volition

even

t m

od

alit

y

dy

nam

ic

volitive

roo

t

volition

agen

t-ori

ente

d

volition ……………..

dy

nam

ic

participant-

inherent

abilitive ability ability participant-

internal

participant-

imposed

necessity,

root

possibility

necessity, root

possibility

par

tici

pan

t-ex

tern

al

-deontic

situational ………........

deontic ? ? ? ?

directive

deo

nti

c

permissive,

commissive,

obligative

obligation,

permission

ag/s

p-o

r

obligation,

permission

+deontic

epistemic

pro

posi

tional

modal

ity

epis

tem

ic

speculative,

assumptive

epis

tem

ic

non-

inferential

epistemic epistemic

evid

enti

al inferential

deductive inferential ........................ …………….

hearsay

evid

.

reported,

sensory

……………….. ……………… …………….

boulomaic …………………..... ……………….. ……………… ……………..

Table 2.1: An overview of the modal domain and its conceptual categories as presented in

the literature – Van Linden (2012).

2.2.1.1 Epistemic Modality

Considering the definitions a number of writers have put forward, there seems to

be more consensus on what epistemic modality is, than on the other modality

meanings or related notions. Bybee & Fleischman (1995: 6) comment on its

stability among writers, and they point out that epistemic modality retains its

traditional definition: “Epistemics are clausal-scope indicators of a speaker’s

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

42

commitment to the truth of a proposition.” The meanings expressed range from

certainty to probability and possibility (see also Coates 1987; Thompson & Mulac

1991; Aijmer 1997; Simon-Vandenbergen et al. 2007; and Timotijevic 2009).

Bybee et al. (1994: 239) explain further that “inherent in the function of epistemic

modality is the expression of the degree of commitment that the speaker is willing

to admit concerning truth of the proposition”.

Some of the forms expressing this notion are in the examples below:

1. I may have put them down on the table; they’re not in the door.

and

2. John is probably home.

Lyons defines an epistemically modal or modalized utterance as “Any utterance in

which the speaker explicitly qualifies his commitment to the truth of the

proposition expressed by the sentence he utters, whether this qualification is made

explicit in the verbal component, or in the prosodic or paralinguistic component”

(Lyons 1977: 797). For Bybee et al, “Epistemic modality applies to assertions and

indicates the extent to which the speaker is committed to the truth of the

proposition.” (Bybee et al. 1994: 179-180) (see also Hooper, Bybee 1974). Palmer

(1987: 97) reports that epistemic modality makes a judgment of possibility: “An

epistemic modal is used to express a judgment by the speaker about the truth of the

proposition he is presenting” and Givon (1993: 74; 1982; 2001: 92) indicates that

epistemic modality conveys the speaker’s attitude toward the truth, certainty or

probability of the proposition. (see Halliday 1970: 349 and Cinque 1999: 87 for

similar ideas).

In his monograph, which offers an in depth empirical investigation into the

semantic domain of epistemic modality, Nuyts (2001: xv) sees the semantic

domain of epistemic modality as a “speaker’s evaluation of the likelihood of a state


43

of affairs, as expressed in language”. He further defines epistemic modality as “(the

linguistic expression of) an evaluation of the chances that a certain hypothetical

state of affairs under consideration (or some aspect of it) will occur, is occurring,

or has occurred in a possible world which serves as the universe of interpretation

for the evaluation process, and which, in the default case, is the real world (or

rather, the evaluator’s interpretation of it)” (Nuyts 2001: 21).

In all the definitions explicated above, the speaker’s attitude to the truth value of

the proposition, and the likelihood of the state of affairs are among the main

ingredients. We adopt Nuyts’ (2001: xv) proposal (which is also everybody’s

almost) as our working definition.

2.2.1.2 Deontic Modality

Deontic modality is generally recognized as one of the modality notions. Almost

every writer mentions it, although a few rename it to conform to which sub-notions

they include under this notion (cf table 2.1). The term ‘deontic’ (from the Greek

word deon, which means ‘what is binding’, having to do with duty, obligation or

responsibility) is used to describe one semantic component of modal verbs such as

must, may, can, and certain quasi-modals (see Lyons 1977: 823). Deontic modality

is defined variously as ‘expressing permission and obligation’. Lyons (ibid.)

indicates that “deontic modality is concerned with the necessity or possibility of

acts performed by morally responsible agents”. Further, he describes it as an

imposition of obligation upon someone to perform or refrain from performing a

particular act (see also, Palmer 1987: 97 and Austin 1962: 4).

In recent studies, however, Nuyts (2001; 2005; 2006) uses the term to refer to moral

acceptability or desirability. He explains that “deontic modality is an evaluation of

the moral acceptability, desirability or necessity of a state of affairs, i.e., it crucially

involves notions such as ‘allowance’, ‘permission’ and ‘obligation’” (Nuyts 2001:

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

44

25). Based on this view, we recognize and integrate the notions of ‘directives’ and

‘moral acceptability’ into ‘deontic modality’. We see deontic modality, then, as

having permissives, commissives and obligatives as well as moral acceptability

and desirability as its subtypes.

2.2.1.2.1 Directives

Traditionally, Searle (1983: 166) describes deontic modality as ‘directives’. This

description is frowned upon by many, since the definition excludes other relevant

notions of deontic from the concept. Albeit, ‘directives’ seems more appropriate to

describe a subtype of deontic modality. ‘Directives’ by extension, connotes

mandate, permission, obligation, commitments, and the like, which fall within the

term ‘deontic’. The notion of ‘directives’ as mentioned in Nuyts (2005; 2006),

encompasses an aspect of Palmer’s (2001) ‘event modality’ which includes

permissive, commissive and obligative. The term ‘directives’ also includes one

aspect of Coates’ (1983) ‘root modality’ comprising of obligation and permission.

Under Bybee et al’s (1994) ‘agent/speaker-oriented modality’ it is obligation and

permission. Van der Auwera & Plungian (1998) handle it under what they term

+deontic modality.

Nuyts (2005: 9) notes that “Expressions of permission, obligation and interdiction

are more complex because they do not only involve an assessment of the degree of

moral acceptability of a state of affairs, but also a ‘translation’ of this assessment

into (non-verbal) ‘action terms”. He further points out about these forms that

“Specifically they also involve an intention to instigate or (not) to hinder another

person’s actions or positions…”.

3. You may go now.


45

May is used to give permission for the first-argument participant to carry out the

state of affairs ‘go’ expresses in the utterance.

In line with this view, Bybee et al. (1994: 179) explains some of the uses of ‘agent-

oriented’ and states that, “The agent-oriented modalities can also be used in

directives – utterances that are intended not to report but to elicit action.” It further

points out that “such uses are considered to be within the domain of modality, and

because the speaker is involved in creating the obligation or granting the

permission, these uses are described as subjective” (see also Palmer 1974; Lyons

1977 and Coates 1983: 32). Some of the examples given are:

4. “You must play this ten times over.”

5. “You can start the revels now.”

Must in (4) is setting an obligation, while can in (5) is giving permission to the

agent.

2.2.1.2.2 Moral Desirability/Acceptability

Nuyts (2005: 9; 2006: 4) defines deontic modality in more general and more

appropriate terms as “an indication of the degree of moral desirability of the state

of affairs expressed in the utterance, typically but not necessarily on behalf of the

speaker.” This view of moral acceptability, reiterated in Nuyts (2005; 2006), Byloo

(2009), Gbegble (2012) and Van linden (2012), which is not conspicuous in the

numerous definitions of deontic, is helpful and viable since it enables us to treat

forms which do not set obligation but express mere moral desirability or

acceptability under deontic modality.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

46

Nuyts notes that this notion of morality is scalar, and it has a dimension of polarity

as well (relating it to epistemic, which has these two parameters). He says that “The

notion of degree may be taken to involve a gradual scale going from absolute moral

necessity via the intermediary stages of (on the positive side of the scale)

desirability, acceptability and (on the negative side of the scale) undesirability, to

absolute moral unacceptability” (2005: 9). To clarify the notion of morality Nuyts

(ibid.) further points out that it “should actually be defined widely: this can relate

to ‘societal norms’, but likewise to strictly personal ‘ethical’ criteria of the person

responsible for the deontic assessment”. With all the forms we treat in the study,

we will indicate the scalar value, pointing out whether a particular deontic meaning

is strong, medium or weak in a particular utterance, and also deal with the

dimension of polarity where necessary.

2.2.1.3 Dynamic Modality

Dynamic modality is another type of modality we discuss in this study. The term

dynamic emanated from the Greek word for ‘power’ or ‘strength’, and it is used to

express ability/capability inherent in an agent. von Wright, the proponent of the

term, describes it as concerning with ability and disposition (1951: 8). Papafragou

(2000: 3-4) mentions that “Apart from epistemic/deontic distinction, another main

area of modal meaning is often recognized, dynamic modality, which includes the

notional categories of real-world ability, possibility and intention/willingness”,

reiterating von Wright (1951). The term dynamic modality is used by Palmer

(1979; 1986; 1990; 2001), Perkins (1983) and Nuyts (2001; 2005 & 2006). De

Schutter (1983) and Goossens (1985) use facultative modality for the notion,

Bybee, Perkins & Pagliuca (1994) discuss it as ability under agent-oriented

modality, Coates (1983) has it as ability under root, van der Auwera & Plungian

(1998) discuss a part of the notion under participant-internal modality while

Hengeveld (1988) calls it inherent modality.


47

Palmer treats dynamic modality variously. In discussing dynamic modality and

describing the status of the modal auxiliary can, Palmer (1976: 102) argues that

can is used ‘to express what seems to be a factual non-modal statement’. But note

that can can also express permission and when negated even epistemic modality.

In his (1979b: 36-7) he treats it as a type of modality and proposes that three types

of modality – epistemic, deontic, and dynamic should be recognized. In (1986:

103), Palmer points out that dynamic modality with its notions of willingness and

ability are subject-oriented and they do not concern the opinion or attitude of the

speaker, so this notion of dynamic modality can be omitted from the strict

typological classification of modality. He further comments that whereas epistemic

and deontic modalities are “related to the speaker”, dynamic modality does not and

may not be modal at all (1990: 7). Note, however that, the dynamic ‘can’ can be

used to relate to the speaker when s/he is describing his/her own abilities, as in:

6. ‘I can shoot objects as far as 200 meters without missing’.

In his (2001: 7) book, Palmer subsumes dynamic and deontic modality under one

term, event modality.

Nuyts (2001) recognizes dynamic modality and points out that it “involves an

ascription of a capacity or a need to the subject-participant in the state of affairs,

or of a situation-internal potential or necessity of him/her/it to do something

(usually this involves animate entities, but it can also be extended to inanimate

subjects” (2001: 25). He argues that whereas epistemic and deontic modalities

concern the attitude of the speaker, dynamic does not, reiterating Palmer (1986;

1990). As a result, he suggests that dynamic modality should be viewed as a

subcategory of ‘quantificational aspect’ (2005: 20). He stresses that “In fact,

notions such as ‘ability/potential’ and ‘need’ are clearly semantically akin to

notions such as ‘iterative’, ‘habitual’ or ‘generic’, in the sense that they are all

concerned with the ‘appearance’ of the state of affairs in the world”.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

48

Conversely, in his (2005; 2006) classification of dynamic modality, Nuyts

proposes three subtypes of dynamic modality: ‘Participant-inherent dynamic

modality’, ‘Participant-imposed dynamic modality’ and ‘Situational dynamic

modality’.

(a) Participant-inherent dynamic modality:

According to (Nuyts 2006: 3), Participant-inherent dynamic modality involves the

ascription of abilities/capacities (or needs/necessities) to the first-argument

participant, who is usually the agent.

7. John can cook fabulously.

This ability is inherent in the participant.

Corresponding to this type of dynamic notion is Bybee et al’s. (1994: 177) ‘Ability’,

which “reports the existence of internal enabling conditions in the agent with

respect to the predicate action.”

8. I can only type slowly as I am a beginner.

(b) Participant-imposed dynamic modality:

This indicates the abilities/capacities or needs/necessities of a participant which are

“determined by the local circumstances (and which may thus be partly beyond the

power and control) of the participant” (Nuyts 2006: 3).

9. We know of several small sanctuaries which have had to close down

because of financial difficulties….


49

The circumstances of financial difficulties made it necessary for the participants to

close down the sanctuaries. This expresses dynamic modal necessity (‘the situation

forces us to do so’).

Bybee et al (1994: 178) refer to this type of dynamic modality as ‘necessity’, which

reports on general enabling conditions and is not restricted to the internal condition

of ability, but also reports on general external conditions such as social or physical

conditions.

10. I actually couldn’t finish reading it because the chap whose shoulder I was

reading the book over got out at Leicester Square.

(c) Situational dynamic modality:

Situational dynamic involves the indication of “a potential or a

necessity/inevitability inherent in the situation described in the clause as a whole”

(Nuyts 2006: 4).

11. It is possible to crop cauliflowers under polythene bags….

The possibility to crop cauliflowers is dependent on the right things to use and in

the right environment – under polythene bags. One major difference between (b)

and (c) is the ‘ability’ of a participant in (b), which is absent in (c).

One finds terms like ‘external necessity’ (Quik et al. 1985: 226 and Palmer 1990:

114-116) or what van der Auwera & Plungian (1998) call ‘participant-external

modality’.

12. It can snow in winter.

13. It is possible to open the door now, I’ve cleaned up the rubbish behind it.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

50

2.2.1.4 Related Notions

The notions of boulomaic modality/attitude and volition have been treated

variously by some authors, mostly in relation with other modality meanings.

2.2.1.4.1 Boulomaic Attitude

Boulomaic attitude concerns an indication of the speaker’s (or someone else’s)

liking or disliking (emotionally) of the state of affairs, Nuyts (2005: 24).

14. Did they actually like the fact that you returned?

Perkins (1983: 9) listed boulomaic modalities as one of the modality notions and

described it as relating to desire:

It is hoped (or: X hopes) that p

It is feared (or: X fears) that p

It is regretted (or: X regrets) that p

It is desired (or: X desires) that p

Kratzer (2012: 5) labels it “Preferential” or “bouletic” and explains that it relates

to preferences or wishes. Corresponding to the semantic components of these

expressions in Akan are ɛyɛ me dɛ sɛ… ‘I am pleased that..., ɛyɛ me anigye sɛ… ‘I

am happy that…’, ɛyɛ me awerɛhow… ‘I am sad that…’, ɛyɛ me yaw sɛ… ‘It hurts

me that…’, mewɔ anidaso sɛ… ‘I hope that…’, mehwehwɛ sɛ… ‘I wish that…’,

mepɛ sɛ… ‘I want that…’ and many others which are used to indicate the


51

participant’s emotions towards the proposition. We do not discuss them in this

study.

2.2.1.4.2 Desiderative

Desiderative is described as an illocutionary act whose function is to express the

speaker’s hopes, desires, fears, etc., Perkins (1983: 14). The notion is one that has

the meaning of “wanting to X”. Probably because of its description as an

illocutionary act or the forms used, some writers exclude it from the range of modal

meanings. For its relationship with other modal meanings and other uses in

languages, however, it is not discarded completely; it is kept ‘hanging’. In Akan,

expressions like mepɛ sɛ… ‘I want that…’ or mehwehwɛ sɛ… ‘I wish that…’, mewɔ

anidaso sɛ… ‘I hope that…’, misuro sɛ… ‘I am afraid that…’ are used to indicate

the speaker’s or other participant’s desire/fear/wanting to do something or for

someone else to do something. This point is worth noting here but we will not

discuss it in this current study.

2.2.1.4.3 Volitive

Nuyts (2005: 10) points out that “volition first and foremost appears to refer to

desires.” This means volition and desiderative refer more or less to the same thing

– the expression of desire. Bybee et al. (1994: 178) also indicate that “desire reports

the existence of internal volitional conditions in the agent with respect to the

predicate action”. They further report that “desire also gives rise to expressions of

willingness” as in

15. I’ll help you.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

52

These three notions just discussed, boulomaic attitude, desiderative and volition

seem to be expressing the same notion, ‘desiring, wanting, or liking’ (to)/that X,

so it is often difficult to tear them apart. Moreover, their close relations with other

modal notions make it difficult to eliminate them completely from the modality

notions.

In discussing attitudinal categories, for example, Nuyts (2005: 24) points out that

boulomaic attitude could be considered one of the attitudinal categories, by

indicating that “The list of attitudinal categories actually may not be restricted to

these three (evidentiality, epistemic and deontic). There appears to be at least one

further category – only sporadically mentioned in the literature, and hardly ever

considered let alone thoroughly analyzed in studies of the modal categories,

probably because most authors would not consider it a modal category at all –

which should be included in it…”

The problem involved in leaving out this notion is explained by Nuyts (2005: 24),

attributing it to Kratzer’s (1978) assumption that it does not belong to the meanings

expressed by the classical set of modal auxiliaries. However, as it has been

observed in the literature, modality is expressible with other word classes, which

are not modal auxiliaries at all, so this assumption may not be strong enough to

warrant its exclusion from the modal meanings. In spite of this, its classification

(that is whether it should be classified as a separate modality meaning or whether

it should be integrated into one of the existing modality meanings) has not yet been

established.

The tendency of relating the notions above with deontic modality is amplified in

the discussion that follows. Perkins (1983: 11), for instance, notes that “boulomaic

modalities have certain affinities with deontic modalities”. He also notes the

similar notions boulomaic and desiderative express and points out that “there

seems to be no reason, however, why a further subcategory of ‘desiderative’

illocutionary acts should not be included, whose function is to express the

speaker’s hopes, desires, fears, etc. vis-à-vis some non-actual state of affairs.”


53

Lyons (1977: 826) indicates that the ‘desiderative and instrumental function[s] of

language’: that is to say, the use of language, on the one hand, to express or indicate

wants or desires, and on the other, to get things done by imposing one’s will on the

other agents, are both closely related to the category of deontic modality. He

illustrated further that “I want the book” will often be interpreted as “Give me the

book”.

Palmer (1986) associates volition with deontic, while Goossens (1983) and Palmer

(2001) include it under the category of dynamic modality. Nuyts (2005: 10) also

suggests that “if permission and obligation are considered deontic, to the extent

that the notion of ‘intention’ equally relates to action terms – the difference being

that in this case it relates to the actions of the assessor himself – it should be

considered deontic as well.” Deliberating further on the viability of the status of

directives as deontic modality and its close association with volition, Nuyts

(ibid.: 13) further suggests that “the directive speech act meanings’ covered by the

later notion appear identical to the traditional deontic meaning of obligation and

permission and more or less related meanings such as volition and desire, so from

a purely semantic perspective it is also hard to see why they should constitute a

category separate from other deontic notions.”

Although the association and possible integration of volition (desiderative and

boulomaic as well) with deontic modality seems plausible, considering the

arguments put across, it is not wholly accepted or unanimously acclaimed. As a

result, Nuyts further points out regarding the differences existing between deontic

modality and volition that, “the category of ‘volition’ may actually also belong

under this label. It is no doubt often difficult to draw a precise borderline between

this category and deontic modality – and this extends beyond the issue of the status

of volition – but the core of both categories really does seem to be semantically

different, hence to warrant a separate category.”

In this study, we do not assert categorically that these notions - boulomaic,

desiderative and volition - should be included in modality or not, neither do we put

them as subcategories of any of the major modality meanings - deontic or dynamic

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

54

- we recognize the strong affinity they have with deontic modality. Due to time

constraints, however, we do not discuss any of the forms which express the notions

of boulomaic attitude, volition and desideratives in the current study.

2.2.2 Evidentiality

The concept of evidentiality in the study is grounded on the general premise that

everyone speaks based on a kind of evidence, knowledge, experience or deductions

(see Nuyts 2001; 1993). Aikhenvald (2004: 10) mentions that “Every language

has some way of referring to the source of information, but not every language has

grammatical evidentiality.” Of course, the way languages express various

categories may differ, but it is the existence of the said category in a particular

language which is important. Chafe (1986: 261) notes concerning languages which

exhibit evidentiality grammatically as opposed to English, which uses lexical

forms that, “the difference between these Indian languages and English, is not a

matter of evidentials vs. no evidentials. It is partly a question of how evidentiality

is grammatically expressed: is it by suffixes, auxiliaries, adverbs or what?”

There are varied ways of expressing the notion in different languages (see Squartini

2008 for French and Italian). Aikhenvald (ibid.: 1) indicates that in about a quarter

of the world’s languages (she studied), every statement must specify the type of

source on which it is based, for example, whether the speaker saw it, or heard it, or

inferred it from indirect evidence, or learnt it from someone else. Boas (1938: 133)

had earlier on identified these languages as languages in which indicating the

source of information is obligatory. One must indicate whether the situation

presented was seen, heard or inferred from available evidence. These languages

have dedicated suffixes which indicate their source of information.

It has also been pointed out that in some languages evidentiality may be expressed

by specific evidential forms and by modal auxiliaries. These auxiliaries are said to

express both evidence and epistemic modality (see Coates 1983; Bybee et al 1994;


55

van der Auwera & Plungian 1998; Palmer 2001; Matthewson et al. 2007 and

Matthewson 2007; 2010 & 2015). It is among such languages that Faller (2002)

mentions overlapping in epistemic modality and evidentiality. Yet in other

languages, evidential forms are completely different from modality markers, the

position taken by Aikhenvald (2004; 2007; 2015 & 2018). These varied

realizations of the concept in different languages lead writers to define evidentiality

in diverse ways. Following from Lyon’s (1977) sense of epistemology (see also

Palmer’s 2001: 8 on ‘evidential modality’), Chafe (1986: 261) describes

evidentials in a ‘broad sense’ as “involving attitude towards knowledge, and in a

‘narrow sense’ as marking the source of such knowledge”

Based on such broad sense of evidentiality, Willet (1988: 51) points out that,

“…there is not yet any consensus as to the notional boundaries of evidentiality.”

This notwithstanding, there seems to be a greater unanimity among writers

regarding its core meaning of indication of source of information. Aikhenvald

(2004: 3) states that “Evidentiality is the linguistic category whose primary

meaning is source of information”.

Considering how Akan exhibits evidentiality in clauses, it is wise to adopt a

working definition of the concept to delimit our scope. We will therefore follow

Aikhenvald’s (2004; 2007) exposition which states categorically that, lexically,

evidentiality may be expressed by perceptual verbs, particles, parentheticals,

adverbs, etc. This shows that evidentiality is not always expressed grammatically

but also lexically. Akan falls within this category of languages. In the subsequent

chapters, we shall discuss the available strategies used to express evidentiality in

the language.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

56

2.2.3 The Relation between Epistemic and evidential meaning.

One of our aims is to examine the relationship between modality and evidentiality.

Most definitions and the discussions that go with them in the literature give an

indication that modality and evidentiality are two separate categories in their own

right. However, many writers have pointed out issues relating to certain forms

expressing both modality and evidentiality in some languages (see Chafe 1986;

Chafe and Nichols 1986; Nuyts 2001; Cornillie 2007; 2009 and De Haan 1999;

2001 & 2005).

Palmer (1986: 64), for example, claims that certain forms express both notions, and

explains that, “in one the speaker indicates that he is inferring from available

information, in the other he indicates the degree of confidence he has in what he is

saying.” Reiterating Palmer on the issue of epistemic modal/evidential ‘fusion’,

Hoye (1997: 80) contends that, “It could also be argued that the modal expression

must necessarily not only conveys the speaker’s conviction but actually specifies

that the assertion is based on a conclusion drawn from all available evidence. The

action or process of inferring is thereby made explicit.” He further mentioned that,

“This would imply that epistemic modality involves a dual process, one which

includes both inference and confidence; each may be present in different or equal

measure according to the modal – adverb combination in question.”

In his paradigm of evidential use, Chafe (1986: 263) describes belief as an

expression of mode of knowing, but he could not provide a corresponding source

of evidence as he did for induction, hearsay and deduction which correspond to

evidence, language and hypothesis, respectively. Further, he indicates on (page

166) concerning belief, among others, that “such expressions carry implications as

to degree of reliability as well.” It is upon this description that Nuyts (2001: 112),

argues that the supposed evidential meaning residing in these two forms, believe

and think, are in the realms of (inter)subjectivity and not in the realm of evidential

category of inferentiality (indicating the quality of evidence for the inferential


57

process). He notes that expression of epistemic probability is a central element of

the forms believe and think. He observes differences in the behaviour of mental

state predicates as regards their expression of evidentiality or epistemic modality.

To him, “the evidential dimension of predicates such as know, guess or suppose

may be more dominant than that of think or believe.”

Not only does Nuyts (ibid.) disagree with the classification of the form belief as

being primarily evidential, but he also assumes that the two notions of epistemic

modality and evidentiality are inherent components of the forms. Nuyts (ibid.)

believes the expression of epistemic meaning is “not just in some indirect way but

as a central element of the expression (but the evidential meaning always seems

present too, and, likewise, not as an implication but as an inherent and sometimes

quite important component)”.

It must be noted from the above expositions that although all these writers

recognize two clausal qualifications, viz, evidentiality and epistemic modality, not

all of them tear their mental state predicate expressive devices neatly apart. Aside

these writers, other writers treat these devices as expressing either evidence or

epistemic modality (see Aikhenvald 2004; 2007 & 2018). In her (2018) paper, she

distinguishes languages which operate on ‘closed system’ of grammatical forms

whose primary meaning is information source and indicates that they cover a

recurrent and limited set of semantic parameters. These are the languages in which

indicating source of information in every utterance is obligatory. For the other

languages she indicates that they have ‘evidentiality strategies’, where evidentiality

is expressed through conditionals, modality, perfect, perfective, or different kinds

of complement clauses. Yet in other languages, she reports other means of

expressing evidentiality by lexical forms such as verbs of perception see, hear,

smell and cognition know, understand and so on. The bulk of studies on

evidentiality reveal other ways of indicating evidence in utterances. As such,

Aikhenvald (ibid.) mentions yet other means including the use of modal verbs,

particles, parentheticals of various sorts, and even facial expressions, to express

inference, assumptions and attitude to information i.e., whether the event is

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

58

considered probable, possible, or downright unlikely. In all these diverse means,

she concludes that “The ways of expressing information source appear to be open-

ended. Evidentiality is not.”

De Haan (1999) makes the effort to distinguish evidentiality from epistemic

modality by asserting that evidentiality encodes the source of information

contained in the utterance, while epistemic modality encodes the degree of

commitment on the part of the speaker to the truth of the information. Based on

this assertion he further points out that “an element which distinguishes only

information-source is not a modal”. This claim, however, generates arguments

since some writers claim a modal can be used to express evidentiality in their

languages.

Faller (2006), for instance, takes a narrow view of evidentiality as a distinct

category from epistemic modality but the way of expressing the two notions makes

her assert that “conceptually, the two categories are clearly distinct, though

empirically it is often not easy to determine for a given morpheme whether it is an

evidential or an epistemic modal”.

The issue of modals expressing modality and/or evidentiality or not, makes

Matthewson et al. (2007) argue and reject some of Aikhenvald and De Haan’s

statements by pointing out that in St’at’imcets evidentials distinguish the source of

information and do not encode distinctions of certainty/judgement/evaluation and

so they fall squarely into De Haan’s evidential category. However, they argue

further that these elements must also be analyzed as epistemic modals in the sense

of being elements which qualify over epistemically accessible worlds. They thus

reject the idea that it is an intrinsic requirement of a modal to distinguish certainty

or quantificational force. They also reject Aikhenvald’s (2004: 7) claim that

evidentiality and modality are ‘fully distinct categories’, with the latter category

necessarily relating to the degree of certainty. With this conclusion, one would

want to think whether Matthewson and her colleagues are not lumping these two

categories together thereby making it difficult for them to see any difference in

them.


59

Based on the line of discussion and other claims these writers make, Aikhenvald

(2018) notes specifically that Matthewson et al. (2007) doubt that evidentials have

a uniform denotation across languages. To her,

“this claim is based on superficial and truth-value-oriented treatment of the

limited sources used by the authors, with a deductive and formalist

orientation, and an unjustified assumption of the modal (that is, epistemic)

character of evidentials across the world which bears an imprint of an English-

language bias”.

She further criticizes that De Haan’s (1999) “arbitrarily - and wrongly - reducing

all evidential systems to a binary distinction reflects more than just a bias in favour

of languages of Eurasia” and that “this false assumption reeks of the ‘insidious fad

of binarism’ - religiously ‘satisfying the strictures of a theoretical model which

demands that all oppositions must be binary, thus making the language structure

appear homogenous” (2018:14). We will not go into ‘binarism’ here but it is also

the case that since all languages discussed in the literature have demonstrated their

various means of expressing evidentiality and modality, it shouldn’t come as a

surprise to say that ‘every language can express everything by different means’.

The relation between evidentiality and assertion or epistemic modality is obvious,

and it is widely acclaimed. In any case, this is not to say that evidentiality does not

relate to the other modalities. In the conversation below Kratzer (1977: 338) shows

that ‘must’ can be used to express both deontic and epistemic modalities. But

looking at the trend of conversation it is also obvious that both the epistemic and

deontic utterances couldn’t be given without an evidence, although the speakers

could omit their evidential evaluations in the utterances.

The first speaker’s use of ‘must’ in this epistemic utterance is based on evidence

but he did not indicate it. The second speaker’s estimation of the possible arrival

of the Maoris from Peru is based on the knowledge of their technical means which

permitted them much longer trips.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

60

16 A: “The ancestors of the Maoris must have arrived from Tahiti.”

B: “No, they could have arrived from somewhere else. We know that

their technical means permitted them much longer trips. They

could have even arrived from Peru.”

17 A: “The Maori children must learn the names of their ancestors.”

B: “Do they really? Is there a law in New Zealand which provides

that the Maori children learn the names of their ancestors?”

A: “No, of course there is no such law in New Zealand. At least no

official law. But the Maoris have their tribal laws, and it was these

laws I had in mind when I said ‘All Maori children must learn the

names of their ancestors’.”

In (17), speaker ‘A’ uttered his deontic proposition without specifying his evidence

or source of information. ‘B’s interrogation was therefore in place to ascertain

his/her source of information. ‘A’ responds by providing his source of information

as the tribal laws of the Maoris, which provide that the children learn the names of

their ancestors. In the same vein when someone says

18. ‘I must eat something.’

It could be that he is hungry, or there is a requirement which stems from his eating

regulations. In effect, desirability, ability, potentiality and the rest of the modal

meanings can be expressed based on source of information, knowledge or

experience.

The discussions of the relationship between modality and evidentiality as presented

in this overview may not indicate a clear-cut illumination of what these categories


61

stand for, or how they may be separated from each other due to the varied views

writers hold. However, results from our analysis of the extensive Akan data in this

study push the conclusion to one direction. It supports the view that evidentiality

is a different category from modality, time and other qualifications. Readers are

encouraged to read Nuyts & van der Auwera (eds.), (2016), which presents an

excellent view on how modality and mood as well as evidentiality can be handled

in a way that will bring out the individual characteristics in these categories.

Although contributors of the book portray some level of idiosyncrasies, the

agreement and/or principles they adopted in the book bring(s) lots of confusion to

the barest minimum.

2.2.4 Expression of modality and evidentiality in languages

Typological categories are often defined semantically and as such a number of

strategies are available in languages to express modality and evidentiality. De Haan

(2006: 32) indicates that “a morpheme is classified as a modal if it has a modal

meaning (epistemic, deontic, etc.).” This is as well true for other linguistic

categories like evidentiality as noted in § 2.2.2 (see Chafe 1968: 261). Modal and

evidential meanings are expressed variously through morphological, syntactic, and

lexical means. De Haan (ibid.) notes the use of auxiliary verbs, mood, affixes,

lexical means, adverbs and adjectives, tags, particles, case and possibly, many

others to express modality. Likewise, von Fintel (2006: 2) mentions numerous

kinds of expression that have modal meanings and points out that “… the following

is just a subset of the variety one finds in English:

(a) Modal auxiliaries

Sandy must/should/might/may/could be home.

(b) Semimodal Verbs

Sandy has to/ought to/needs to be home.

(c) Adverbs

Perhaps, Sandy is home.

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62

(d) Nouns

There is a slight possibility that Sandy is home.

(e) Adjectives

It is far from necessary that Sandy is home.

(f) Conditionals

If the light is on, Sandy is home.”

Depending on the writer, one may not consider all these kinds of expressions as

being modal, though.

In the sections that follow, we will discuss some of the expressive devices and

strategies used in expressing modality and evidentiality in Akan and present all

identified forms. We will also illustrate how modality and evidentiality are

expressed in Akan in the subsequent chapters and point out how some of the forms

express different types of modal meanings or how a notion can be expressed by

several modals or evidentials. Perkins noted that, “analyses of word-meaning can

usually be divided into those which assign a meaning to a word in isolation from a

specific context of use, and those which regard the meaning of a word as being

largely, if not entirely, dependent upon a specific context of use” (1983: 26). The

first thought in this quotation follows from Bolinger (1977: x), who states that “the

natural condition of language is to preserve one form for one meaning, and one

meaning for one form”. Proponents of the second thought of ‘polysemantic’

approach also argue that “every difference in a word’s use is a consequence of and

evidence for a difference in its meaning” (see Wertheimer, 1972: 49). Perkins

(1983), for instance, adopts the ‘one form per meaning’ approach to treat English

modals. Our interest in this study is to find all possible forms which express

modality and evidentiality, and to describe their usage. Due to the varied expressive

devices considered in this study, we espouse the wholistic, ‘polysemantic’

approach to facilitate our account for the different shades of meanings some of the

forms possess. Both approaches, as noted by Perkins (ibid.), are not necessarily

right or wrong. Any of them that one uses, one has to judge its viability based on

how illuminating the phenomenon is in the interpretation of states of affairs. In the

sections that follow, we shall look at the notions of ambiguity, vagueness and


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polysemy as discussed by writers and relate them to our use of one term or the

other in our discussions.

2.2.5 Some Aspects of Semantic Theory

Linguists often have issues on plurality of meaning, and instances where the

semantic component of an item or construction is precise or imprecise. Lyons

(1977: 38 refers to the following possibilities as important for semantic theory: “(i)

that two or more signals may be equivalent, each encoding the same message, and

(ii) that a particular signal may be ambiguous, encoding more than one message.”

In this study, we find forms or devices expressing multiple modal and evidential

meanings, as well as single modal or evidential meanings which are expressed by

several forms or devices. To be able to account for such occurrences we briefly

look at the concepts of polysemy, homonymy, vagueness, ambiguity and

synonymy, and how they bear on the study.

2.2.5.1 Polysemy and homonymy

Polysemy is defined by Deane (1988: 325) as “the existence of multiple but related

meanings for a single form”. Glynn (2014) describes it as the “different concepts-

functions of a form” (p. 9-10). The relatedness in meaning is better understood

when one considers Langacker’s (1991: 268) definition, which sees polysemous

lexemes as sharing the same etymological background and/or are conceived of as

being semantically related by speakers. In English, some of the common examples

are the kinship terms. They also include terms of body parts which are often used

metonymically to denote related ideas. We have similar terms in Akan, where wofa

‘an uncle’, for example, can mean the brother of a father or the brother of a mother.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

64

Traditionally, homonymy is seen as different words with the same form (see Lyons

1981: 19). Langacker (1991: 268) says that “homonymous lexemes have the same

phonological form with different etymological background and/or conceived of as

being semantically unrelated. Therefore, homonymy may be seen as a subcategory

of lexical ambiguity”. In comparing polysemy and homonymy, Lyons (1981: 39)

claims that “one form may be associated with several meanings (homonymy and

polysemy) and in (page 45) he points out that “homonymy is a relation that holds

of two or more distinct lexemes, and polysemy (“multiple meaning”) is a property

of single lexemes.”

Relating homonymy and lexical ambiguity is a common practice among linguists,

but some relate polysemy to ambiguity. Claudia Brugman and George Lakoff

(2006: 109) have it that “polysemy is a subtype of lexical ambiguity, contrasting

with homonymy, wherein a single lexical form is associated with more than one

meaning, and those meanings are unrelated. In the case of polysemy, one word is

taken as having senses which are related”. The main difference between these two

notions is that whereas polysemous words can be traced to one common ancestor,

homonymous words have completely different ancestors, e.g., bank as a financial

institution and bank as the edge of a river. In Akan, one example will be the prefix

bε- which can be used as either a future tense marker ‘will’ or as an epistemic

marker ‘may’.

2.2.5.2 Vagueness

Vagueness has been defined in several ways. Some writers consider vague forms

as having nonspecific meanings or that they have specific meanings, but it is often

difficult to know their exact referents. It could also be difficult to identify which

components of clauses they are related to. For Tuggy (2006: 168), a vague word

is “a lexeme with a single but nonspecific meaning”. Van Rooij (2011: 123) also


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asserts that “an expression is vague if its meaning is not precise”. The expositions

given by these writers above talk about the non-specificity of meaning. It is for this

reason that Langacker (2009: 129) states that “vagueness or generality of meaning

is not the same as meaninglessness”.

The precision of referent is taken up in Langacker (2009), where he asserts that

“there is less precision in vagueness” (page 128). He expatiates further that when

an item is vague, “the expression fails to impose any significant or sufficient

delimitation on the range of possible referents.” This type of vagueness is also

described in the sense of indeterminacy (see Gensler 1977 for more details).

Langacker (ibid.: 58) describes vagueness as a “kind of indeterminacy in

pronominal reference”. He mentions especially the third person pronoun it, the

demonstrative this and that, all of which have specific meanings, but in certain

contexts their referents are often difficult to determine. This indeterminacy

regarding how elements hook up with other elements in clauses is a common

phenomenon and regarded as part of the dynamics of language. He further states

that “This vagueness of referent is not however the same as absence of reference.”

Lexically, writers consider kinship terms such as an aunt, an uncle and a parent as

vague because when one mentions ‘an uncle’ for instance, we do not know if it is

a brother of a mother or a brother of a father which is referred to, etc. Structurally,

we can have a sentence like (19) where the demonstrative or the anaphora refers to

something, but difficult to point exactly what we mean (see Langacker ibid.: 129

and 136).

19. ‘That is not fair/it is not fair.’

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2.2.5.3 Ambiguity

Generally, ambiguity deals with forms and structures which have the same

phonological shape but have distinct meanings. Lyons (1977: 38) indicates that “a

particular signal may be ambiguous, encoding more than one message”. Tuggy

(2006: 167) considers a given phonological form as ambiguous when two or more

meanings associated with it are distinct. To van Rooij (2011: 125), “An expression

is ambiguous when it has more than one semantically unrelated meaning, and thus

tend to come with separate dictionary entries” (see also Geeraerts 2006: 151).

Lobner (2002: 39) also explains that “an expression or utterance is ambiguous if it

can be interpreted in more than one way”. Such expressions or utterances may or

may not contain lexical items which have different and unrelated meanings, but it

is because the whole construction may be interpreted in varied unrelated ways.

Depending on what triggers the ambiguity - a lexeme or the whole structure -

linguists differentiate lexical ambiguity from structural, syntactic, grammatical,

transformational or scope ambiguity (see Lyons 1975; and Chierchia &

McConnell-Ginet 1993).

A lexical ambiguity occurs with forms which can be entered separately in a

dictionary. That is to say, in isolation, that lexeme can be interpreted differently

with unrelated meanings.

The classical example linguists often quote is the lexeme ‘bank’ which can

represent a financial institution or the sloppy edge of a river. In (20), the lexical

item ‘bank’ makes the construction ambiguous because one does not know if it is

the financial institution or the edge of the river Jef went to.

20. ‘Jef went to the bank’


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We described the Akan form bε- as an ambiguous form in the sense that in written

constructions, it may have the equivalent meanings of ‘will’. which is used to

denote future occurrences, ‘may’, used exclusively to denote epistemic modality

in the environment of stative verbs, and ‘to come’, a deictic marker or motional

prefix. This is because the standard writing form does not feature tones to

differentiate them. In speech, however, ‘to come’ can be eliminated from the group

because it has a low tone and the other two have high tones. The real ambiguity,

therefore, involves only ‘will’ and ‘may’. The claim here is that in Akan, only items

with the same phonological shape - form and tone - are ambiguous. Same forms

with different tones are different lexemes and so not candidates form ambiguity.

When a verb can occur with both the stative aspect and the future tense marker as

in (21), then there is ambiguity between (21. a) and (21. b), but there is no

ambiguity between the constructions in (21) and (22). (AK, AS and FA attached to

the sentences indicate the dialects cited, viz, Akuapem, Asante and Fante,

respectively).

21. Kofi begyina hͻ (AK/AS) Kofi begyina hͻ (FA)

a. ‘Kofi will stand there’, or

b. ‘Kofi may be standing there’

22. Kofi begyina hͻ (AK/AS) Kofi begyina hͻ (FA)

‘Kofi comes to stand there’.

When the constructions involve time, we can add time adverbials such as

‘tomorrow’ or ‘now’ to disambiguate them, but in most cases, contexts resolve

such ambiguities.

From the expositions above, a structure can be ambiguous when it has an

ambiguous lexeme or when the structure itself can be interpreted in several ways,

in which case structural, syntactic, grammatical, transformational or scope

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

68

ambiguity is invoked. In (23), one cannot tell we are saying the slaves were sold

out or that the slaves who sold out something.

23. ‘The sales of the slaves was amazing’.

Structural ambiguity can be exemplified in the Akan language as in (24) below.

Here we cannot tell whether the punishment is coming from the teachers or it was

meted out to the teachers. There is no lexical item which is ambiguous but there is

a ‘lack of precise referent’ or ‘antecedent’ and that is why the construction is

ambiguous.

24. Akyerεkyerεfo no asotwe no mu yε yaw. (CONS AK)

Akyerεkyerεfo no asotwe no mu yε yaw.

teachers DET punishment DET in be pain

‘The punishment of the teachers is too severe.’

Another form which can be described as ambiguous is tumi, which at one instance

can express ‘ability’, ‘possibility’ or ‘permission’.

25. Agi tumi didi. (AK/AS)/Agi tum dzidzi. (FA)

Agi tumi didi.

Agi tum dzidzi. (FA)

Agi can eat

‘Agi is able to eat/Agi is permitted or allowed to eat/Agi has the tendency

of eating too much.”

One would observe that some examples go well with more than one notion. It is

the extent of coverage of an item which determines the notion it expresses. For

instance, the word ‘uncle’ can be cited as an example of homonymy, polysemy,


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vagueness and ambiguity, depending on how one argues it out. It is a homonym

because the same form can mean a brother of a mother or a brother of a father –

different referents. It is polysemous because the meanings can converge as a

brother of a parent. It can be vague because we do not know if it is a mother’s

brother or a father’s brother one is referring to and it can be ambiguous because

‘uncle’ can mean a brother of a mother or a brother of a father. Other writers will

also argue that the word ‘uncle’ belongs strictly to polysemy because it eventually

goes back to one ancestor.

A similar situation obtains with certain types of structural ambiguity and

indeterminacy in vagueness (see Lakoff 1970). Consider Langacker’s (2009: 58)

example where the actual referent of the word four is wanting. (26) is vague

because one does not know if the teacher has only four students who are all brilliant

or that s/he has many students among whom are four brilliant ones. Other linguists

will explain why it is ambiguous because one could say ‘the number of students

the teacher has is four and they are all brilliant’ or ‘the teacher has many students

but four of them are brilliant.’

26. She has four brilliant students.

Our use of ambiguity in this study, therefore, is consistent with situations where a

lexeme has the same phonological shape but different and unrelated meanings. It

also covers situations where constructions can be interpreted with different

unrelated meanings. We shall use the term vague when a lexeme has a specific

meaning, but it cannot be related easily to a particular referent, as in the case of the

pronoun ‘it’ in (ii) above.

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2.2.5.4 Synonymy

The notion of synonymy invokes the idea of sameness or similarity in meaning.

Traditionally, “any two lexemes were considered synonymous if replacing one

lexeme with the other did not change the ‘truth semantic’ meaning of the phrase”

(Lyons 1968: 428). It is further related to instances where “the same meaning can

be associated with different forms” Lyons (1981: 39). In another exposition, Glynn

(2014: 8) describes synonymy in terms of situations where “speakers choose

between different linguistic forms to express similar concepts or different forms

for a concept-function”. Thus, we use synonymy in this study to refer to two or

more forms/constructions which have similar modal or evidential meanings.


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2.3 Methodological Procedures

This section presents our methodological procedures. It details the collection of our

corpus data - the type of data used - spoken and written and glossing style.

2.3.1 Data Collection Methods

We based our current study of modality and evidentiality in Akan on corpus data

and complemented it with constructed examples. It reflects native speaker’s

judgments of what is syntactically, semantically or even pragmatically plausible in

utterances. The author is a native speaker of Akan who is fluent and literate in the

three dialects used in the study, viz: Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi and Fante. This

was crucial because as Nuyts (2001a: 47) points out, native or near-native

intuitions are indispensable to make valid fine-grinned semantic analyses in studies

of this nature.

We agree with Leech’s (1991: 74) argument which supports the use of both corpus

and intuition. He argues that the use of a corpus is a question of corpus plus

intuition, rather than of corpus or intuition (see also Byloo 2009: 14, who bases his

analyses on this tenets). Due to the evasive nature and the corresponding difficulty

associated with the subject matter of this study, pertinent issues can easily elude a

researcher if s/he is dependent on his/her intuition alone for data. The use of corpus

data, therefore, is essential for such analysis. However, like for most African

languages, there currently is no ready-made digital corpus for Akan.

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2.3.1.1 Collection of Written Data

We have compiled our own corpus based on available texts. We were heavily

restricted in the possibilities for doing so, however. Ideally, a corpus for a language

is representative: it should cover a wide range of different text genres (spoken and

written). In Akan culture (like in all other Ghanaian linguistic communities),

however, the bulk of published texts are written in English. Publications in Akan

are mainly limited to local language textbooks, storybooks and religious materials.

It was therefore impossible to compile a representative corpus of written Akan

beyond these genres. An additional complication that occurs is that published

materials are often not available in electronic form, which means we had to work

in part with printed hard copies. This issue has compelled us to provide as many

examples as possible for each point raised to cover the three dialects discussed in

this study. This way, readers and prospective writers of Akan need not go through

the hectic process to search for data, but they will use this as a good source of

corpus examples on a vast range of items aside the modal/evidential forms.

Thus, we have used about 65 printed Akan books, including the Bible, literary

prose, poetry, drama, pedagogical materials and a few published and unpublished

journal articles (a full list of these works, with their abbreviated titles, is provided

in Appendix 1). We had to read through these books to extract modal and evidential

forms manually, including sufficient amount of context to support the analysis.

In addition, we managed to get access to fifteen electronic texts (also listed in

Appendix 1). These include ‘Creative-writing essays’ from the 2010 Akan

Students of University of Education, Winneba (UEW), Fante books awaiting

publication, texts from a few online sources, a translated copy of the UN Human

Rights charter and parts of an electronic Bible. We used WordSmith to search for

the relevant forms.

The printed and electronic texts together consist of approximately 1,700,000

words. The word count for the electronic texts is precise. The count for the hard


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copies, however, is an approximation. We have mentioned the number of words

we estimated in each book in Appendix 2.

2.3.1.2 Collection of Spoken Data

Next to the written data, we have also compiled an inevitably limited corpus of

spoken data - the most natural, primary type of communication - to support the

written data. On the 12th and 13th December 2013, we taped about 12: 42 hours of

radio broadcasts from Peace FM - Accra, a station which mainly uses Akan in its

broadcasts. The broadcast included radio news, advertisement, motivational

messages and discussions, among others. Although we were not able to transcribe

the entire data, we listened to them several times and wrote down the interesting

sentences for analysis. To estimate the number of words in the broadcasts, we

randomly transcribed small portions of different parts. We had an average of 160

words per minute, which suggests about 122, 000 words of spoken data in total.

We have also used Akan speakers in Ghana and Antwerp as informants. In

particular, we have noted down sentences containing the identified forms on daily

basis (in the examples tagged as OBS). This method drew our attention to a number

of relevant forms we did not consider initially as expressing modality or

evidentiality.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

74

2.3.2 The Corpora and Forms

Table 2.2 gives an overview of our corpus and of the number of words in the

different corpus categories.

Type of Books Number of Books Est. Number of Words

Published Books 65 1, 604, 834

Unpublished Books 15 109, 915

Web Sources 3 9, 272

Radio Broadcast 12 hrs. 42 minutes. 122, 000

Total 1, 846, 021

Table 2.2 Type of Books and other sources with their estimated Number of Words

All these data together should be sufficient for an in-depth analysis of the kind we

envisage. We are aware of the argument that no corpus, however large, covers the

full potential of a language. Byloo (2009: 14) noted concerning this issue that “this

sort of problem crops up in everyday study, in any branch of science, that is based

on sample”. Nuyts (2001a: 47) also points out that some features of a phenomenon

may be so rare that even very large corpora do not reveal them. Our type of corpus,

made up of written, spoken and intuitive constructed tokens, has revealed a number

of forms and their complex functions.


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2.3.3 Glossing

Glossing in the study is based on the Leipzig glossing rules. For each example

presented, the first line is the data-line which is usually the way it appears in the

corpus. Tone does not feature in Akan orthography, so this first line is without

tones. The second line gives the morphological analysis with tones. We indicate

noun morphology only when it is necessary for making a point. The third line is

reserved for glosses of the morphological analysis (literal translation) and the

fourth line gives the idiomatic translation. We try as much as possible to be faithful

to the original utterances but where it is not possible, especially where there are

idiomatic expressions, euphemisms or proverbs we also give paraphrases to cover

them.

We present all examples we quoted from published/unpublished books and

scientific articles the way they appear. However, since various writers use different

glossing styles, we alter some of them to conform to our style. Examples taken

from the spoken data are cleaned up or simplified by omitting pause fillers such as

‘eem’ or ‘eh’, unnecessary pauses, hesitations, repetitions, slips of the tongue etc.,

unless they are relevant for the discussion. We have further presented speeches of

speakers who have idiosyncratic way of pronouncing certain words in the

standardized writing system. For instance, we replace an Asante speaker who

pronounces woomu/wɔɔmo with wɔn ‘they’. We replace sentences like yɛɛkɔ with

yɛrekɔ ‘we are going’ and wɔɔmo baayɛ with wɔbaeɛ ‘they came’.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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2.4 Overview of Forms

The following table offers an overview of forms we identified as expressing

modality and evidentiality in the language. The first column is for the forms,

followed by their glosses, and then the expression type involved. The fourth and

fifth columns are for the modal or evidential meanings and the total occurrences of

each form in the corpus, respectively.

Akan Form Glosses Word Class M/E Meaning Total

bε- may AUX Epi/Deon/Dyn 287

tumi can/be able/possible AUX Epi/Deon/Dyn 496

ma let/allow/make/cause AUX Deontic 68

ɛsε sɛ must/have to/should AUX Deon/Dyn 206

etwa sɛ must/have to/should AUX Deon/Dyn 92

ebia maybe/perhaps Adverb Epistemic 108

gyama perhaps Adverb Epistemic 294

sesεε probably Adverb Epistemic 34

eye it is good Adj. Const. Deon/Dyn 69

ehia it is imp/necessary Adj. Const. Deon/Dyn 42

woanhwε a perhaps/maybe Adv/adj. Const. Epistemic 36

akyingye nnim it is not doubtful Adv/adj. Const. Epistemic 20

wohwε a apparently/evidently Adv/adj. Const. Evidential 22

biribiara kyerε sɛ it is evident Adv/adj. Const. Evidential 6

dwene to think/suppose Verb Epistemic 45

susu to think/suppose Verb Epistemic 32

gye di to believe/think Verb Epistemic 300

fa no sɛ to suppose/think Verbal Const. Epistemic 8

ɛyε me sɛ to think/suppose Verbal Const. Epistemic 84


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wobεka sԑ appears/may think Verbal Const. Epistemic 22

ɛbԑyԑ sɛ it may be that Verbal Const. Epistemic 18

ka/se to say/allege/report Verb Evidential 246

te to hear Verb Evidential 80

nim/hu to know Verb Evidential 231

hu to see/realize Verb Evidential 117

Table 2.3: List of modal and evidential forms in Akan

Some writers have discussed the following forms as expressing epistemic

modality. However, considering our working definition, these forms neither fall

within the scope of epistemic nor any of the other two main modality meanings

discussed in this study. The first 3 forms are used to confirm facts and they express

what is known in the literature as Alethic modality. The forth one is here described

as irrealis or a counterfactual marker.

nokware true Adjective Alethic 128

ampa true Adjective Alethic 166

ewom it is true Adj. Const. Alethic 98

anka would have Particle Counterfactual 932

Table 2.4 Alethic and counterfactual markers

We identified 29 forms overall. 25 of them are made up of an affix, auxiliary verbs,

main verbs/verbal constructions, adjectives/adjectival constructions and adverbs.

These are used to express the three main modality meanings and evidentiality. We

have 3 adjectives/adverbs used to assert or confirm truth, and 1 particle used to

mark counterfactual or irrealis propositions.

While some of the relevant forms we found in our corpus are highly frequent,

others showed up only a few times. Our primary concern is not about the frequency

of forms, but it is to get a full overview of which forms are available in the language

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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to express modality and evidentiality. To this end, we should add Nuyts’ (2001a:

47) observation that, “the frequency of a feature does not necessarily correlate with

its importance for understanding the matter, especially in case of a highly complex

phenomenon such as the present.”

The frequencies of the forms may be dependent on the type of sources used for our

corpus, and so may not represent the general situation in Akan. For instance, the

negative form of ԑsԑ sԑ ‘must/it has to be’ - ԑnsԑ sԑ ‘it should not be’ - occurred

much more often in the human rights documents than in all the other sources put

together. This must be expected in a document whose major aim is to spell out

prohibitions. Similar biases may apply in the forms as well.

2.5 Conclusion

So far, we have considered what earlier writers have put forward concerning what

modality is, what types and meanings there are, as well as notions which have been

discussed as related to the main types of modality. We have examined how

evidentiality has been explained and pointed out how writers see its relationship

with epistemic modality based on how these categories are expressed in languages.

Further, we have examined issues of multiple meanings of forms and related them

to polysemy, homonymy, vagueness, ambiguity and synonymy. The chapter has

also outlined the methodological procedures. We touched on the kind of data used,

how it was collected and talked about glossing style adopted in the study. Before

concluding the chapter, we presented an overview of the forms we identified. The

next chapter considers Akan and some pertinent issues which will facilitate

ourdiscussion of modality and evidentiality in the subsequent chapters.


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3 Akan

3.1 Introduction

The term Akan is generally used to refer to a people and the language they speak.

In this chapter, we present an overview of the Akan people and the languages we

describe as Akan in this study. We also describe a few linguistic issues which

characterize the speaking and writing of Akan and how they bear on the study of

modality and evidentiality.

3.2 Overview of Akan People and Language

Akan is one of the Kwa languages spoken in Ghana and Ivory Coast. Akan people

in Ghana include several subgroups, viz: the Asantes, Fantes, Akuapems, Akyems,

Akwamus, Ahantas, Bonos, Nzemas, Kwahus and Sefwis. They occupy five of the

ten regions of Ghana, viz. the Ashante Region, the Eastern Region, the Brong

Ahafo Region, the Western Region and the Central Region (see Abakah 2016, for

details).

The 2010 Population and Housing Census counted 24,658,823 people in Ghana, of

which 11,712,940, i.e. 47.5%, are native Akans. Apart from the native speakers,

there is a reasonable number of non-native speakers of the language. Although

there is no official research on their number, on estimate 80% of the other

Ghanaians have a reasonable level of competence in the language, probably due to

trade and migration. Akan is used as a medium of communication in schools and

in churches in the Guan speaking parts, as well as in the Greater Accra Region,

where a reasonable number of all the other ethnic groups are based.

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We have adopted a map from the link below to elucidate our discussion (see

http://www.ephotopix.com/ghana_political_map.html). The black line marks the

area in which Akan is principally spoken in Ghana.

Map 3.1. Map of Ghana indicating the ten regions and the area where Akan is spoken.

Four dialects of Akan in Ghana, viz. Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi, Fante and Nzema,

have received literary recognition and they are being studied from basic schools

through to university levels. The language is studied in Teacher Training Colleges

in seven out of the ten regions of Ghana. For the purpose of competence, we did

not include Nzema in our analyses.

http://www.ephotopix.com/ghana_political_map.html


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As should be expected from dialects of the same language, some similarities and

differences exist in speech and in the writing systems of the three Akan dialects

used here, viz. Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi and Fante. Due to this fact, some

governments and linguists desired to eliminate the system of producing the same

information in three seemingly similar dialects. An Akan Language Committee

was therefore tasked to publish a unified Akan word list, Akan orthography and

Spelling Rules, in 1995 (see Dolphyne 1988). Attempts to use the unified

orthography in schools have not been effective, however. This may be due to the

public outcry of what was essentially the imposition of a system that is too different

from those of the existing dialects. Our observation is that up to now, authors use

the original and standardized writing system of their dialects in their books and

articles. Government ministries, Ghana Education Service, Adult Education,

Ghana Information Service and individual publishers continue to offer information

in the three dialects separately. For this reason, about 99. 8% of our written data

is made up of only pure Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi and Fante. There was one text

book in our selected materials written by a team of scholars from these three dialect

backgrounds which provides some data in the proposed Akan orthography

(henceforth named Akanwa1 to differentiate the main language from the new

writing system extracted from the three already recognized systems of writing).

Data extracted from the written corpus are left in the original dialect used in writing

them. To assist readers in identifying which dialect is cited, we have put the

abbreviations (AK) for Akuapem Twi, (AS) for Asante Twi, (FA) for Fante,

(AKN) for Akanwa and (ALL) when the entry goes for all the dialects, at the end

of each construction. Akan in this study, therefore, is the language spoken by all

the Akan tribes except Nzema. The written examples are the standardized

Akuapem, Asante, Fante and Akanwa.

1 The term Akanwa is made up of Akan plus the diminutive marker wa to indicate that this is

not the major language Akan we know but a subset of it.

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3.3 Some Phonological and Morphological Features

In this section, we discuss some of the phonological and morphological differences

as well as similarities existing in these dialects. Although the study is not on the

phonology and morphology of the language, it is imperative to describe some of

these processes considering the varied data used. Moreover, it is essential to

comment on some of these phonological/morphological issues to clarify

orthographic changes in the representation of data. We will touch on vowels,

consonants and tone patterns and a few other issues which make up the different

dialects.

3.3.1 Vowel Harmony

Akan has ten oral vowels grouped into minus advanced tongue root (–ATR) and

plus advanced tongue root (+ATR). [ɪ, ε, a, ᴐ and ʊ] are –ATR and [i, e, æ, o and

u] are +ATR. Seven of the vowels appear in orthography, viz. <i, e, ԑ, a, o, ᴐ, u>

and the remaining three [ɪ, æ, ʊ] are represented orthographically by <e, a, o>

respectively. One can only determine what orthographic <e, a, or o> stands for by

means of the -/+ATR value of the word stem in which they appear2. Asante [asantɪ],

Fante [fantɪ] and Akuapem [ækuapɪm] are examples. The words Asante and Fante

are basically -ATR words and as such the letters <a> and <e> in them represent the

sounds [a] and [ɪ] respectively. Akuapem on the other hand is a compound word

containing +ATR vowels in the first part and -ATR vowels in the second part Aku-

apem. <a> in the first part is realized as [æ] but in the second part it is realized as

[a]. <e> in the second part is also realized as [ɪ].

In the principle of vowel harmony, all vowels in a lexical item should come from

just one of the two ATR groups. Lexical items containing a mixture of vowels from

both +/-ATR are considered a violation. The principle also implies that all affixes

2 Every Akan word has a basic +/-ATR quality often determined by the first vowel in the stem.


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should correspond to the ATR value of the stems to which they are attached. In

Akan, pronominal subjects, a modal marker, tense/aspect markers, consecutive

markers and singular/plural markers are affixes to the verb and noun stems. As a

result, there are two sets of these markers differentiated only by the ATR quality.

The corresponding vowel sounds in the two groups are [i/ɪ, e/ԑ, æ (e)/a, o/ᴐ, u/ʊ].

In (1) and (2) the vowel in the stem is a -ATR, thus it selects a singular morpheme

<ɔ> and a plural morpheme <a>, which are -ATR.

1. Ɔwᴐ -ATR (AK/AS/FA/AKN)

ᴐ-wᴐ

SG-snake

‘snake’

2. Awᴐ (AK/AS/FA/AKN)

a-wᴐ

PL-snake

‘snakes’

In (3) and (4), since the vowel in the stem is a +ATR, it selects +ATR singular and

plural morphemes <o> and [æ]/<a> respectively.

3. Onyame +ATR (AK/AS/FA/AKN)

o-nyame [o-ɲame]

SG-god

‘god’

4. Anyame (AK/AS/AKN)

a-nyame [æ- ɲame]

PL-god

‘gods’

5. Enyame (FA)

e-nyame [e-ɲame]

PL-god

‘gods’

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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Note that in (4) AK/AS/AKN uses [æ] in the initial position. One would have

expected the same sound in Fante, but Fante replaces this sound with [e] in such

environments as in (5) and also in consecutive and perfect aspect markings. This

does not mean Fante does not have this sound, but it occurs in other environments.

Dolphyne (2006:2) states concerning this [æ] vowel that “There are some sub-

dialects of Fante however (e.g. Bɔrbɔr Fante) in which this vowel occurs, and it

occurs after syllables with the vowels i, u.” Some examples are: bisa [bisæ] ‘ask’,

sika [sikæ] ‘money’, osua [osuæ] ‘it is small’ etc., (see also Abaka 2002; Dolphyne

1987; Greenberg 1963b and Schachter 1969).

(6) and (7) have pronominal subjects, tense and verb stems. In (6), ba ‘to come’

has a -ATR value, thus the pronominal subject and the future tense markers are in

-ATR.

6. Ɔbԑba. (AK/AS/FA/AKN)

Ɔ-bԑ-ba.

3SG-FUT-come

‘S/he will come.’

Di ‘to eat’ in (7) has a +ATR vowel quality, hence the choice for +ATR pronominal

subject and future tense affixes in Akuapem and Fante.

7. Obedi (AK)/ Obedzi (FA)

O-be-di.

3SG-FUT-eat

‘S/he will eat.’

(8) shows how Asante and Akanwa write the same clause. The pronominal subject

and future tense markers remain in -ATR even in the environment of a +ATR verb

stems.


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8. Ɔbɛdi (AS/AKN)

Ɔ-bɛ-di

3SG-FUT-eat

‘S/he will eat.’

All the dialects apply the Vowel Harmony principle in speech. Akuapem and Fante

use it in writing as well, but Asante and Akanwa do not follow the principle in

writing when the stem has +ATR vowels.

Fante has another property, known as ‘lip rounding’. This is a feature in vowel

harmony where stems containing rounded vowels select rounded affixes and those

with unrounded vowel stems also select affixes with unrounded vowels. The first-

person singular subject pronoun me, which has a front-high-unrounded vowel [ɪ/i],

changes to (a back-high-rounded vowel) [ʊ/u] when the vowel in the verb stem is

a rounded vowel, i.e., [o, ɔ, u, ʊ]. Depending on the ATR quality in the verb stem

me-re-kɔ [mɪrɪkɔ] becomes morokɔ [mʊrʊkɔ] ‘I am going’, miridzi [miridzi] ‘I am

eating it,’ merefa [mɪrɪfa] ‘I am taking it.’

9. Murusu.

Murusu.

1SG-PROG-cry

‘I am crying’

Also, the vowels in the affirmative progressive [ɪ] and the affirmative future marker

[ԑ], which are front-unrounded, change to back-rounded vowels [ᴐ/o, ʊ/u] when

the vowel in the stem is a back vowel.

10. Ɔrokᴐ. (FA)

Ɔ-ro-kᴐ [ᴐ-rυ-kᴐ].

3SG-PROG-go

‘S/he is going.’

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11. Yebohu no. (FA)

Ye-bo-hu no.

1PL-FUT-see 3SG

‘We will see him.’

In the Fante example represented in (10), it is not only the ATR quality in vowel

harmony which is featured but also lip rounding. Kᴐ ‘to go’ is a -ATR stem and

thus selects a -ATR pronoun subject. But because of the lip rounding principle, the

vowel in the progressive aspect marker [ɪ], which is front and unrounded, changes

to a back rounded vowel, which is [ʊ], also has a -ATR quality. Lip rounding

operates in both speech and writing of Fante (see Stewart 1983a; Dolphyne 1988;

2006 and Boadi 2009).

The above examples indicate that all these three dialects follow the ATR rule in

their speech. However, when it comes to writing, Akuapem and Fante adhere to

the use of both -/+ATR forms depending on the ATR value of the verb or noun

stem, but Asante uses only one form (the basic -ATR) of the pronominal subject

and tense/aspect markers in writing. The proposed AKN writing system uses only

-ATR in writing as well.

3.3.1.1 Exceptions

Aside from the aforementioned, we have a few original forms and predictable

instances which do not follow the harmony rule, but they are not violations. These

are considered as exceptions to the rule. There are about 6 identifiable instances of

these exceptions:


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(i) when the initial syllable of a +ATR stem has [æ, e, i or u] and it is followed by

a syllable which has <a>, it is realized as [a]3 nnipa (AK/AS/AKN) nnyimpa (FA)

‘people’, sika (ALL) ‘money’, dua (ALL) ‘tree’, agua [æ gua] (AK)/[ædwa]

(AS)/[egua] (FA) ‘chair’, Akua [ækua] (AK/AS)/[ekuwa] (FA) ‘personal name’,

dua (ALL) ‘to plant’, bua (ALL) ‘to answer’, pia (ALL) ‘to push’.

(ii) when <a> occurs after non-bilabial consonants containing the secondary

articulation of palatalization in the sequence gya, twa, nya, dwa, gwua as in

o-gya (AK)/ e-gya (AS)/ i-gya (FA) ‘fire’, æ-gya ‘father’, [æ-twaa] ‘sack’, e-gwua

(FA) ‘chair’ or when the syllable following the palatalized syllable ends with <a>

as in adwuma [æ-dwuma] AK/AS/[e-dwuma] (FA) ‘work’, wagyina [wæ-gyina]

(AK/AS)/[oe-gyina] ‘s/he has stood up’.

(iii) In compounds such as O-nya-me (AK/AS/FA) ‘God’, a-ku-apem (AK/AS)

e-kwu-apem (FA) ‘the Akuapem people or dialect’.

(iv) When the suffixes fo [fʊ] -ATR (AK/FA) foɔ [fʊɔ] -ATR (AS), ni [ni] +ATR

(AK/AS) nyi [nyi] +ATR (FA) and nom [nʊm] -ATR, which mark plural or origin

of people are attached to roots they do not change form. As such, when they are

attached to stems with different ATR specifications they do not conform to the

Vowel Harmony rule. Owufo(ɔ) [o-wu-fʊ] (AK/FA) [o-wu-fʊɔ] (AS) ‘the dead’

Ɔdaani [ɔdaa-ni] (AK/AS) [ɔdaanyi] (FA) ‘one who hails from Oda’, kununom

[kunu-nʊm] (AK/AS/FA) ‘husbands’.

(v) Asante uses an extra sound [-ɛ] when Akuapem and Fante words end with [ɪ/i]

<e/i> either as part of the word or as a suffix. It is used in past tense when the verb

is the final word in a clause, i.e., when the [ɪ/i] <e/i> suffixes are used. Ɔ-kɔ-e (AK)

ɔ-kɔ-e-ɛ (AS) ‘S/he went.’, o-di-i (AK) ɔ-di-i-ɛ (AS) ‘She ate it.’ It is also used to

indicate places where certain things are made or where certain activities go on:

asoɛe(ɛ) ‘resting place’, asiei(ɛ) ‘cemetery’, abɔe(ɛ) ‘a place where something is

created or made’ etc., and in a few other words - ade(ɛ) ‘something’, awiei(ɛ), ‘the

3 In pronunciation, some dialects of Fante realize the sound as [æ], which then conforms to the

Vowel Harmony rule.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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end’ kɔnmuade(ɛ) ‘necklace’. The combination of this sound and the [ɪ/i] suffixes

is often pronounced as yɛ but in standard writing it is consistently represented as

either <eɛ> or <iɛ>. This combination is considered as one of the exceptions of

vowel harmony rule.

(vi) In the Twi variants, the affirmative progressive aspect marker and the negative

future tense marker re [rɪ]4 does not change form in the environments of +ATR

stems: ɔredi [ɔrɪdi] (AS)/[ɔrɪdi] (AK) ‘S/he is eating it’ merenhu [mɪrɪnhu]

(AK/AS) ‘I will not see it.’

3.3.2 Vowel deletion

When two vowels occur in certain phrase boundaries one vowel is deleted,

especially in possessives (alienable and inalienable). In this process, the final sound

of the possessor (both pronouns and full nouns) must be a vowel and the initial

sound of the second lexical item (the possessed item) must also be a vowel. Two

kinds of deletion operate here: deletion of the final vowel of the possessor as in

(12) to (14) and deletion of the initial vowel of the possessed exemplified in (17)

to (20). When the possessed item begins with [a, æ] (AK/AS), [a, e] (FA) the last

vowel in the possessor (pronouns only) is deleted and an apostrophe mark is

inserted in its place.

12. Me/wo/ne, anim (AK/AS) enyim (FA)

m’anim (AK) m’anim (AS) m’enyim (FA) ‘my face’

13. Me/wo/ne, adaka (AK/AS/FA)

w’adaka (AS) ‘your box’

4 This prefix follows both ATR and the rounding principles in Fante.


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14. Me/wo/ne, agua (AK/AS) egua (FA)

n’egua (FA) ‘his stool’

Note that when the possessor is a full noun it does not lose its final vowel.

15. Kofi, ani (AK/AS/FA)

Kofi ani (AK/AS) Kofi enyi (FA) ‘Kofi’s eye’

16. Anane, agua/adwa (AK/AS)

Anane agua/adwa – ‘Anane’s stool’

In the second type of deletion, when the initial vowel of the possessed is either /e/,

/ɛ/, /ɪ/, /i/, /o/ or /ɔ/, the initial vowel is deleted, even when the possessor ends with

a syllabic consonant.

17. Kofi, ɔbo (AK)

Kofi ɔbo

Kofi øbo

Kofi bo ‘Kofi’s stone’

18. me, wo, ne, yɛn, mo, wɔn, owuo (AS)

ne owuo

ne øwuo

ne wuo ‘his death’

19. Budu, ɛkɔn (AK/AS)

Budu ɛkɔn

Budu økɔn

Budu kɔn ‘Budu’s neck’

20. Adonten eti/itsir

Adonten eti (AK/AS)/ Adonten ne itsir (FA)

Adonten øti/ne øtsir

Adonten ti/ne tsir ‘Adonten’s head’

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3.3.3 Consonantal Assimilation

Akan requires homogeneity between nasal prefixes (plural markers, imperative and

negation markers) and the first consonantal unit of word stems they are attached

to, thus triggering consonantal assimilation (see Dolphyne 1988; Antwi-Danso5

2005; 2010 and Boadi 2009).

There are two steps involved in assimilation: In step one, the first consonant of the

stem assimilates the nasal prefix [n-]6 to the same place of articulation. This

process is adhered to in both speech and writing by all the dialects. In the second

step, the nasal prefix assimilates the first voiced consonant of the word stem into

the same manner of articulation. The same is also true for nominal stems whose

singular markers are vowels and their plural markers are nasals (o-guan ‘sheep’,

a-kokɔ ‘hen’ etc.).

This second step is evident in both speech and writing systems of the Twi dialects

(Akuapem and Asante) only. Fante and Akanwa do not have this process in

orthography. Table 3.1 shows the processes.

5 Antwi-Danso was the former surname of Sakyi, the author of this dissertation. 6 The underlying nasal prefix is [n-] and it has the following as allomorphs [m, ɱ, n, ɲ, and ŋ]

representing (bi-labial, labio-dental, alveolar, palatal and velar) respectively. [m & ɱ] are

represented as <m>, and [n, ɲ, & ŋ] are also represented as <n> in orthography.


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Stem Gloss Prefix + stem 1st step 2nd step Orthography Gloss

pam ‘to sew’ m-pam

NEG-sew

mpam - mpam ‘don’t sew (it)’

tɔn ‘to sell’ n-tɔn

NEG-sell

ntɔn

- ntɔn ‘don’t sell (it)’

kawa ‘ring’ ŋ-kawa

PL-ring

ŋkawa

- nkawa ‘rings’

frankaa ‘flag’ ɱ-frankaa

PL-flag

ɱfrankaa - mfrankaa ‘flags’

a-kʊkɔ

(akokɔ)

‘hen’ ŋ-kʊkɔ

PL-hen

ŋkʊkɔ - nkokɔ ‘hens’

bɔ ‘hit’ m-bɔ

NEG-hit

mbɔ

mmɔ mbɔ/mmɔ ‘don’t hit (it)’

dua ‘to plant’ n-dua

NEG-plant

ndua nnua ndua/nnua ‘don’t plant (it)’

e/æ-dwuma

(adwuma)

‘work’ ɲ-dwuma

PL-work

ɲdwuma ɲɲwuma ndwuma/

nnwuma

‘types of work’

o-guaŋ

(oguan)

‘sheep’ ŋ-guaŋ

PL-sheep

ŋguaŋ ŋŋuaŋ nguan/nguan ‘sheep’

gʊrʊ (goro) ‘to play’ ŋ-gʊrʊ

NEG-play

ŋgʊrʊ

ŋŋʊrʊ ngoro/ngoro ‘don’t play’

Table 3.1. Assimilation table

The items in (21) and (22) are verbs in the bare/imperative forms, and since they

do not have any overt prefixes, they are identical for all the dialects.

21. Bu. (AK/AS/FA/AKN)

ø-bu.

IMP-break

‘Break it.’

22. Dua. (AK/AS/FA/AKN)

ø-dua.

IMP.plant

‘Plant it.'

The items in (23) and (24) are for Fante and Akanwa. They have undergone only

the 1st step of assimilation process.

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23. Mmbu. (FA/AKN)

ø-mm-bu.

IMP-NEG-break

‘Don’t break (it).’

24. Nndua. (FA/AKN)

ø-nn-dua.

IMP-NEG-plant

‘Dont plant (it).’

The stems in (25) and (26) belonging to the Twi dialects have gone through both

the 1st and 2nd steps of the assimilation process.

25. Mmu (AK/AS)

ø-m-mu

IMP-NEG -break

‘Don’t break (it)’

26. Nnua (AK/AS)

ø-n-nua

IMP-NEG –plant

‘Don’t plant it’.

It must be mentioned here that Vowel Harmony and Consonantal Assimilation are

often used as differentiating factors in determining native and non-native Akan

speakers. The irony, however, is that these two principles are among the major

principles that the prescribed writing rules in the new ‘Akan orthography’ (AKN)

woefully tries to ignore. It is also one of the major reasons why this new system is

not wholly acceptable to many speakers of the various dialects.


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3.3.4 Tone System

Akan is one of the tonal languages which distinguish between two basic-tone

levels, a high tone and a low tone. A high tone is produced on a relatively high level

pitch which is marked by linguists with ( ) and a low tone, said on a relatively low

level pitch, marked with (`) (see Stewart 1965; Schachter 1961; Fromkin 1972;

Schachter and Fromkin 1968; Peters 1973; Dolphyne 1988/2006, Abakah 2003).

Every Akan syllable is tone bearing and tone is used to distinguish certain lexical

items in the three dialects discussed here. Alteration of the tone pattern in

independent or isolated lexical items and certain phrases may change the semantic

components of the said lexical items or phrases as in:

27. koko [kʊkʊ] (AK/FA) kokoɔ [kʊkʊɔ] ‘hill’ (AS) and

28. koko [kʊkʊ] (AK/FA) kokoɔ [kʊkʊɔ] ‘chest’ (AS)

Although examples (27) and (28) have the same form, their different tones bring

differences in their meaning.

The three examples below have the same type and number of items but whereas

the low-high (L-H) pattern of ɔwɔ in (30) and (31) means ‘snake’, the low-low (L-

L) pattern in (29) ɔwɔ means ‘he has’. Nam in (29) and (30) with H-H pattern means

‘fish/meat’ whereas the L-L pattern in (31) nam means ‘to walk/crawl’.

29. Ɔwɔ nam anaa? (AK/AS/FA)

Ɔ-wɔ nam anaa?

3SG-have fish Q

‘Does s/he have fish/meat?’


Ɔwɔ nam anaa?

snake meat Q

‘Is it a snake meat?’

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Ɔwɔ (no) nam anaa?

snake (DET) walk Q

‘Is (the) snake crawling?

The tone pattern may also change in the same form when it is presented in one or

the other dialects or in different tense/aspects. In fact, tone is a major differentiating

feature in tense/aspect marking. Depending on the tense/aspect in question, the

pronoun prefixes and the verb (single syllable/multi-syllable stems) bear different

tones. (32) is a habitual aspect and (33) & (34) are stative aspect and past tense,

respectively.

32. Ɔda ha

Ɔ-ø-da ha (AK/FA)

Ɔ-ø-da ha (AS)

3SG-HAB-lay here

‘S/he lays here.’

33. Ɔda ha

Ɔ-ø-da ha (AK/AS/FA)

3SG-STAT-lay here

‘S/he is lying here.’

34. Ɔdaa ha

Ɔ-da-a ha (AK/FA)

Ɔ-da-a ha (AS)

3SG-lay-PAST here

‘S/he laid here.’

Ha remains high in all environments in these constructions. In (32), the 3rd person

singular prefix ɔ in Akuapem and Fante has a high tone and the verb stem has a

low tone (H-L). In Asante, ɔ has a low tone and the verb stem a high tone (L-H)

pattern. In (33) all the dialects have the same tonal patterns for the stative aspect

(L-L). In the past affirmative construction in (34), whereas Akuapem and Fante

have (L-H-L) sequence for 3SG-stem-past suffix, Asante has (L-L-L) for the three


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categories. Note that even if the subject is changed to a full noun either with a

low/high tone as in Kofi or Budu the tonal pattern in stem-suffix will remain the

same in all the dialects. In course of the discussions, we will give a paradigm of

the verbal affixes and point out their tone patterns.

Apart from these two major tones occurring on each syllable, there are times when

certain syllables are elided but their tones remain. In such instances, the orphan

tone is added to the following syllable. When the tones are of the same quality there

is no apparent difference but when the first one is a low tone and the second is high,

( ) is used and when the first one is a low tone followed by a high ( ) is used. Note

that these do not represent different tones or diphthongs like in other languages.

3.3.4.1 Tone Assimilation

Tone assimilation is a process which occurs in word boundaries. In this process, a

final high tone syllable (both vowels and consonants) of a preceding lexical item

assimilates the initial low tone syllable of a following lexical item into a high tone.

The process occurs in possessives as in example (35), origin of things as in (36),

materials used for producing things as in (37) and where a noun is used to describe

another noun as in (38).

35. a. me/wo/ne, ntama me ntama (AK) ‘my cloth’

b. Kofi, ɔbo/ɛboɔ Kofi ɔbo/ɛboɔ, (AK/AS) ‘Kofi’s stone’

c. me/wo/ne/Kofi, mmoa ne mmoa (AK/AS) ‘his animals’

d. me/wo/ne/Kofi, mboa Kofi ne7 mboa (FA) ‘Kofi’s animals’

7 The third person possessive pronoun is added to full noun possessors.

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96

36. a. Aburi, mpa Aburi mpa (AK/AS/FA) ‘beds from Aburi’

b. Adum, mmarima Adum mmarima (AS) ‘men from Adum’

c. Suhum, nkate Suhum nkate (AK) ‘groundnuts from Suhum’

37. a. dua, ɔpon dua ɔpon (AK) ‘wooden door’

b. dua, afe dua afe (AK/AS/FA) ‘wooden comb’

c. dade(ɛ), mpa dade(ɛ) mpa (AK/AS) ‘iron bed’

38. a. ɔhen(e), agua/adwa/egua ɔhen egua (FA) ‘chief’s stool’

b. Onyankopɔn, nsa onyankopɔ n nsa (AK/AS) ‘God’s hand’

3.3.4.2 Downstep and Downdrift

Downdrift is a phenomenon in tonal languages considered to operate on level

tones, or those with glides. In this feature, the pitch or ‘melody’ of a particular tone

may be altered depending on the adjacent tones. This alteration, however, does not

change any of the tones into different tones. The relative contrast between the

existing tones are retained. Peters (1973: 139) describes Downdrift as “… a

progressive overall lowering of pitch throughout a phrase.” She states that

Downdrift occurs when there are tone patterns with High-Low-High (H-L-H) or

Low-High-Low (L-H-L) sequence. In such instances, the pitch of the second

high/low tone falls a step lower than the preceding high/low tone.

Dolphyne (2006: 57), on the other hand, differentiates H-L-H sequence from L-H-

L and indicates that whereas the low tone in H-L-H draws the following high tone

a step lower, the high tone in L-H-L sequence also raises the following low tone

higher than the earlier low tone.

Linguists often assign numerical values to pitch to explain the phenomenon.

Although the assigned numbers are not absolute pitch values, they present an idea

of how the pitches change. It does not mean the pitch of a longer phrase or clause


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can reduce to a point where there is no vibration of the vocal cords any longer.

Peters (ibid.) indicates that the pitch numbers assigned represent only relative and

not exact pitch intervals. No matter the pitch drop, a high tone cannot become equal

to a pitch value of an earlier low tone. Considering the cited example below,

however, the numerical value of the pitch of the latter occurring high tones (-3-)

are equal to the numerical value of the initial low tone (-3-). Nevertheless, the latter

and the former tones are not the same, neither are they of the same in pitch level.

39. Ɔbɛkɔ Kumase anɔpa yi (AK/AS)

Tonemes: L H H L H H H L H H

Surface pitch: 3 1 1 4 2 2 2 5 3 3

‘He will go to Kumasi this morning.’ (Schachter and

Fromkin 1968:108)

The values of the tonemes indicate that the high tone kɔ preceding Kumasi has

increased the pitch of the first low tone in Kumasi. In isolation, the production of

the initial low tone is slightly lower in speech than when it occurs in an

environment of (H-L-H) sequence. Since the syllable /ku/ is low, its pitch brings

the pitch of the following high tone syllable a step down, and this is known as

automatic downstep because the low tone which reduces the pitch of the following

high tone is evident.

Non-automatic downstep occurs when the low tone which reduced the pitch of a

following high tone has been assimilated into a high tone as in (29) and (30) above.

In those examples, the third syllable in nam anaa, which was originally a low tone

has been assimilated into a high tone. The original low tone has already brought

the fourth and fifth syllables a step down to become nam a!naa. Non-automatic

downstep also occurs when the low tone has been deleted in speech. Peters (ibid.:

140) describes this phenomenon as a ‘Downstep’ or ‘Drop’ tone. She indicates that

“The distribution of Drop tones is restricted – they can occur following High tones

or Drop tones, but never following low tones.” She quoted an example from

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Fromkin (1972) to explain the idea.

40. me ɔbo (Fromkin 1972:60) (AK/AS)

H L H tonemes

1 3 1 underlying pitches

1 3 2 after downdrift has applied

1 2 after /ɔ/ is deleted by Vowel Deletion Rule

me bo final result

1 2

me !bo me bo ‘my stone’

In this example, the low tone in the second syllable firstly brings the pitch of the

following high tone down and then the initial high tone assimilates that second

syllable low tone into a high tone, me ɔ!bo. The vowel deletion rule is applied to

delete the second syllable thereby leaving me !bo as the final outcome.

Dolphyne (ibid.: 59) also discusses the process by showing how a non-automatic

downstep occurs and how it is signaled by the downstep marker.

41. /Kofi ɔdan/ (Dolphyne 2006: 59) (AK/AS/AKN)

Kofi !dan

Kofi dan ‘Kofi’s house’

The low tone of the third syllable reduces the pitches of the subsequent high tones

and the high tone of the second syllable assimilates the following low tone into a

high tone. The vowel deletion rule is applied to delete the 3rd syllable as shown in

the result.

In languages with three contrastive tones, such as Yoruba and Nupe, or those with

contrasts between only two tones, such as Igbo or Hausa which have many lexical

items differentiated by Downstep, the feature is a distinctive tonological pattern

which needs to be specified. In Akan, however, the distinctiveness occurs in only

one pair of lexical items ɔbɔ!fo ‘messenger/angel’ and ɔbɔfo ‘creator’. As such the

feature is considered non-productive and redundant. This is because all the raised

or reduced pitches are predictable, and they do not bring any change in meaning


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apart from this pair. Moreover, all the processes discussed under this feature are

already covered under vowel deletion and tone assimilation, which are

considerable operations in the language. This feature is more of an intonation

pattern in Akan than a distinctive feature. Dolphyne points out that, “this steady

drop in the pitches of high tones preceded by low tones in an utterance is called

Downdrift and is a feature of intonation in Akan” (2006: 57).

As we have indicated above, the high or low tone pattern is the major determinant

of the general meaning of the language, especially in tense/aspect specifications.

This means that it is tone which is used to differentiate meanings, and not pitches.

As such, apart from the lone pair mentioned, any attempt to describe the meaning

of TAM-forms or other lexical items based on downstep is a falsification of the

process. We therefore mark downstep/downdrift only when the item has a

distinctive meaning. In other words, we mark it only when its absence generates a

confusion in meaning.

3.3.5 Analyzing tone and other properties

In the subsequent chapters on modality and evidentiality, one would observe a

whole lot of things going on formally in most of the constructions, especially in

line with the tone marking, vis-a-vis vowel harmony, consonantal assimilation,

tense/aspects and negation, which may need to be commented on. Commenting on

the tone pattern or the other issues in every construction will distract the focus of

our discussions of modality and evidentiality, of course. We therefore invite

readers to refer to the extensive discussion on tone patterns and the other topics in

the preceding sections, should there be the need to clarify an issue. As we indicated

above, tone is used to differentiate the dialects handled in the study. It stands to

reason that each of the dialects will/may have different tones even in the same

constructions. Moreover, each tense/aspect marker presents different tone marking

in different constructions in different dialects. The personal pronouns have

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different tones with different tense/aspects as well as in different dialects. Once the

modal meaning has been established for a form (especially those with polysemantic

modal meanings), the tones, vowel harmony and consonantal assimilation of the

dialect cited do not affect the meaning of the said form. However, person,

tense/aspect and polarity differences may affect the whole construction and not

only the form. In such cases, we will draw the readers’ attention to the different

meanings which may arise as a result of the shift of person, T/A or polarity. We

therefore encourage readers to depend on the expert tone marking presented in the

various examples.

For each of a modal/evidential meaning identified, we try as much as possible to

give varied examples covering all the three dialects. This way, one is able to

compare how the tones and forms occur in the dialects. Concerning epistemic

verbs, we give as many examples as possible in all person and tense/aspects so as

to cover notions such as descriptive/performative use of the modal forms as

presented in Nuyts (2001).

3.4 Word Classes

Elements put under word classes vary considerably but at least verbs, nouns,

adjectives and adverbs are among the most frequent ones mentioned (see Dixon

2004 and van Lier 2009). Akan distinguishes about 8 word classes including verbs,

nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions, numerals, and interjections

(see Christaller 1875:19; Osam 1999; 2003; Saah & Agbedor 2004; Antwi-Danso

2005; Pokuaa et al 2007; Amfo et al 2007; Dzameshie 2007 and Agyekum 2010

for detail discussions of their morphology and syntax). In the subsequent chapters,

we shall concern ourselves with the word classes which are relevant for the study,

i.e., those that express modality or evidentiality. Some writers often treat

auxiliaries under verbs but given their importance and peculiarities in languages,

other writers discuss them as a separate class (see Warner 2009, who considers


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auxiliaries as a distinct word class). The question of whether Akan has auxiliary

verbs or not is an issue we will attempt to go into in the next section, although it is

not listed as an apparent word class in the language. We will also mention a few

things about types of verbs and how they are used in constructions. For its

correlation with the verb, we will devote some time to explain personal pronouns.

Adjectives and adverbs are also mentioned here.

3.4.1 Auxiliary Verbs

Auxiliary verbs have been identified as a special group of verbs, which act as

preverbs to give additional grammatical or functional meaning to main verbs they

are attached to. The prominent functions of auxiliaries are to relate clauses to tense,

aspect, mood, voice, emphasis and modality, along with the main verbs expressing

the appropriate lexical content. Auxiliaries or helping verbs are so called because

of several reasons. Quirk et al (1985: 57) mention one of the reasons as, “they have

no independent existence as verb phrases, but only help to make up verb phrases,

which consist of one or more other verbs, one of which is a lexical verb”.

Crystal (2008: 46) lists the main English auxiliaries as do, be and have, and modal

auxiliaries as can/could, may/might, shall/should, will/would, must, ought to and

used to. Some of these are also referred to as semi-modals. Over the years linguists

have tried to examine factors that set auxiliaries and main verbs apart (see Crystal

ibid.). Warner (2009: 4-9) gives a preview of some of the distinguishing

grammatical factors, known as ‘NICE’ properties of auxiliaries. They have negation

(contraction), inversion of subjects and finite operators. They can occur in ellipsis,

some of them can be emphasized and others have clitic forms. Some auxiliaries

can precede epistemic or frequency adverbs, some do not occur after periphrastic

do and they lack non-finites, so they may not occur in sequence. Other factors

include their lack of third person, some of them do not have tenses or they lack

preterite and the issue of modals being followed by plain infinitives.

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Most of the structures some writers describe in the Akan language as auxiliaries

are at variance with what the category stands for, of course. For instance,

Christaller (1875: 69-73) discusses five different categories of verb combinations

as auxiliaries and main verbs relationship. Most of these combinations of verbs,

however, have been reviewed and described in recent years as serial verbs (see

Osam 1994), or what we call ‘multi-word verb’ forms. Amfo (2005) refers to san

‘to return’, ‘to repeat’ or ‘to do something again’, which shows ‘either a repetition

of an action’ or ‘a restoration to a former state’, as an auxiliary because it lacks

independent meaning. Although this is one of the criteria for setting auxiliaries and

full verbs apart, as Quirk et al (ibid.) note, it is not the only criterion. San’s lack of

independent meaning or existence as a verb phrase is also associated with many

other verbs in the language including hyε da, ‘pretend’, patu ‘pretend’ fi ase ‘begin’

and bͻ mmͻden, ‘try’, but they do not contribute any of the grammatical functions

mentioned above to warrant their inclusion as auxiliaries. Amfo (ibid.) well states

in a footnote that “the issue of what qualifies to be auxiliary verbs in Akan and

other related languages is quite contentious” and that she was not intending to

assert or deny that the language has auxiliaries or not.

In his introductory chapter to ‘Aspect and Modality in Kwa languages’, Ameka

(2008:) stated that “in all the languages (treated in the book), it is determined that

contrary to some early analyses, pre-verbs or auxiliaries are distinct from the

strictly paradigmatic TAMP markers, introduce different kinds of semantic

features, and often appear to be the relics of grammaticized verbs”. The two deictic

forms bε- ‘to come’ and kͻ- ‘to go’, which both Boadi (2008) and Osam (2008)

described in the book, are not claimed to be auxiliaries. They are full verbs which

have gone through the process of grammaticalization to become motional prefixes

in certain contexts. They can still be used as independent verbs when the

constructions in which they appear are broken down into simple clauses. They do

not contribute any of the grammatical functions of auxiliaries to the clause.

Considering how English, French (see Rowlett 2007: 40 & 44; Warnant 1982:

279 for discussions of French auxiliaries and semi-auxiliaries), and other


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languages have distinct forms to express tense and aspect, and for the reason that

Akan does not express tense and aspect with distinctive verb forms but affixes,

Brown and Miller (1991: 252) categorically stated that Akan is among the

languages which do not have a category of auxiliary verb because in such

languages, the verb stem can carry both tense and aspect categories.

Besides the fact that Akan expresses tense and aspect with affixes on the verbs, it

also does not have most of the processes set to distinguish auxiliaries from main

verbs in English and in other languages. Processes like negation contraction,

inversion, different third person marking and many of these linguistic processes do

not exist at all in Akan. Nevertheless, we cannot base our criterion of auxiliaryship

on only these processes to rule out the possibility of Akan having auxiliary verbs.

Although the ‘NICE’ properties enumerated are good factors to distinguish

auxiliaries from full verbs, not all the auxiliaries pass these tests. Moreover, not all

markers of tense, aspect or modality are considered auxiliaries. Since there is no

complete straightforward criterion to isolate auxiliary verbs, we assert that Akan

has auxiliary verbs which do contribute the functional or grammatical meaning of

mood, modality, tense, aspect, etc. to the clauses in which they occur and that they

may have variety of forms.

We are motivated by William Foley and Robert Van Valin’s Role-and-Reference

Grammar (RRG) developed in the 1980s. The model approaches linguistic

description by asking what communicative purposes need to be served and what

grammatical devices are available to serve them. This is in consonance with

Chafe’s (1986: 261) statement about all languages having evidentials or not (cf.

section 2.2.2). Based on RRG, we argue that forms which co-occur with main verbs

and their functions are to express mood, modality etc. in the clause should be

considered as auxiliaries in the language no matter their structure or form, i.e.,

whether affixes, single/multi word forms, phrases or clauses. With this view, we

consider the affix bε- ‘may’ the form tumi ‘can’, ‘be able to’, ma ‘to let’, ‘to allow’,

‘to make’, or ‘to cause’ and the multi-word forms εsε sε/εwͻ sε (AK/AS)/ ͻwͻ dε

(FA) ‘must’, ‘should’ or ‘have to’ and etwa sε (AK/AS) otwar dε (FA) ‘must’,

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104

‘should’ or ‘have to’ as modal auxiliaries in the language. We do not ascribe to the

general view that auxiliaries are always free morphemes or single words in form

and possess all the distinguishing factors described in English and in other

languages. After all, no single auxiliary possesses all the ‘NICE’ properties

mentioned in the languages that have them. This does not mean, however, that we

should treat all verbal affixes which express TAMP as auxiliaries, although, no harm

would be caused if we did.

3.4.2 Verbs

A good number of Akan verbs have single-word stems such as kasa ‘to talk’, hu

‘to see’, bra ‘to come’, kotow ‘to bend down’, tintim ‘to stand firm’ and ma ‘to

give’. There are as well multi-word verb forms whose semantics may or may not

be derived from the individual lexical items involved, because most of these have

idiomatic meanings. These multi-word or bipartite forms are made up of either (i)

two separate independent verb stems, such as gye di (take eat) ‘to believe’, ka hwԑ

(taste/feel look) ‘to taste’ and ka kyerε ‘to tell’ (ii) an independent verb stem plus

a nominal, such as bᴐ mpae (hit prayer) ‘to pray’, di kᴐnkᴐnsa (eat gossip) ‘to

gossip’ and kᴐ akura (go village) ‘to die’ or (iii) an independent verb stem plus

adpositions (post/preposition), such as tena ase (sit under) ‘to sit down’, te ase

(hear under) ‘to understand’, gye to mu (take put in) ‘to agree/accept’, ti mu (repeat

in) ‘to repeat’, fa to ‘to put/place something…’ and gye so ‘to respond’. In glossing

the multi-word forms, we will provide only the actual meaning of the verb and not

the individual meanings the components may have. This is because, as can be seen

in the translations above, the basic meanings often deviate from the actual meaning

of the composite verb. We will mark the first item with the meaning of the verb

and mark the subsequent items as STEM.


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3.4.2.1 Regular and Irregular Verbs

What is important to note is that some of these verbs are regular and others are

irregular in conjugation. The irregularities could be in the bare or imperative forms

as against the finite forms. There could be irregularities in the bare, the imperative

and the five tense/aspect finite forms, on the one hand, against the stative aspect

form, on the other. Other irregularities occur in the affirmative and negative forms

of certain verbs, or in all the forms, on the one hand, against the past tense, on the

other.

Regular single-word verb forms include kͻ ‘to go’, fa ‘to take’, dzi ‘to eat’ and ma

‘to give’. The irregular ones include bra8 ‘to come’, hu ‘to know’, nya ‘to get’, ‘to

acquire’ ‘to obtain’ or ‘to possess’ and kͻ ‘to go’ (in Fante only). Bra, for instance,

is used as the bare form and also as an imperative form. The form changes to ba in

the finite forms and in all negative environments and it becomes bε- when it is used

as a motional prefix. The verb kͻ ‘to go’ for instance is a regular verb in Akuapem

and Asante but in Fante, kͻ is used in all the conjugated forms except in the

affirmative past tense and negative perfect aspect where it becomes kͻr ‘went’.

Irregular multi-word verb forms include tena ase ‘sit down’ and fa to ‘to put/place

something’.

8 Shibatani (2009) discusses important issues in the Akan serial verb constructions (SVCs), but

because he did not consider the irregularity of the verb bra, all his data quoted from Morrison

(2007) on the verb are wrong.

*ɔ-fa-a huma=no bra-a ha

3SG-take-PST book=DET come-PST here

‘He brought the book here.’

Not to mention the numerous other wrongly spelled words in all the Akan data in his paper.

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The table below shows some of the irregular verbs and how they appear in the

various environments.

VERB IMP T/A STAT

bra ‘to come’ Bra Ↄ-bε-ba ‘S/he will come’ -

mm-ba/mma

‘don’t come’

m-ba/mma

‘Don’t come.’

W-a-m-ma ‘S/he did not

come.’

-

nya sika

‘to get money’’

Nya sika ‘Get

money.’

Onyaa sika. ‘S/he got money’ Ↄwͻ sika. ‘S/he

has money.’

nnya sika

‘don’t get money’

Nnya sika ‘Don’t

get money.’

Ↄrennya sika. ‘S/he will not

get money.’

Onni sika. S/he does

not have money.’

tena ase ‘to sit

down’

Tena ase.

‘Sit down.’

Ↄretena ase ‘S/he is sitting

down.’

Ↄte hͻ. ‘S/he is

in the position of

sitting there.’

ntena ase ‘don’t

sit down.’

Ntena ase ‘don’t

sit down.’

Ↄntena ase. ‘S/he does not

sit down.’

Ↄnte hͻ. ‘S/he is

not sitting there.’

fa to hͻ ‘put it

down’

Fa to hͻ ‘put it

down’

Ↄdze to hͻ ‘S/he puts it

down.’

Ↄda hͻ ‘It is in

the state of lying.’

mmfa nnto hͻ

‘don’t put it

down.’

Mmfa nnto hͻ

‘don’t put it

down.’

Ↄmmfa nntoo hͻ.’S/he has

not put it down.’

Ↄnnda hͻ. ‘It is

not lying there.’

Table 3.2 Conjugation of irregular verbs

3.4.2.2 Combination of Verbs

In addition to the regularities or irregularities associated with the verbs, we note

some of them whose varied functions need mention. Two of such verbs are fa ‘to

take’ and ma ‘to give’. Fa has 3 significant uses in the language. Firstly, fa is used

as an independent verb meaning ‘to take’ or ‘to keep’ (as in gifts or seized items).

When it occurs as a full verb, the bare form, the imperative, the finite form as well

as the negative form remain as fa. Fa sika no. (ALL) ‘take the money.’, mmfa sika

no. (FA) ‘Don’t take the money.’, Merefa sika no. (AS) ‘I am taking the money’.


107

42. Menfaa sika no. (AK/FA)

Me-n-faa sika no

1SG-NEG-take-PERF money DET

‘I have not taken the money.’

43. Meremfa wo mpaboa no.

Me-re-m-fa wo mpaboa no.

1SG-FUT-NEG-keep 2SG.POSS sandals DET

‘I will not keep your sandals.’

In (42), fa codes the act of taking or picking the said money but in (43), the said

sandals could already be with the speaker and it does not involve the act of taking

or picking. In this sense, fa codes an event of keeping a pair of (seized) sandals.

Secondly, fa can be used in combination with other verbs, post-positions and verbs

plus post-positions to form multi-word verbs. When it is used this way, fa becomes

an irregular verb which changes form in the environment of affirmative T/As. That

is to say, in its bare, imperative and negative forms it remains fa, but when it occurs

with affirmative T/As, fa becomes de/dze and it does not inflect for T/As. It is a

defective verb.

Fa + verb combinations include fa bra ‘to bring’, fa brε ‘to bring to’, fa kͻ ‘to

send’, fa ma ‘to give to’ and fa kyε ‘to forgive’. The two verbs come together to

form one meaning.

44. Mamfa sika no amma. (AK/AS)

M-a-m-fa sika no a-m-ma

1SG-PAST-NEG-bring money DET PAST-NEG-STEM

‘I did not bring the money.’

45. Meremfa dua no m-ma no. (AK)

Me-re-m-fa dua no m-ma no.

1SG-FUT-NEG-give wood DET NEG-STEM 3SG

‘I will not give the wood to him.’

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46. Wͻdze adͻkͻdͻkͻdze brεε hͻn ba. (FA)

Wͻ-dze adͻkͻdͻkͻdze brε-ε hͻn ba.

3PL-bring sweets STEM-PAST 3PL.POSS child

‘They brought sweets to their child.’

47. Ↄde ntoma kͻ Togo. (AS)

Ↄ-de ntoma kͻ Togo.

3SG-send cloth STEM Togo

‘She sends clothes to Togo.’

Fa ‘to pass through’, ‘to transit’, or ‘to go by’ combines with postpositions to code

the event of passing as in fa so ‘to pass on something’, fa mu ‘to pass through’ and

fa ase ‘to pass under’.

48. Na ͻmaa ne babanyin faa gya mu. (2 Kings 21 :6. FA)

Na ͻ-ma-a ne babanyin fa-a gya mu.

CONJ 3SG-cause-PAST 3SG.POSS son pass-PAST fire in

‘And he made his son to pass through fire.’ (WEB)

49. Mefaa ‘kaa’ no ase dwanee (AS)

Mefa-a ‘kaa’ no ase dwane-e

1SG-pass-PAST car DET under escape-PAST

‘I passed under the car to escape.’

With those involving verbs and postpositions, fa combines with to or hyε to express

‘to put’, which takes two nouns. The first noun is inserted between fa and to/hyε,

followed by the second noun and then the postposition. We can have the frame fa

… to/hyε … mu/ase/so/nkyεn/akyi ‘to put … in/under/on/beside/behind …’, where

the empty spaces stand for the nouns.

50. Fa dua no to ͻpon no so/do. (AK/FA)

ø-Fa dua no to ͻpon no so/do.

IMP-put wood DET STEM table DET on

‘Put the wood on the table.’


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51. Ↄde nwoma no ahyε εpono no ase. (AS)

Ↄ-de nwoma no a-hyε εpono no ase.

3SG-put book DET PERF-STEM table DET under

‘He has put the book under the table.’

The third use of fa has an ‘instrumental or accompaniment’ sense. These senses

mean ‘to use’ or ‘to undertake an activity ‘with’ something’, i.e., a noun or

something is a means by which the subject accomplishes an action. ‘I cooked

potatoes with milk’ (but not with water), or ‘I used milk to cook potatoes’. The

bare form, the imperative form and the negative form use fa but the affirmative

T/As use de, and here too, it does not inflect for T/As (cf the second point above).

52. Fa ayemhyehye bͻ mpae. (FA)

ø-Fa ayemhyehye bͻ mpae.

IMP-with compassion pray

‘pray with compassion.’

53. Yεde sika no/anhwea no sii dan no. (AS)

Yεde-ø sika no/anhwea no si-i dan no.

1PL-use-PAST/with money DET/sand DET build-PAST house DET

‘We built the house with the money/the sand/We used the money/the

sand to build the house’.

54. Mede meleke noaa adua no. (AK/AS)

Me-de meleke noa-a adua no.

1SG-use/with milk cook-PAST beans DET

‘I cooked the beans with milk/I used milk to cook the beans.’

55. Mamfa meleke annoa adua no. (AK/AS)

M-a-m-fa meleke a-n-noa adua no.

1SG-PAST-NEG-use/with milk PAST-NEG-cook beans DET

‘I did not cook the beans with milk/I did not use milk to cook the

beans.’

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110

When there is an actual process of taking something to do other things, such as

taking the milk from one point and cooking with it, then the construction can

indicate the taking process.

56. Mefaa meleke no de noaa bayerε no. (AS)

Me-faa meleke no de noa-a bayerε no.

1SG-take-PAST milk DET use/with cook-PAST yam DET

‘I took the milk and cooked the yam with it/I took the milk and used it

to cook the yam.’

Ma is another form which has different meanings in different constructions. Three

of its common uses are when ma stands alone as a main verb ‘to give’, when it is

combined with other verbs to form multi-word verbs ‘V … for/to’ and when it is

used as an auxiliary in combination with main verbs ‘to let/allow’ or ‘to

make/cause’. In all these environments the form of ma does not change and it goes

through all the processes verbs go through, such as negation and consecutive

marking.

Examples (57, 56 & 59) have ma as a full verb.

57. Ma me sika. (AK/AS/FA)

ø-Ma me sika.

IMP-give 1SG money

‘Give me money.’

58. Ↄbεma no sika. (AK/AS/FA)

Ↄ-bε-ma no sika.

3SG-FUT-give 3SG money

‘He will give him money.’


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59. Memma no sika. (AK)

Me-ø-m-ma no sika.

1SG-HAB-NEG-give 3SG money

‘I don’t give him money.’

Ma is combined with existing verbs to express the notion ‘for’. ‘For’ is used in this

context as a function word to indicate purpose, intended goal, indicate the object

or recipient of a perception, desire or activity. It can be interpreted as ‘in place of’,

‘on behalf of’ or ‘in favour of.’ Used this way, the main verb retains its meaning

in addition to the extension ma codes. The form ma takes on all the TAMP

specifications of the main verb, and together they form a composite verb; not two

separate verbs. The use of ma in (60, 61 & 62) indicates a unitary function of doing

something on ‘behalf of’, ‘for the purpose of’ or ‘in favour of’ situations or

recipients. It has a unitary function because it expresses nothing more than the

notion of ‘for’, unlike those in (63) and (64) which may have dual interpretations.

60. Bͻ mpaeε ma no. (AS)

ø-Bͻ mpaeε ø-ma no.

IMP-Pray STEM IMP-for 3SG

‘Pray for him’

61. Mepra dan no mu ma no. (AK/FA)

Me-ø-pra dan no mu ø-ma no.

1SG-HAB-sweep room DET in HAB-for 3SG

‘I sweep the room for him.’

62. Momma mo ani so, na monhwε mfuo mu, sε anya ahoa ama otwa.

(John 4:35b. AS)

Mo-m-ma mo ani so, na mo-n-hwε

3PL-IMP-lift 3PL.POSS eyes up CONJ 3PL-IMP-look

mfuo mu, sε ø-a-nya a-hoa a-ma otwa.

farms in COMP 3SG.IN-PERF-already PERF-dry PERF-for harvest

‘Open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.’

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In (63) and (64), ma can be interpreted as ‘for’ or ‘give’ depending on the intended

goal. If there was actually a process of giving something to someone, then ma will

be interpreted as ‘give’. If on the other hand there was no ‘giving’, then ma will

mean ‘for’.

63. Motͻͻ mpaboa maa Sisi. (FA)

Mo-tͻ-ͻ mpaboa ma-a Sisi.

1SG-buy-PAST shoe give-PAST/for-PAST Sisi

‘I bought a pair of shoes for Sisi/I bought a pair of shoes and gave it to

Sisi.’

64. Wͻfa koyii sika no wͻ sikakorabea maa me.

Wͻfa ko-yi-i sika no wͻ

uncle go-withdraw-PAST money DET in

sikakorabea ma-a me.

bank give-PAST 1SG

‘Uncle went to withdraw the money from the bank for me/Uncle went

to withdraw the money from the bank and gave it to me.’

The first interpretation of (63) is that the pair of shoes has been bought with the

intention of giving it to Sisi. That is to say it is because of Sisi that it was bought.

The second interpretation is that the pair of shoes were bought and given or handed

over to Sisi. In (64), the first interpretation is that Uncle withdrew the money on

my behalf or with the intension of giving it to me. In the second, Uncle withdrew

the money and gave it to me. With this dual or multiple meanings, one has to know

the context in which the form was used to be able to give the precise interpretation.

The contextual meanings the forms have in various clauses will be given.

The uses of ma as an auxiliary are exemplified here. In these examples, the

meanings ma contributes are ‘let/allow/make/cause someone to bring situations in

the main verb into being.


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65. Ma mbofra no mbra mu. (FA)

ø-Ma mbofra no m-bra mu.

IMP-let/make children DET IMP-come in

‘Let the children come in/cause the children to come in.’

66. Wamma abofra no ansu. (AK/AS)

W-a-m-ma abofra no a-n-su.

3SG-PAST-NEG-let/make child DET PAST-NEG-cry

‘He did not allow the child to cry/he did not make the child cry.’

The implication of the discussion of verbs and formation of verbs show that these

multi-word verb forms constitute only one predicate and so should not be called

serial verbs as in Osam (2004) or auxiliary verbs as in Christaller (1875). It also

encourages writers to use the glossing system where the first element of a bipartite

verb form is glossed as the actual meaning of the composite verb and the other

element(s) is/are glossed as STEM (cf Leipzig Glossing 8.2). This way, we do not

have to gloss such verbs based on the individual elements which may not give

accurate meaning of what the predicate stands for.

3.4.2.3 The Copular Verbs

To link non-verbal predicates such as an adjective or a noun complement to its

subject, the copular verbs yɛ or ne ‘to be something/somebody’ and wɔ ‘to be

somewhere’ are used in the language.

67. Wͻbuu no sɛ ɔyɛ/ɔne panin. (Boadi 2005:59 AS)

Wͻ-bu-u no sɛ ɔ-ø-yɛ/ɔ-ø-ne panin.

3PL-regard-PAST 3SG COMP 3SG-STAT-COP elder

‘They regarded him as an elderly person.’

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68. Ɔwɔ Akuapem Larteh. (CONS AK)

Ɔ-wɔ Akuapem Larteh.

3SG-COP Akuapem Larteh

‘S/he is in Akuapem Larteh.’

3.4.3 Nouns

Akan nouns are often basic such as aboa ‘animal’, abofra ‘child’, dua ‘tree’, Kofi

‘name of a person’, Densu ‘name of a river’ etc. Other forms are derived from

verbs, adjectives or even phrases by the use of derivational affixes ᴐ-/o-, a-/æ-, n-,

-fo (AK/FA)/foͻ (AS), -ni (AK/AS)/nyi (FA), -i/-ɪ, or ø. Thus dᴐ ‘to weed’ becomes

adᴐ ‘weeding’, dᴐ ‘to love’ becomes ‘ᴐ dᴐ ‘love’, hyira ‘to bless’ becomes nhyira

‘blessing’, serew ‘to laugh’ becomes serew ‘laughing’, bᴐ mpae ‘to pray’ becomes

mpaebᴐ ‘prayer’, kᴐ kᴐ ᴐ ‘red/fair coloured’ becomes ᴐ kᴐ kᴐ ᴐ ‘the red/fair coloured

one’, etc. Compounding of individual items to create new words is another method

of noun formation. Dua ‘wood’ + afe ‘comb’ becomes duafe ‘wooden comb’,

akokᴐ ‘hen’ + ᴐ ba ‘child/baby’ becomes akokᴐ ba ‘chick’. Nouns can be singular

or plural. There are two classes of singular nouns. Those which have zero prefixes

and those that begin with vowel prefixes. In forming plurals, the singular prefix is

replaced by either [a-] or by [n-]. (Although it has not been possible as yet to

classify nouns into their appropriate plural marker categories, native speakers are

able to choose which plural marker goes with a particular singular noun by

intuition). [n-] plural prefixes are found to be in the majority (see Antwi-Danso

2005; 2010 and Boadi 2009).

69. Dadze (FA)/dade(ε) (AK/AS)

Ø-dade

SG-cutlas

‘cutlass’


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70. ndadze/nnade(ε)

n-dadze (FA)

n-nade(ε) (AK/AS)

PL-cutlass

‘cutlasses’

71. akokᴐ (AK/AS/FA)

a-kokᴐ

SG-hen

‘hen’

72. nkokᴐ (AK/AS/FA)

n-kokᴐ

PL-hen

‘hens’

73. bepᴐ(w) (AK/AS/FA)

ø-bepᴐw

SG-mountain

‘mountain’

74. mbepᴐw/mmepᴐ(w)

m-bepᴐw (FA)

m-mepᴐw (AK/AS)

PL-mountain

‘mountains’

75. ͻwᴐ (AK/AS/FA)

ᴐ-wᴐ

SG-snake

‘snake’

76. awᴐ (AK/AS/FA)

a-wᴐ

PL-snake

‘snakes’

3.4.4 Pronouns

The pronouns we are interested in in this section are subject pronouns, object

pronouns and possessive pronouns. These pronouns are often distinguished by tone

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(depending on the dialect or the utterance) and by their syntax (see Osam 2004 and

Saah 2007). Akan has two forms of subject pronouns, viz., the citation and clitic

forms. The clitic forms are written as prefixes to verb stems they occur with, and

the full or citation forms are used when the subject is focused or when one is

conjoined with another subject pronoun or subject noun.

The table below presents the Akuapem/Asante (Twi) and Fante variants of

personal pronouns.

Person/ number AK/AS Subject pronouns

Citation ---- prefix

FA Subject pronouns

Citation ---- prefix

1 SG me ---- <me-, mi- m-> emi ---- <me-, mi-, mo-, mu- m->

2 SG wo ---- <wo-, wu-> ɔwo ---- <e-, i-, ø->

3 SG (AN)

3SG (INAN)

ɔno ---- <ɔ-, o-, w->

ɛno ---- <ɛ-, e-, ø>

ɔno ---- <ɔ-, o->

ɛno ---- <ɛ-, e-, ø->

1 PL yεn ---- <yɛ-, ye-> hεn ---- <yɛ-, ye->

2 PL mo ---- <mo-, mu-> hom ---- <hom …>

3 PL wᴐn ---- <wɔ-, wo-> hᴐn ---- <wɔ-, wo->

Table 3.3 Akuapem, Asante and Fante Subject Pronouns

The table presents the subject-pronouns of the three dialects in detail. It must be

observed that all the citation forms in the three dialects have high tones in their

final syllables. The clitic forms, i.e. the prefixes, do not have tones because they

change with the TAMN and the syllable type of verb stems at hand. In brief, the

following generalizations hold for the tone marking of the pronouns in TAM.

In all the dialects and in all the syllable types, the tones of all the pronouns in

imperative or optative constructions are high. In the habitual aspect, all the personal

pronouns are high in CV and CVCs. In the rest of the syllable types and all

reduplicated forms, 1st and 3rd persons are low and 2nd persons are high in Akuapem

and Asante. All the persons in Fante are low.


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For the stative aspect, 1st and 2nd persons are low in all the syllable types and 2nd

persons are high in Akuapem and Asante. In Fante, all the persons are low.

77. Inyim asaw. (FA)

I-ø-nyim asaw.

2SG-STAT-know dance

‘You dance well.’

In the Akuapem and Asante progressive aspect, the tones in the 1st and 3rd persons

are low and the one in the 2nd person is high. In Fante, all the pronouns have low

tones. For the perfect aspect, the 1st and 3rd person pronouns have low tones and

the 2nd person pronoun has a high tone in all syllable types in the three dialects. In

the past tense of Akuapem and Asante, the 1st and 3rd person pronouns have low

tones and the 2nd person pronoun has a high tone in all the syllable types. Fante has

low tones for all the persons. The 1st and 3rd person pronouns have low tones and

the 2nd person pronoun has a high tone in Akuapem and Asante future tense. In

Fante, all the pronoun prefixes are low.

Writers often ignore the subject-pronoun prefixes we have italicized in table 3.3

but since they are equally important as the others we have included them and

pointed out when they are used.

m- is used for the future tense and perfect aspect markers and me/mi are used with

the other T/As in Akuapem and Asante. In Fante, m- is used for only the perfect

aspect.

78. Mɛda hɔ.9 (AK/AS)

M-ɛ-da hɔ

1SG-FUT-lie there

‘I will lie there.’

9 There hasn’t been any explanation regarding why the 1SG FUT me-bɛ has become mɛ in

Akuapem and Asante although the sequence me+bɛ exists in Twi. Fante uses it consistently.

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79. Mada hɔ.10

m-a-da hɔ (AK/FA)

mada hɔ(AS)

1SG-PERF-lay there

‘I have laid there.’

ø is used for the 2SG perfect aspect in Fante.

80. Ada hɔ. (FA)

ø-a-da hɔ

2SG-PERF-lay there

‘You have laid there.’

w- is used for the 3SG (animate) perfect aspect in Akuapem and Asante. The

combination of the 3SG clitic and the perfect aspect marker ɔ/o + a is simplified to

become w-a. Fante uses the clitic form of the pronoun and the perfect markers.

81. Wada hɔ.

w-a-da hɔ. (AK)

w-a-da hɔ. (AS)

ɔ-a-da hɔ. (FA)

3SG-PERF-lay there

‘S/he has laid there.’

10 In Akuapem and Fante, the tone of the perfect aspect is high in CV and CVCs syllable

verbs. The tone of its 1SG is low but the vowel is deleted leaving the consonant m- and the

tone of the vowel. Since m- is not syllabic in this environment, the ‘orphan’ tone is extended

to the perfect marker so that it carries both tones. In Asante, the tone of the 1SG pronoun and

the perfect marker are both low so the ‘orphan’ tone is not represented.


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ø- is used for the 3SG (inanimate) perfect aspect in the three dialects.

82. Ada hɔ.

a-da hɔ (AK/FA)

a-da hɔ (AS)

3SG-PERF-lay there

‘It has laid there.’

The Fante 2PL does not have a clitic form so it always uses the citation form,

written separately from the verb.

83. Hom bɛda ha. (FA)

Hom bɛ-da ha.

2PL FUT-lay there.

‘You will lie there.’

Generally, in all syllable types, the 1st and 3rd person pronouns have low tones and

the 2nd person pronouns have high tones in the future tense.

The citation/full forms are exemplified below with a focused subject pronoun and

1SG pronouns plus a conjoined noun.

84. Ɔno dze, ɔbɛba. (FA)

Ɔ no dze, ɔ-bɛ-ba.

3SG EMPH 3SG-FUT-come

‘As for him, he will come.’

85. Me ne Kofi a-ba. (AK/AS)

Me ne Kofi a-ba.

1SG CONJ Kofi PERF-come

‘I have come with Kofi.’

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Object pronouns use the citation forms of the pronouns except the 3SG, which uses

no instead of ɔ no. Direct and indirect objects are differentiated by tone and syntax.

86. Wofrɛɛ yɛn. (AK/AS)

Wo-frɛ-ɛ yɛn.

2SG-call-PAST 1PL

‘You called us.’

87. Ɔretɔ no ama mo. (AK/AS)

Ɔ -re-tɔ no a-ma mo.

3SG-PROG-buy 3SG INF-give 2PL

‘S/he is buying it for you.’

To indicate possession, the citation forms of the personal pronouns are used, except

for the 3SG, which changes to ne instead of ɔ no. The pronouns precede the

possessed items they are associated with.

88. Me ‘lɔre’ no yɛ fɛ. (AK/AS)

Me lɔre’ no ø-yɛ fɛ.

1SG POSS.lorry DET STAT-COP nice

‘My vehicle is nice.’

89. Hɛn fie wura aba bi. (FA)

Hɛn fie wura a-ba bi.

1PL.POSS house owner PERF-come along

‘Our landlord has come along.’


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3.4.5 Adjectives

To specify or characterize the referents of nouns, Akan uses adjectives (see

Christaller 1875; Dixon 2004; 1999; Osam 2003; Pokuaa et al 2005; Amfo et al

2005 and Antwi-Danso 2005). Syntactically, when Akan adjectives are used

attributively, they follow the noun referent they describe and in their predicative

use they follow the copula yɛ or ne ‘be’. Some adjectives can occur in both

situations, but others occur in only one pattern.

Some of the basic adjectives in the language categorized following Dixon’s

(2004: 5) classification, are

a. colour: kᴐ kᴐ ᴐ ‘red’, fitaa ‘white’, tuntum ‘black’

b. dimension: ketewa ‘small’, tenten ‘long/tall’,

kεse ‘big’

c. physical property: trotro ‘slippery’, denden ‘hard’

duru ‘heavy,

d. value: fԑfԑ ‘nice/beautiful’, papa ‘good’,

bᴐ ne ‘bad’

e. age: foforo ‘new’, dedaw ‘old’

f. abstract quality: nokware ‘true’, atoro ‘false’, ampa ‘true’

nwonwa ‘wonder/doubtful’ etc.

90. atade foforɔ (AS)

atade foforɔ

dress new

‘a new dress’

91. Atadeε no yɛ foforɔ (AS)

Atade no yɛ foforɔ

dress DET COP new

‘The dress is new.’

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3.4.6 Adverbs

Akan adverbs also have basic as well as derived forms (see Saah & Agbedor 2004).

Adverbs used to indicate manner, frequency, time, location, reason and epistemic

modality have both basic and derived forms. A number of them occur clause-initial

and others occur in clause-final positions only. A few occur in both positions.

These adverbs either have their scope over the entire proposition or over the

predicate only.

Some of the basic ones are ébia ‘maybe’, gyama ‘perhaps’, sesεε ‘probably’, daa

‘everyday’, ntεm ‘fast’ and nyaa ‘slowly’.

92. Sesɛɛ onni hɔ. (AK/AS)

Sesɛ ɛ o-ø-nni hɔ.

probably 3SG-STAT-be there

‘He is probably not there/around.’

93. Ɔkasa nyaa. (AK/AS)

Ɔ -ø-kasa nyaa.

2SG-HAB-talk slow

‘He speaks slowly.’

94. Daa mehu no. (AS)

Daa me-ø-hu no.

everyday 1SG-HAB-see 2SG

‘I see him everyday.’

95. Muhu no daa. (FA)

Mu-ø-hu no daa.

1SG-HAB-see 2SG everyday

‘I see him everyday.’


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In the examples above, sesɛ ɛ in (92) occurs clause-initially, nyaa in (93) occurs

clause-finally, but daa in (76 &77) occurs in both positions.

Pefee ‘clearly’, ampa ‘true’ and nokware ‘true’ are among the few forms which are

used as both predicative adjectives and adverbs in the language without any change

in form.

3.5 Formation of some Verbal and Adverbial/Predicative

Adjectival Constructions.

Apart from the word classes mentioned in the preceding sections, there are a few

verbal and predicative adjectival constructions expressing various degrees of

modality and evidentiality. These verbal and adverbial/adjectival constructions are

often idiomatic in the sense that their components may not contribute to the current

meanings they code and for most of them, their structure cannot be altered. They

have been through a diachronic process of grammaticalization to become either a

single-word form (like ebia) or a multi-word form. For that matter, the major

components of these constructions may be from the same word class, but the

meaning is expressed in another. The phenomenon is likened to the English word

‘maybe’ which essentially contains ‘may’ and ‘be’, which are both verbs but their

combination results in an adverb meaning. This situation is also reported in Sakyi

(2013a: 192) about how some English modal adverbs and adjectives are expressed

with verbs or verbal constructions in Akan. Normally, the predominant word class

in a construction is used to label the said construction, but with these constructions,

since they are undergoing the process of grammaticalization and most of their

individual components do not make legitimate semantic contributions to the actual

meanings they express, we have categorized them into the meanings they express,

disregarding their forms. For instance, the construction εsε sε has the physical

component of the expletive ‘it’, ‘fit/resemble/deserve/is worthy’ and a

complementizer ‘that’. One may have various combinations of these verb/adjective

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words in different contexts, but the actual meaning of this particular structure is

‘must’, ‘should’ or ‘have to’, which we classify as an auxiliary and not a verbal or

adjectival construction with a complementizer. This function-superiority we

advocate for in this study is the same concept underlying the glossing principle we

adopt here (cf Leipzig glossing rule 2.4). In this principle multi-word structures

whose individual lexical items may or may not contribute to the intended overall

meanings are glossed as verb plus STEM. For example, gye di ‘believe’ is glossed

as /believe STEM/ instead of /take eat/ as the individual words suggest.

The predicative adjectives in the category listed here are so called because both

their forms and meanings are adjectives.

1. ɛhia/ehia sε (AK/AS)/ohia dε (FA) ‘it is important/necessary

that.’

2. εyɛ/eye sε (AK/AS)/oye dε (FA) ‘it is good that.’

3. ɛwom/ewom sε (AK/AS)/owom dε (FA) ‘it is true that.’

The two constructions in (4) and (5) are classified as modal auxiliaries because of

the meanings they assume and the functions they play in propositions. As far as

their idiomaticity is concerned, the use of the expletive projects the form into a

neutral/situational use without any particular agent involved. Hence, it cannot be

changed into any other personal pronoun and it cannot be omitted either.

4. ɛsɛ sɛ/ɛwɔ sɛ (AK/AS)/ͻwͻ dɛ (FA) ‘must/have to/should.’

5. etwa sɛ (AK/AS)/otwar dɛ (FA) ‘must/have to/should.’

The complements of these deontic forms, ehia sɛ, eye sɛ, etwa sɛ and ɛsɛ sɛ, utilize

the subjunctive mood.


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Other forms feature the conditional marker (sɛ) … a in their constructions. In these

constructions, sɛ may be omitted but a is obligatory. (6) has fully grammaticalized

to become one lexical item, ebia, which is now used as a modal adverb. The

pronoun in (7) is not replaceable with any other but it can be omitted in certain

utterances. The one in (8) may be changed but it cannot be omitted.

6. (sɛ) ɛyɛ bi a (ebia) ‘perhaps/maybe’

7. (sɛ) (wo) anhwɛ a ‘it is possible/maybe/perhaps/likely’

8. (sɛ) (wo) hwɛ a ‘apparently/seemingly/evidently’

Another set of constructions we mention here have the complementizer as part of

the accrued semantics of the constructions, so they cannot be left out. (9) and (10)

are adj/adv constructions and the rest are verbal constructions.

9. biribiara kyerɛ sɛ ‘it is evident that/evidently’

10. akyinnye nnim sɛ ‘there is no doubt/it is certain that/undoubtedly.’

11. ɛyɛ me sɛ ‘to think that/to suppose that’

12. ɛbɛyɛ sɛ ‘it may be that’

13. wobɛka sɛ ‘you may think that/to appear that/to seem that’

14. fa no sɛ ‘to assume/suppose/think that’

The grammatical subject pronouns in (11), (12) and (13) cannot be changed but the

object pronoun in (11) may be changed. -bɛ- ‘may’ in (12) and (13) is an epistemic

morpheme treated in chapter 3 below. It is not treated here in isolation because of

the composite unit it forms with the other words.

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3.6 Word Order

Word order in Akan is SV(O), with very little variation (see Osam 2004). This

order is applicable in Serial Verb Constructions (SVC) as well, since the various

simple clauses in such constructions also follow this pattern. (96) is an imperative

construction in which the subject and mood are zero. (97) has a subject and verb,

and (98) has a subject, a verb and an object. In (99), there is a subject and an

auxiliary verb preceding the main verb, and (100) has SVC.

96. Bra. (AK/AS/FA)

ø-ø-bra.

2SG-IMP-come

‘Come.’

97. Nana bae. (AK)

Nana ba-e.

Nana come-PAST

‘Nana came.’

98. Owusu retɔ odwan. (AS)

Owusu re-tɔ odwan.

Owusu retɔ odwan

‘Owusu is buying a sheep.’

99. Fiifi botum aba. (FA)

Fiifi bo-tum a-ba.

Fiifi FUT-can CONS-come

‘Fiifi can come.’

100. Ɔreyɛ edwuma atɔ tam. (FA)

Ɔ-re-yɛ edwuma a-tɔ tam.

3SG-PROG-do work CONS-buy cloth

‘S/he is working to buy a piece of cloth.’


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The basic order could of course be expanded to include other elements in a clause.

A number of combinations are possible but the one presented here is quite

exhaustive.

(FOC EMPH) (ADV) {S} (EMPH) (AUX) {V} {(O 1) (O 2)} (ADV).

FOC is a clausal component focused or fronted in a clause and EMPH is the slot

for the emphatic particle placed after the focused item. ADV stands for adverbs

and adverbial groups. S is the subject which always occurs as the first nominal

element in a canonical clause. O1 & O2 are first and second objects analyzable in

other languages as the direct and indirect objects. AUX is an auxiliary verb and V

is the head verb. An example of the expanded frame above is (101).

101. Kofi deɛ ebia ne nko ara bɛtumi atɔ odwan baako ama ɔkɔmfoɔ no

anɔpa yi.

Kofi deɛ ebia ne nko ara bɛ- tumi

Kofi EMPH maybe 3SG alone EMPH FUT-can

a-tɔ odwan baako a-ma

CONS-buy sheep one CONS-give

ɔkɔmfoɔ no anɔpa yi.

priest DET morning DEM

‘As for Kofi, he alone may be able to buy one sheep for the priest this

morning.’

3.7 Verbal Affixes

Verbal affixes in the language include mood, tense/aspect, negation and the

consecutive markers. As mentioned above, subject-pronouns occur as prefixes to

verb stems and they are the first items to occur before any of the verbal affixes

come.

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3.7.1 Mood

Mood is one of the linguistic phenomena which has received much attention. Yet

writers have divergent meanings they associate to the term. Nuyts (2016) lists the

following three as the most prominent referents of mood:

(i) the domain of grammatical coding of modal (and related) meanings

of the verb (cf. the classical notion of “tense-aspect-mood

marking”, in which the term is used this way);

(ii) the domain of basic sentence types and the illocutionary categories

expressed by them (this is, e.g., the way the term is generally used

in systemic linguistics-cf. Halliday 1994); and

(iii) the domain of indicative vs subjunctive or realis vs irrealis coding

and its semantics.

What writers describe as mood in Akan falls in the third domain which is what

Nuyts & van der Auwera (eds.), (2016) also ascribes to in principle. Akan has been

described as having two or three main mood distinctions. Osam (2004: 18)

mentions the indicative and the imperative, explaining that the imperative is

subdivided into imperative proper, involving the second person, and the optative,

covering the other persons. Boadi (2005: 75) mentions the indicative and jussive

moods and splits up jussive into imperative and subjunctive. Both writers agree on

the status of the first mood – indicative, but do not quite agree on the second,

especially with the addition of the subjunctive which is missing in Osam’s. Readers

are encouraged to read Nuyts & van der Auwera (eds.), (2016) and van der Auwera

& Zamorano A. (2016), which sketch the history of mood from antiquity, and its

implication on the separation of modality and mood.


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3.7.1.1 The Indicative Mood

The indicative mood is used to make assertions, statements and to question. It

expresses factual propositions and it allows tense/aspect markings (see Boadi 2005:

75). (102) is an assertion which occurs with a past tense marker and (103) uses the

stative form of the verb to indicate a factual proposition.

102. Kofi boroo abofra no. (AK/AS/FA)

Kofi boro-o abofra no.

Kofi beat-PAST child DET

‘Kofi beat the child.’

103. Minim sԑ osu atᴐ nnԑ. (AK/AS/FA)

Miø-nim sԑ osu a-tᴐ nnԑ.

1S-STAT-know COMP rain PERF-fall today

‘I know it has rained today.’

3.7.1.2 Jussive Mood

The two subtypes of jussive mood, i.e., imperative and subjunctive, express non-

factual propositions. They express various states of unreality such as wish,

emotion, possibility, necessity, and are also used to issue mands (see Boadi (ibid.)

and Lyons 1977: 748). The jussive mood does not allow the expression of temporal

or aspectual relations.

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3.7.1.2.1 Imperative Mood

The imperative is marked by a high tone homorganic nasal prefix [n-], which in

principle appears in between the pronominal subject prefix and the verb stem. In

2SG, however, the imperative is zero. It is only the bare form of the verb which is

used so the subject and imperative prefixes are absent. In negation, the negative

marker appears after the subject pronoun and the imperative prefix. As such, in

2SG, the negative marker is the only prefix attached to the verb stem.

104. Da! (AK/AS/FA)

ø-da!

(You)-IMP-sleep!

‘Sleep!’

105. Monna/monda!

mo-n-na (AK/AS)

mo-n-da (FA)

2PL-IMP-sleep

‘(You should) sleep!’

106. Monnna/monnnda!

Mo-n-n-na (AK/AS)

mo-n-nn-da (FA)

2PL-IMP -NEG -sleep

‘Don’t sleep!/ you should not sleep’

Note that the structures in (106), where three nasals are used, are by rule the correct

written forms in Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi and Fante. But since the imperative

has acquired the same low tone as the negative, and there is no inherent

prolongation in speech, Akanwa simplifies them by writing two nasals. We shall

present the former in our analyses, unless the data in question were presented with

the two nasals.


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3.7.1.2.2 Subjunctive Mood

In Akan, the subjunctive mood occurs in complement clauses only. It does not have

any dedicated morpheme, so it is indicated by a general rising in pitch, stretching

from the beginning of the complement clause and ending on its last syllable (see

Boadi 2005:93; 1975). It occurs in combination with matrix clauses whose verbs

express permission, obligation, wishes, wants (volition), emotions (boulomaic),

desirability, necessity or possibility (deontic). The marker of the subjunctive is a

zero on the subordinate verbs in (107) and (108).

107. Mepɛ sɛ me ne wo kɔ. (AK/AS/FA)

Me-ø-pɛ sɛ me ne wo ø-kɔ.

1SG-STAT-like COMP 1SG CONJ 2SG SUBJ-go

‘I want/wish to go with you.’

108. Anka ɛnsɛ sɛ woba. (AK/AS/FA)

Anka ɛ-n-sɛ sɛ wo-ø-ba.

would have 3SG-NEG-should COMP 2SG-SUBJ-come

‘You shouldn’t have come.’

3.7.2 Tense and Aspect

Our aim is to demonstrate how tense, aspect, negation and other verbal affixes are

used in constructions in this section. To start with, we discuss the inherent tense or

aspectual meanings the forms code and clarify the inclusion of the Akan past affix

as a prominent tense marker.

Tense and aspect have been discussed extensively in the literature (see Dahl 1985;

Comrie 1976; 1985 and Hogeweg et al 2009). In Akan, (Christaller 1875;

Dolphyne 1988; 2006; Essilfie 1986; Osam 2004; 2008; Antwi-Danso 2005; 2007;

2010 and Boadi 2008;2009) are among the writers who have discussed T/A. Apart

from Osam (2004c) and his subsequent works, which describe Akan as having only

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one tense i.e., the future, all the other writers recognize two tenses made up of the

future and the past tenses, as well as a number of aspects and so do we. Although

there are diverse views about the number of tense/aspects and even about their

appropriate nomenclature, it is evident from most of the writers that at least these

six basic tense/aspects markers, viz., the past and the future tenses, the perfect, the

progressive, the habitual and the stative aspects are in the language.

In Comrie (1976: 1-2) “Tense relates the time of the situation referred to to some

other time, usually to the moment of speaking.” Three logical time points that

situations can be referred to are the past, present and future times. According to

him, a situation described in the present tense is located temporally as simultaneous

with the moment of speaking (e.g., John is singing); one described in the past as

located prior to the moment of speaking (e.g., John sang, John was singing); one

described in the future as located subsequent to the moment of speaking (e.g., John

will sing, John will be singing). Tenses which relate the time of the situation

described to the present moment are referred to as absolute tenses.

For aspect, Comrie (1976: 3) defines it as the “different ways of viewing the

internal temporal constituency of a situation”, reiterating (Holt 1943: 6), whose

exposition can be translated as “different ways of conceiving the flow of the

process itself”. On the internal temporal relationship, Comrie (1976: 3),

distinguishes perfective and imperfective with utterances whose situations

occurred in the past (absolute past tense form of verbs),

i. ‘He read’ and

ii. ‘He was reading/he used to read.’

Although both utterances are in the past, ‘he read’ is presented as a complete whole

without indicating the duration or how the situation unfolded. According to him,

“the perfective verb presents the totality of the situation referred to without

reference to its internal temporal constituency: the whole of the situation is

presented as a single unanalyzable whole, with beginning, middle and end rolled


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into one.” (1976: 3). With the imperfective, however, an attempt is made to divide

the situation up into the various individual phases that make it up. In the other

utterances, they indicate portions of the unfolding situation, leaving the beginning

or ending open.

On his part, Klaus (2014: 40) explains that the internal constitution of the eventities

denoted by verbs “includes temporal properties and chronological relationships

between parts of such eventities”. Apart from the temporal relations mentioned, he

points out that there are also other issues which play a role in determining the

aspectual properties of situations, referring to Aristotle’s (2006: 141 ff)

‘completion and directness toward an inherent goal’ as one of them. Based on this

we can differentiate a situation according to its internal temporal constitution

(perfectivity/imperfectivity) as well as its completion or otherwise

(completivity/incompletivity).

Bε- ‘will’ for instance is assigned the future tense because it has its foremost

prominent meaning, indicating a situation occurring posterior to the utterance time.

The past tense morphemes are so called because their uses indicate that the

situation occurred prior to the time of speaking. This contradicts Osam’s (2008)

assertion of the form invoking aspectual meaning as its principal meaning. When

reis used, the mind quickly processes the situation as ongoing at the time of

speech, hence its name as a progressive aspect. When the time of the situation is

compared in relation to the time of speaking, however, it indicates a present time

point or present tense.

The aforementioned exposition indicates that these verbal affixes code both tense

and aspect on different levels. We present the table below to show which

tense/aspect an affix may code in the language.

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T PAST PRES FUT COMPL INCOMPL PRFV IMPFV

bε- - - + - + + -

-i + - - + - + -

a- + - - + - - +

re- - + - - + - +

ø H - + - - + - +

ø S - + - - + - +

Table 3.4 Inherent tense and aspect of verbal affixes

As it has already been mentioned, it is not only the perfectivity/imperfectivity

coding which can be used to differentiate aspectual values but also the

completivity/incompletivity of the said situations. From the table, the future and

the past affixes are differentiated by their tenses. In their aspectual differentiations,

both of them indicate perfectivity since they present situations as a complete whole.

But whereas the past can be said to indicate a completive situation, the future tense

cannot. Its occurrence is yet to come and so we would say it is incompletive.

The actual classification of the perfect aspect has been under some doubts and as

Comrie puts it “… the perfect has usually, but not always, been considered an

aspect, although it is doubtful whether the definition of aspect given above can be

interpreted to include the perfect as an aspect” (1976: 6). This comes as a result of

its prominent invocation of past tense reference, but as it is seen with all the affixes,

and as Comrie (ibid.) expatiates further, the perfect is equally not just a tense. Both

the perfect and the past have past tense references, and they both code completive

situations, but whereas the past is presented as perfective, the perfect codes an

imperfective situation since it relates the relevance of the situation to the present

moment.

The progressive, the habitual and the stative aspects have absolute present tense

references, incompletive and imperfective aspectual coding. It is no wonder some

writers have referred to these markers at one point or the other as present tense

markers in the language. Such writers may have been focusing on their tenses alone


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and not on their aspectual values. The differences among them are seen in the

unfolding of their imperfective aspectual coding. A situation described in the

progressive is related to the continues unfolding of the situation at the time of

speaking. The habitual situation is related to times including the time prior to the

time of speaking, during the speech time and possibly after the speech time. It can

also indicate repetitive situations. Situations of the stative aspect indicate

occurrence before, during and possibly after the speech time.

Illustrating his point on the affix (-i) being an aspect and not a tense, Osam (2008:

85) suggests that “if the primary function of the suffix under consideration were to

code past time, we should expect to find it used with an event in progress in the

past.” Our contention is that expressing an event in progress in the past does not

result in absolute tense but relative time reference (see Comrie 1975: 2). In other

words, expressing a progressive, or any of the other aspects in the past is in the

domain of relative time reference where an event referred to is related to another

event time. Moreover, it is not only this affix which cannot occur with the

progressive or the other aspects but also the future marker bε-, which Osam (ibid.)

recognizes as a tense marker, cannot occur with a progressive or any of the aspects

in a future time. In relative time reference, however, both the past and the future

tenses can be used to set up the time frame of events occurring with the progressive

and the other aspects. It is also the reason why the affix cannot code any

imperfective event that occurs in the past prior to the time of speaking, as Osam

puts it, because the affix is a perfective aspect, just like the future tense and so it

cannot code an imperfective event at the same time. In fact, the affix, primarily

indicates that an event under consideration occurred in the past, hence it is a past

tense marker. We must recognize the fact that a form can code both aspectual and

tense values. Each of them is named according to the prominent or obvious

meaning it invokes when it is used as well as the primary function the form

performs. The past marker (-i) is more prominent in tense reference than in its

aspectual reference, hence a tense marker. Thus, if we want to name all the T/A

affixes as per their aspectual values, disregarding their prominent tense meanings,

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then the future tense marker should as well be named incompletive marker, along

with the other aspects.

3.7.2.1 Tense/Aspect Markers in Constructions

In affirmative constructions, affixation of the past tense is quite complex because

it has varied realizations in different contexts. The other T/A have single and more

simple realizations, which make them less difficult. We will mention their affixes

here and reserve the examples for the next section, but the past tense affixes will

be discussed here with examples.

The perfect aspect (PRF) is marked by [a-/æ-] <a-> (AK/AS/FA) and <e> (FA),

the future tense (FUT) is marked by [bε-] (AK/AS/FA), and depending on the ATR

or lip rounding quality of a particular verb, the prefix is represented as <bɛ-/be->

(AK/FA) or [bo/bᴐ] (FA). The progressive aspect (PROG) is marked as [rɪ] <re>

(AK/AS/FA) or <ri-/ru-/ro> (FA). The habitual (HAB) and the stative (STAT)

aspects do not have overt morphemes so they are represented as ø in the surface

structure. Tone and discourse content is the means to distinguish these two aspects.

We discuss their occurrence in the sections that follow.

The past tense (PAST) is the only member with a suffix in affirmative

constructions. It is marked in about four varied ways, viz, addition of [-ɪ/-i] <e/i>

to the stem (all dialects), prolonged final vowel (V2) (all dialects), addition of

[-ɪɪ /-ii] <-ee/-ii> to the stem (all dialects) and a zero (all dialects) or prolonged

vowel preceding the final consonant (Fante only) (see Osam 2004; 2008; Antwi-

Danso 2005; 2007 & 2010; Boadi 2008 & 2009; etc., who mention some of these

affixes). We note four parameters which can be used to determine the right suffix

for a verb:


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a. the type of verb: whether the verb is a single morpheme or a multi-word

verb form

b. whether the verb is a mono or multi-syllabic

c. whether the stem ends with a vowel or a consonant

d. the position of the verb in a sentence (final or non-final) and

e. whether an object/adjunct follows the verb or not.

<-e/-i> is chosen when the verb ends with a vowel and it is the last item in the

clause or when it is not followed by an object or an adjunct. They go for both single

and multi-word forms whose last surface items are verbs, e.g. gye di ‘believe’, ka

hwɛ ‘taste’ etc. In this category, the choice of either affix is dependent on the ATR

or lip-rounding vowel quality of the verb stem, e.g. su – sui (AK/FA) suiɛ (AS)11,

fa – fae (AK/FA) faeɛ (AS), tumi – tumii (AK) tumiiɛ (AS).

109. Ampa ɛhɔ ara na ɔwuiɛ. (SEA. AS)

Ampa ɛhɔ ara na ɔ-wu-iɛ

true there EMPH EMH 3SG-die-PAST

‘It is true, that is where he died.’

11 Asante has an additional sound ɛ (which sounds yɛ in speech). It is added to these forms and

other lexical items which end with <e/i> in Akuapem and Fante, e.g. ewiei ‘the end’(FA) -

awieiɛ ‘the end’ (AS), mpae ‘prayer’ (AK) – mpaeɛ ‘prayer’(AS), sumii ‘pillow’ (AK) sumiiɛ

‘pillow’ (AS). Some writers do not differentiate between the spoken and the written forms, as

such, they present all of them as though they were the written forms. Dolphyne (2006), for

example, treats both spoken and written forms and often points out the differences. Osam (2004

& 2008) treats both spoken and written without often pointing out the differences so in an

example like Araba buuyɛ ‘Araba broke (it)’ (2004: 12), this is how it sounds but the standard

written form is Araba buiɛ ‘Araba broke (it)’, where the verb stem bu ‘to break’ is given the

past tense marker <i> and <ɛ>. In Agyekum (2010: 102) the standard written forms of the

clauses - Barima no didiɛ ara na ɔsan feeɛ ‘As soon as the man ate he vomited again’ and Asɛm

no baaeɛ na menni ha ‘I wasn’t here when that incident happened.’ are Ɔbarima no didiiɛ ara

na ɔsan feeɛ. ‘As soon as the man ate he vomited again’and Asɛm no baeɛ na menni ha ‘I wasn’t

here when that incident happened, respectively. This type of past tense form of didi ‘to eat’ is

didii(ɛ) ‘ate’, and ba ‘to come’ is bae(ɛ) ‘came’

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138

110. N’ano siiɛ ara pɛ na Basahyiade se: “Yei deɛ Onyame bɔfoɔ sene ɔbɔfo

pa. (idiom) (MENE. AS)

N’ano si-iɛ ara pɛ na

3SG.POSS’mouth end-PAST EMPH immediately CONJ

Basahyiade se: “Yei deɛ

Basahyiade say.PAST.COMP this EMPH

Onyame bɔ!foɔ sene ɔbɔfo pa.

God messenger surpass messanger good.

‘Immediately he finished talking Basahyiade said: You are a messenger

sent from God!’

111. Owui yi, sɛ mokɔr do yɛɛ edwuma a ɔdze gyaa me no a, nkyɛ nnyɛ ɔno

nye yi bi. (EGYA. FA)

O-wu-i yi, sɛ mo-kɔr-ø do yɛ-ɛ edwuma

3SG-die-PAST DEM CM 1SG-go-PAST on do-PAST work

a ɔ-dze gya-a me no a,

REL 3SG-take leave-PAST 1SG DET CM

nkyɛ nn-yɛ ɔno nye yi bi.

IRR NEG-be DEM be DEM PART

‘If I had continued with the work he left for me after his death, things

wouldn’t go this bad.’

112. Kosii sɛ mogya no twae. (AKU. AK)

Ko-si-i sɛ mogya no twa-e.

go-reach-PAST COMP blood DET stop-PAST

‘Till the blood stopped flowing’

Prolonged final vowels occur when the verb ends with a vowel and it is followed

by an object/adjunct.

113. Okosiee no wɔ ofie yɛɛ no ayi sɛnea ɛsɛ. (AKU AK)

O-ko-sie-e no wɔ ofie yɛ-ɛ

3SG-go-bury-PAST 3SG be house do-PAST

no ayi sɛnea ɛ-ø-sɛ

3SG funeral how it-HAB-fit

‘He went to bury her at home and gave her a befitting funeral.’


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114. Wɔhyɛɛ no kakra ma ɔnomee. (EGYA FA)

Wɔ-hyɛ-ɛ no kakra ma ɔ-nome-e.

3PL-pour-PAST 3SG little let 3SG-drink-PAST

‘They poured out a little for him to drink.’

115. Wɔgyinaa hɔ dii nkɔmmɔ ara yie. (ƐNNƐ AS)

Wɔ-gyinaa hɔ di-i nkɔmmɔ ara yie.

3PL-stand-PAST there converse-PAST STEM EMPH well

‘They stood there to converse for a while.’

The third marking involves verbs which end with consonants and are not followed

by objects or adjuncts. This process occurs in all the dialects. In this category,

<-ee/-ii> is attached to the verb stem. kum ‘to kill’ - kumii ‘killed’, ham ‘to quarrel’

- hamee ‘quarreled’, kan ‘to read’ - kanee ‘read’, tum ‘can/be able to’ - tumii

‘could/was able to’ (FA) hun ‘to see’ - hunii ‘saw’(FA).

116. Ne sika sidi anan yewee. (ƆBRA FA)

Ne sika sidi anan yew-ee.

2SG.POSS money Cedi four lose-PAST

‘His four Cedis got lost.’

117. Ampomaa Ahweneɛ nyinii no, na ne ho yɛ fɛ sen bota ne nnyaane mpo.

(ƆBƆF AK)

A. A. nyin-ii no, na ne ho ø-yɛ fɛ sen

A. A grow-PAST when PART 2SG.POSS self STAT-be beautiful surpass

bota ne nnyaane mpo.

rubies CONJ jewelries EMPH

‘When A.A. grew up she was more beautiful than rubies and precious

minerals.’

118. Bɛɛko tee Gyato asɛm yi ase saneeɛ. (ƐHIA AS)

Bɛɛko te-e Gyato asɛm yi ase san-eeɛ.

Bɛɛko understand-PAST Gyato issue DEM STEM return-PAST

‘Bɛɛko agreed to what Gyato said so he didn’t go with him.’

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The next category deals with verbs which end with consonants and are followed

by objects or adjuncts. Two ways of marking them are zero in all the dialects, and

prolonged vowels preceding the final consonants in Fante only. Examples of the

zero marking are below.

119. Enti ɔpam batakari bi maa no. (Genesis 37: 3)

Enti ɔ-pam-ø batakari bi ma-a no. (AK)

Enti ɔ-pam-ø batakari bi ma-a no. (AS)

So 3SG-sew-PAST smock DET give-PAST 3SG

‘And he made a robe of many colours for him.’ (Holman Christian

Standard Bible)

120. Ɔde anibere tiw no. (ƆBƆF AK)

ɔ-de anibere tiw-ø no.

3SG-use fury follow-PAST 3SG

‘He followed him with fury.’

121. Wɔkum akokɔ de yɛɛ aduane maa Abena. (SEA AS)

Wɔ-kum-ø akokɔ de yɛ-ɛ aduane ma-a Abena.

3PL-kill-PAST fowl use do-PAST food give-PAST Abena

‘They killed a fowl to prepare meals for Abena.’

122. Daano bi mbrɛ hɔn mu kor sii kum mo nua bi a! (AWU FA)

Daano bi mbrɛ hɔn mu kor si-i kum-ø

one.day DET how 3PL in one take-PAST kill-PAST

mo nua bi a!

1SG.POSS sister DET PART

‘How one of them killed a sister of mine one day!’

Note that since such forms do not inflect, they are similar in form with the other

uninflected forms, i.e., the habitual and the stative aspects. It is the tones of their

pronouns, stems, other verbs in the clause and the discourse contexts which identify

them.


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As we pointed out about how some writers present the spoken as though they were

the written forms, Osam (2004c: 11), for example, doubles the final consonant just

the way it is with final vowels.

123. Maame no pamm atar no. (Osam 2004c: 11)

Maame no pam-m atar no.

woman DET sew-PAST dress DET

‘The woman sewed the dress.’

124. Ɔtoww bobaa bɔɔ no. (Osam 1994: 200)

Ɔ-tow-w bobaa bɔ-ɔ no

3SG SUBJ-throw-PAST stone hit-PAST 3SG

‘He threw a stone at (to hit) her.’ (Kambon 2012: 208-209)

125. Kofi toww bobaa ma ɔkɔbɔɔ Esi. (Osam 1994: 200)

Kofi tow-w bobaa ma ɔ-kɔ-bɔ-ɔ Esi

Kofi throw-PAST stone COMP 3SG-go-hit-PAST Esi

‘Kofi threw a stone and it hit Esi.’ (Kambon 2012: 208-209)

In the second process, the vowel preceding the final consonant is doubled. There

is no specific rule at the moment to identify which types of verbs go through this

process. However, since they end with consonants and they are followed by objects

or adjuncts, we believe it is the same principle mentioned in the first part of this

category which is being applied. Writers who use the two consonants are being

influenced by speech. Verbs that come under those in the first part also have that

inherent lengthened vowel sound, but the conventional writing system presents

them as uninflected forms. Moreover, if one considers this lengthening, it means

the past form is an infix, but this process doesn’t occur in Akan. We present these

few verb forms as they appear in the data.

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142

126. Yaw Fori tsenaa hɔ dzinn dween kakra. (ƆBRA FA)

Yaw Fori tsena-a hɔ dzinn dwe-e-n kakra.

Yaw Fori sit-PAST there quiet think-PAST.INFX little

‘Yaw Fori sat there quietly to think for a while.’

127. Hɔn awofo kum nkokɔ maa hɔn ma wɔdze guaar hɔn akra. (ƆBRA FA)

Hɔn awofo kum-ø nkokɔ maa hɔn ma wɔ-dze

3PL.POSS parents kill-PAST fowls give 3PL for 3PL-use

gua-a-r hɔn akra.

bath-PAST.INFX 3PL.POSS souls

‘Their parents slaughtered fowls for them to relax their souls.’

128. Idurii ara so nna asew no kyerɛɛw dɛ edu fie. (ABO FA)

I-dur-ii ara so nna asew no

2SG-reach-PAST immediately also CONJ inlaw DET

kyerɛ-ɛ-w dɛ ø-e-du fie.

write-PAST.INFX COMP 2SG-PRF-reach house.

‘The moment you got there the in-law wrote to inform me that you have

reached home.’

Apart from the zero marking in final consonant verbs which are followed by objects

or adjuncts, zero also occurs in Akuapem and Asante SVC when the verb is directly

followed by another verb, and in multi-word verb forms whose constituents are

both verbs. Verbs ending with both vowels and consonants take part in this zero

marking. Note that in the Fante example in (129) all the verbs are inflected in the

past tense. In its counterpart in the Akuapem and Asante, repeated here as (130)

and those in (131) and (132), on the other hand, verbs which precede other verbs

are not inflected.


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129. Yɛdwenee dwenee dwenee a, nna yɛmmfa mu bi, kɛpeem dɛ Okura

aberantsɛ bi soɛree gyinae kasae. (EWU FA)

Yɛ-dwene-e dwene-e dwene-e a,

1PL-think-PAST think-PAST think-PAST PART

nna yɛ-mm-fa mu bi, kɛ-pe-e-m dɛ Okura

PART 1PL-NEG-take in any go-reach-PAST.INFX COMP mouse

aberantsɛ bi soɛre-e gyina-e kasa-e.

youth DET get.up-PAST stand-PAST speak-PAST

‘We thought about it for a long time without finding any solution, till one

of the youth got up to speak.’

130. Yɛdwene dwene dwenee a, na ensi hwee so, kɔpem sɛ Akura

aberante(ɛ) bi sɔre gyina kasae. (AK/AS - CONS after EWU FA)

Yɛ-dwene-ø dwene-ø dwene-e a,

1PL-think-PAST think-PAST think-PAST PART

na e-ø-n-si hwee so, kɔpem-ø sɛ Akura

PAST 3SG-HAB-NEG-reach nothin on go-reach-PAST COMP mouse

aberante(ɛ) bi sɔre-ø gyina-ø kasa-e(ɛ).

youth DET get.up-PAST stand-PAST speak-PAST

‘We thought about it for a long time without finding any solution, till one

Mouse stood up to speak.’

131. Aku su twaa agyaadwo sɛɛ no, ɔsɔre gyinae. (AKU AK)

Aku su-ø twa-a.agyaadwo sɛɛ no, ɔ-sɔre-ø gyina-e.

Aku cry-PAST wail-PAST DEM DET 3SG-get.up-PAST stand-PAST

‘After Aku wept and wailed in this manner, she stood up.’

132. Ɛhɔ ara na ɔde mmirikatɛntɛ sɔre dwaneeɛ a Bɛɛko anhunu n’atikɔ bio.

(ƐHIA AS)

Ɛhɔ ara na ɔ-de mmirikatɛntɛ sɔre-ø dwane-eɛ

there EMPH EMPH 3SG-use running.fast get.up-PAST run.away.PAST

a Bɛɛko a-n-hunu n’-atikɔ bio.

PART Bɛɛko PAST-NEG-see 3SG.POSS-back again

‘It immediately got up and run away so fast so that Bɛɛko didn’t see it

anymore.’

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3.7.2.2 Relative Time Marking

Apart from the expression of absolute tense and aspect in utterances, the language

has a way of expressing the time of a situation in relation to the time of another

situation. This process is not part of the verbal affixes per se, but it has a close

overlap with using tense to refer to the time of situations treated so far. Relative

time reference has implications on the overall analysis of the language because it

explains why a construction which has a particular aspectual form can be translated

with a different tense. In modality, it also helps us to differentiate between

utterances which give performative or descriptive readings.

Comrie points out that, “another possible form of time reference is relative time

reference where, instead of the time of a situation being located relative to the

present moment, it is related to the time of some other situation” (1976:2). The

strategy involved in creating such relative time reference in Akan is through

subordination of time clauses or adverbial time clauses which answer the question

of ‘when’ or ‘at what time’ a situation occurs, linked to tensed or aspectual main

clauses which present the actual situation. Osam describes the process as

“… using a complex clause in which one clause provides the temporal setting

and the other clause reports the imperfective event. The time setting clause

would be a dependent clause and the imperfective event would be in an

independent clause” (2008: 86).

Note, however, that it is not all the independent clauses which have imperfective

events. It is clear in the examples we provide that both the past and future tenses

which do not have imperfective meanings also do occur in the independent/main

clauses. Likewise, the subordinate clause can contain any of the tense/aspect forms

in the language, including adverbial time clauses, contrary to earlier discussions,

which seem to portray that it is only the past or future markers which can be in the

subordinate clause (see Boadi 2008: 32-34 and Osam 2008: 87). The aspectual

values of situations in both clauses only indicate the internal temporal unfolding of


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the situations, but it is the location in time they assume which is of importance to

these types of clauses. In fact, the time frames of both the subordinate and the main

clauses are in symbiotic relation so that the temporal location of one presupposes

the temporal location of the other.

Both Boadi’s (2008) and Osam’s (2008) discussions of the relative time reference

go a long way, but they do not take a wholistic approach in dealing with such

constructions. They focuse on a particle na, which has erroneously been referred

to as a time marker in earlier studies. Their outcomes, therefore, are not in

consonance with the language. Boadi (ibid.) sees na as different lexemes with one

(na1) marking a future time marker and the other (na2) a past time marker. But

since that analysis could not reveal much about what such constructions stand for,

he commented that:

“that na1 and na2 are different lexemes is not in doubt. It would be

pointless to speculate here about the likely historical processes that must

have occurred for two diametrically opposed semantic units to be

expressed by the same form na, intriguing though this is” (Boadi 2008:34).

He further lamented on the unsuitable analysis of the form, and suggested that

“Perhaps, a detailed study of these two forms in related dialects and languages will,

one day, give clues” (2008: 34).

Of course, it is pointless to focus on that particle as though it were a marker of

tense/time, in the first place, because when you consider the whole construction as

a unit, na does not have any of the meanings these writers assign to it.

We take a wholistic approach in discussing how utterances with relative time

reference are formed in the Akan language. As it is in other languages, the Akan

relative time clauses occur in complex clauses with subordinate and main clauses.

Three subordinating conjunctions used in this process are (sε)12 … a ‘when’ or ‘at

12 We have put (sε) in brackets to show that its use is not obligatory, so it may be omitted in

constructions.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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the time that’, yi ‘while’, ‘as’ or ‘now that’ and no ‘by the time that’. We discuss

each of these conjunctions below.

3.7.2.2.1 (Sε) … a

(Sε) … a13 has two main uses in the language. In one usage it is a conditional

marker which means ‘if’. When it is used as a conditional marker, it can occur with

all the tenses and aspects of the language. In the second usage, it acts as a

subordinating conjunction for both the present and the future time references

meaning ‘when’ or ‘at the time that’. It occurs with only the progressive, habitual

and the stative aspects. The main clauses for this subordinator can also have a

future or present time reference. It must be noted here that all these aspectual forms

have present time reference. A brief comment is necessary here to explain why the

present time markers are used for both present and future time references. In the

Akan language, just like in English, the present tense form of a verb can be used to

express a future situation. For instance, in ‘When I come, I will see him’, the

presence of the subordinator and the future time reference of the main clause

presuppose that the time reference of the subordinate clause is in the future. But

since the future marker cannot be used in such clauses, ‘*when I will come, I will

see him,’ the present form is used (see Declerck 1997:7, which discusses present

tense with future time reference). In Akan, a similar principle applies, as in Meba

a mehu no. ‘When I come I will see him.’ not *mεba a mehu no. ‘When I will

come, I will see him.’ Since the subordinate clause is presented with only the

present tense, its actual time reference depends on the temporal status of the main

clause. Examples (133) and (135) present the full range of the aspectual forms

which can occur in these subordinate clauses and those which can occur in their

main clauses. It must be noted that both clauses have the same type of forms in the

13 The underlying tone of a is low but when it is directly preceded by a high tone it takes a

rise-fall tone ( ).


147

subordinate clauses, but they are interpreted differently according to the tense

references of the main clauses. (134) and (136) have complete thoughts.

133. (Sε) ͻreba a/ͻba a/ͻda hↄ a, yεbεhunu no. (AS)

‘When he is coming/he comes/when he lay there, I will see him.’

134. Ↄreba a yεbεhunu no. (AS)

Ↄ-re-ba a yε-bε-hunu no.

3SG-PROG-come SUB 1PL-FUT-see 3SG

‘When he is coming we will see him.’

135. Ↄreba a/ͻba a/ͻda hↄ a midzidzi. (FA)

‘When he is coming/when he comes/when he is lying there, I eat.’

136. Ↄda hͻ a midzidzi. (FA)

Ↄ-ø-da hͻ a mi-ø-dzidzi.

3SG-STAT-lie there SUB 1SG-HAB-eat

‘When he is lying there I eat.’

3.7.2.2.2 Yi as a subordinator

Yi can be used as a definite determiner meaning ‘this’, as in abofra yi, ‘this child’.

It can also be used as a subordinating conjunction which has a present time

reference meaning ‘while/as/now that’, to subordinate clauses marked with the

perfect, the progressive, the habitual or the stative aspects. With the use of the

subordinator, the aspectual forms in the subordinated clauses retain their present

temporal reading, and the main clauses can be marked with the future tense or

present tense in the form of the progressive, habitual or stative aspects. Unlike the

subordinator (sε) … a whose subordinated clauses can be interpreted as either a

future or present time reference, this subordinator expresses only a present time

reference. It is possible for its main clause to have a future reference because

logically, a future situation can be projected from a present moment.

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148

137. Maba yi/mereba yi/meba yi/mete ha yi John besua ade/resua ade/

asua ade/gyina hͻ. (AK)

‘While/as/now that I have come, John will study/is studying/has

studied/studies/is standing there.’

138. Maba yi John besua ade(ε). (AK/AS)

M-a-ba yi John be-sua.ade(ε).

1SG-PERF-come SUB John FUT-study

‘Now that I have come, John will study.’

139. Maaba yi John rusua adze. (FA)

M-aa-ba yi John ru-sua adze.

1SG-PERF-come SUB John PROG-study

‘Now that I have come, John is studying.’

140. Mereba yi John gyina hͻ. (AK/AS)

Me-re-ba yi John ø-gyina hͻ.

1SG-PROG-come SUB John STAT-stand there

‘As I am coming, John is standing there.’

Although with relative time reference, the location in time in both the subordinate

clause and that of the main clause correspond to each other, with the use of this

subordinator, the two clauses can take different location in time if the situation is

to occur in a future time.

3.7.2.2.3 No as a subordinating conjunction

No can be used as a determiner, as in abofra no, ‘the child’. It can also be used as

a subordinating conjunction which means ‘when/by the time/at the time that’. It is

used to subordinate clauses marked with the future and past tenses as well as those

marked with the progressive, habitual and stative aspects.


149

When the subordinate clause is marked with a future tense, it retains its future time

reference and so the main clause assumes a future time reference as well. There is

a past time reference when the subordinate clause contains a past tense,

progressive, habitual or stative aspects. This is because when any of these three

aspects is subordinated by no, it assumes a past temporal reference, and so the tense

of the main clause is understood to be in the past.

141. Yεbaeε no/yεreba no/yεba ha no/yεtete ha no odidiiε. (AS)

‘When we came/when we were coming/when we used to come

here/when we were sitting here, he ate.’

142. Yεtete ha no odidiiε. (AS)

Yε-ø-te.te ha no o-di.di-iε.

1PL-STAT-sit here SUB 3SG-eat-PAST

‘When we were sitting here, he ate.’

In (141), we have all the tense/aspects which can occur in a subordinate clause

whose main clause has the past tense marker and (142) is an example of what can

be in a subordinate clause when the past tense marker is in the main clause.

Having established the time frame of the subordinate clauses with the past tense

marker in the main clause, we now turn to how other subordinate clauses are joined

to main clauses marked with aspects. To do this, a particle, na (AK/AS) nna (FA)

is used to introduce the main clause. As a particle, it has this grammatical function,

but it does not mean a past or future time marker as proposed by Boadi (2008),

neither does it mean ‘at the time of’ as proposed by Osam (2008). The particle na

is used only when the subordinator is no and the main clause contains an aspectual

form.

In (143) and (144), the subordinator no turns all the forms in the subordinate into

past time references, hence, all the forms in the main clauses assume past time

references.

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150

143. Yεbae no/yεreba no/yεba ha no/yεtse ha no,

nna ͻredzidzi/oedzidzi /odzidzi/ͻda hͻ. (FA)

‘When we came/when we were coming/when we used to come

here/when we were sitting here, he was eating/he had eaten/he used to

eat/he was lying there.’

144. Yεreba no nna ͻda hͻ. (FA)

Yε-re-ba no nna ͻ-ø-da hͻ.

1PL-PROG-come SUB PART 3SG-STAT-lie there

‘When we were coming, he was lying there.’

The future tense is also set in the subordinate clauses in (145) and (146), thereby

giving future time references to the aspectual forms in the main clauses.

145. Yεbεba no, na ͻredidi/wadidi/odidi/ͻda hͻ. (AK/AS)

‘By the time we come, he will be eating/he will have eaten/he will be

eating/he will be lying there.’

146. Yεbεba no na ͻredidi. (AK/AS)

Yε-bε-ba no na ͻ-re-didi.

1PL-FUT-come SUB PART 3SG-PROG-eat

‘By the time we come, he will be eating.’

These examples indicate that the actual time references of situations in the main

clauses are interpreted according to the time frame of the subordinate clauses.

With this discussion of the subordinators in relative time reference, it becomes

clear that Boadi’s (2008) and Osam’s (2008) analysis of the subordinator no as a

DET/the or TOP does not help matters because, if it were, then there would be no

subordination in these constructions at all. Moreover, the labels given in their

glossing, such as calling the particle na as ‘at the time that’ or ‘future/past

reference’ do not give the true meanings of the clauses either.


151

In conclusion, we have discussed three subordinators used to form relative time

reference in complex clauses. (Sε) … a is used to subordinate three aspectual forms,

the progressive, the habitual and the stative. Depending on the temporal value of

the main clause, the subordinate clause can be interpreted as a present or future

time. Yi, the second subordinator, is used to subordinate the perfect, the

progressive, the habitual and the stative aspects. It expresses only a present time

reference, but its main clause can have a present or future time reference. The third

subordinator, no is used to subordinate the future tense and it retains its future time

reference. It is attached to the past tense marker and the other aspectual forms and

they assume a past time reading. When the main clause of this subordinator has an

aspectual form, the particle na introduces the main clause.

3.7.3 The Consecutive marker

The next verbal affix to mention here is a. Osam (2004 & 2008) refers to it as a

consecutive marker, Boadi (2005 & 2008) and Antwi-Danso (2005 & 2010) refer

to it as an infinitive marker. All these writers agree on its occurrence in

constructions marked for the future tense and the progressive aspect. But whereas

Boadi (ibid.) and Antwi-Danso (ibid.) consider it to be outside the tense/aspect

domain, Osam (ibid.) treats it as an aspectual form. We do not treat this affix as an

aspectual form because it does not mark any aspect. Considering its occurrence

with the future tense and the progressive aspect, one cannot possibly say that the

clause it occurs in has two different tenses or aspects. Moreover, if it were an

aspect, one would expect it to occur on its own initial verb in clauses, but as it is,

it does not occur on initial verbs and it does not occur alone as the only affix of a

verb in clauses. It only occurs on non-initial verbs whose initial verbs are marked

with either the affirmative future or the progressive markers. Boadi (2005: 12)

describes the affix and states that “it differs from the other indicative affixes in not

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expressing aspect and other temporal relations. Unlike the finite forms its verb does

not occur as the only predicate in independent clauses.”

Although Boadi says that “the non-temporal Infinitive affix is used for the

expression of purpose and result and equivalent to the Infinitive in English and

other languages” (2005: 67), we do not use that term. Like Osam (ibid.), we have

referred to the affix as a consecutive marker because the form does not cover

enough grounds to merit the term infinitive, as used in other languages. In Akan,

the verb form referred to as the ‘to infinitive’, for example, is zero marked. kͻ ‘to

go’, bra ‘to come’ and gyina ‘to stand’. It is also the case that whereas other

languages use the ‘to/for infinitive’ to express infinitival clauses Akan uses the

complementizer sε and not a. (see Hancock, 1991: 21 for English and Creole

examples).

147. Merehwehwɛ sɛ mɛfi hanom. (Boadi 2005: 68 AS)

Me-re-hwehwɛ sɛ m-ɛ-fi hanom.

1SG-PROG-seek COMP 1SG-FUT-leave here

‘I am seeking to leave this neighbourhood.’

148. They tell (= ‘told’) him to go home. (Hancock, 1991: 21 SHVE)

Wɔka kyerɛɛ no sɛ ɔnkɔ fie.

Wɔ-ka kyerɛ-ɛ no sɛ ɔ-n-kɔ fie.

Wɔ-ka-a kyerɛ-ɛ no dɛ ɔ-n-kɔ fie.

3PL-tell-PAST STEM-PAST 3SG COMP 3SG-IMP-go home

‘They told him to go home.’

149. Wͻbεka akyerε no sε ͻnkͻ fie.

Wͻ-bε-ka a-kyerε no sε/dε ͻ-n-kͻ fie.

3PL-FUT-tell CONS-STEM 3SG COMP 3SG-IMP-go home

‘They will tell him to go home.’

Although (147) can be rendered in an alternative way to utilize the consecutive

marker, it is not always possible with all of such constructions. (148), for example,

cannot be expressed with the consecutive marker since it has a past tense marking.


153

(148) is modified in (149) to illustrate how the same construction is with a future

tense.

The affix is used for autonomous verbs in seriation and in multi-word verb forms.

In (150), the initial verb is marked with the future tense and all the subsequent ones

are marked with the consecutive. Similarly, the initial verb of (151) is marked with

the progressive, and the rest of the verbs are marked with the consecutive affix.

150. Kofi bεsɔre aguare/adware ahyɛ atade adidi akɔ sukuu. (AK/AS)

Kofi bε-sɔre a-guare/a-dware a-hyɛ atade(ε)

Kofi FUT-get up CONS-bath CONS-wear dress

a-didi a-kɔ sukuu.

CONS-eat CONS-go school

‘Kofi will get up, take a shower, put on his uniform, eat, and go to

school.’

151. Wͻronoa edziban edzi akͻ haban mu akͻdͻw etu bankye aba fie.

(FA)

Wͻ-ro-noa edziban e-dzi a-kͻr haban mu

3PL-PROG-cook food CONS-eat CONS-go farm in

a-kͻdͻw e-tu bankye a-ba fie.

CONS-weed CONS-uproot cassava CONS-come home

‘They are cooking to eat, go to the farm to weed, uproot cassava and

bring it home.’

The multi-word verb forms which utilize the consecutive marker are those which

have two or more independent verb forms. The first element is given either a future

or progressive marking and the subsequent element(s) take(s) the consecutive

marker. (152) and (153) have the progressive aspect, whereas (154) and (155) have

the future tense.

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154

152. Ↄreka akyerε no. (FA)

Ↄ-re-ka a-kyerε no.

3SG-PROG-tell CONS-STEM 3SG

‘S/he is telling him (the story).’

153. Merehwia ahwε. (AS)

Me-re-hwia a-hwε.

1SG-PROG-smell CONS-STEM

‘I am smelling it.’

154. Wͻbεsͻ wo ahwε.

Wͻ-bε-sͻ wo a-hwε (AK/AS)

3PL-FUT-test 2SG CONS-STEM

‘They will test you.’

155. Ↄbͻbͻ ato hͻ. (FA)

Ↄ-bͻ-bͻ a-to hͻ.

3SG-FUT-procrastinate CONS-STEM STEM

‘He will procrastinate.’

The consecutive marker does not occur in negative constructions, so when the

future tense and the progressive aspect have verbs in series, only the initial verbs

are marked with the tense/aspect and negation. The rest are marked with only the

negative marker.

3.7.4 Negation

To code negation in the language, a low tone homorganic nasal prefix <n->

(AK/AS) <nn> (FA) is attached to the verbal categories only (see Dolphyne 1988;

Antwi-Danso 2005; 2007 & 2010). With imperative constructions, the prefix is

attached directly to the verb stem as indicated in the negative counterparts of (156)

and (158) represented as (157) and (159) respectively.


155

156. Kɔ. (AK/AS/FA/AKN)

ø-kɔ.

IMP-go

‘Go.’

157. Nkɔ (AK/AS) nnkɔ (FA) n-kɔ/nn-kɔ

NEG-go

‘Don’t go.

158. Ɔnkɔ (AK/AS/FA/AKN)

Ɔ-n-kɔ

3SG-IMP-go

‘S/he should go.’

159. Ɔnnkɔ (AK/AS/FA/AKN)

Ɔ-n-n-kɔ

3SG-IMP-NEG-go

‘S/he should not go.’

It must be observed from the examples above that negation of imperatives is a

simple and straightforward attachment of NEG to the verb stem. Negation of

tense/aspect is however not straightforward at all. Over the years, linguists have

viewed the negative forms of tense/aspect as having inconsistent and unpredictable

affixes different from their affirmative counterparts (see Essilfie 1986). Some

writers and learners often find it difficult to attach appropriate affixes to negative

verb stems because when one attaches the negative affix to most of the affirmative

tense/aspect markers, they do not express the negative of that tense/aspect. It is

upon this situation that the writer of this dissertation developed ‘The Negation

Wheel’ to assist students and writers on the issue of assigning appropriate negative

affixes to tense/aspects (see Antwi-Danso 2005; 2007 & 2010). We noted in that

study that the issue is not about inconsistency or unpredictability, but it is an issue

of redistribution of affixes. It is the affirmative affixes which are re-assigned to

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156

different tense/aspects in the negative contexts. We arrived at this result by

applying the concept of mirror reflection which reflects objects unto the opposite

side of the mirror line to become negative. Hence, each tense/aspect when

reflected, picks up the affix of the one opposite to it.

In the diagrams, the past affix reflects onto the perfect and takes the perfect affixes

and vice versa. The future and the progressive derive their negatives by exchanging

their affixes14 whilst the habitual does so with the stative. The process may be

compared in a way to Miestamo’s (2005) discussion of symmetric and asymmetric

negation. He notes that with symmetric negatives there are no structural differences

in comparison to the corresponding affirmatives in addition to the presence of (a)

negative marker(s). In asymmetric negation, however, additional structural

differences can be found. Akan may be said to be among the asymmetric negation,

by not just adding any structure, but by redistributing the affirmative tense/aspect

markers to different tense/aspects in addition to the negative marker n. We will

discuss their constructions in pairs.

The outcome of ‘The Negation Wheel’ showing the affirmative affixes and their

reflected negative counterparts is presented in the diagrams below.

14 In Akuapem and Asante, the progressive drops its affix in negative environments to become

ø. There is no study as yet to explain this occurrence.


157

Habitual [ø]

Past <-e, -ee, v2, ø> Future <bɛ->

Progressive <re> Perfect <a-/e->

Stative [ø]

Chart 3.1 ‘The Negation Wheel’ - Affirmative tense/aspects affixes.

Habitual [ø]

Past <a-> Future <re-/-kɔ->

Progressive <re-> Perfect <-e, -ee, v2, ø>

Stative [ø]

.

Chart 3.2 ‘The Negation Wheel’ - Negative tense/aspects affixes.

The affirmative past and perfect and their negative constructions are those below.

The negative past tense (PAST) becomes [a-/æ-] <a-/e-> and the perfect aspect

(PERF) becomes [-ɪ /-i] <-e/-i>, a prolonged last vowel (V2), <-ee/-ii> or ø.

(160) and (161) are the affirmative constructions of the past and the perfect with

their negative counterparts in (162) and (163) respectively. (160) is an example of

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158

the prolonged last sound in past tense because the verb is followed by an adjunct

and (161) is its perfect aspect counterpart. In the affirmative perfect aspect, the

prefix is always attached to the stem no matter where the verb occurs or which type

of verb it is. Compare their negative constructions in which the <a-> prefix now

stands for the past tense and the prolonged last sound stands for the perfect aspect.

160. Yɛkɔɔ hɔ. (AK/AS/FA)

Yɛ-kɔ-ɔ hɔ.

1PL-go-PAST there

‘We went there.’

161. Yɛakɔ hɔ. (AK/AS/FA)

Yɛ-a-kɔ hɔ.

1PL-PERF-go there

‘We have gone there.’

162. Yɛankɔ hɔ. (AK/AS/FA)

Yɛ-a-n-kɔ hɔ.

1PL-PAST-NEG-go there

‘We did not go there.’

163. Yɛnkɔɔ hɔ. (AK/AS/FA)

Yɛ-n-kɔ-ɔ hɔ.

1PL-NEG-go-PERF there

‘We have not gone there.

(164) and (165) are examples of affirmative and negative constructions of the

<-e/-i> suffix. Since the verb is a -ATR, it selects <-e> as its suffix. The negative

version has the <a-> prefix plus the negative marker <n->. (166) and (167) are

examples of the perfect aspect having <a-> in the affirmative and <-e/-i> plus <n>

in the negative.


159

164. Yɛkɔe(ɛ). (AK/AS/FA)

Yɛ-kɔ-e. (AK)

1PL-go-PAST

‘We went.’

165. Yɛankɔ. (AK/AS/FA)

Yɛ-a-n-kɔ.

1PL-PAST-NEG-go

‘We did not go.’

166. Yɛakɔ. (AK/AS/FA)

Yɛ-a-kɔ. (FA/AK)

Yɛ-a-kɔ. (AS)

1PL-PERF-go

‘We have gone.’

167. Yɛnkɔe(ɛ). (AK/AS/FA)

Yɛ-n-kɔ-eɛ. (AS)

1PL-NEG-go- PERF

‘We have not gone.

(168) presents an example of ø suffix involving a verb ending with a consonant

and (169) is its negative counterpart containing <a-> and <n->. (170) and (171)

are the examples of the perfect aspect where <a-> represents the affirmative affix

and ø represents the negative affix. This is due to the form of the affirmative past

tense.

168. Wɔkum apɔnkye. (AS)

Wɔ-kum-ø apɔnkye.

3PL-kill-PAST goat

‘They slaughtered a goat.’

169. Wɔankum apɔnkye. (AS)

Wɔ-a-n-kum apɔnkye.

3PL-PAST-NEG-kill goat

‘They did not slaughter a goat.’

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160

170. Wɔakum apɔnkye. (AK/AS)

Wɔ-a-kum apɔnkye.

3PL-PERF-kill goat

‘They have slaughtered a goat.’

171. Wɔnkum apɔnkye. (AK/AS/FA)

Wɔ-n-kum-ø apɔnkye.

3PL-NEG-kill-PERF goat

‘They have not slaughtered a goat.’

The future tense and the progressive aspect are exemplified below. (135) and (136)

are the affirmative constructions of the future and the progressive indicating their

respective markers [bɛ-] <bɛ-/be-/bɔ-/bo-> and [rɪ-] <re-/ri-/ru-/ro->. Their

negative counterparts - (137) and (138) - indicate the re-assigning of affixes. The

negative future marker becomes [rɪ-] <re-/ri-/ru-/ro->. The negative progressive is

a zero in the Twi dialects, i.e., Akuapem and Asante drop the affix completely.

However, Fante uses the affirmative marker in negative constructions just like the

affirmative progressive.

172. Yɛbɛkɔ hɔ.

Yɛ-bɛ-kɔ hɔ. (AK/AS)

Yɛ-bɔ-kɔ hɔ. (FA)

1PL-FUT-go there

‘We will go there.’

173. Yɛrekɔ hɔ.

Yɛ-re-kɔ hɔ. (AK)

Yɛ-re-kɔ hɔ. (AS)

Yɛ-ro-kɔ hɔ. (FA)

1PL-PROG-go there

‘We are going there.’


161

174. Yɛrenkɔ hɔ.

Yɛ-re-n-kɔ hɔ. (AK)

Yɛ-re-n-kɔ hɔ. (AS)

Yɛ-ro-nn-kɔ hɔ. (FA)

1PL-FUT-NEG-go there

‘We will not go there.’

175. Yɛnkɔ hɔ.

Yɛ-ø-n-kɔ hɔ. (AK)

Yɛ-ø-n-kɔ hɔ. (AS)

Yɛ-ro-nn-kɔ hɔ. (FA).

1PL-PROG-NEG-go there

‘We are not going there.’

In what follows, the habitual and the stative aspects are exemplified in affirmative

and negative constructions. Both affixes are zero in affirmative and negative

instances.

176. (Anadwo biara) meda mpa no so. (AK/AS/FA)

Anadwo biara me-ø-da mpa no so. (AS)

Anadwo biara me-ø-da mpa no so/do (AK/FA)

night every 1PL-HAB-lay bed DET on

‘Every night, I lay on the bed.’

177. (Anadwo yi) meda mpa no so. (AK/AS/FA)

Anadwo yi me-ø-da mpa no so. (AS)

Anadwo yi me-ø-da mpa no so/do (AK/FA)

night DET 1PL-STAT-lay bed DET on

‘(This night), I am laying on the bed.’

178. (Anadwo biara) menda mpa no so. (FA)

Anadwo biara me-ø-n-da mpa no do. (FA)

Anadwo biara me-ø-n-na mpa no so/so (AK/AS)

night every 1PL-HAB-NEG-lay bed DET on

‘Every night, I don’t lay on the bed.’

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162

179. (Anadwo yi) menna mpa no so. (AK/AS)

Anadwo yi me-ø-n-da mpa no do. (FA)

Anadwo yi me-ø-n-na mpa no so/so (AK/FA)

night DET 1PL-STAT-NEG-lay bed DET on

‘(This night), I am not (laying) on the bed.’

Since these two aspects have ø in affirmative constructions, their negative

sentences inflect only the negative markers. In view of the fact that the negative

progressive aspect is also a zero in Akuapem and Asante, these three aspects are

often represented in the same way in single syllable verbs like hyɛ ‘to wear/to put

on something’, da ‘to lie down’ etc, which can co-occur with all these aspects. As

indicated above, tone is used to distinguish zero marked aspects but as can be

observed from these examples, especially with their negatives, tone alone is not

enough grounds to tear them apart so one may have to depend on context to

differentiate them. In multi-syllable verbs, the progressive and the habitual have

the same tone pattern (L-H) and the stative has (H-L) in the Twi variants.

The table below presents a summary of T/A affixes in affirmative and negative

constructions.

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163

T/A Affirmative Negative

PAST V-e/-i (ALL)

V-v2 final vowels (ALL)

V-ee/-ii (ALL)

V-2-vowels-cons (FA)

V-ø (ALL)

a-NEG-V (ALL) wɔ-a-n-nyina e-NEG-V (FA)

PERF a-V (ALL) e-V (FA)

NEG-V-e-/i- (ALL)

NEG-V-2-vowels (ALL),

NEG-V-2-cons (AS),

NEG-V-2vowels-cons (FA)

NEG-V-ø (ALL)

FUT bɛ-V (ALL)

be-V (AK/FA)

bɔ-/bo-V (FA)

re-NEG-V (ALL)

ri-/ro-/ru-NEG-V (FA)

NEG-kɔ-/ko-/kɛ-/ke-V (FA)

PROG re-V (ALL)

ri-/ro-/ru-V (FA)

ø-NEG-V (AK/AS)

re-/ri-/ro-/ru-NEG-V (FA)

HAB ø-V (ALL) ø-NEG-V (ALL)

STAT ø-V (ALL) ø-NEG-V (ALL)

Table 3.5 Affirmative and Negative T/A Affixation

*V represents the verb stem.

3.7.4.1 Scope of Negation

We describe the scope of negation in this section and point out that negation has

scope over only the clause it occurs in. This is comparable to most languages even

when the syntax of the negative markers differs.

In Ewe for instance, negation is marked by discontinuous morphemes me … o. The

first morpheme occurs before the verb and the second morpheme is placed at the

end of the clause. In a clause which contains a multi-word verb form (often referred

to as SVCs) the morphemes are coded only once, and they have scope over the

whole clause.

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180. ɖevia meta yi xͻa me o. (Ewe)

ɖevi-a me-ta yi xͻ-a me o.

child-DEF NEG-crawl go room-DET containing.region.of NEG

‘The child didn’t crawl into the room.’ (Ameka 2006: 138)

In this example, the first component of the multi-word verb form ta ‘to crawl’

receives the initial morpheme and yi ‘to go’ is left unnegated but it is understood

as negated since it forms part of the verb phrase ‘to crawl into the room’. In Akan,

the negative marker is attached to the verb which is to be negated and in the case

of multi-word verbs whose forms are verb+verb the negative marker is coded on

both of them to be grammatical. It takes the whole clause as its scope. Example

(181), which is constructed after the Ewe example, indicates that the two verb

morphemes are negated.

181. Abofra no anwea ankͻ dan no mu. (CONS AS)

Abofra no a-n-wea a-n-kͻ dan no mu.

child DET PAST-NEG-crawl PAST-NEG-go room DET in

‘The child didn’t crawl into the room.’

The Akan negation does not require a specific syntactic domain to trigger different

scope effects as it is reported in Moeschler (2010: 29) about French. When a

proposition is to be negated the negative marker is attached to the verb(s) in the

clause to transmit the effect of negation. As such when there is a real SVC, all the

verbs that occur in the clause, whether a single form or multi-word form, must be

negated.


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182. Kofi annsͻr ennguar annkͻ edwuma. (FA)

Kofi a-nn-sͻr e-nn-guar a-nn-kͻ edwuma

Kofi PAST-NEG-get.up PAST-NEG-shower PAST-NEG-go work

‘Kofi did not get up to take his shower to go to work.’

183. *Kofi ansͻre guare ankͻ adwuma. (AK)

Kofi a-n-sͻre guare-ø a-n-kͻ adwuma

Kofi PAST-NEG-get.up shower-PAST PAST-NEG-go work

‘Kofi did not get up, took his shower and did not go to work.’

184. Kofi sͻreeε nanso wandware na ͻkͻͻ adwuma. (AS)

Kofi sͻre-eε nanso w-a-n-dware

Kofi get.up-PAST CONJ 3SG-PAST-NEG-shower

na ͻ-kͻ-ͻ adwuma.

CONJ 3SG-go-PAST work

‘Kofi got up but he did not take his shower before he went to work.’

(182) and (184) are grammatical but (183) is not. This is because (182) and (183)

are SVCs and it is expected that all the verbs in series get the same polarity value.

But whereas (182) has all its verbs marked for negation, (183) has a mixture of

negative and positive polarity markings. (184) on the other hand, is grammatically

correct because it is not a SVC, as such each of the verbs can have independent

polarity marking.

3.8 Conclusion

For obvious reasons, we have described what we mean by Akan in this study and

pointed out some of the dialects which fall under the broad classification of Akan.

We have indicated why we limit our discussions to Akuapem, Asante, Fante and

Akanwa.

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Other sections in the chapter have touched on phonological, morphological and

grammatical issues of concern to this study, viz., tone pattern, vowel harmony and

consonant assimilation. Also, we have looked at some of the word classes of

interest, viz. auxiliary verbs and the structure of the Akan verbs. On auxiliary verbs,

we have established that the language has auxiliary verbs in diverse forms which

express modality. The structures and formations of certain verbs have shown that

rather than serial verbs, most of these are better analyzed as multi-word verb forms

because they express single predicates. Further, the chapter has touched on word

order and verbal affixes made up of mood, tense/aspect, negation as well as the

consecutive markers. We made a comment on how relative time is marked in

complex sentences and noted the use of the subordinators sε … a, yi and no. The

segment na, which has been described as a past and/or future marker by earlier

writers, has also been reviewed.

Formation of certain constructions expressing modality and evidentiality are also

mentioned in this chapter. We have noted and named constructions according to

their meanings and functions and not necessarily by the major word classes they

contain, since the individual items do not often express the concepts clearly.

In the chapters that follow, we discuss the forms identified as expressing modality

and evidentiality and how they are used to express the various modal/evidential

meanings.


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4 Expressing Modality with Auxiliaries

4.1 Introduction

This chapter discusses an affix, verbs and two constructions used as auxiliaries to

express modality next to other meanings in the language. We demonstrate that the

prefix bԑ- is an ambiguous prefix, which is used to express the future tense,

meaning ‘will’, on the one hand, and modality ‘may’, on the other. Further, we

consider the verbs tumi ‘can/be able’, ma ‘to let’, the constructions εsε sε

‘must/have to’, and etwa sε ‘must/have to’ as modal auxiliaries, illustrating their

expressions of epistemic, deontic and dynamic modalities. Due to their ability to

express varied deontic and dynamic modalities, some of these forms often feature

ambiguities. The nature of our corpus, however, helps to assign labels more

accurately. Where necessary, we will point out the different meanings a particular

utterance may have.

4.2 The affix bε-

In the literature, the affix bԑ- has been analyzed as a future marker, equivalent to

the English ‘will’, a motional prefix meaning ‘to come’, and a prospective marker

equivalent to the English ‘being about to’. The meaning depends on the usage

contexts (see Christaller 1875; Dolphyne 1971 & 1988; Osam 2004 & 2002; Boadi

2005 and Agyekum 2010). This morpheme’s expression of epistemic modality has

been mentioned in Osam (2008), Boadi (2008) and Owusu (2014). Ewe, another

Kwa language spoken in Ghana has also been identified as a language in which the

‘so called’ future affix (l)a- also or rather expresses potentiality (see Ameka 2008;

Essegbey 2008 and Gbegble 2012).

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In the tables below, table 4.1 presents the overall frequencies in spoken and written

data and 4.2 presents the frequency of the different meanings irrespective of the

genre (spoken or written).

Affix

Form Spk Wrt Tot

bɛ- 98 189 287

Table 4.1 Frequency of bɛ- in written and spoken data

Affix

Form Mot Pros Fut Epi Deon Dyn Tot

bɛ- 45 16 144 52 22 8 287

Table 4.2 Meanings of bɛ-

As table 4.2 shows, 144 occurrences (i.e. 50.2%) are primarily used for the future

tense marking, i.e., the intended goal for using it is to mark states of affairs which

will or have to occur posterior to the speech time. 21.3% made up of 39 and 12

tokens are used to indicate motion and prospective meanings respectively. But 82

tokens (28.6%) are mainly used to express modality. And as the table shows, this

does not only involve epistemic modality, but also deontic and dynamic modal

meanings. We noted 52 epistemic meanings, 22 deontic and 8 dynamic meanings.

Our concern is to demonstrate bɛ-’s expression of modality and its relationship

with future tense but before we discuss that, we would like to present a brief

description of the form and the other meanings it expresses.


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4.2.1 Bɛ- as a Motional Prefix

Bε- ‘to come to’ and kᴐ- ‘to go’ are two motional prefixes in the language. Since

Christaller (1875), through to Dolphyne (1988), these prefixes have been described

as marking ingressive aspects: they are attached to verbs “to indicate a previous

coming or a previous going required for the action indicated by the verb stem”

(Dolphyne 1971: 193-194). But in a more recent analysis, Osam (2002; 2004a; b

& 2008) has rejected this label, calling them ‘motional prefixes’. This is because,

as Osam (2002: 115) notes, “these prefixes cannot be treated as having aspectual

meaning. Their use does not tell us anything about the internal structure of the

event itself”. We follow the latter analysis here.

Bɛ- as a motional prefix is one of the many forms of the irregular verb bra ‘to

come’ discussed in section (2.4.2.1). The base form of the lexical item from which

the prefix has emerged is bra ‘to come’. This is the form which appears in

affirmative imperative constructions as in Bra (AK/AS/FA/AKN) ‘come’,

Mommra (AK)/mommra (AS)/hom mbra(FA)/mombra (AKN) but when it is used

in its affirmative and negative finite form or negative imperative form, it becomes

ba as in Ɔba ‘He comes’, Ɔbae ‘He came’, Ɔbɛba ‘He will come’. However, when

it is used as a motional prefix, it changes to bɛ-. When bε- or kᴐ- is attached to a

verb, it indicates that the subject has to make a movement towards or away from

the deictic center which is the speaker and then the action in the main verb is

performed.

Bε- occurs with all the tense/aspects but since it codes motion, it does not occur

with the stative aspect. (1) to (4) illustrate the habitual, the past, the perfect and the

progressive respectively. The basic tone of this affix is low just as the base form

bra, but it changes in different environments. In Akuapem, Asante and AKN the

tone of the affix is low in the habitual, the past and the progressive, but high in the

perfect aspect. In Fante, the habitual, the progressive and the perfect are high

whereas the past has a low tone. (1) illustrates a habitual marking in (AK/AS &

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AKN), on one hand, and (FA), on the other. (2) is a past tense marking in Fante.

Note the high tone of the form in (3) and (4) for the perfect aspect of (AK/AS &

AKN) and the progressive aspects for Fante, respectively.

1. Ɔbɛda ha.

Ɔ-ø-bɛ-da ha. (CONS AK/AS/AKN)

Ɔ-ø-bɛ-da ha. (FA)

3SG-HAB-come-sleep here

‘He comes to sleep here.’

2. Wᴐmaa Antony so kwan ma ᴐbԑgyee no ho dase bagua kor no ara mu.

(JUL FA)

Wᴐ-ma-a Antony so kwan ma

3PL-give-PAST Anthony also way for

ᴐ-bԑ-gye-e no ho dase

3SG-come-take-PAST 3SG POSS.self testimony

bagua kor no ara mu.

gathering one DEF EMPH in

‘They allowed Antony to also come and testify about him (Caesar) at

the same gathering.’

3. Wabԑdi. (CONS. AK/AS/AKN)

W-a-bԑ-di.

3SG-PERF-come-eat

‘He has come to eat it.’

4. Ɔse ᴐrebԑsaw nsu wanom. (OBS FA)

Ɔ-se ᴐ-re-bε-saw nsu w-a-nom

3SG-say 3SG-PROG-come-fetch water 3SG-CONS-drink

‘He says (that) he is coming to fetch water to drink.’

Osam (1994; 2002; 2004 & 2008) asserts that all the core aspectual forms in Akan

can combine with the motion prefix, except the future. He further explained that a

possible reason could be because “the future marker comes from the same motion

verb ‘come’ as the proximal prefix ‘bɛ’” (Osam 2002: 115). Two issues are worth

noting with this assertion. In the first place, it means the motional prefix does not


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occur with the future marker such that there will be a construction like Ↄbεbεdi

‘S/he comes to eat’. This is true, but the form does not combine with the other

motional prefix kͻ- either, although it does not come from the same base form as

the future. Ↄbεkͻdi ‘S/he will go and eat it’ is therefore not acceptable. The second

issue is that the assertion fails to tell us how the motional prefix can occur with the

future tense. As it is now, one might think that it is not possible for the motional

prefix to occur with constructions which have future situations in view, but that is

not the case. In fact, our data feature instances in which both are combined (also

with the rest of the T/As). Two processes are involved in such constructions. In the

first place, the motional prefix bε- is reinstated to its full form ba and the T/A

marker concern is attached to it. In the second stage, the motional prefix and the

second verb are also put in another clause with the T/A concern, the way serial

verb constructions are formed.

5. Ɔhyehyɛɛ dɛ ɔbɛba fie abɔhom kakra (ƆBRA FA)

Ɔ-hyehyɛ-ɛ dɛ ɔ-bɛ-ba fie a-bɔ-hom kakra

3SG-plan-PAST COMP 3SG-FUT-come home CONS-come-rest little

‘He planned that he will come home to rest for some time/he planned

to come home for some rest.’

6. Ɔbԑkͻ akͻda. (AK/AS/AKN)

Ɔ-bε-kͻ a-kͻ-da.

3SG-FUT-go CONS-go-sleep

‘He will go and sleep.’

(7) and (8) are examples of this type of construction in the progressive aspect and

past tense, respectively.

7. Ↄreba abεfa.

Ↄ-re-ba a-bε-fa. (AK/AS/AKN)

Ↄ-re-ba a-bε-fa. (FA)

3SG-PROG-come CONS-come-take

‘S/he is coming to take/pick it.’

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8. Ɔba bεfae.

Ɔ-ba-ø bε-fa-e(ε). (AK/AS/AKN)

Ɔ-ba-e bε-fa-e. (FA)

3SG-come-PAST come-take-PAST

‘S/he came to take it.’

Though the affix, bε-, retains its full meaning of ‘to come’ in all environments.

4.2.2 Bε- as a Prospective marker

According to Comrie (1976: 64), the prospective meaning is derived when a state

is related to some subsequent situation. More precisely, when someone is in a state

of ‘being about to do something’. Reiterating Suzuki (1994), Baptista (2002) has

also described some Cape Verdian Creole (Sotavento varieties), as having a

prospective marker. In Akan, the prospective marker is a combination of the

progressive marker re and the future marker bε (re-bε). The form is attached to a

main verb to indicate that an agent is about to take an action. Earlier writers,

including Dolphyne (1988; 1996) and Agyekum (2010), describe this form as

future II whereas Osam (2004; 2008) labels it as a prospective marker.

Examples (9) and (10) indicate that the agents are set to take the actions. The form’s

meaning is described as being proximal or closer than the ordinary future marker.

The tone of the progressive marker is always low in all the dialects, but the tone of

the future marker is low in the Twi variants and high in Fante.

9. Ɔrebɛkasa. (OBS AK/AS/AKN)

Ɔ-re-bɛ-kasa.

3SG-PROG-come-speak

‘He is about to speak/he is coming to speak.’


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10. Kofi robɔkɔ Nkran. (OBS FA)

Kofi ro-bɔ-kɔ Nkran.

Kofi PROG-come-go Accra

‘Kofi is about to go to Accra.’

Agyekum (2010: 114) explains that when someone uses the future marker alone he

is only revealing his intention to undertake an activity sometime to come, but when

he uses the prospective marker he is demonstrating his readiness in preparation to

undertake the said action immediately or soon.

4.2.3 Future Tense affix bɛ-

Christaller (1875: xxiii) has already noted that bε- (from ba ‘to come’) is used to

mark future tense, as in (11). The affix has a high tone in all environments and in

all the dialects.

11. Ɔbεfa. (Christaller, 1875:59. AK/AS/AKN)

Ɔ-bε-fa

3SG-FUT-take

‘He will take (it).’

12. Wudi mu awerɛhow ne mmuada a, wo nso w’ahoᴐden so behuan.

(ϽKR AK)

Wu-ø-di mu awerɛhow ne mmuada a, wo nso

2SG-HAB-eat in sad CONJ starving CM 2SG also

w’ahoᴐden so be-huan.

2SG.POSS.strength on FUT-reduce.

‘When you brood and starve yourself too much (because of death),

your strength will reduce/you will become weak.’

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13. Ɔkaa sε ᴐbεba. (Boadi, 2005:75 AS)

Ɔ-ka-a sε ᴐ-bε-ba.

3SG-say-PAST COMP 3SG-FUT-come

‘He said that he will come.'

Note that all the verbs used here are dynamic verbs. It is observed in this study that,

when bԑ- is attached to dynamic verbs, it primarily expresses future activity but

when it is attached to certain stative verbs it could be ambiguous between the future

tense and epistemic modality (see § 4.2.4 below). To express uncertainty in a future

time, possibility markers are attached to the constructions to indicate the speaker’s

estimation of the chances that the said SOA will occur in future. This is an

indication that the future marker as such does not express epistemic modality itself

in the language.

14. Ebia ɔbεfa. (Constructed after Christaller, 1875: 59)

Ebia ɔ-bε-fa

maybe 3SG-FUT-take

‘Maybe he will take it/he may take it.’

15. Ɛyɛ me sɛ εbεda ha akosi ɔkyena. (CONS AK/AS/AKN)

Ɛ-yɛ me sɛ ε-bε-da ha a-kosi ɔkyena.

1SG-think COMP 3SG-FUT-lie here CONS-till tomorrow

‘I think it will lie here till tomorrow.’

The three forms discussed above are primarily used to mark non-modalized

clauses. The motional prefix, for example, neither presents futurity nor modality in

its inherent meaning or usage. The prospective marker, like the future tense marker,

offers the notion of a situation yet to occur as its main focus. Potentiality,

uncertainty or non-occurrence are notions which may manifest in situations yet to

occur, they are not inherent component of the meanings expressed by the forms’

usage here. The strong affinity between the future tense and the prospective marker

is due to the fact that they are both expected to occur in a time posterior to the time


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of speaking. This is probably one of the reasons for earlier writers to have labelled

them as future I and II.

4.2.4 Bɛ- as a Modal Auxiliary

This section discusses the prefix bε- as a modal auxiliary form. We have claimed

in section (3.4.1), that disregarding form, Akan should be seen as having auxiliaries

made up of affixes, verbs and verbal constructions. This affix is similar in form to

the others we have discussed in sections (4.2.-3.), but this one supplies modality to

the clause in which it occurs. Before we discuss the type of modal meanings it

expresses, we make a general comment on its occurrence in constructions. Having

the same form, its structure follows the principles of the future marking. Where

two or more verbs or a bipartite verb form is in a clause, the initial verb/component

receives the future marking and the second/subsequent verbs use the consecutive

marker. Regarding negation, the form of the negative future tense [re-] is used to

evaluate negative epistemic SOA and deontic expression of interdiction.

4.2.4.1 Bɛ- as an Epistemic Possibility marker

This section presents instances where bԑ- expresses epistemic modality in the

language. We note three instances in which the meaning of bɛ- in sentences are

mainly indicating possibility: (a) when bɛ- occurs in stative aspect constructions

with verbs like da ‘to lie down’, gyina ‘to stand’ or kotow ‘to kneel down’; (b)

when it is combined with the stative verb wᴐ, which is ambiguous between the

locative verb ‘to be somewhere’ and the possessive verb ‘to have something’, and

also ware ‘to be long/tall’, so ‘to be big’; and (c) when bԑ- is combined with the

copular yԑ- ‘to be’ + adjectival or nominal predicates which function as subject

complements. Constructions in (a) and (c) can be ambiguous between future

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interpretations and possibility meanings in certain contexts because these verbs can

be used in future tense, but those in (b) do not occur with the future or any of the

other tense/aspect markers except the stative aspect. Thus, they do not present

ambiguities between the future and the possibility meanings.

4.2.4.2 Bԑ- + Stative Aspect Constructions

The relevant verbs here may occur with all tense/aspect markers. Their stative use

involves entities which are continuously or perpetually in a particular state -

standing, lying down, hanging etc. As mentioned in § 3.7.2.1 above, the stative

aspect is unmarked (ø). Hence when the possibility marker bɛ- is attached to it

looks identical to a future tense construction.

16. Wo fufuu no obesi ɔpon no do. Ibiara nndzii. (OBS FA)

Wo fufuu no o-be-si ɔpon no do.

2SG.POSS fufu DEF 3SG-POS-sit table DEF on.

Ibiara n-ndzi-i.

Everybody NEG-eat-PERF

‘Your fufu may be on the table. Nobody has eaten it.’

17. Funu no? Ɛbεda kwan no ho efisԑ polisifo nkɔfae. (OBS AK)

Funu no? ԑ-bε-ø-da kwan no ho

corpse DEF? 3SG-POS-STAT-lie road DEF on

efisԑ polisifo n-kɔ-fa-e.

because police NEG-go-take-PERF

‘The corpse? It may be lying by the roadside because the police has not

gone for it.’

18. W’ataadeԑ no bεsεn ahoma no so. (OBS AS)

W’-ataadeԑ no bε-ø-sεn ahoma no so.

2SG.POSS-dress DEF POS-STAT-hang string DEF on

‘Your dress may be hanging on the line.’


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The utterances above should be construed as indicating the possibility of the

persistence of entities. In (16) and (17), for example, the explanatory clauses added

make them clear. If we added the adverbial phrase ara akosi ɔkyena ‘till tomorrow’,

to any of the clauses, they would assume a future reading.

4.2.4.3 Bɛ- in combination with wᴐ and other stative verbs

When bԑ- occurs with the stative wᴐ or any of the verbs under (b), it expresses the

possibility of the state of affairs occurring. In isolation, wᴐ, so, ware etc., have low

tones but when they are combined with the possibility marker bԑ-, they assume

high tones as well.

To show that someone is in the room, a plain assertion as in (19) can be used. In

(20), a modal adverb is used to indicate the possibility of the person being in the

room and (21) uses bԑ- to indicate the possibility of the state of affairs in question.

19. Ɔwᴐ dan no mu. (CONS AK/AS/FA)

Ɔ-ø-wᴐ dan no mu.

3SG-STAT-LOC room DEF in

‘He is in the room.’

20. Ebia ᴐwᴐ dan no mu. (CONS AK/AS/FA)

Ebia ᴐ-ø-wᴐ dan no mu.

maybe 3SG-STAT-LOC room DEF in

‘Maybe she is in the room.’

21. Ɔbεwᴐ dan no mu. (CONS AK/AS)

Ɔ-bε-wᴐ dan no mu.

3SG-POS-LOC room DEF in

‘She may be in the room.’

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Likewise, the use of bԑ in (22) and (23) is specifying the possibility of the subject

being tall and having food respectively.

22. Kodwo bε-ware asen Kofi. (CONS AK/AS)

Kodwo bε-ware asen Kofi.

Kodwo POS-tall pass Kofi

‘Kodwo will/may be taller than Kofi.’

23. Wᴐbᴐwᴐ edziban wᴐ fie. (OBS FA)

Wᴐ-bᴐ-wᴐ edziban wᴐ fie.

3PL-POS-have food LOC house

‘They will/may have food at home.’

4.2.4.4 Bԑ- + yԑ+ adjectival or nominal predicates

The third instance in which bԑ- is used to express possibility is when it is combined

with the copular yԑ. When the combination bԑyԑ ‘may be’ is followed by an

adjectival or nominal predicate which functions as a subject complement, it

indicates the possibility of the SOA.

In (24), the proposition is indicating the possibility of the subject being a teacher,

as such, bԑ- expresses possibility. Also, the perfect aspect used to indicate the state

of her eloquence further indicates that it is not describing a future SOA.

24. Ɔbεyε tikyani nti na n’ano ate saa no. (OBS AS)

Ɔ-bε-yε tikyani nti

3SG-POS-be teacher that is why

na n’-ano a-te saa no.

that 3SG.POSS-mouth PERF-tear that INDF

‘She may be a teacher and that is why she is so eloquent.’


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Other constructions indicating possibility are those exemplified here with nominal

predicates. The use of bɛ- in the clause being evaluated in (25) ɔbԑyԑ ᴐbosom ‘he/it

may be a deity’ is expressing the possibility of that tiger being a deity. It is not

saying that the tiger will become a deity. Its use in this manner, therefore, gives an

estimation of the likelihood that the state of affairs described is a possibility. (26)

presents a similar situation where the state of affairs evaluated ɔbԑyԑ aboa foforo

bi ‘it may be a different animal’ is given as the speaker’s estimation of possibility

that whichever animal they saw may be a different animal but not a cat.

25. Ɔsebᴐ bi a Ɔbᴐmmᴐfo Dade kum no mmere bi no, ᴐbԑyԑ ᴐbosom. Ɔno

ara na wakᴐ asan aba rebԑtᴐ were yi. (ƆBƆF AK)

Ɔsebᴐ bi a Ɔbᴐmmᴐfo Dade kum-ø

Tiger DEF REL hunter Dade kill-PAST

no mmere bi no, ᴐ-bԑ-yԑ ᴐbosom.

3SG time some DET 3SG-POS-be god.

Ɔno ara na w-a-kᴐ a-san

3SG EMPH EMPH 3SG-PERF-go CONS-return

a-ba re-bԑ-tᴐ were yi.

CONS-come PROG-come-revenge STEM DET

‘The tiger that Ɔbᴐmmᴐfo Dade killed some time ago may be a god. It

is the same which has returned for revenge.’

26. Nea otwa to no nso kae se: “Ampa, ᴐnyԑ agyinamoa efisԑ yԑn na kaa

agyinamoa ho asԑm no, wanka se ᴐwᴐ mfemfem. Ɔbԑyԑ aboa foforo

bi.” (NKU AK)

Nea o-twa to no nso ka-e se: “Ampa, ᴐ-n-yԑ

the.one 3SG-be.last DEF also say-PAST COMP: “true 3SG-NEG-be

agyinamoa efisԑ yԑn na ka-a agyinamoa ho

cat because 1PL.POSS mother say- PAST cat self

asԑm no, w-a-n-ka se ᴐ-wᴐ mfemfem.

story DET 3SG-PAST-NEG-say COMP 3SG-has whiskers

Ɔ-bԑ-yԑ aboa foforo bi.”

3SG-POS-be animal different DET

‘The last one also said that: “It is true, it is not a cat because when our

mother told us about the cat, she did not say it has whiskers. It may be

a different animal.’

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The subsequent examples involve adjectival predicates functioning as subject

complements. The speakers in (27) and (28) are expressing views on the first

argument concerning the likelihood of them being what/who they are, due to the

observations made by the speakers. They are not describing what/who the first

arguments will become in a time other than the time of speaking.

27. Agya w’adamfo yi ho bεyε anika. (ETI AS)

Agya w’-adamfo yi ho bε-yε anika.

infact 2SG-friend DEF self may-be interesting.

‘In fact, this friend of yours may be interesting/humorous.’

28. Onipa korᴐ a ᴐte fie ha bԑyԑ aniha papa. Hwԑ sԑnea n’afikyire afuo an

ayԑ fi. (OBS AS)

Onipa korᴐ a ᴐ-ø-te fie ha bԑ-yԑ aniha papa

Human DEF REL 3SG-STAT-live house here may-be lazy very

Hwԑ sԑnea n’-afikyire a-fuo na a-yԑ fi.

Look how 3SG.POSS-backyard PERF-grow CONJ PERF-be dirty.

‘The one living in this house may be lazy indeed. Look at how his

backyard is weedy and dirty.’

The hawk’s observation in (29) indicates that the chickens may be tasty. Further,

given that it wanted to catch them and eat them there and then, testifies that it was

not referring to the chickens becoming tasty in future, but that the possibility of

them being tasty at the moment of speaking is the focus.


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29. Na ᴐhwԑ sԑnea wᴐayԑ frᴐmm afa no a, nea ᴐkae wᴐ ne tim ara ne sԑ,

“Aa, akokᴐ mma yi nam bԑyԑ dԑ. (ANA AK)

Na ᴐ-hwԑ sԑnea wᴐ-a-yԑ frᴐmm a-fa no a,

When 3SG-look how 3PL-PERF-be fresh CONS-be DET CM

nea ᴐ-ka-e wᴐ ne tim ara ne sԑ,

what 3SG-say-PAST in 3SG.POSS head EMPH be COMP

“Aa, akokᴐ mma yi nam bԑ-yԑ dԑ.

“Aa hen children DEF meat may-be sweet.

‘And when the hawk looked at the way they (the chickens) had become

fresh, what it said in its mind was, “Aa, these chickens may taste

good.’

Note that bɛ- in these constructions does not involve the future gram. They are all

showing that the states of affairs may exist at the time of speaking.

4.2.4.5 Expressing Directive meaning with bɛ-

The phenomenon of using bɛ- to express deontic modality (directive meaning) is

exemplified here. In the affirmative, such constructions lay obligations on agents

as in (30) and (31). In combination with the negative marker, interdiction is the

focus. (32) and (33) are examples.

30. Wobɛtua kane deɛ no ansa na woagye foforɔ. (OBS AS)

Wo-bɛ-tua kane deɛ no ansa.na wo-a-gye foforɔ.

2SG-DIR-pay first own DET before 2SG-CON-take new

‘You will/must pay for the first one before you take a new one.’

31. Ɔbɔnom edur yi wɔ ha yi ara. (OBS FA)

Ɔ-bɔ-nom edur yi wɔ ha yi ara.

3SG-DIR-drink medicing DET be.at here DET EMPH

‘S/he will/must drink this medicine right here.’

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32. Worenna ha nnɛ. (CONS. AK/AS)

Wo-re-n-na ha nnɛ.

2SG-DIR-NEG-sleep here today

‘You will not sleep here today (you are not allowed).’

33. Sɛ wofa ‘antibaɔteke’ yi a worennom nsaden nnansa. (OBS AK/AS)

Sɛ wo-fa ‘antibaɔteke’ yi a wo-re-n-nom

CM 2SG-take antibiotics DET CM 2SG-DIR-NEG-drink

nsa.den nnansa.

alcohol three.days

‘When you take these antibiotics you will/must not take alcohol for

three days.’

The directive use of the marker is purported to reduce the negative impact normally

associated with commands, setting obligation and placing interdictions.

4.2.4.6 Expressing Dynamic modality with bɛ-

We have several other environments in which bɛ- occurs to express various degrees

of modal nuances. The form is used to express Dynamic modality in situations

where one is expressing facts about ability, capability, potentiality or the state in

which an object is. In (34) and (36), the form presents facts about the rain and the

child respectively. They are indicating the characteristic behaviour of the

arguments described.

34. Ha dze osu so mu a ɔbɔtɔ aa. (OBS FA)

Ha dze osu so mu a ɔ-bɔ-tɔ aa.

here EMPH rain hold in CM 3SG-POT-rain PART

‘As for this place when it begins to rain it will rain for a long time.’


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35. Meretwitwa gyeene a m’ani befi nsu aa. (AK)

Me-re-twitwa gyeene a m’ani be-fi nsu aa.

1SG-PROG-cut onion CM 1SG.POSS’eye POT-drip water PART

‘When I am cutting onions I shed lots of tears.’

36. Abɔfra yi maame nni hɔ mpo a ɔrensu da. (AS)

Abɔfra yi maame n-ni hɔ mpo a ɔ-re-n-su da.

child DET mother NEG-be there EMP CM 3SG-POT-NEG-cry never

‘Even when this child’s mother is not around s/he will never cry.’

The utterances do not make any reference to the future, but they are more or less

narrating what is known about the agents.

4.2.4.7 Discussion

We have thus far demonstrated the homonymous and ambiguous nature of the affix

bɛ- in this section and pointed out instances where the affix is indicating movement

to a deictic center before the action in the main verb is carried out (motional prefix)

and also its indication of prospective notion. We further discussed that in one sense

the affix indicates that the state of affairs in question is expected to occur posterior

to the time of speech (future marker). Aside these, we have also talked about the

form’s expression of epistemic, directive and dynamic modalities in certain

contexts (modal auxiliary affix).

One often finds issues concerning the status of, or the relation between what is

traditionally labeled the future marker in languages and modality. There is always

the general myth that ‘the future is always uncertain, the future is unknown and

that the future may or may not come’. And since modality often involves

uncertainty, linguists associate the future with modality. Comrie (1985), for

example, notes the relationship between the English form will which expresses

modality and other uses in addition to its traditional future time reference. Berbeira

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Gardon (2006) also notes that will in English is not entirely future because there

are instances where it is used in past and present situations. These and other

observations made in the literature point to the fact that in English, will expresses

future and other notions. This observation is in consonance with what has just been

discussed in this section concerning the Akan affix bɛ- which is used to express

modality in addition to the future. This is possible because as we have noted, the

form is the same, but it has different meanings in different contexts.

Hausa, an African language spoken in parts of Ghana and elsewhere, has been

described as a tenseless language by Mucha and Zimmermann (2016: 1).

Reiterating Mucha (2013), they claim that “Hausa does not have a linguistic

category of tense, such that temporal interpretation is determined by the interaction

of Aktionsart, aspect, and context, and that the so-called future marker is in fact a

modal marker”.

The form which is traditionally used to mark future tense in Ewe has been

discussed in Westermann (1930), Clements (1972), Ameka (1991; 2008), Duthie

(1996), Essegbey (2008) and Gbegble (2012). The ambiguous behaviour of the

form (l)a has been noted, especially by Ameka 2008 and Essegbey 2008, as

indicating potentiality, subjunctive, and sometimes used in constructions which are

inherently past. Whereas these linguists recognize that the form can be used in

these different environments, they reject the previous analyses of the form as being

a future marker because it is not in every environment where the form occurs that

the future is the focus. Ameka (2008: 139) argues that the form is better viewed as

a modality or mood marker and not as a future marker in the example (37) below.

However, since this utterance is a marriage proposal, the speaker would have

intended a future occurrence as primary notion. The issue of uncertainty or

potentiality could be a secondary, but not inherent part of this form in this context.

The interpretation of the construction, therefore, should be ‘I will marry you’ i.e.

(I will marry you in future).


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37. Ma de wo (EWE)

M-à de wò

1SG-POT-remove 2SG

‘I would marry you’ i.e. It is possible that I will marry you’

(Ameka 2008:139)

Following the discussions in Ewe, Owusu (2014) describes the traditional Akan

future marker as being a modal and not a future marker. She notes how in certain

environments the form does not refer to any future occurrence at all but

potentiality. Of course, as an ambiguous form, such a coincidence is inevitable and

so it shouldn’t rule out other meanings and occurrences. We see this analysis, and

that of Ewe as not being consistent with the languages because the writers seem

not to recognize instances where the form is essentially used to talk about future

occurrences where the issue of potentiality, uncertainty or possibility comes in as

a secondly notion. The exposition here also overlooks instances when the expected

situation actually occurs in the real world.

Two examples in Owusu (2014: 69) for Ewe and Akan are perfect examples of the

form’s ambiguous meaning but the writer rather prefers to rule out one of the

meanings in favour of the other to be consistent with her claim. In the translation

of these two sentences, the writer has put will in quotation marks, explaining that

although as the utterances stand, future SOA are what they present but she prefers

to analyze them as potential utterances only.

38. Kofi a-ɖu mͻlu le ɤe- trͻ me. (EWE)

Kofi â-ɖu mͻlu le ɤe- trͻ me.

Kofi POT-eat rice LOC sun-turn containing.region

‘Kofi “will” eat rice in the late afternoon.’ (Essegbey 2008:205)

39. Egypt bɛ-hyɛ Ghana. (AK/AS)

Egypt bɛ-hyɛ Ghana.

Egypt MOD-score Ghana

‘Egypt “will” beat Ghana.’ (Owusu 2014:69)

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In the Ewe example in (38), the intended notion is simply referring to a future

occurrence which makes the current translation viable. In the Akan example, it is

intended to describe a future occurrence. The writer’s preference for a possibility

reading, ‘There is a possibility of Egypt beating Ghana in the game’, is inconsistent

with the language and therefore erroneous. As noted above, when bɛ- occurs with

dynamic/action verbs they express future. If one wants to indicate a future

possibility or potentiality, one would add a possibility marker to the construction.

The preferred translation given by the writer for (39) will therefore be rendered as

(40) below:

40. Ebia/ebetumi aba sɛ Egypt bɛ-hyɛ Ghana. (AK/AS)

Ebia/ebetumi aba sɛ Egypt bɛ-hyɛ Ghana

may/it is possible COMP Egypt FUT-score Ghana

‘Egypt may beat Ghana/it is possible/there is the possibility of Egypt

beating Ghana.’

where ebia, ebetumi aba sɛ or any of the possibility markers in the language would

be used to indicate that the speaker is evaluating a future possibility.

One is always able to plan for the future with specific forms or signs in languages

indicating that one is not narrating what happened in the past or what is happening

now in the present but what will happen in future. If all conditions needed are met,

one’s future-plan will be fulfilled. If on the other hand the necessary conditions are

not met, then one’s plan may not be fulfilled. Whatever the outcome, future

occurrence is the intended notion for which such forms are chosen. For this reason,

we see the future as the major component of SOA whose occurrence is expected

after speech time (the future marker) and expression of probability or potentiality

as a secondary component.

In English for instance, most of the modal verbs, e.g., must, may and can, are

chiefly indicating various modalities but they also connote the present and future

time. In certain contexts, will and shall are foremost used to talk about states of


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affairs expected to occur in a time posterior to the time of speaking (future

occurrence) with a secondary connotation of potentiality possibility or uncertainty

(modality). With have, it indicates a perfect aspect with no indication of modality

inherent in it at all. All these demonstrate that different forms may have their own

peculiarities in different environments although the same word patterns or forms

are used for expressing more than one meaning at the same time in many languages,

and that is where ambiguity comes in. We agree with Boadi (2005; 2009; 2008),

Osam (2004; 2008), Dolphyne (1988), Agyekum (2010) and all the earlier analysis

which recognize the Akan form bɛ- as expressing future tense and modality. The

next sections treat the modal auxiliary tumi and the other forms we claim to be

functioning as auxiliaries.

4.3 The Modal Auxiliary Verb tumi

The auxiliary tumi (AK/AS) tum (FA) ‘can/be able to’ is traditionally used to

express ability, power, strength, talent, proficiency, or competence inherent in an

agent to undertake an activity. The form is further used to express other nuances of

modality. Nuyts (2005:7) discusses two modal categories of the form ‘can’ under

dynamic modality. The first is ability/capacity, which ascribes a capacity/ability to

the subject participant in the clause, and the second is potentiality/inevitability

inherent in the situation described in the clause as a whole. In addition to these two

categories, we have identified two other uses of the form in this section, viz. the

expression of deontic- (permission/prohibition) and epistemic certainty. The tables

below give the breakdown of its frequency in spoken/written data as well as the

modality meanings it expresses.

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Modal Auxiliary Verb tumi

Form Spk Wrt Tot

tumi 98 398 496

Table 4.3 Frequency of tumi in written and spoken data

Modal Auxiliary Verb tumi

Form Epi Deon Dyn Tot

tumi 13 51 432 496

Table 4.4 Modal Meanings of tumi

We counted all instances of the form occurring as lexical items and those which

were in combination with other words, generally occurring as idioms, and

classified them into their various qualificational meanings. All the 496 tokens

extracted express modality, the majority of which belong to dynamic modality.

4.3.1 Dynamic modality

Two types of dynamic modality we discuss are ability/capacity and potentiality,

which also translates as possibility.

4.3.1.1 Ability/capacity

To describe ability, capability or aptitude inherent in a subject to accomplish a task

in a clause, tumi occurs as an auxiliary to support the main verb.


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41. Metumi asoa bankye kotoku yi akɔ guaso. (CONS AK)

M-e-tumi a-soa bankye kotoku yi a-kɔ guaso

1SG-FUT-can CONS-carry cassava sack DEM CONS-go market

‘I can carry this sack of cassava to the market.’

In discussing the functions of bԑ-, Osam (2004: 9) mentioned that the bε- prefix in

combination with the verb tum (FA) and tumi (AK&AS) ‘be able’, encodes ability

as in (42):

42. Wobotum etwa (FA)

Wo-bo-tum e-twa

3PL-FUT-able CONS-cut

‘They can cut it. (They will be able to cut it)’ (Osam, 2004: 9)

We, however, do not accept this explanation on the grounds that, it is not the bε

prefix which shows ability, but rather, the auxiliary tum itself. This stand is taken

because when any other tense/aspect marker is attached to tum as in (43) to (45),

which are constructed after (42), the bε prefix does not occur, yet ability is

expressed. This indicates that, the prefix in (42) is marking future but not ability.

43. Wotum twae. (CONS FA)

Wo-tum twa-e.

3PL-able cut-PAST

‘They were able to cut it.’

44. Wᴐatumi atwa. (CONS AK/AS)

Wᴐ-a-tumi a-twa.

3PL-PERF-able PERF-cut

‘They have been able to cut it.’

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45. Wotumi twa. (CONS AK)

Wo-ø-tumi twa.

3PL-HAB-able cut

‘They are able to cut it.’

Following Nuyts (2005: 7), we discuss the ability or inability inherent in the first

argument and ability or inability of the said argument, determined by

circumstances prevailing at the time.

Some of the examples of ascription of a capacity/ability inherent in the first

argument are from (46) to (49). Note that the subjects who carry the ability may be

grammatical or implicit. The ability of ascending and descending the mountain

with ease as in (46) is inherent in the grammatical subject which is Wᴐn a wᴐte

ᴐbrakyerε kurow yi mu no ‘those who live in Ↄbrakyerε town’. They possess

physical strength or ability as responsible agents to do so.

46. Wᴐn a wᴐte ᴐbrakyerε kurow yi mu no de, wotumi de ahoᴐhare ne anigye

di aforosian na asehwe bi mma mu. (BRA AK)

Wᴐn a wᴐ-ø-te Ɔbrakyerε kurow yi mu no

3PL REL 3PL-STAT-live Ɔbrakyerԑ town DET in DET

de, wo-tumi de ahoᴐhare ne anigye di

EMPH 3PL-be.able use smartness CONJ gladness eat

aforosian na asehwe bi m-ma mu.

climbing.descending CONJ falling any NEG-come in

‘As for those who live in ɔbrakyerε town, they are able to ascend and

descend (the mountain) with gladness and ease, without any falling.’

In examples (47) to (49), the subjects possess inherent capabilities to accomplish

the task in the state of affairs.


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47. Hεn ha a nkyε hᴐn a wotum yε dεm yi wᴐse abayifo a. (ABO FA)

Hεn ha a nkyε hᴐn a

1PL.POSS here CM would have those REL

wo-tum yε dεm yi wᴐ-se abayifo a.

3PL-be-able do this DEF 3PL-say witches PART

‘If it were to be our place here, those who are able to do such things

would have been thought of as being witches.’

48. Ɔtaa bɔ yɛn abaso sɛ yɛbɔ mmɔden sɛ yetumi kan nkyerɛwee no.

(ƆKR AK)

Ɔ-taa bᴐ yɛn abasa so sɛ

3SG-often hit 1PL.POSS arm on COMP

yɛ-bᴐ mmᴐden sɛ ye-tumi kan nkyerɛwee no.

1PL-do well COMP 1PL-can read writing DEF

‘She often praised us for being able to read.’

49. Prԑko ne no dii kasasie, sᴐᴐ n’adwene hwԑe nna ara sann, hui sԑ Buruwa

bԑyԑ ᴐyere pa. Buruwa nso hui sԑ Yaw Preko betumi aso no mu, enti

ᴐpenee so sԑ wᴐbԑtena sԑ awarefo. (ƆBA AK)

Prԑko ne no di-i kasasie, sᴐ-ᴐ

Prɛko CONJ 3SG eat-PAST hide.talk test-PAST

n’adwene hwԑ-e nna ara sann, hu-i

3SG.POSS.mind look-PAST days EMPH plenty see-PAST

sԑ Buruwa bԑ-yԑ ᴐyere pa. Buruwa nso hu-i

COMP Buruwa FUT-be wife good Buruwa also see-PAST

sԑ Yaw Prɛko be-tumi aso no mu,

COMP Yaw Prɛko FUT-can handle 3SG in

enti ᴐ-pene-e so sԑ wᴐ-bԑ-tena sԑ awarefo.

so 3SG-agree-PAST on COMP 3PL-FUT-live like married.people

‘Prɛko had discussions with her for some time to know that Buruwa will

be a good wife. Buruwa also realized that Yaw Preko can take care of her,

so she agreed for them to marry.’

Inherent ability/capacity may also be questioned in instances where the speaker

wishes to know about the listener’s ability or otherwise. In the two examples below,

the speakers inquire if the listeners are able to do certain things. These two

sentences and many others may have other interpretations aside their expression of

inherent ability, but contextually, these are understood as expressing inherent

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ability. (50) obviously inquires whether the hearer is in a position to close the

window. It must be noted here that being in a position to do something could

involve time or ability for instance. In (51) it could be asking whether the hearer’s

agenda or other situations allow him to do so, but we observe in both sentences

that whether s/he is able is already stated explicitly in the sentences.

50. Mepa wo kyɛw wobɛtumi ato mpoma no mu ama me? (Agye AS)

Me-pa wo kyɛw wo-bɛ-tumi

1SG-remove you hat 2SG-FUT-can

a-to mpoma no mu a-ma me?

CONS-close window DEF in CONS-give me

‘Can you close the window for me, please?’

51. Mate sɛ wonim nkonnwa yɛ pa ara, na wo nsa ano nso yɛ fɛ, afei nso

wonkyɛre w’adwuma ho. Wobɛtumi de nnawɔtwe ayɛ ɛdan mu nkonnwa

ama me? (Agye AS)

M-a-te sɛ wo-ø-nim nkonnwa yɛ pa ara,

1SG-PERF-hear COMP 2SG-STAT-know chairs do very.well

na wo nsa ano nso yɛ fɛ, afei nso

CONJ 2SG.POSS hand mouth also be nice again also

wo-n-kyɛre w’adwuma ho. Wo-bɛ-tumi de

2SG-NEG-keep.long 2SG.POSS’work skin 2SG-FUT-can take

nnawᴐtwe a-yɛ ɛdan mu nkonnwa a-ma me?

week CONS-do room in chairs CONS-give me?

‘I have heard that you are very good in furniture making, and your

designs are superb. Also, you do not waste too much time on your work.

Can you use one week to make some room furniture for me?’

The speaker can also question a listener about the speaker’s ability to undertake an

activity, if the listener happens to be conversant with the speaker’s strength and

also the required strength for a particular activity. In the constructed example

below, it is the hearer who has to evaluate a situation to determine whether the

speaker is able to carry out an activity or not.


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52. A: Kotoku yi de metumi asoa akɔ fie? (AK)

Kotoku yi de m-e-tumi a-soa a-kɔ fie?

sack DET EMPH 1SG-FUT-can CONS-carry CON-go home

‘Can I carry this sack home? (Will I be able to carry this sack home?)’

B: O yiw, wubetumi asoa. Asaawa mfuturu kɛkɛ na ɛwɔ mu. Mmofra

nketewa yi nyinaa tumi soa.

O yiw, wu-be-tumi a-soa. Asaawa mfuturu kɛkɛ na

O yes 2SG-FUT-can CON-carry cotton wool only EMPH

ɛ-wɔ mu. Mmofra nketewa yi nyinaa tumi soa.

3SG-be in children little DET all able carry

B: ‘O yes. You can carry it. It contains only cotton wool. Even, all these

little children are able to carry it.’

This type of questioning is particularly interesting when you compare it with those

which are exemplified under directives (§4.3.2) below. In those examples, the

speakers’ questions are not about their ability but about whether or not they are

permitted to undertake certain activities.

In combination with the negative marker, the form expresses inability on the part

of the subject, as in (53) - (55) below.

53. Na sԑ ԑdan koraa na ᴐrentumi nsi bi a, ᴐno deԑ ᴐwᴐ ԑka bi wᴐ ne kurom a

ԑsԑ sԑ ᴐkᴐtua. (ƐHIA AS)

Na sԑ ԑdan koraa.na ᴐ-re-n-tumi n-si

and CM house EMPH 3SG-FUT-NEG-can NEG-build

bi a, ᴐno deԑ ᴐ-wᴐ ԑka bi wᴐ ne

some CM, 3SG EMPH 3SG-have debt some in 3SG.POSS

kurom a ԑ-sԑ sԑ ᴐ-kᴐ-tua.

town REL 3SG-has to be COMP 3SG-go-pay

‘And even if it is a house he cannot build, as for him, he has a debt in his

hometown that he has to go and settle.’

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54. Baebor bᴐ hԑn kᴐkᴐ dԑ, “yԑamfa hwee ammba wiadze. Afei so yerunntum

mmfa hwee mmfi mu nnkᴐ”. (GHANA FA)

Baebor bᴐ hԑn kᴐkᴐ dԑ, “yԑ-a-m-fa

Bible strike 1PL caution COMP, “1PL-PAST-NEG-take

hwee a-mm-ba wiadze. Afei so ye-ru-nn-tum

nothing PAST-NEG-come world and also 1PL-FUT-NEG-can

mm-fa hwee mm-fi mu nn-kᴐ”.

NEG-take nothing NEG-out in NEG-go”.

‘The Bible cautions us that, “we did not bring anything into the world.

And so, we cannot take anything away from it”’.

55. Ɔaka akyerε ne papa dε orunntum nnwar no a, ᴐse dεm banyin no ara nna

ᴐwᴐ dε ᴐwar no. (ABO FA)

Ɔ-a-ka a-kyerε ne papa dε o-ru-nn-tum

3SG-PERF-tell PERF-STEM 3SG.POSS father COMP 3SG-FUT-NEG-can

nn-war no a, ᴐ-se dεm banyin no ara nna

NEG-marry 3SG PART 3SG-say DEM man DEF EMPH that

ᴐ-wᴐ dε ᴐ-war no.

3SG-has to be COMP 3SG-marry 3SG

‘She has told her father that she cannot marry that man, but the father

insists that it is that very man she has to marry.’

Aside the grammatical subjects who possess the ability or intelligence to perform

actions, there are other subjects (the first argument of the predicate or the

controlling participants), who do not possess ability or intelligence themselves. In

constructions containing such subjects, tumi doesn’t indicate physical or

intellectual ability in the language. It expresses the possible occurrence of the

action, sometimes through reflex and not by the will power of the subject. Tumi

could also be used with these participants when an ascription of an ability has been

given to inanimate participants, to stand metonymically (pars pro toto).

In (56) and (57), for example, nan ‘legs’ which do not in themselves possess ability

of carrying people to places and ‘cat’s nails’ are used here as the subject to indicate

that the state of affairs is possible.


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56. Mepԑ sԑ mekyerԑ wo sԑ onipa bi wᴐ hᴐ a ne nan tumi de no kᴐ baabi a na

ԑnsԑ sԑ ᴐkorᴐ. (SEA AS)

Me-pԑ sԑ me-kyerԑ wo sԑ onipa bi wᴐ hᴐ

1SG-like COMP 1SG-teach 2SG COMP person some be there

a ne nan tumi de no kᴐ baabi

PART 3SG.POSS leg can take 3SG go somewhere

a na ԑ-n-sԑ sԑ ᴐ-korᴐ.

REL that 3SG-NEG-fit COMP 3SG-go

‘I want to tell you that, there are some people whose legs can carry them

into places where they are not supposed to go.’

57. Agyinamoa awerԑw yԑ nnam yiye na etumi twa ade te sԑ nea wᴐde sekan

atwa. (NKU AK)

Agyinamoa awerԑw yԑ nnam yiye na e-tumi

cat nails be sharp very and 3PL-can

twa ade te.sԑ nea wᴐ-de sekan a-twa.

cut thing like how 3PL-use knife PERF-cut

‘The nails of a cat are very sharp, and they can cut just like knives.’

In (58) and (59), neither ‘mouth’ nor ‘poetry’ possesses physical abilities to

perform the action, so the meaning of tumi in these clauses indicates possibility.

Poetry, as such, is described as a possible motivator and entertainer.

58. Sԑ woanhwԑ w'ano yie a, ԑbԑtumi aka asԑm bi ama wᴐatwe w'aso.

(SEA AS)

Sԑ wo-a-n-hwԑ w'ano yie a, ԑ-bԑ-tumi

CM 2SG-CM-NEG-guard 2SG.POSS’mouth well CM 3SG-FUT-can

a-ka asԑm bi a-ma wᴐ-a-twe w'aso.

CONS-say issue some CONS-give 3PL-CONS-punish STEM-3SG

‘If you are not careful with your mouth, it can say something for you to be

punished (be in trouble).’

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59. Anwensԑm yԑ ade a etumi hyԑ nkuran ne baninha. Ɛyԑ ade a etumi ma obi

ani gye. (MEWƆ AK)

Anwensԑm yԑ ade a e-tumi hyԑ nkuran ne

poem be something REL 3SG-can give encouragement CONJ

baninha. Ɛ-yԑ ade a e-tumi ma obi ani gye.

motivation 3SG-be something REL 3SG-can let someone happy

‘Poetry is something which can encourage and motivate people. It is

something which can entertain someone.’

In other instances, the form is used to express possibilities or otherwise. In (60)

below, the speaker depicts wickedness and deceit as potential problem givers,

thereby cautioning people against such acts. (61) describes a situation where it is

possible for unity to bring about peace and tranquility in the society, and (62) shows

a situation where one’s study of other peoples’ achievement pattern has the

possibility of motivating one to do similar things.

60. Akenkanfo behu nso sɛ atirimɔden a nnipa binom bɔ afoforo ne nnaadaa

ahoro tumi de ɔhaw ne amane ba wɔn yɔnkonom so, enti sɛ onipa

timmɔbɔ adɔ ne yɔnko sɛ ne ho a, anka eye koraa. (ƆKRA AK)

Akenkanfo be-hu nso sɛ, atirimᴐden a nnipa binom bᴐ

readers FUT-see also COMP wikedness REL people some met out

afoforo ne nnaadaa ahoro tumi de ᴐhaw ne amane ba

others CONJ lying different can take worry CONJ problem come

wᴐn yᴐnkonom so, enti sɛ onipa bɛ-yɛ timmᴐbᴐ

3PL.POSS friends on so CM people FUT-do kind

a-dᴐ ne yᴐnko sɛ ne ho a, anka eye koraa.

CONS-love 2SP.POSS fellow like 2SG self CM CF good EMPH

‘Readers will also realize that the wickedness some people met out to

others and the various forms of deceits are able to bring problems to their

fellows, so if people will be kind and love their fellows as themselves, it

would have been very good.’


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61. Me de, mewᴐ anidaso sε, nea ebetumi agye yεn nkwa nko ne nkabom.

(BRA AK)

Me de, me-wᴐ anidaso sε, nea e-be-tumi

1SG EMPH 1SG-have hope COMP what 3SG-FUT-can

a-gye yεn nkwa nko ne nkabom

CONS-take 1PL life only be unity.

‘As for me, I hope (believe) that the only thing which can save us is

unity.’

62. Saa nneεma yi yε ade a, ebetumi ahyε wo baninha ma wo nso wode emu

nea wopε no asi w'ani so adi ho dwuma. (BRA AK)

Saa nneεma yi yε ade a, e-be-tumi

DEM things DET be something REL 3SG-FUT-can

a-hyε wo baninha ma wo nso wo-de emu.nea

CONS-motivate 2SG STEM CAUS 2SG too 2SG-take what

wo-ø-pε no a-si w'-ani.so a-di ho.dwuma.

2SG-STAT-like DET CONS-focus 2SG-STEM CONS-work STEM

‘These are things which can motivate you to focus on whichever of them

you like, and work on it.’

These impersonal subjects also occur with negative tumi to indicate the inability of

the state of affairs to occur.

63. Hom mpasuar do ogya beree, ɔko no saasaa do, naaso wu anaa atseetsee

enntum enntu hom bo. (AO! FA)

Hom mpasuar do ogya bere-e, ᴐko no saasaa do, naaso wu anaa

3PL field on fire red-PAST fight DEF fierce on but death or

atseetsee e-nn-tum e-nn-tu hom bo.

worry 3SG-NEG-can 3SG-NEG-frighten 3PL STEM

‘Your battle field was bloody, the war was fierce, but death or

apprehension could not frighten you.’

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64. Akyiri yi, nnipa bi san bɛtenaa Pɛtrɛnsa de, nanso saa kurow yi antumi

ankɔ anim sɛ kan no bio, an ebesi nnɛ yi mpo, ɛyɛ kurow ketewa bi.

(ƆKR AK)

Akyiri yi, nnipa bi san bɛ-tenaa Pɛtrɛnsa de, nanso saa

back DEF people DET return come-sit Pԑtrensa though but DEM

kurow yi a-n-tumi a-n-kᴐ anim sɛ kan no

town DET PAST-NEG-can PAST-NEG-go forward like past DET

bio, na ebesi nnɛ yi mpo, ɛ-yɛ kurow ketewaa bi.

again CONJ till today DEF EMPH 3SG-be town small some

‘Although people came to settle at Pɛtrensa later on, the town could not

develop to the level at which it was, and even until now it is just a little

town.’

65. Mpanimfoᴐ se, Wodwane Nyame a, wohyε N'ase εnna nnimmo nso

antumi wo a, εtete wo ntoma. (MENE AS)

Mpanimfoᴐ se, Wo-dwane Nyame a, wo-hyε N'-ase εnna

elders say 2SG-run God CM 2SG-be 3SG.POSS’-under CONJ

nnimmo nso a-n-tumi wo a, ε-te~te wo ntoma.

course also PAST-NEG-can 2SG CM 3SG-tear~tear 2SG.POSS cloth

‘The elders say that when you run away from God, you are still under

Him, and if a curse cannot kill you, it renders you tattered.’

‘Death or apprehension’, ‘Pɛtrεnsa township’ and ‘curse’ in sentences from (63) to

(65) are all impersonal subjects. Their occurrences with the negative of the form

express their inability to bring the state of affairs into being.

We have instances of participant-imposed dynamic modality in our corpus where

the ability/inability is not inherent in the participants, but it is determined by

circumstances around. The participants are able to achieve their goals because of

enabling conditions or circumstances (See Nuyts 2005:7 for similar situations).

In (66), Akwasi’s royal descent makes it possible for him to become a king.

Compared to the other meanings exemplified above, this form does not relate to

Akwasi’s inherent ability, but it merely indicates his potentiality in becoming a

king because he is a royal.


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66. Na Akwasi yε ᴐdehyeε kann a ᴐtumi di adeε. (MENE AS)

Na Akwasi yε ᴐdehyeε kann a ᴐ-tumi di adeε.

PART Akwasi be royal clean REL 3SG-can eat thing

‘Akwasi was a true royal, who could ascend the throne.’

From (67) to (68), the various circumstances (an opened door, playing of the

national anthem on radio and the construction of a new bridge, respectively)

contribute to the achievement of the subjects. In (68), Paa is a three-year-old boy

who could not sing the national anthem on his own, but when it is being played he

can sing along. It could mean that Paa has the intrinsic ability to sing the anthem,

but he needed certain assistance or situations to make him able to sing it out. And

in (69), the vehicles could not have crossed the river but the new bridge made it

possible for them to cross it.

67. Wobɛtumi akɔ mu; yɛnto ɛpono no mu ɛ. (OBS AS)

Wo-bɛ-tumi a-kɔ mu;

2SG-FUT-can CONS-go in

yɛ-n-to-o ɛpono no mu ɛ.

1PL-NEG-close-PAST door DEF in PART

‘You can go in; the door is not closed.’

68. Sɛ wɔrebɔ ‘national anthem’ wɔ radio so a, Paa tumi to ne nyinaa si ti.

(OBS AK)

Sɛ wɔ-re-bɔ ‘national anthem’ wɔ ‘rɛdio’ so a,

CM 3PL-PROG-play ‘national anthem’ on radio on CM

Paa ø-tumi to ne nyinaa si ti.

Paa be-able sing 3SG all to end.

‘When the national anthem is being played on the radio, Paa is able to

sing along perfectly.’

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69. Twene foforo no nti, ‘lɔre’ no nyinaa tumi twa asu Firaw a wɔmfa

‘pantoo’. (OBS AK)

Twene foforo no nti, ‘lɔre’ no nyinaa ø-tumi

Bridge new DEF because vehicle DET all be-able

ø-twa asu Firaw a wɔ-m-fa ‘pantoo’.

HAB-cross River Volta PART 3PL-NEG-take pontoon

‘Because of the new bridge, all the vehicles are able to cross river Volta

without the pontoon.’

In combination with negation, the form indicates the inability of participants to

perform the stated activities due to the unfavourable conditions persisting at the

time.

70. ‘De Lijnfo’ wɔ ‘strike’ ɔno ntsi na menntum mammba asɔr ntɛm no.

(OBS)

‘De Lijnfo’ wɔ ‘strike’ ɔno nsti na

‘De Lijn’ be.on strike 3SG be.why EMPH

m-e-nn-tum m-a-mm-ba asɔr ntɛm no.

1SG-PAST-NEG-can 1SG-PAST-NEG-ba church early DET

‘De Lijn is on strike, that is why I could not come to church on time.’

71. Ose ɔrentumi ntua ne ba no ‘school fees’ nnɛ efisε wontuaa no ka bosome

yi mu ɛ. (OBS AK)

O-se ɔ-re-n-tumi n-tua ne ba no ‘school fees’

3SG-say 3SG-FUT-NEG-can NEG-pay 3SG.POSS child DET school fees

nnɛ efisε wo-n-tua-a no ka bosome yi mu ɛ.

today because 3PL-NEG-pay-PERF 3SG debt month DEF in PART

‘He said he cannot pay his child’s school fees today because he has not

yet received his salary for this month.’


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4.3.1.2 Dynamic Potentiality (Possibility)

Aside ability/capacity, tumi expresses dynamic potentiality (which also translates

as possibility) inherent in situations (see Nuyts 2005:7). The language uses the bear

form tumi and two constructions (sɛ) ebetumi a (AK/AS) (sɛ) obotum a (FA) ‘if

possible’, and ebetumi aba sɛ (AK /AS) obotum aba dɛ (FA) ‘it is possible that’ to

express this idea. Both constructions are idiomatic as far as their components are

concerned. They both contain the expletive or dummy it, which cannot be changed.

They express potentiality/possibility.

Expression of dynamic possibility with tumi is exemplified in (72). The listeners

asked when it is possible for them to get their medicine from the herbalist. The

speaker replied that it was possible for them to get it the same day (if they were

able to provide money and the items for its preparation). This reading is context-

based in the sense that the construction could mean the listeners have the ability to

go to the herbalist for their medicine. In the current context, however, it is the

situation which has to make it possible for them to go for the said medicine.

72. Mobεtumi asane abεgye no nnε nko ara mpo. (ETI AS)

Mo-bε-tumi a-sane a-bε-gye no nnε nko ara mpo.

2PL-FUT-can CONS-return CONS-come-take DET today only EMPH even

‘You can even come back for it today.’ (it is possible to get the medicine

today).

(Sɛ) ebetumi a often precedes imperative utterances which make orders, requests

or suggestions. The speaker uses the construction to require the state of affairs to

come into being if prevailing circumstances make it possible. Requests preceded

by the construction do not carry much force, other than toning down the import of

force inherent in orders. As such, the listener is not obliged to obey the directives.

S/he may, however, obey the directives if the prevailing circumstances permit it.

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The spokesmen in (73) will go for consultation, the couples in (74) will give birth

like the elephant and the man in (75) will buy the tobacco for his father, if, and

only if, prevailing circumstances, situations or conditions make it possible.

73. Ebetumu a, ɔkyeame Amoa nkɔ Manguro so, na ɔkeame Mensa nkɔ Firaw

so, na ɔkyeame Boame nkɔ Kokora so. (FORO AK)

E-be-tumi a, ᴐkyeame Amoa n-kᴐ

3SG-FUT-can CM spokesperson Amoa IMP-go

Manguro so, na ᴐkyeame Mensa n-kᴐ Firaw so,

Manguro on CONJ spokesperson Mensa IMP-go Firaw on

na ᴐkyeame Boame n-kᴐ Kokora so’.

CONJ spokesman Boame IMP-go Kokora on

‘If possible, Ͻkyeame Amoa should go to Manguro, Ͻkyeame Mensa

should go to Firaw, and then Ͻkyame Boame to Kokora (for

consultation).’

74. Sε ebetumi a, monhwε na monwo asonwo. (BRA AK)

Sε e-be-tumi a, mo-n-hwε na

CM 3SG-FUT-can CM 2PL-IMP-look CONJ

mo-n-wo ason.wo.

2PL-IMP-give.birth elephant.birth.

‘If possible, you should give birth like how the elephant does.’

75. Afei sε ebetumi a, tᴐ taa bᴐw nso brε me. (BRA AK)

Afei sε e-be-tumi a, ø-tᴐ

Now CM 3SG-FUT-can CM IMP-buy

taa bᴐw nso brε me.

tobacco parcel also come.give me

‘And, if possible, buy a parcel of tobacco for me.’

The use of the construction focuses on how available circumstances will permit the

state of affairs to occur. It shifts attention from the subject’s ability or willingness

to perform the request in the state of affairs. If one wants to focus on the subject’s

ability or willingness to intend a meaning like ‘if the subject is able to’ then the

expletive pronoun will be changed to reflect the subject. This way, the performance

of the SOA is not dependent on available situations and prevailing circumstances.


203

We note instances in which e-be-tumi a co-occurs with the causative marker, ma,

‘to let’, to express request or to implore the listener to carry out an action. Such

constructions are hortatively expressed with a causative. Normally with hortatives,

the speaker’s encouragement or urging expects the subject to act in his willpower.

With e-be-tumi a in the sentence, however, the subject is only encouraged to take

the said action if prevailing circumstances allow it. The major difference between

example (73) and (75) above and those in (76) and (77) is the presence of the

hortative meaning which is absent in the former examples.

76. Ɔte εha yi ara enti sε εbεtumi a, ma yεnkᴐhu no. (MENE AS)

Ɔ-te εha yi ara enti sε εbεtumi a, ma yε-n-kᴐ-hu no.

3SG-sit here DEF EMPH so if possible CAUS 1PL-IMP-go-see him

‘He stays just around this place, so if possible, let us go and see him.’

77. Na Ɔkɔɔ n’anim kakra de n’anim kobutuw fam bɔɔ mpae sɛ: M’agya, sɛ

ebetumi a, ma kuruwa yi ntwa me ho nkɔ! (Matt. 26:39)

Na Ɔ-kɔ-ɔ n’-anim kakra de n’-anim

and 3SG-go-PAST 3SG.POSS-face little put 3SG.POSS-face

ko-butuw-ø fam bɔ-ɔ mpae sɛ: M’-agya,

go-touch-PAST ground pray-PAST COMP: 1SG.POSS father

sɛ ebetumi a, ma kuruwa yi n-twa me ho n-kɔ!

If it is possible CAUS cup DEF IMP-pass me self IMP-go!

‘And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O

my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me.’

The construction also co-occurs with anka ‘were/would have’ (a counterfactual

marker (CF)), in most instances. We identify two different clausal positions of the

CF relative to the possibility marker, viz: its occurrence before the possibility

marker as in (78) & (79) and its occurrence after the possibility marker as in (80)

& (81). The meanings of such combinations are not different from the others

exemplified above. They also indicate that the possible realization of the

proposition in the said utterances are dependent on certain situations. Anka

indicates a level of politeness in these utterances. However, when anka is used with

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tumi being an ability reading, it will mean an inability or non-performance on the

part of the agent.

78. Ɛno nti, anka sε ebetumi na saa nnipa yi a wonni dwuma bi di yi behu wᴐn

kurom kwan akᴐ a, anka ebia ahotᴐ bεba ma onipa da a, wada. (BRA AK)

Sε e-be-tumi na saa nnipa yi a wo-n-ni dwuma

CM 3SG-FUT-can for DEM person DEF REL 3PL-NEG-have work

bi di yi be-hu wᴐn kurom kwan a-kᴐ a,

DEM do DET FUT-see 3PL.POSS hometown road CONS-go CM

anka ebia ahotᴐ bε-ba ma onipa da a, w-a-da.

CF maybe peace FUT-come CAUS person sleep PART 3SG-CONS-sleep

‘If it were possible for these people who do not have any specific jobs to

return to their hometowns, maybe there would be some peace of mind for

people to sleep soundly.’

In (78), the supposed peace of mind for people would become a reality only if the

situation made it possible for jobless people to leave the big cities.

79. Bio, esiane sε ofie wᴐnyε no sε hamu nti, sε anka ebetumi a, asεm a ᴐkae

wᴐ guam ha seesei no, ᴐntwe nsan efisε onipa a wunim no awia no, wᴐnsᴐ

kanea nhwε n'anim anadwo. (ƆSƐ AK)

Bio, esiane sε ofie wᴐ-n-yε no sε hamu nti,

again, because home 3PL-NEG-do 3SG like bush so

sε anka ebetumi a, asεm a ᴐ-ka-e

if possible issue REL 3SG-say-PAST

wᴐ guam ha seesei no, ᴐ-n-twe n-san

in gathering here now DEF 3SG-IMP-withdraw IMP-STEM

efisε onipa a wu-ø-nim no awia no,

because human REL 2SG-STAT-know 3SG afternoon DET

wᴐ-n-sᴐ kanea n-hwε n'anim anadwo.

3PL-NEG-light lamp NEG-look 3SG.POSS’-face night

‘Also, since we don’t treat friends/acquaintances like strangers, if it is

possible, he should withdraw what he just said at this gathering, because

you do not have to mistreat people around you.’


205

80. Kᴐkᴐᴐ nsεmmoa, mesrε no ara sε, Kwae a agya wo no, wᴐmfrε no

kwaewa enti sε ebetumi a, anka onnyaa biribiara mu mma εnka.

(ƆSƐ AK)

Kᴐkᴐᴐ nsεmoa, me-srε no ara sε Kwae a a-gye

Fair one 1SG-beg him EMPH COMP forest REL PERF-receive

wo no, wᴐ-m-frε no kwaewa, enti sε ebetumi a

2SG DEF 3PL-NEG-call 3SG small.forest so if it is possible

anka o-n-nyaa biribiara mu m-ma ε-n-ka.

CF 3SG-NEG-leave everything in CAUS-give 3SG-IMP-stay.

‘Honorable one, I am pleading with him that, one cannot despise people

who have been good to one, so if it is possible, he should leave everything

and let sleeping dogs lie.’

81. Na atoro kristo ne atoro adiyifo bɛsɔre, na wɔbɛyɛ nsɛnkyerɛnne akɛse ne

anwonwade, na sɛ ebetumi a, anka wɔbɛdaadaa wɔn a wɔapaw wɔn no po.

(Matt. 24:24 AK)

Na atoro kristo ne atoro adiyifo bɛ-sɔre, na wɔ-bɛ-yɛ

and false Christ CONJ false prohpets FUT-rise and 3PL-FUT-do

nsɛnkyerɛnne akɛse ne anwonwade, na sɛ ebetumi a, anka

miracles big CONJ wonders and if it is possible would have

wɔ-bɛ-daadaa wɔn a wɔ-a-paw wɔn no po.

3PL-FUT-deceive those REL 3PL-PERF-elect 3PL DEF even

‘For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs

and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.’ (NIV)

In each of the utterances, possible occurrence of action is anticipated, only when a

prevailing situation permits it. The other dynamic possibility marker is exemplified

below. In these utterances, the speakers present the state of affairs as possibilities

inherent in the situations. Although speakers are not certain or sure about the SOA,

they are not evaluating the chances that the SOA is the case as it is done in

epistemic modality. They are presenting the SOA as possible situations.

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82. Obotum aba so dԑ maame no ara na ᴐdze edur no maa abofra no ansa na

no so ronom bi. (RADIO FA)

Obotum aba so dԑ maame no ara na ᴐ-dze edur no

It is possible also COMP mother DEF EMPH that 3SG-with medicine DEF

maa abofra no, ansa na no so ro-nom bi.

give child DEF before that 3SG also PROG-drink some

‘It is also possible that it is the mother herself who gave the poison to the

child, before she also drank a portion of it.’

83. Momma yԑnyԑ no ntԑm nkᴐ na ԑbԑtumi aba sԑ papa no aba dada.

(OBS AS)

Mo-m-ma yԑ-n-yԑ no ntԑm n-kᴐ na

2PL-IMP-CAUS 1PL-IMP-do DET fast IMP-go CONJ

ԑbԑtumi aba sԑ papa no a-ba dada.

it is possible COMP man DEF PERF-come already.

‘Let us hurry up and go because it is possible that the man has already

arrived.’

In combination with negation, ԑbԑtumi aba sԑ expresses dynamic impossibility in

situations, as exemplified below.

84. Little Stevie cannot have broken the vase since he was not around.

(Nuyts 2005:8)

Entumi mma sɛ abofra Stevie na ɔbɔɔ kuku no wɔ bere a na onni ha.

E-n-tumi m-ma sɛ abofra Stevie na ɔ-bɔ-ɔ

3SG-NEG-can NEG-come COMP child Stevie EMPH 3SG-break-PAST

kuku no wɔ bere a na o-n-ni ha.

pot DEF in time REL PART 3SG-NEG-be here

‘It is not possible that Little Stevie broke the vase since/when he was not

around.


207

85. Na entumi mma sɛ wɔn a wɔanya hann pɛn, na wɔaka ɔsoro akyɛde no

ahwɛ na wɔanya Honhom Kronkron no bi, na wɔaka Onyankopɔn asɛm a

eye ne wiase a ɛrebɛba no ahoɔden horow ahwɛ, na wɔafi ho ahwe ase no,

wɔbɛdan wɔn foforo akɔ adwnsakra mu... (Heb 6:4-6)

Na e-n-tumi m-ma sɛ wɔn a wɔ-a-nya

CONJ 3SG-NEG-can NEG-come COMP 3PL REL 3PL-PERF-get

hann pɛn, na wɔ-a-ka ɔsoro akyɛde no

light before CONJ 3PL-PERF-taste heaven gift DEF

a-hwɛ na wɔ-a-nya Honhom Kronkron no bi,

CONS-STEM CONJ 3PL-PERF-get Ghost Holy DEF some

na wɔ-a-ka Onyankopɔn asɛm a eye

CONJ 3PL-PERF-taste God word REL good

ne wiase a ɛ-re-bɛ-ba no ahoɔden horow

CONJ world REL 3SG-PROG-FUT-come DET strength diverse

a-hwɛ, na wɔ-a-fi ho a-hwe ase no,

CON-STEM CONJ 3PL-PERF-leave.it CONS-fall down DEF

wɔ-bɛ-dan wɔn foforo a-kɔ adwensakra mu…

3PL-FUT-turn them new CONS-go repentance in

‘It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have

tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age,

if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss

they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to

public disgrace.’ (NIV)

4.3.2 Directives - Permission

The form tumi is also used to express directives such as permission, and also

prohibition (when it is used in combination with the negative).

We noted in (4.3.1.1), that the form used in questioning the ability of an agent to

carry out an activity is similar to those used to ask for or grant permission. In (86)

below, the speaker is asking if he is permitted or allowed to sing when he is bathing.

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86. Nana, na enti me a m’agya ne me na awu yi, miguare a, mitumi to dwom?

(ƆKR AK)

Nana, na enti me a m’agya ne me

Nana so but me REL 1SG.POSS’father CONJ 1SG.POSS

na a-wu yi, mi-guare a, mi-tumi to dwom?

mother PERF-die DET 1SG-bath CM 1SG-can sing song?

‘Nana, so someone like me who has lost both parents, can I sing when I

am bathing? (Am I permitted to sing when I am bathing?)’

The modal form tumi may occur in three different structures to express directives.

In the first instance, the habitual form is used as in the examples from (87) to (89).

87. Sε moaboa mo ho deε a, motumi de ma me. (ETI AS)

Sε mo-a-boa mo ho deε a,

CM 2PL-PERF-prepare 2PL.self only CM

mo-ø-tumi de ø-ma me.

2PL-HAB-can give HAB-STEM 1SG.

‘If only you are prepared, you can give it to me. (You are allowed to give

it to me.)’

88. Wowiee saa nhwehwԑmu no, Agya Manso soma kᴐᴐ Agya Asaawa nkyԑn

sԑ ᴐkwan da hᴐ enti wotumi ba. (ƆBA AK)

Wo-wie-e saa nhwehwԑmu no, A. Manso soma-ø kᴐ-ᴐ

3PL-finish-PAST DEF investigation DET A. Manso send-PAST go-PAST

A. Asaawa nkyԑn sԑ ᴐkwan da hᴐ enti wo-ø-tumi ø-ba.

A. Asaawa there COMP road lie there so 3PL-HAB-can HAB-come

‘When they completed those investigations, Agya Manso sent a

delegation to Agya Asaawa that everything is in order so they can come.

(They are permitted to come.)’

89. Ɔtumi ba. (Boadi 2005:106)

Ɔ-ø-tumi ø-ba.

3SG-HAB-can HAB-come

‘He can come. (He is permitted or allowed to come.)’


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Since this structure uses the habitual form of the auxiliary, it is ambiguous between

ability and permission. Out of context, (89) may be translated as ‘He is able to

come’ which indicates the agent’s ability to move from one point to a deictic center.

The form could also occur with the future marker, in which case the main verb(s)

is/are marked with the consecutive, (90) and (91) are examples. These examples

are similar to (42) above, where wubetumi… means ‘you can/you have the ability

to …’ The future marker in the current sentences could however be glossed as

redundant, since it does not in itself contribute to the meaning of the sentence. It is

one of the ways of constructing permission sentences. When it is removed,

permission is still expressed.

90. Wubetumi ama Kofi akᴐ sukuu. (OBS AK)

Wu-be-tumi a-ma Kofi a-kᴐ sukuu

2SG-FUT-can CONS-CAUS Kofi CONS-go school

‘You may allow Kofi to go to school.’

91. Ka kyerԑ Kofi sԑ ɔbɛtumi aba bi (OBS AK)

ø-ka kyerԑ Kofi sԑ ɔ-bɛ-tumi a-ba bi

IMP-tell STEM Kofi COMP 3SG-FUT-can CONS-come some

‘Tell Kofi that he can come along/he is allowed to come along.’

In the third category, the auxiliary may also occur in a matrix clause and the main

verb is subordinated by the help of the complementizer sɛ as in (92), (see Boadi

2005). This type of construction is as well for stylistic purpose. It however does

not compete in meaning with the habitual construction as it was observed in (87)

above.

92. Wotumi sɛ woba. (Boadi 2005:101)

Wo-ø-tumi sε wo-ø-ba.

2SG-be-allowed COMP 2SG-SUBJ-come

‘You can come. (You are allowed/permitted to come).’

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In this construction, the speaker grants permission to the subject to perform the

action in the main verb.

When the form occurs with negation, it expresses prohibition. In the two utterances

below, the speakers are prohibiting the agents from carrying out the said action. In

(93), the prohibition is directed to a second person who has to prevent a third person

from doing something (in this case ‘coming in’). Abam in (94) is prevented or

prohibited to sleep at a place so it doesn’t talk about his ability.

93. Worentumi mma Kofi mma mu. (OBS AS)

Wo-re-n-tumi m-ma Kofi m-ma mu.

2SG-FUT-NEG-can NEG-CAUS Kofi NEG-come in

‘You cannot let Kofi come in.’

94. Abam nkotum ada ha bio. (OBS FA)

Abam n-ko-tum a-da ha bio.

Abam NEG-FUT-can CONS-sleep here again

‘Abam cannot sleep here anymore.’

4.3.3 Tumi as an Epistemic Marker

In addition to its expression of deontic and dynamic meanings, tumi also expresses

epistemic modality when it is used in combination with stative verbs as illustrated

in (§4.2.4.2). In the examples from (95) to (97), the co-occurrence of bɛ- and tumi

which are both expressing epistemic meaning in one utterance is likened to the

notion where different categories are expressed in one utterance (see Hogeweg, de

Hoop and Malchulov 2009 who note instances where languages employ more than

one mood/tense/aspect categories in a single utterance). The writers posed a

question that “When categories of tense and aspect are expressed independently of

each other, as in the Slavic languages, its combination is available but what

meaning does such a combination get?” They pointed out how different languages

usually interpret such constructions differently. In the Akan examples presented


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here, however, both forms are glossed as possibility but they offer a ‘cumulative

exponential’ meaning (cf in the sense of Matthew 1974: 147). This way, the

epistemic meaning becomes stronger towards certainty than when bɛ- alone is used

as in (§4.2.4.2 above).

Note that although bɛ- is a pure possibility marker here, its use corresponds to all

the syntactic features of the future tense form. As such, in constructions containing

verbs in seriation, the consecutive marker is used on the non-initial verbs. The

aspectual specification of these utterances is essentially stative, but because of the

possibility form bɛ- on the initial verb the subsequent verbs are glossed as

consecutive.

95. Ɔbɛtumi awɔ hɔ. (CONS AS)

Ɔ-bɛ-tumi a-wɔ hɔ.

3SG-POS-POS CONS-be there

‘S/he can be there (it is likely s/he is there).’

96. Wobetumi ayɛ akwanmukafo. (Radio AK)

Wo-be-tumi a-yɛ akwanmukafo.

3PL-POS-POS CONS-be robbers

‘They can be high-way robbers (it is likely they are high-way robbers).’

97. Obotum wagye edzi. (OBS FA)

O-bo-tum w-a-gye e-dzi.

3SG-POS-POS 3SG-CON-take CON-eat

‘He can believe it. (it is likely he will believe it)’

The epistemic strength of the form does not depend on bɛ- as such. In situations

when tumi alone is used certainty is still expressed as in (98) and (99). With the

absence of bɛ- in these constructions, the stative aspect and the possibility/certainty

markers assume a cumulative meaning on the first verb/auxiliary but the second

verb retains its stative marking.

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98. Ɔtumi wɔ hɔ. (CONS AS)

Ɔ-tumi ø-wɔ hɔ.

3SG-POS STAT-be there

‘S/he can be there ( it is likely s/he is there)’

99. Wotumi yɛ akwanmukafo. (CONS after Radio AK)

Wo-tumi ø-yɛ akwanmukafo.

3PL-POS STAT-be robbers

They can be high-way robbers (It is likely they are high-way robbers)

The choice of bɛ- or bɛtumi is dependent on the strength of the epistemic evaluation

but that of bɛtumi and tumi is more of speaker’s choice for stylistic effect. Between

these two ways of expression, however, bɛtumi is preferable and more frequent in

use than tumi alone.

4.4 Ma as an Auxiliary Verb

The lexeme ma is one of the ambiguous verb forms we have discussed in (3.4.2.2).

Ma as an auxiliary means ‘to let/allow or to make/cause someone to bring the

situation in the main verb into being’ and it expresses mood and modality. It is

traditionally described as a causative marker in imperative constructions. In this

study we treat it as an auxiliary which expresses directive deontic modality. We

give two significant uses of ma as an auxiliary. In the first instance, it indicates

permission where an agent has the willingness to do something and s/he has to be

allowed or permitted to bring the said situation into fruition, i.e., a bid ‘to let, allow

or not to hinder’ an event. In the second instance, the agent is made to do something

with or without his will. Prohibition is expressible by addition of the negative

marker to the form. Where the intended meaning is not certain we shall present the

two possible meanings.


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Observe other uses of the auxiliary ‘let’ in English where it is used to express

request, to make proposal and to convey warning or threats. It is also used to make

suggestions, to express resigned acceptance of the inevitable and to express one’s

indifference to some situation or to show that one does not care about something.

Ma expresses the same notions in Akan.

Modal Auxiliary Verb ma

Form Spk Wrt Tot

ma 17 11 28

Table 4.5 Frequency of ma in written and spoken data

Modal Auxiliary Verb ma


ma - 28 - 28

Table 4.6 Modal Meanings of ma

Table 4.5 presents the breakdown of the spoken and written tokens of ma and Table

4.6 gives the modal meaning the form expresses in our corpus. These tokens do not

include the other meanings of ma discussed under verbs. All 28 tokens express

deontic modality in the form of permission or prohibition.

In (100) and (101), the speakers indicate that they allowed the situations to occur.

It could be that they caused the agents to do something without their will or that

they permitted the agents to do what they intended to do.

100. Memaa no maa no sika. (AK/FA)

Me-ma-a no ma-a no sika.

1SG-allow/make-PAST 3SG give-PAST 3SG money

‘I made/allowed him to give her money.’

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101. Memaa no nom nsa bow fefee ne ho. (AK)

Me-ma-a no nom-ø nsa

1SG-let/allow-PAST 3SG drink-PAST wine

bow-ø fefe-e ne ho.

intoxicate-PAST vomit-PAST 3SG self

‘I allowed/made him drink to become intoxicated and he vomited unto

himself.’

(102) is the negative form of the auxiliary, which indicates that the agent should

prohibit an action - the entry into the room. Here too, it could be that the children

are willing or have the intension to enter the room or not. In any case, they should

not be permitted to enter.

102. Mmma mbofra no mmba mu. (FA)

ø-mm-ma mbofra no mm-ba mu.

IMP-NEG-let/allow children DET NEG-come in

‘Don’t let/allow the children (to) come in.’

Considering the context in which (103) occurs, the form couldn’t mean the agent

should cause his family to listen to the Prophets, but that he should allow them to

do what has to be done. Likewise, (104) has the feeling of resigned acceptance of

the inevitable or the expression of one’s indifference to some situation. It indicates

that the one spoken about is intending or insisting on doing something and the

speaker does not care about whatever the outcome of that person’s actions.

103. Na Abraham see dε, Wͻwͻ Moses nye nkͻnhyεfo no: ma wontsie

hͻn. (Luke 16:29. FA)

Na Abraham se-e dε, Wͻ-ø-wͻ Moses nye

CONJ Abraham say-PAST COMP 3PL-STAT-have Moses CONJ

nkͻnhyεfo no: ma wo-n-tsie hͻn.

Prophets DET let 3PL-IMP-listen 3PL

‘Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen

to them.’ (NIV)


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104. Ma no nyε nea ͻpε biara. (AK/AS)

Ma no n-yε nea ͻ-pε biara.

allow 3SG IMP-do what 3SG-like every

‘Let him do whatever he likes.’

4.5 Modal Auxiliary ɛsɛ sɛ and etwa sε

We have claimed in (§ 4.4.1) that contrary to the general view that Akan does not

have auxiliary verbs (mostly because it expresses tense and aspect grammatically),

the language should rather be seen as having auxiliaries in the form of affixes,

verbs and constructions. This view seeks to widen the scope of auxiliaries to

include not only single-word forms but also affixes, multi-word forms and

constructions which function as auxiliaries in English and other languages, by

contributing grammatical functions such as supplying modality to clauses they

occur in. That means that depending on the language, form should not be a strict

criterion for defining auxiliaries. It also seeks to suggest that the characterization

of auxiliary verbs using the ‘NICE’ properties in English is essential but it should

not be considered in languages which do not have such processes.

The two constructions considered here as modal auxiliaries are ɛsɛ sɛ (AK/AS)/ɔwɔ

dɛ (FA) ‘must’, ‘have to’. ‘should’, ‘shall’ or ‘ought to’ and etwa sε (AK/AS)

/otwar dε (FA) ‘must’, ‘have to’, ‘should’, ‘shall’ or ‘ought to’. As we pointed out

in (§ 4.4.1), these constructions are grammaticalized in the language and they now

behave as though they were single forms. None of the seeming components can be

detached or altered.

Ɛsɛ sɛ and etwa sɛ are used to express deontic and dynamic modalities in the

language. On deontic, ɛsɛ sɛ expresses moral necessity and desirability or

obligation and interdiction (when it is in combination with negation). Etwa sɛ, on

the other hand, expresses moral necessity and obligation only and it does not

combine with negation. Further, both constructions are used to express dynamic

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necessity (see Nuyts 2005:8 for discussions of dynamic necessity). None of these

forms express permission. Both forms are used interchangeably when assessing the

degree of moral necessity or obligation.

Modal Auxiliary ɛsɛ sɛ and etwa sε

Form Spk Wrt Tot

ɛsɛ sɛ 77 129 206

etwa sɛ 29 63 92

Table 4.7 Frequency of ɛsɛ sɛ and etwa sε in written and spoken data

Modal Auxiliary ɛsɛ sɛ and etwa sε


ɛsɛ sɛ 5 119 82 206

etwa sɛ - 18 74 92

Table 4.8 Modal Meanings of ɛsɛ sɛ and etwa sε

The frequencies of ɛsɛ sɛ and etwa sɛ presented in Table 4.7 indicate that although

the two forms have similar meanings and they are sometimes interchangeable, ɛsɛ

sɛ is used more frequently than etwa sɛ. The reason could be because etwa sɛ is

more formal than ɛsɛ sɛ and also because etwa sɛ does not have a negative

counterpart so the negative form of ɛsɛ sɛ is used for both of the forms. In Table

4.8, the breakdown of the modal meanings presented indicates that these forms are

rarely used to express epistemic modality.


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4.5.1 Ɛsɛ sɛ as a Deontic Form

As a moral desirability form, εsɛ sɛ/ɔwɔ dɛ means that the state of affairs is proper,

fitting or appropriate. For its moral necessity, it indicates that the state of affairs

evaluated is essential. The true deontic meaning of the form is highly contextual.

We observe a few instances in which the form can actually be described as

expressing obligation, necessity or desirability. In addition to these, the

construction indicates dynamic inherent necessity in some utterances. We have

grouped the examples under these identifiable notions: moral desirability,

necessity, obligation, interdiction and inherent necessity.

Examples (105) and (106) express moral desirability/undesirability. In (105), there

is no strict law compelling people to brush their teeth before eating, and it may

actually not be necessary under certain situations but what this utterance is bringing

across, is that it is proper to brush your teeth before you eat. In (106), anybody -

especially ladies - can choose to put on anything they want and there is no

obligation for them to put on long dresses. It is again not necessary for any lady to

wear leggings under short dresses, but the speaker finds it just appropriate, fitting

or proper to do that in order not to expose vital parts of the body.

105. Ɔwɔ dɛ itwuw wo se anapa biara ansa na edzidzi. (OBS FA)

Ɔwɔ dɛ i-twuw wo se anapa

have to 2SG-ø-SUBJ-brush 2SG.POSS teeth morning

biara ansa na e-ø-dzidzi.

every before that 3SG-CONS-eat

‘You have to clean your teeth every morning before you eat.’

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106. Sɛ wohyɛ atadeɛ a ɛyɛ tia paa a ɛsɛ sɛ wohyɛ ‘leggings’ wɔ aseɛ na wo

ho angu hɔ. (OBS AS)

Sɛ wo-ø-hyɛ atadeɛ a ɛ-yɛ tia paa a

CM 2SG-HAB-wear dress REL 3SG-be short very CM

ɛ-sɛ sɛ wo-ø-hyɛ ‘lɛgins’ wɔ aseɛ

have to 2SG-SUBJ-wear leggings at under

na wo ho a-n-gu hɔ.

CONJ 2SG self do-NEG-expose there

‘When you put on a very short dress, you have to put on a pair of leggings

so that you do not expose your body.’

(107) and (108) present states of affairs as undesirable. The undesirability in these

utterances stems from the negative clause preceding the form, coupled with the

presence of the counterfactual marker anka. The speakers are indicating that the

states of affairs should not have occurred (not proper), but they have, so their

occurrences are not desirable. In (107), the speaker indicates that his imprisonment

was not proper, hence not desirable.

107. Efisɛ owia na wowiaa me Hebrifo asase so, na ɛha nso menyɛɛ hwee a

anka ɛsɛ sɛ wɔde me bɛto amoa yi mu. (Genesis 40:15)

Efisɛ owia na wo-wia-a me Hebrifo asase so,

because FOC EMPH 2PL-steal-PAST 1SG Hebrews land on

na ɛha nso me-n-yɛ-ɛ hwee a anka

CONJ here also 1SG-NEG-do-PERF nothing REL would.have

ɛ-sɛ sɛ wɔ-ø-de me bɛ-to amoa yi mu.

should 2PL-SUBJ-put 1SG come-STEM dungeon DEF in.

‘For indeed I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews: and here

also I have not done anything that they should put me into the dungeon.’

(It was not proper).


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108. Ankyɛ onnyi dɛ ifi edzi wɔ abere a hɔn mmpɔnnee. (OBS FA)

Ankyɛ o -n-nyi dɛ

Would have NEG-should

i-ø-fi edzi wɔ abere a hɔn mm-pɔnn-ee.

3SG-SUBJ-leave out at time REL 3PL NEG-close-PERF

‘You shouldn’t have left when they had not closed.’ (It was not proper).

In (107), the construction itself has been combined with negation to indicate

undesirability. As these utterances stand now, there is no other reading than the

undesirability meaning.

Utterances from (109) to (111) express moral necessity, where the states of affairs

in view are considered necessary, essential or not. (109) indicates that it was

necessary on the part of the speaker and his sister to have offered a seat to their

grandmother who was standing beside them and chatting with them.

109. Saa bere yi nyinaa na m’ani mmaa me ho so sɛ Nana

gyina hᴐ na ɛsɛ sɛ yɛma no agua tena so. (ϽKR AK)

Saa bere yi nyinaa na m’ani

DEM time DEF all CONJ 1SG.POSS’eye

m-ma-a me ho so sɛ Nana gyina hᴐ

NEG-come-PERF my skin on COMP Nana stand there

na ɛ-sɛ sɛ yɛ-ø-ma no agua tena so.

CONJ should 1PL-SUBJ-give 3SG chair sit on

‘Until that time I had not realized that Nana was standing and so we

should offer her a seat.’

110. Eyi nyɛ ade a anka ɛsɛ sɛ wubisa. (ϽKR AK)

Eyi n-yɛ ade a anka

PDP NEG-be thing REL would have

ɛ -sɛ sɛ wu-ø-bisa.

should 2SG-SUBJ-ask

‘This is not something you should have asked’.

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The combination of the form with the first person in (111) precludes the directive

reading. However, the combination of the form with the third person in (112)

renders it ambiguous between moral necessity and obligation. In this context, the

moral necessity meaning is invoked.

111. Aber a ɔtse dɛm yi mu na ɔwɔ dɛ yɛdze serew, akokodur, awerɛhyɛmu

yɛ nsi ama yeenya gyinabew. (AO! FA)

Aber a ᴐ-tse dɛm yi mu na ᴐ-wᴐ dɛ

time REL 3SG-be DEM DET in EMPH should

yɛ-ø-dze serew, akokodur, awerɛhyɛmu yɛ nsi

1PL-SUBJ-take laughter boldness confidence do hard

a-ma ye-e-nya gyinabew.

CONS-let 1PL-CONS-get place.

‘It is in times like this that we should use happiness, boldness and

confidence to strive harder in order for us to secure a good living.’

112. Ade biako nso a ɛsɛ sɛ wᴐka ho asɛm ne anwonsɛm a ɛwᴐ nhoma no mu

no. (AKU AK)

Ade biako nso a ɛ-sɛ sɛ wᴐ-ø-ka

thing one also REL should 3PL-SUBJ-say

ho asɛm ne anwonsɛm a ɛ-wᴐ nhoma no mu no.

self issue be poem REL 3SG-be book DEF in DET.

‘One other thing that should be mentioned is the poems in the book.’

Examples (113) and (114) present the directive use of the form. In (113), the

speaker imposes an obligation on the listener to come in the sense that, he considers

the coming of the listener as a must, a requirement or an obligation which has to

be fulfilled.

113. Ɛsε sε woba. (Boadi 2005:91)

Ɛ-sε sε wo-ø-ba.

must 2SG-SUBJ-come

‘You must come/It is required that you come/you are obliged to come.’


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114. Akronkronne a ɛsɛ sɛ wode ma ne wo bɔhyɛ ade na ma so kɔ faako a

Awurade bɛkyerɛ hɔ. (Deuteronomy 12: 26 AK)

Akronkronne a ɛ-sɛ sɛ wo-de

holy.things REL must 2SG-SUBJ-take

ma ne wo bɔhyɛ ade na ma so kɔ

give CONJ 2SG.POSS vow thing EMPH pick up go

faako.a Awurade bɛ-kyerɛ hɔ.

where Lord FUT-show there

’All sacrifices and offerings to the Lord must be taken to the place where

He chooses to be worshiped.’ (CEV)

The utterance in (114) is also an obligational use in which the speaker gives orders

to the listener(s), showing him/them what he/they must do concerning his/their

offerings. No other reading is possible with this utterance since we already know

it is coming out as a commandment or law.

In combination with negation, the form expresses interdiction/prohibition. (115)

and (116) present complete prohibition/interdiction of the state of affairs on the

listeners. They are laid down laws which everyone is expected to obey or face

sanctions in one way or the other. The use of the form in the second part of (116)

sets out an obligation, directing the addressees on what they must do instead. This

reinforces the prohibition in the first part of the utterance.

115. Nea ɛnsɛ sɛ wudi wo nkurow mu ne: w’aburow ne wo nsa ne wo ngo

ntotoso du du, ne w’anantwi ne wo nguan mmakan… (Deuteronomy

12:17 AK)

Nea ɛ-n-sɛ sɛ wu-ø-di wo nkurow mu ne:

what NEG-must 2SG-SUBJ-eat 2SG.POSS towns in be

w’-aburow ne wo nsa ne wo ngo

2SG.POSS’-corn CONJ 2SG.POSS wine CONJ 2SG.POSS oil

ntotosodudu, ne w’-anantwi ne wo nguan mmakan…

tithe CONJ 2SG.POSS’-cows CONJ 2SG.POSS sheep firstborns

‘What you must not eat in your own towns are the tithes of your grain and

new wine and olive oil, or the firstborn of your herds and flocks…/it is

forbidden to do that’ (NIV)

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116. Na ɛnsɛ Awurade akoa bi sɛ ɔko, na mmom ɛsɛ sɛ odwoͻ ma nnipa

nyinaa… (II Timothy 2:24 AS)

Na ɛ-n-sɛ Awurade akoa bi sɛ ɔ-ø-ko,

CONJ NEG-must Lord.POSS servant any STEM 3SG-SUBJ-fight

na mmom ɛsɛ sɛ ͻ-ø-dwoͻ ma nnipa nyinaa…

but EMPH must 3SG-SUBJ-cool to people all

‘And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to

everyone.’ (NIV)

Examples (117) and (118) are human right laws which present interdictions on

human behaviour. They all express states of affairs which must not occur. In certain

situations, one can read most of these, or all of these as marking moral

(in)acceptability (deontic) as well.

117. Onnyi dɛ wɔdze obiara to nkowaasom mu anaadɛ wɔma ɔsom ɔsomhun;

ɔwɔ dɛ wogu nkowaasom na ndɔnkɔgua korakora. (Human Rights, article

4. FA)

O-nn-yi dɛ wɔ-ø-dze obiara ø-to nkowaasom mu

NEG-must 3PL-SUBJ-take everybody CONS-put slavery in

anaadɛ wɔ-ma ɔ-ø-som ɔsomhun; ɔwɔ dɛ wo-ø-gu

CONJ 3PL-let 3SG-CONS-serve vain.service must 2PL-SUBJ-halt

nkowaasom na ndɔnkɔgua korakora

slavery CONJ slave.trade completely

‘No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade

shall be prohibited in all their forms.’

118. Ɛnsɛ sɛ wɔde ahupoo anaa nneyɛɛ a ɛnnam mmara kwan soɔ gye obi

agyapadeɛ firi ne nsam kwa. (Human Rights, article 17. AS)

Ɛ-n-sɛ sɛ wɔ-ø-de ahupoo anaa nneyɛɛ a

NEG-must 3PL-SUBJ-take force CONJ actions REL

ɛ-n-nam mmara kwan soɔ gye obi agyapadeɛ

3SG-NEG-walk law way on take someone property

firi ne nsam kwa.

from 2SG.POSS hands for nothing

‘Nobody must forcibly or lawlessly take anybody’s properties from him

for no good reason./No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property’.


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Being human right laws, and for that matter prohibitions in the society, everyone

is expected to adhere to their practices.

4.5.2 Expression of Dynamic modality with ɛsε sε

The form expresses dynamic modal necessity or lack of necessity. In (119),

Matthew quoted Jesus’ prophesy about His death, and since the utterance is a

reported speech, the construction is used by the original speaker to refer to himself.

Therefore, the form does not express obligation, but it indicates dynamic modal

inevitability. It could as well be deontic necessity: Jesus felt the moral urge.

119. Efi hɔ na Yesu Kristo fii ase kyerɛɛ n’asuafo no sɛ ɛsɛ sɛ ɔkɔ Yerusalem

kohu amane pii mpanyimfo ne asɔfo mpanyin ne kyerɛwfo nsam, na

wɔakum no, na da a ɛto so abiɛsa no wanyan. (Matt. 16:21 AK)

Efi hɔ na Yesu Kristo fi-i ase kyerɛ-ɛ

from there CONJ Jesus Christ begin-PAST STEM teach-PAST

n’-asuafo no sɛ ɛsɛ sɛ ɔ-ø-kɔ

3SG.POSS’-desciples DEF COMP must 3SG-SUBJ-go

Yerusalem ko-hu amane pii mpanyimfo ne asɔfo mpanyin

Jerusalem go-suffer STEM many elders CONJ priests elders

ne kyerɛwfo nsam, na wɔ-a-kum no, na da a

CONJ writers hands CONJ 3PL-SUBJ-kill 3SG CONJ day REL

ɛ-to.so abiɛsa no w-a-nyan.

3SG-fall three DEF 2SG-SUBJ-wake.up.

‘From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go

to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief

priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the

third day be raised to life.’ (NIV)

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120. Sɛ wudi adwene a ɛwᴐ kasa no mu no akyi a, wubehu nne a ɛsɛ sɛ wᴐde

ka, sɛ ɛkᴐ soro anaa wosi wᴐn nne ase. (AKU AK)

Sɛ wu-di adwene a ɛ-wᴐ kasa no mu no

CM 2SG-follow mind REL 3SG-be language DET in DET

akyi a, wu-be-hu nne a ɛsɛ sɛ

back CM 2SG-FUT-see voice REL must

wᴐ-ø-de ka, sɛ ɛ-ø-kᴐ soro

3PL-SUBJ-take say whether 3SG-HAB-go up

anaa wo-si wᴐn nne ase.

or 3SG-bend 3PL.POSS voice down.

‘When you follow the meaning of the utterance, you will know which

tone has to be used, whether it goes up or it comes down (high or low

tone).’

The form has been combined with negation in utterance (121) to express the lack

of necessity of the state of affairs. The form is ambiguous between prohibition and

unnecessity, but the background information about this particular utterance is that,

it is prohibited to use house dresses in a boarding school. As such there is no way

the authorities are going to allow the listener to wear a house dress there. In that

case, it is not necessary to send them to school anyway.

121. Efie ntadeɛ no deɛ ɛnsɛ sɛ wode kɔ sukuu efisε wɔremma wo nhyɛ wɔ

hɔ. (OBS AS)

Efie ntadeɛ no deɛ ɛ-n-sɛ sɛ wo-ø-de kɔ sukuu

house dress DEF EMPH NEG-have to 2SG-SUBJ take go school

efisε wɔ-re-m-ma wo ø-n-hyɛ wɔ hɔ.

because 3PL-FUT-NEG-let 2SG CONS-NEG-wear at there.

‘As for the dresses you use at home, you don’t have to send them to

school because they will not allow you to wear them there.’

In (122), the speaker is not prohibiting himself from eating at night but he is only

describing a practical issue, probably, as a result of some bad reactions he gets

when he eats at night.


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122. Me ara mahu sɛ ɛnsɛ sɛ mididi anadwo. (CONS AK)

Me ara m-a-hu sɛ

1SG EMPH 1SG-PERF-see COMP

ɛ-n-sɛ sɛ mi-ø-didi anadwo.

NEG-have to 1SG-SUBJ-eat night

‘I myself, I have realized that I don’t have to eat at night.’

4.5.3 Expressing Epistemic modality with ɛsε sε

The form is used to express a higher probability of situations than its counterparts

bε and tumi discussed in the previous sections. Like the other forms, it occurs with

stative verbs and it retains its subjunctive form.

Speakers in (123) and (124) are indicating their high probability of the said states

of affairs to be the case. And in (125), the assessment becomes even higher with

the use of the emphatic particle, which adds a kind of insistence to indicate the

probable occurrence.

123. Ɛsɛ sɛ Kofi wͻ dan no mu. (AK)

Ɛsɛ sɛ Kofi wͻ dan no mu.

must Kofi be room DET in

‘Kofi must be in the room.’

124. Ↄwͻ dε edziban no si ͻpono no do. (FA)

Ↄwͻ dε edziban no si ͻpono no do.

must food DET stand table DET on

‘The food must be on the table.’

125. Nwoma no deε εsε sε εhyε Agi ‘baage no mu’. (AS)

Nwoma no deε εsε sε ε-hyε Agi ‘baage no mu’.

book DET EMPH must 3SG-be Agi.POSS bag DET in

‘As for the book, it must be in Agi’s bag.’

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The negative form in (126) is used to indicate unlikelihood. It gives a strong bet

that the SOA may not be the case.

126. Saa berε yi deε εnsε sε Emma wͻ fie. (OBS AS)

Saa berε yi deε ε-n-sε sε Emma wͻ fie.

DEM time DET EMPH NEG-must Emma be home

‘As for this time Emma must not be at home.’

4.6 Etwa sɛ

Etwa sɛ (otwar dɛ in Fante) ‘must/have to/should’ expresses deontic and dynamic

modality meanings. In most utterances, there is fronting of the form - Twa ara na

etwa sɛ… which serves as emphasis. We have glossed the fronted part as STEM,

to differentiate that part from the main one.

The two deontic meanings the form expresses, obligation and moral necessity, are

exemplified from (127) to (131) below. The rest of the examples express dynamic

necessity - unavoidability/inevitability of the state of affairs.

127. Ababaawa no anyinsɛn yi deɛ, twa ara na etwa sɛ ɔware no.

(CONS AS)

Ababaawa no a-nyinsɛn yi deɛ, tw a ara na

lady DET PERF-pregnant DET EMPH STEM

etwa sɛ ɔ-ø-ware no.

has to 3SG-SUBJ-marry 3SG

‘Once the lady has gotten pregnant, he has to marry her.’


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128. Ɛka kɛse a aba yi nti, etwa sɛ mobɔ mo ‘sotɔɔ’ no mu nneɛma no nyinaa

donkomi, na moanya sika de atua bi nyɛ sa a wɔbɛtɔn mo fi no.

(OBS AK)

Ɛka kɛse a a-ba yi nti, etwa sɛ

debt bi REL PERF-come DET because must

mo-ø-bɔ mo ‘sotɔɔ’ no mu nneɛma no nyinaa

2PL-SUBJ-hit 2PL.POSS store DET in things DEF all

donkomi, na mo-a-nya sika de a-tua bi

auction CONJ 2PL-SUBJ-get money take CONS-pay some

anyɛ saa a wɔ-bɛ-tɔn mo fi no.

if.not DEM CM 3PL-FUT-sell 2PL.POSS house DEF.

‘Because of this heavy debt, you must auction all the goods in your shop

to get a good amount of money to offset part of the debt, otherwise, they

will sell your house.’

(127) and (128) are ambiguous between obligation and moral necessity. If certain

conditions exist, cultural practices, for example, which compel one to marry any

woman one impregnates, then under such situations, utterance (127) would carry

an obligational meaning. Where there are no such obligations, necessity is implied

to indicate that the state of affairs is morally necessary. If the utterance in (128)

comes as an order compelling the listeners to auction their goods to pay off their

debt, then obligation can be implied. However, if the speaker does not have any

legal right to compel them to auction their goods, then moral necessity is the only

possible meaning expressed. Since no such obligations exist in both utterances, the

form expresses moral necessity.

(129) could also be explained as describing a dynamic necessity but here, it

indicates that since the people had a tradition of burying their famous warriors at a

particular place, it was morally necessary for them to do the same to the current

warrior who had just passed on.

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129. Sε εnnε, ᴐdᴐmmanni ne ᴐsahene sεε kᴐ n'akuraa a, otwa ara na etwa sε

yεde no kᴐ nea ne nenanom kᴐdae. (BRA AK)

Sε εnnε, ᴐdᴐmmanni ne ᴐsahene sεε kᴐ n'-akuraa a,

CM today leader CONJ warrior DEM go 2SG.POSS’-village CM

otwa ara na etwa sε yε-ø-de no kᴐ

STEM must 1PL-SUBJ-take 3SG go

nea ne nenanom kᴐ-da-e.

where 3SG.POSS grandfathers go-sleep-PAST.

‘If such a leader and a warrior has died today, we must lay him where his

forefathers were laid.’

Unlike (127) and (128), there is no ambiguity in utterances (130) and (131). They

both present pure obligation.

130. Dԑnkyԑm yere yi hyԑԑ Kwaku ketee sԑ twa ara na ԑtwa sԑ ᴐhu no.

(ASI 3 AS)

Dԑnkyԑm yere yi hyԑ-ɛ Kwaku ketee

Crocodile.POSS wife DET force-PAST Kwaku hard

sԑ twa ara na ԑ-twa sԑ ᴐ-ø-hu no.

COMP STEM must 3SG-SUBJ-see 3SG

‘Crocodile’s wife forced Kwaku that she must see the fellow.’ (It was

obligatory that Kwaku showed her the fellow).

131. Ɛtwa sε woba bi. (CONS AS)

Ɛtwa sε wo-ø-ba bi

must 2SG-SUBJ-come some

‘You must come along too/It is obligatory that you should come along

too.’

The utterance in (131) is constructed after (132) below, to differentiate how the

person in question is able to influence the meaning of the form. The speaker in

(132) indicates the unavoidability of the state of affairs, and the one in (131) places

an obligation on the listener to bring the state of affairs into being.


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In examples (132) and (133), the form indicates that the state of affairs is inevitable

and so the speakers cannot avoid them. The use of the first-person singular

contributes to the dynamic meaning.

132. Ɛtwa sε meba bi. (BOA AS)

Ɛtwa sε me-ø-ba bi

must 1SG-SUBJ-come some

‘I must come along too/It is unavoidable that I should come along too.’

133. Meyε m’adwen ara a, nna biribi abᴐbᴐ mu, nna otwar dε mutu hyε da.

(ABO FA)

Me-yε m’-adwen ara a, nna biribi

1SG-do 1SG.POSS’-mind EMPH CM CONJ something

a-bᴐ-bᴐ mu, nna otwar dε mu-ø-tu.hyε.da.

PERF-come hit in CONJ have to 1SG-SUBJ-postpone

‘Whenever I plan (to visit you), something comes up, and then I have to

postpone (my visit)/it becomes inevitable that I postpone (my visit).’

In (134) and (135), the speakers themselves are part of the entities who have to

bring the state of affairs into being. As such, the form precludes the obligation

reading by pointing to the inevitability or unavoidability of the state of affairs.

134. Ɔbɛtoa so akɔ Nkyeraa Kukuro kurom akɔdi ne dwuma bi. Enti twa ara

na εtwa sε yεkᴐ hᴐ, ansa na wakᴐ. (ETI AS)

Ɔ-bɛ-toa.so a-kɔ Nkyeraa-Kukuro kurom a-kɔ-di

3SG-FUT-continue CONS-go Nkyeraa-Kukuro town CONS-go-eat

ne dwuma bi. Enti twa ara na εtwa sε

2SG.POSS work DET CONJ STEM must

yε-ø-kᴐ hᴐ, ansa na wa-ø-kᴐ.

1PL-SUBJ-go there before EMPH 2SG-SUBJ-go

‘He will continue his journey to Nkyeraa-Kukuro town to see to some

issues. And so, we must go and see him before he leaves for his journey.’

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135. Ɛwom, εduru berε bi a yεtumi nya asεmfua bi anaa yεkyerε saa

asεmfua no ase kᴐ yεn kasa mu, nanso εtᴐ da a, na yεyε ho hwee a εnyε

yie. Ɛba no saa a, na twa ara na εtwa sε yεfa asεm no bεfra yεn kasa mu.

(ETI AS)

Ɛ-wom, ε-duru berε bi a yε-tumi nya asεmfua bi anaa

true 3SG-reach time some CM 1PL-can get word some CONJ

yε-kyerε saa asεmfua no ase kᴐ yεn kasa mu,

1PL-translate DEM word DEF STEM go 1PL.POSS language in

nanso ε-tᴐ da a, na yε-yε ho hwee a ε-n-yε yie.

CONJ 3SG-reach day CM CONJ 1PL-do it nothing CM 3SG-NEG-do well

Ɛ-ba no saa a, na twa ara na εtwa sε

3SG-come DET DEM CM CONJ STEM have to

yε-ø-fa asεm no bε-fra yεn kasa mu.

1PL-SUBJ-take word DEF come-mix 1PL.POSS language in

‘It is true, sometimes we meet certain words (from foreign languages)

which have their corresponding words or we are able to translate those

words into our local languages, but at other times too, some are such that

there is nothing we can do about them. When that happens, we must keep

the said words in our local languages (it becomes unavoidable/we have to

keep it.)’

The indication of the dynamic necessity with the first-person stems from the fact

that the speaker(s) find(s) the state of affairs under consideration as the only option

to take. This option might be desirable or not, but the significance is just that, there

is no other choice under the circumstance. Again, we cannot give an obligation

reading to it since a speaker cannot place obligation on himself (see Nuyts 2005:8).

‘Must’ in these utterances expresses dynamic necessity.

The use of the 2nd and 3rd persons presents a variety of interpretations depending

on the context. This is because, these persons can express any of the three meanings

mentioned above. (136) and (137) are instances where the speakers are narrating

incidents which took place in other people’s lives. They show that the agents in the

utterances had no other choices but to carry out the actions in the states of affairs.

The form indicates unavoidability of the state of affairs. Of course, just as we have


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noted about other forms, without these contexts they could express any of the other

meanings due to their ambiguous nature.

136. Asεm no baa saa no, na twa ara na εtwa sε Ɔpanin Ata kᴐdane n'afuo no

ma no saa ara. (MENE AS)

Asεm no ba-a saa no, na twa ara na εtwa sε

issue DET come-PAST DEM DET PART STEM has to

Ɔpanin Ata kᴐ-ø-dane n'-afuo no ma no saa.ara.

Ɔpanin Ata go-SUBJ-release 2SG.POSS’-farm DEF give 2SG anyway

‘When that happened, Ɔpanin Ata had to hand over his farm to his

debtor.’

137. Na ᴐnhunu deԑ ᴐnka. Nokorԑ ara na ԑtwa sԑ ᴐka. (ASI 2 AS)

Na ᴐ-ø-n-hunu deԑ ᴐ-n-ka.

PART 3SG-PRES-NEG-see what 3SG-IMP-say.

Nokorԑ ara na ԑtwa sԑ ᴐ-ø-ka.

Truth EMPH must 3SG-SUBJ-say

‘He did not know what to say again. It is the truth he had to say.’

(137) and (138) give further illustrations on how the form expresses dynamic

inevitability. (139) expresses situational unavoidability in the sense that the

speaker only indicates what is naturally unavoidable as regards the changes in

weather. He is not placing any kind of obligation on ‘light’ and ‘sun’ to bring about

the state of affairs.

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138. Ɔtoaa so sԑ, deԑ wahunu no, sԑ ᴐkᴐ so tena hᴐ a, ᴐnnim deԑ ԑbԑto no bio,

enti twa ara na ԑtwa sԑ wᴐtutu soᴐ. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Ɔ-toa-a so sԑ, deԑ w-a-hunu no,

3SG-continue-PAST on COMP what 3SG-PERF-see DET

sԑ ᴐ-kᴐ so tena hᴐ a, ᴐ-n-nim

CM 3SG-go on sit there CM 3SG-NEG-know

deԑ ԑ-bԑ-to no bio, enti twa ara na

what 3SG-FUT-reach 3SG again so STEM

ԑtwa sԑ wᴐ-ø-tutu soᴐ.

have to 2PL-SUBJ-move on.

‘He continued by saying that, considering what he has gone through, he

does not know what will happen next to him, so they have to leave that

place.’

139. Aber nyina mebԑkaa dԑ sԑ wimu ka si munsumm dԑn, otwar dԑ kan ka

sum no hyԑ, otwar dԑ bio ewia hyerԑn: M’werԑkyekye ne yi. (AO! FA)

Aber nyina me-bԑ-kaa dԑ sԑ wimu ka.si munsumm

time all 1SG-FUT-remember COMP CM sky darken black

dԑn, otwar dԑ kan ka sum no hyԑ, otwar dԑ bio

how must light cover darkness DET up must again

ewia ø-hyerԑn: M’-awerԑkyekye ne yi.

sun SUBJ-brighten 1SG.POSS’-consolation be this

‘I will always remember that no matter how dark it becomes, light must

overshadow the darkness. The sun must shine again: This is my

consolation.’

4.7 Conclusion

This chapter has discussed the use of an affix bɛ-, the verbs tumi, ma and two

constructions εsε sε and etwa sε as modal auxiliaries which express epistemic,

deontic and dynamic modalities in the language. We have noted that the affix bɛ-

is an ambiguous morpheme which can express future tense, motion and prospective

meanings. We further noted that in combination with stative verbs and in other

environments, the affix does express modality. This observation is linked to the

general notion that future tense forms in certain languages express more than one


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meaning, i.e., future tense and modality. Our point has been that contrary to the

claims by Owusu (2014), the Akan form should be viewed as a modal auxiliary in

certain contexts and as a future tense, motional prefix and prospective marker in

other environments.

As regards tumi, we have noted the use of this auxiliary to indicate the subjects’

inherent ability and their willingness to perform actions as responsible entities. We

also noted how abilities expressed in some utterances do not indicate abilities

inherent in the subjects but in situations and prevailing circumstances. In these

utterances, subjects are able/unable to do things because situations permit them, or

they are restricted because situations do not permit them to act.

We also touched on instances where tumi expresses potentiality/possibility of

SOA. This type of possibility, we note, is different from epistemic modality in the

sense that whereas epistemic estimates the chances of occurrence, this type

describes situations as occurring in the face of prevailing circumstances.

We further treated tumi as expressing deontic modality. In such constructions, we

noted how the form expresses permission, interdiction or prohibition when it is in

combination with negation. Finally, we have presented the use of tumi in

combination with stative verbs to express epistemic modality.

We have indicated that ma expresses permission and prohibition aside its

expression of causation. For εsε sε and etwa sε, we demonstrated their expressions

of epistemic, deontic and dynamic modalities.

In the subsequent chapter, we consider the use of modal adverbs and predicative

modal adjectives and their expressions of epistemic and deontic meanings.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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5 Modal and Evidential Adverbs/Adjectives (Constructions)

5.1 Introduction

In the previous chapter we discussed how modal auxiliaries are used to express

epistemic, deontic and dynamic modal meanings in the language. In this chapter

we discuss how adverbs, predicative adjectives and adverbial/adjectival

constructions are used to express epistemic, deontic and dynamic modalities as

well as evidentiality (see Nuyts 2001; 1993a; Saah and Agbedor 2004; Simon-

Vandenbergen & Aijmer 2007; Gbegble 2012; Sakyi 2013a; b and Owusu 2014

for discussions on the use of these word classes to express modality). In earlier

analysis, Saah & Agbedor (2004), Sakyi (2013a; b) and Owusu (2014) have noted

gyama, ebia, sesɛɛ, ampa, nokware, ewom, among others, as expressing epistemic

modality. In this current study, we have excluded ampa, nokware and ewom from

the list of epistemics and discussed them as expressing or asserting truth of SOA.

They do not assess the possibility or probability of SOA occurring. These forms

are discussed in Chapter 7. In this chapter, 3 modal adverbs and 2 predicative

modal adjectives are handled. The adverbs express epistemic possibility and

probability while the predicative modal adjectival forms are used to mark deontic

and dynamic modalities. In addition, we discuss adverbial/adjectival constructions

which express epistemic modality and evidentiality. The tables below indicate their

occurrences in our corpus.

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Modal/evidential Adverbs and Predicative Adjectives

Form Spk Wrt Tot

ebia 34 74 108

gyama 96 198 294

sesεε 8 26 34

ehia 9 33 42

eye 11 58 69

(sε) woanhwɛ a 7 19 26

akyinnye nnim sɛ 8 12 20

wohwε a 3 19 22

biribiara kyerε 3 3 6

Table 5.1 Frequency of Modal/evidential Adverbs, Predicative Adjectives and

Adjectival Constructions in written and spoken data.

Modal/evidential Adverbs and Predicative Adjectives

Form Epi Deon Dyn Evi Non Tot

ebia 102 - - - 6 108

gyama 158 - - - 136 294

sesεε 22 - - - 12 34

ehia - 6 30 - 6 42

eye - 54 - - 15 69

woanhwɛ a 26 - - - - 26

akyinnye

nnim sɛ

19 - - - 1 20

wohwε a - - - 22 - 22

biribiara

kyerε sε

- - - 6 - 6

Table 5.2 Modal/evidential Meanings of Adverbs, Predicative Adjectives and

Adjectival Constructions


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The frequencies of the adverbs, predicative adjectives and constructions in both

spoken and written corpus are presented in Table 5.1. In Table 5.2, we indicate

which modal/evidential meanings each form expresses. The three adverbs, viz.,

ebia, gyama and sesεε, express both epistemic and non-modal meanings. The

predicative adjectives ehia and eye express deontic and dynamic modal meanings

next to their non-modal meanings, whereas the adverbial/adjectival constructions

have either epistemic or evidential meanings.

5.2 Adverbs

The three forms considered here – ebia, sesɛɛ and gyama are epistemic modal

adverbs. Saah & Agbedor (2004: 212) note that these “Epistemic

adverbs/adverbials (no matter their syntactic position), have scope over the entire

proposition as they express the speaker’s impression or attitude about the truth

condition of the proposition”. This they said because they included other forms in

their discussion of epistemic adverbs, such as ampa, which can occur in both initial

and final positions. We do not include ampa and some other forms in this chapter.

We note that these three adverbs we discuss here occur only in clause-initial

positions and take scope over the entire propositions. In Akan, adverbs (and other

word classes) are not negated except verbs. However, these adverbs may be used

to evaluate negative utterances.

5.2.1. The Adverb ebia

Ebia is an epistemic adverb used to express possibility in affirmative contexts. In

the corpus we used, it occurred more frequently in drama than in narratives and

other genres. We give some examples here and try to compare its epistemic

strength with other adverbs in the subsequent sections.

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1. Ebia, Amma wᴐ fie. (Saah and Agbedor 2004: 210)

Ebia, Amma ø-wᴐ fie.

maybe Amma STAT-be home

‘Maybe Amma is home.’

2. Ebia obi bɛka sɛ okristoni sua to wᴐ manmufo nkyɛn a, ԑbԑto hintidua.

Ɛno nso yɛ mmofrasɛm. (AKU AK)

Ebia obi bɛ-ka sɛ okristoni sua to wᴐ manmufo

maybe someone FUT-say COMP christian learn sing from pagans

nkyɛn a ɛ-bɛ-to hintidua. Ɛno nso yɛ mmofrasɛm.

there CM it-FUT-raise hindrance that also be childish.

‘Someone may say that if one learns how to sing traditional songs from

pagans, it will become a stumbling block for the one, but that is also

childish.’

3. Afei nso, ᴐbaatan te hᴐ na ᴐnte ne ba nka a, ԑsԑ sԑ ᴐtumi tu anammᴐn

kᴐhwԑ nea ԑrekᴐ so. Ebia na ᴐwᴐ ahokyerԑ bi mu. (DUE AS)

Afei nso, ᴐbaatan te hᴐ na ᴐ-n-te ne ba

again also mother sit there and 3SG-NEG-hear 3SG-POSS child

nka a, ԑsԑ sԑ ᴐ-tumi tu.anammᴐn kᴐ-hwԑ

about CM 3SG-must COMP 3SG-can move go-see

nea ԑ-re-kᴐ so. Ebia na ᴐ-wᴐ ahokyerԑ bi mu.

what 3SG-PROG-go on maybe EMPH 3SG-be hardship DEM in

‘Again, when a mother does not hear from her child, she should be able

to go and look for him/her to know what is going on. Maybe s/he is in

some kind of hardship.’

4. Wote me ho asԑm a, nka sԑ: “ᴐtwea, manya no!” Ebia na makonya

kamafo. Ewiem nyԑ sakrana yi anyabie towia de dimafo bԑba,

kagyinamfoᴐ nam kwan so. (MESE AK)

Wo-te me ho asԑm a, n-ka sԑ: “ᴐtwea,

2SG-hear 1SG self issue CM NEG-say COMP it serves him right

m-a-nya no!” Ebia na m-a-ko-nya kamafo.

1SG-PERF-get 3SG maybe that 1SG-CONS-go-get advocate

Ewiem n-yԑ sakrana yi anyabie towia de

sky NEG-be difficult.to.change DET fortune sunset with

dimafo bԑ-ba, kagyinamfoᴐ nam kwan so.

redeemer FUT-come debt.settler walk road on.

‘When I fall into problems, don’t say: “it serves him right, I have got

him!” I may get an advocate. Since times change, a fortunate sunset will

bring a redeemer, a saviour is on his way.’


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The speaker in (5) and (6) was contemplating the possibility of him finding

solutions to his problems, i.e., finding a way out of the forest and finding something

to eat, respectively. The use of the form therefore gives the estimation of the

chances that his expectations would be fulfilled, his conclusions in the expressions

‘but to no avail’, however, indicate that his expectations could not materialize.

5. Mikyinkyinn kwae no mu sɛ ebia mehu ᴐkwan bi afa so ana, nanso

pasaa. (ϽKR AK)

Mi-kyinkyin-n kwae no mu sɛ ebia me-ø-hu

1SG-roam-PAST forest DEF in COMP maybe 1SG-FUT-see

ᴐkwan bi a-fa so ana, nanso pasaa.

way DEM CONS-take on PART but nothing

‘I wandered through the forest to check if I may find another route, but to

no avail.’

6. Metotoo m’ani hwɛɛ afuw no mu sɛ ebia menya borᴐfere bi atew adi ana,

nanso pasaa. (ϽKR AK)

Me-toto-o m’ani hwɛ-ɛ afuw no mu sɛ ebia

1SG-turn-PAST 1SG.POSS’eye look-PAST farm DET in COMP maybe

me-nya borᴐfere bi a-tew a-di ana, nanso pasaa.

1SG.FUT-get pawpaw DET CONS-pluck CONS-eat PART but nothing.

‘I looked round the farm to check if I may get some pawpaw to eat, but to

no avail.’

Ebia does not have a negative form, as mentioned above, although it may occur in

negative contexts where the state of affairs itself is negated.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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7. Obi nnim adekyee mu asɛm. Ebia na nea yɛn ani daa so amma no sa.

(Bra AK)

Obi n-nim adekyee mu asɛm. Ebia na nea

someone NEG-know daybreak in issues maybe EMPH what

yɛn ani.da-a.so a-m-ma no sa.

3PL hope-PAST CONS-NEG-come in that

‘Nobody knows what tomorrow holds for us. Maybe what we hoped for

does not come true.’

8. Ebia na wankᴐhyia aware pa sԑ wo deԑ yi bi. Ɛhᴐ na ᴐbԑhunu wiase, na

ᴐhwԑ adeԑ a, ᴐbԑpini ho. (DUE AS)

Ebia na w-a-n-kᴐ-hyia aware pa sԑ

maybe FM 3SG-FUT-NEG-go-meet marriage good like

wo deԑ yi bi. Ɛhᴐ na ᴐ-bԑ-hunu wiase,

2SG-POSS own DET DEM there EMPH 3SG-FUT-realize world

na ᴐ-hwԑ adeԑ a, ᴐ-bԑ-pini ho.

and 3SG-look thing CM 3SG-FUT-go.close to.it

‘Perhaps she does not get a good marriage like yours. And if that

happens, that is when she will realize how difficult the world is.’

5.2.2. The Adverb Sesεε

The adverb Sesɛɛ (AK/FA)/sεsεε (AS) has two uses. In the first instance, it

functions as an adverb of time, and in the second instance, it is used as an epistemic

adverb expressing probability. The latter use of the form is our focus in this section

but before we discuss that in detail, we would like to show a few examples of its

non-modal use below:

9. Gina, sesɛɛ bere yi na woreba fie? (OBS AK)

Gina, sesɛɛ bere yi na wo-re-ba fie?

Gina now time DET EMPH 2SG-PROG-come house

‘Gina, are you now coming home?/Is this the time you are coming home?’


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10. Ɔkyena sɛsɛɛ na asukuufoɔ no nyinaa kɔ. (OBS AS)

Ɔkyena sɛsɛɛ na asukuufoɔ no nyinaa kɔ.

tomorrow by.this.time EMPH students DEF all go

‘Tomorrow by this time, all the students would be gone.’

Under both uses, the form may be combined with the noun bere ‘time’ as in (9 &

16). As a time-adverbial it could also be preceded by other time adverbials like

tomorrow, yesterday, etc.

On the ‘epistemic scale’, Sesɛɛ is stronger than ebia, in the sense that, whereas ebia

is presenting the state of affairs as having a 50/50 chance of its occurrence, sesɛɛ

expresses a stronger probability that the state of affairs will occur.

In (11), the speaker is aware that the subject is promiscuous, and knowing for sure

that promiscuity has adverse effect on studies, he attributes the subject’s inability

to do well in her studies to her probable promiscuous attitude.

11. Sԑsԑԑ ᴐde ayԑ mpenatwe, nti na ᴐnhunu adeɛ no. (ƐNNƐ AS)

Sԑsԑԑ ᴐ-de a-yԑ mpenatwe,

probably 3SG-take PERF-do promiscuity

nti na ᴐ-n-hunu adeɛ no.

that is why that 3SG-NEG-see thing DET

‘She has probably become promiscuous, that is why she is not doing well

in her studies.’

The speaker in (12) is aware of the subject’s carelessness and knows that he has

just left the classroom, and so if the item in question is not with him, then it is

probable that he left it in the classroom and nowhere else.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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12. Sesɛɛ ogyaw too sukuu dan no mu. (MMƆ AK)

Sesԑԑ o-gyaw-ø to-o sukuu dan no mu.

probably 3SG-leave-PAST STEM-PAST school room DEF in

‘He probably left it in the classroom.’

Similarly, the speaker in (13) is aware that her husband does not go out often but

anytime he does, he goes to his one and only friend Dwomo, so when she called on

him and found that he was not at home, she concluded that the most probable place

the husband might be is with his friend Dwomo.

13. Ͻnᴐkwa, sɛsɛɛ ᴐkᴐ ne Kwabena Dwomᴐ hᴐ ne no. (ETI AS)

Ͻnᴐkwa, sɛsɛɛ ᴐ-ø-kᴐ ne K. D. hᴐ ne no.

As for him probably 3SG-PERF-go 3SG.POSS K.D. there be it.

‘As for him, he has probably gone to (his friend) Kwabena Dwomᴐ.’

The speaker in (14) has no knowledge about the subject in the sentence but he is

aware that nobody who is struggling for a living will be sitting down with his wife,

well clothed, drinking and making merry on a storey building at a time of the day

when everyone was out for work. He also knows that it takes wealthy people to

live in storey buildings and for that matter the subject must be swimming in wealth.

14. Yԑde yԑn ti apempem, apempem awia ne anadwo, nso ensi hwee; sika ne

yԑn redi atetԑatetԑ. Sesԑbere yi, ᴐne ne yere si aborᴐsan so hᴐ yi, ᴐnnᴐw,

ᴐmpam, nso sika reguare no. (BEDI AK)

Yԑ-de yԑn ti a-pempem, a-pempem awia ne

1PL-use 1PL.POSS head PERF-knock PERF-knock afternoon CONJ

anadwo, nso e-n-si hwee; sika ne yԑn re-di

night but 1SG-NEG-end nothing money CONJ 1PL PROG-play

atetԑatetԑ. Sesԑbere.yi, ᴐ-ne ne yere ø-si

hide-and-seek probably 3SG-with 3SG.POSS wife STAT-sit

aborᴐsan so hᴐ yi, ᴐ-n-nᴐw,

storey building on there DET 3SG-NEG-weed


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ᴐ-m-pam, nso sika re-guare no.

3SG-NEG-gather but money PROG-bath 3SG.

‘We have been struggling and struggling day and night, but to no avail;

money is playing hide-and-seek with us. But this man who is relaxing on

the storey building with his wife is probably not toiling much, but he is

swimming in wealth.’

In response to the speaker’s utterance in (14), the subject now comes in to defend

himself and to educate the speaker on real life issues. He begins by using the same

words of the speaker, but this time, he prefixes his utterance with ebia. In this way,

he is carefully refuting the ‘allegation’ and the view held by the speaker. He is

assessing the situation with ebia, and at the same time quoting the speaker’s own

assessment. Thus, sɛsɛɛ in his utterance is not part of his assessment of the state of

affairs. It is only a quotation from the allegation.

15. Misi ha yi, ebia mennᴐw, mempam, nso sesԑԑ sika reguare me sԑԑ tam.

(BEDI AK)

Mi-si ha yi, ebia me-n-nᴐw, me-m-pam,

1SG-sit here DET maybe 1SG-NEG-weed 1SG-NEG-gather

nso sesԑԑ sika re-guare me sԑԑ tam.

but probably money PROG-bath 1SG so much

‘As I sit here, maybe I don’t farm or do anything but I am probably

swimming in wealth.’

The use of two epistemic adverbs in these sentences indicates different strengths.

In the first instance, the speaker uses ebia to indicate her weak evaluation of the

chance that the master will forget that their mother has paid the subject’s school

fees. In the second sentence however, the speaker has a prejudiced mind of the

subject as being a bad girl or a thief. She therefore uses a stronger epistemic form

sesɛɛ to indicate a strong probability that the subject has squandered the money.

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16. Ebia na maame atua na wo maseta no werɛ afire. Sɛsɛɛ nso ɔde maa wo

na woakodie. (ETI AS)

Ebia na maame a-tua na wo maseta

Maybe EMPH maame PERF-pay CONJ 2SG.POSS master

no werɛ.a-fire. Sɛsɛɛ nso ᴐ-de ma-a

DET PERF-forget probably also 3SG-give STEM-PAST

wo na wo-a-kᴐ-die.

you CONJ 2SG-PERF-go-eat

‘Maybe maame has paid but your master has forgotten. Or she has

probably given it to you but you have squandered it.’

The principle of using ebia and sɛsɛɛ in one sentence is also observed in (17). In

this instance, the speaker knows that it is often the case that herbalists who give

herbal medicines to women to get pregnant, also help them to deliver their babies.

He therefore makes a strong prediction with sɛsɛɛ to indicate that the herbalist

might have been the one who delivered the listener’s wife during labour. He uses

ebia in the second sentence to indicate that an herbalist going to his patient to

demand his reward is something unusual, hence his use of a form which has a lesser

degree of epistemic evaluation.

17. Wonnye nni sɛ wo yere no awoᴐ no ho daeɛ na wosoeɛ? Sɛ wose wokᴐᴐ

Nana Akwasi Afram hᴐ, meboa? Sɛsɛɛ ᴐno na ᴐbɛgyee ᴐbaa no awoᴐ

anaasɛ ebia na ᴐrehwehwɛ n’aboadeɛ. (ETI AS)

Wo-n-nye n-ni sɛ wo yere no awoᴐ no ho

2SG-NEG-believe NEG-STEM COMP 2SG.POSS wife DEF birth DET on

daeɛ na wo-so-eɛ? Sɛ wo-se wo-kᴐ-ᴐ N. A. A. hᴐ,

dream EMPH 2SG-dream-PAST PART 2SG-say 2SG-go-PAST N. A. A. there

me-boa? Sɛsɛɛ ᴐno na ᴐ-bɛ-gye-e ᴐbaa no awoᴐ

1SG-lie probably he EMPH 3SG-come-deliver-PAST woman DEF STEM

anaasɛ ebia na ᴐ-re-hwehwɛ n’aboadeɛ.

or maybe EMPH 3SG-PROG-search 3SG.POSS reward

‘Don’t you think that it is your wife’s delivery you dreamt about? Didn’t

you say you went to Nana Akwasi Afram for help? Probably he was the

one who came to deliver the baby or maybe he was demanding for his

reward.’


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Since attitude and character of people are not easy to change, the speakers of

sentences (18) and (19) are using this epistemic probability word to predict high

chances that the state of affairs will be the case. In (18), the speaker is presenting

his assessment of the subject’s likely laziness in her new place given that she has

always been lazy, and as such, the likelihood of her carrying it along everywhere

is high.

18. Eno mpo deɛ sɛsɛɛ ɔde n’aniha ne akwadworɔ no akɔpue hɔ. (OBI AS)

Eno mpo deԑ sԑsԑԑ ᴐ-de n’-aniha

Eno EMPH EMPH probably 3SG-take 3SG.POSS’-lazyness

ne akwadworᴐ no a-kᴐ pue hᴐ.

CONJ laziness DET PERF-go reach there

‘As for Eno she has probably gone there with her laziness.’

The subject has always been a drunkard, so it was not hard to vouch for over 60

percent chance that while the friends were going about assisting his family, he was

drunk and caring less about his own family. The speaker’s use of sesɛɛ in (19)

shows her strong bet that the subject is drunk.

19. Yei sɛɛ ne sɛ mobaeɛ yi monnidiiɛ a moate ahwe so rekɔhwehwɛ

ɔyɔnkoɔ akyiri kwan yi. Sɛsɛɛ ɔno nso awe ahata. (ETI AS)

Yei sɛɛ ne sɛ mo-ba-eɛ yi mo-n-nidi-iɛ a

This be COMP 2PL-come-PAST DET 2PL-NEG-eat-PAST CONJ

mo-a-te.a-hwe.so re-kᴐ-hwehwɛ ᴐyᴐnkoᴐ akyiri

2PL-PERF-set PERF-off PROG-go-search friend back

kwan yi. Sɛsɛɛ ᴐno nso a-we.a-hata.

way DET probably 3SG also PERF-got drunk

‘That is the reason why you have not even eaten after work but you are

going to look for him. As for him he has probably gotten himself drunk.’

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5.2.3. The Modal Adverb Gyama

Gyama is a versatile adverb which is mainly used to express epistemic possibility.

Its versatility is demonstrated in the varied ways in which it is used. It is a modal

adverb which occurs in interrogative sentences. The phenomenon of modal adverbs

occurring in interrogative sentences has been questioned in the literature (see

Greenbaum 1969; Bellert 1977; Nuyts 2001; among others). The issue is also

discussed by Perkins (1983: 92-93), where he argues for the possibility of modal

adverbs occurring in interrogatives. We do not offer any definitive conclusion to

the issue regarding English, but it is clear that gyama is an epistemic adverb which

is used in interrogative sentences, although it loses its epistemic possibility

meaning in such contexts. We illustrate semantically and pragmatically that gyama

is used in certain contexts where it does not express any modality at all. In such

occurrences, the form may be described as a politeness marker used to tone down

otherwise stronger utterances or just for ‘stylistic effects’. In glossing utterances

which contain the non-modal form of gyama we have used the question mark [?]

to represent it because it does not have any specific contextual meaning in the

utterance per se. The situation here may be likened to the English form perhaps,

which because of its versatility (especially its occurrence in questions and other

environments), has been suspected as being ‘not purely modal’ (see Bellert 1977:

344). We argue in this study that, the Akan form gyama is an epistemic modal

adverb, although it may be used in other varied contexts as a non-modal form.

5.2.3.1. Expression of Epistemic Possibility with Gyama

In the examples that follow, the adverb may be glossed as perhaps, possibly,

perchance, maybe. We represent the form in the gloss as perhaps in all instances

for consistency. In the translation, however, we indicate as closely as possible what

the form expresses in each environment.


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The form occurs in clause-initial position and has scope over the whole clause. In

instances where it occurs in complex, compound or complementary clauses, the

scope of the form is often restricted to the clause in which it appears only.

The clause in which gyama occurs in (20) serves as the reason for the speaker’s

propositions in the clause immediately preceding it. He uses the form to indicate

the possibility of the elders’ meeting, but the form is used in (21) to assess the

listeners’ misunderstanding.

20. Akyene na egu so no, ka wo ho na gyama mpanyin reyɛ ahyia.

(FORO AK)

Akyene na egu.so no, ka.wo.ho na

drum EMPH sound DEM hurry up CONJ

gyama m-panyin re-yɛ a-hyia.

perhaps PL-elders PROG-be CONS-meet

‘That is the drum, hurry up because perhaps the elders are about to

gather.’

21. Nna gyama dza onua Dwuw kae, ma mo so minyaa bi kae no, nndur

beebiara! (EWU FA)

Nna gyama dza onua Dwuw ka-e, ma mo so mi-nya-a

Then perhaps what brother louse say-PAST for 1SG too 1SG-get-PAST

bi ka-e no, nn-dur-ø beebiara!

some say-PAST DEF NEG-reach-PERF everywhere

‘Then perhaps, what Louse said, to which I also added something has

not gone anywhere!’

The examples in (22), (23) and (24) demonstrate interesting patterns with regards

to the complementizer sɛ. In (22), the form occurs in a matrix clause and the

complementizer introduces the complement clause to participate in the epistemic

evaluation.

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22. Ei, eno nie! Awoᴐ deԑ w’ani gye ho papa.

Gyama obi ahyԑ wo bᴐ sԑ ᴐregye wo mma akᴐ oburoni kurom.

(DUE AS)

Ei, eno nie! Awoᴐ deԑ w’ani gye ho papa.

Ei woman this Birth EMPH 2SG’eye get on well

Gyama obi a-hyԑ wo bᴐ sԑ ᴐ-re-gye.

perhaps someone PERF-promise you COMP 3SG-PROG-get

wo m-ma a-kᴐ oburoni kurom

2SG.POSS PL-child INF-go white-man town.

‘This woman! You enjoy giving birth so much. Perhaps someone has

promised you that he is taking your children abroad.’

In (23) and (24), however, the form is introduced in the complement clauses, and

as such, its evaluation covers the state of affairs in those clauses only.

23. Ekyerԑ suban bᴐn biara a, nkorᴐfo bԑfa no dԑ gyama w’ebusua nyina

mbrԑ wᴐtse ara nye no; na sԑ ᴐba no dԑm a, ᴐbԑyԑ mbusu ama wo.

(TWER FA)

E-kyerԑ suban bᴐn biara a, nkorᴐfo bԑ-fa no dԑ gyama

2SG-show character bad every CM people FUT-suppose perhaps

w’ebusua nyina mbrԑ wᴐ-tse ara nye no; na sԑ

2SG.POSS’family all how 3PL-be EMPH be that CONJ CM

ᴐ-ø-ba no dԑm a, ᴐ-bԑ-yԑ mbusu a-ma wo.

3SG-HAB-come DET that CM 3SG-FUT-do curse CONS-give 2SG

‘If you demonstrate any bad behaviour, people will assume that perhaps

that is how all your family members are. But when it happens that way it

will become a curse on you.’


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24. Ɛkyԑe kyԑe a Frema mma no, wogye dii sԑ gyama atoyerԑnkyԑm bi ato no

wᴐ akwantemfi ama wawu. (ƆBƆF AK)

Ɛ-kyԑe.kyԑe a Frema m-ma no,

3SG-keep.long that Frema NEG-come DET

wo-gye di-i sԑ gyama atoyerԑnkyԑm bi

3PL-believe STEM-PAST COMP perhaps accident IND

a-to no wᴐ akwantemfi a-ma w-a-wu.

PERF-STEM 1SG at road.on PERF-CAUS 3SG-PERF-die

‘After a long while when Frema was not coming, they believed that

perhaps he has been involved in an accident on his way and died.’

In (23) and (24), the matrix clauses carry their own epistemic evaluations, viz,

assume and believe which do not affect gyama in the complement clauses at all.

5.2.3.2 The Non-modal Use of the Adverb Gyama

We have identified four contexts in which gyama does not express modality. In the

first type, it occurs in quotations/reported speeches. In the second, it occurs when

one is talking about factual issues. The third and fourth instances deal with when

the speaker is issuing a directive and when the form is used in interrogative

sentences.

We recognize and identify with Perkins’ observation about English politeness that

sometimes, “the modal auxiliaries may be used to soften the force of an assertion

or a directive” (Perkins 1983: 118). This form is often used in a similar manner in

Akan.

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5.2.3.2.1 Gyama in Quotations/reported Speeches

Normally, when speakers are narrating or reporting other people’s utterances, it is

expected that these utterances are reported in the same way they were uttered. If

the first speakers made their utterances with the possibility marker, it should be

quoted as such but if it was not used, there is no need to bring it in. In utterances

in (25) to (27), the current speakers have added this marker to their utterances as if

it was part of the original utterances. In fact, its usage in these utterances indicates

a non-modal use and not an assessment of possibility. It is used for aesthetic and

politeness purposes.

In (25), the herbalist actually told the speaker that the state of affairs is the case.

She therefore did not need to add the possibility marker as though she is presenting

her own ideas or as if the priest said it that way. Gyama in this context, therefore,

is treated as a non-modal form. At best, it should be described as a politeness

marker.

25. Ɔse gyama odunsinni bi awu wᴐ Agona nti wᴐn nyinaa rekᴐdi ne nna

ansa na watoa so akᴐ Nkyeraa. (ETI AS)

Ɔ-se gyama odunsinni bi a-wu wᴐ Agona

3SG-say [?] herbalist IND PERF-die LOC Agona

nti wᴐn nyinaa re-kᴐ-di ne nna ansa na

so 3PL all PROG-go-celebrate 3SG.POSS days before EMPH

wa-ø-toa so a-kᴐ Nkyeraa.

3SG-HAB-continue on CONS-go Nkyeraa

‘He says one herbalist has died in Agona and so all of them are going for

his funeral before he continues to Nkyeraa.’

In (26), someone had told the speaker categorically that her child is sick and has

been sent to an herbalist in Nsawam. The use of gyama in the utterance neither


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reports the first speaker’s evaluation of the possibility of her sending her child to

Nsawam nor the current speaker’s assessment of any possibility.

26. Ɔse gyama wᴐde no kᴐ oduyԑfoᴐ hᴐ wᴐ Nsawam. (ETI AS)

Ɔ-se gyama wᴐ-de no kᴐ oduyԑfoᴐ hᴐ wᴐ Nsawam.

3SG-say [?] 3PL-take 3SG go herbalist there LOC Nsawam

‘She says they have taken her to a herbalist at Nsawam.

(27) is another non-modal usage of gyama where the form does not give any

evaluation of the possibility of the state of affairs. In this utterance, as those

exemplified above, someone had told the current speaker that a man had actually

come to ask for her daughter’s hand in marriage (and that is why she has asked her

to decorate beads for them to use on the day of the marriage). Her use of the form

in the utterance is therefore not necessary if it were not to indicate politeness.

27. Ɛnnora mpo ne maame yii me asotire sԑ gyama Nimo wᴐfa pԑ sԑ ᴐbԑsrԑ

Akosua Akyaa ma no wareԑ. (ETI AS)

Ɛnnora mpo ne maame yi-i me asotire sԑ gyama

yesterday EMPH 3SG.POSS mother hint-PAST 1SG STEM COMP [?]

Nimo wᴐfa pԑ sԑ ᴐ-bԑ-srԑ A. A. ma no wareԑ

Nimo.POSS uncle want COMP 3SG-come-beg A. A. give him marry

‘Even yesterday, the mother informed me that Nimo’s uncle wants to

come and ask for A. A. for him (Nimo) to marry.’

We have come to this conclusion considering the interpersonal relationships

existing between these interlocutors. In all of the three instances exemplified, the

speakers are wives talking to their husbands. In the context of their culture, both

couples have to respect each other, but it is not uncommon to find wives submitting

to their husbands by showing more politeness in their utterances. This is not to say

that in Akan, everyone uses gyama for this purpose or that gyama is a politeness

marker as such.

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5.2.3.2.2 Gyama in Factual utterances

The general use of gyama in the language is to indicate the epistemic evaluation of

a state of affairs. In discussing factual issues, there is no need to use an epistemic

form. We refer to instances where the form has been used in factual utterances as

not performing its usual role of estimating the likelihood of occurrence, but as

aesthetic or politeness marker.

(28) talks about a factual issue in a village where girls are put into apprenticeship

and literacy training for free. The only thing they needed to provide for themselves

were their exercise books. To report this fact to another person, there is no need for

the speaker to present it as though s/he is assessing whether or not they provide

only their books. Semantically, gyama does not have to be present in this context,

hence our description of it as an aesthetic word.

28. Sε worusua akenkan so a, wᴐkyerε hᴐn kwa, gyama buukuu no ara na

wᴐma wᴐtᴐ. (ABO FA)

Sε wo-ru-sua akenkan so a, wᴐ-kyerε hᴐn kwa,

CM 3PL-PROG-learn reading also CM 3PL-teach 3PL free

gyama buukuu no ara na wᴐ-ma wᴐ-tᴐ.

[?] book DET EMPH EMPH 3PL-CAUS 3PL-buy

‘When they are learning how to read, they teach them for free. It is only

their books they are asked to buy.’

Logically, when someone is telling another person about his/her decision to do

something, he actually does not need any assessment of the possible occurrence of

that issue. Speakers in (29), (30) and (31) are merely conveying their decisions to

go one place or the other to their hearers. Since their decisions have already been

taken and the speakers had the will power to make those decisions, there is in fact,

no need for the use of gyama in the utterance.


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29. Gyama me nso me ne mo bԑdi nkra kakra. Onyame boa a, ᴐkyena akyi

mԑtwa m’ani ahwԑ efie kakra. (ETI AS)

Gyama me nso me ne mo bԑ-di nkra kakra. Onyame boa a,

[?] 1SG too 1SG CONJ 3PL FUT-bid farewell small God help CM

ᴐkyena akyi m-ԑ-twa m’-ani a-hwԑ efie kakra.

tomorrow back 1SG-FUT-turn 1SG.POSS-eye CONS-look home small

‘Then I will also bid farewell with you. If God permits, I will visit home

the day after tomorrow.’

30. Ɔsԑmpa! Ɛneԑ gyama meduru Dwumo ne Maame Atiakoaa nom hᴐ

akᴐkyea wᴐn bi. (ETI AS)

Ɔsԑmpa! Ɛneԑ gyama m-e-duru Dwumo ne

Alright then [?] 1SG-FUT-reach Dwumo CONJ

Maame Atiakoaa nom hᴐ a-kᴐ-kyea wᴐn bi.

Maame Atiakoaa and.the.others there CONS-go-greet 3PL some

‘Alright! Then I will go to Dwumo and Maame Atiakoaa to greet them

as well.’

31. Ɛnneε na sεdeε asεm yi akᴐyᴐ no gyama mεtutu so makᴐ Ɔbranewoara

enti me nua adeε kye a, meda wo ase da wo ase. (MENE AS)

Ɛnneε na sεdeε asεm yi a-kᴐ-yᴐ no gyama m-ε-tutu.so

then EMPH how issue DEF PERF-go-do DET [?] 1SG-FUT-continue

m-a-kᴐ Ɔbranewoara enti me nua

1SG-CON-go Ɔbranewoara so 1SG.POSS brother

adeε kye a, me-da wo ase da wo ase.

day break CM 1SG-thank you thank you.

‘Then, the way it is, I will continue my journey to Ɔbranewoara, so my

brother, thank you very much (for the information).’

Aside its use as a politeness marker, we could also argue that the down-toning

effect is because literally there is a level of uncertainty meaning associated with

these constructions. Note that these utterances use the future tense marker which

connotes the tentative fulfilment of the speakers’ decision.

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5.2.3.2.3 Gyama in Directive Utterances

In the third non-modal usage of gyama, speakers use the form as a polite way of

toning down the force in their directive utterances. In order not to sound too harsh

in issuing commands to their listeners, the speakers in (32) and (33) use the form

to minimize the harshness that might accompany the order.

32. Ɛnneԑ gyama wobԑdware awie ansa na woadidi. (ETI AS)

Ɛnneԑ gyama wo-bԑ-dware a-wie ansa na wo-a-didi.

then ? 2SG-FUT-bath CONS-finish before EMPH 2SG-CONS-eat

‘Then you should finish bathing before you eat.’

33. Ɔse ᴐse se ᴐnse yԑn sԑ ᴐreba. Enti, gyama yԑbԑtwԑn no kakra (ETI AS)

Ɔ-se ᴐ-se se ᴐ-n-se yԑn sԑ

3SG-say 2SG.POSS-father say 2SG-IMP-tell 1PL COMP

ᴐ-re-ba. Enti, gyama yԑ-bԑ-twԑn no kakra.

3SG-PROG-come so ? 1PL-FUT-wait him small.

‘He says his father says he should tell us that he is on his way. So, let us

wait for him for a while.’

5.2.3.2.4 Gyama in Interrogative Sentences

The occurrence of modal adverbs in interrogative sentences has been a dispute for

some time now. Nuyts (2001: 57-58) states that “It appears that modal adjectives

can be questioned, whereas modal adverbs cannot.” Perkins (1983: 92-94) cites

Jackendoff (1972: 84) as saying that “modal adverbs do not feel comfortable in

questions.” He again quotes Bellert’s categorical statement that adverbs “simply

‘do not occur in questions’” (1977: 344). This notwithstanding, most writers

concur that in English, it is possible for the modal adverb perhaps to occur in

interrogative sentences (See Bellert 1977; Perkins 1983; Nuyts 2001; Boye 2012;


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among others). Probably because of her earlier assertion, Bellert’s (1977: 344)

acceptance of the possibility of perhaps occurring in questions has led her to infer

that ‘perhaps’ is ‘not purely modal’, as Perkins (1983: 92) notes. In addition to

perhaps, however, Perkins (ibid.) even believes it is possible for the modal adverbs

possibly and probably to occur in interrogatives as well.

34. Will Mr. Smith possibly/probably phone?

Which may be understood as:

35. Is it possible/probable that Mr. Smith will phone?

Boye (2012) does not fully endorse the illustrations here. He contends that “A

diagnostic of expressions with neutral-support meaning is that they may occur in

so-called “harmonic combination” with interrogative markers” (see Halliday 1970:

331; Lyons 1977: 807-808; Coates 1983: 45-46; 137-138 and Palmer 1986: 63-64).

He singles out perhaps and states that the “English perhaps, with its neutral-

support meaning of ‘epistemic possibility’, readily occurs in interrogative

constructions. By contrast, expressions of full or partial support, such as certainly

and probably, do not.” (Boye 2012: 26-27).

To Nuyts (2001: 57-58), even if the modal adverbs occur in interrogatives, “they

are not really expressions of epistemic modality, but rather speech act modifying

elements”, reiterating Bellert’s (1977: 344) suggestion. This is because he does not

see the form performing the task it should be performing as far as its epistemic

qualification is concerned. To this end, he points out further that, “rather than

indicating a degree of likelihood of the state of affairs, the adverb modifies the

‘tendency’ of the speech act: it turns a neutral question into a tendentious one”

(ibid.).

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In support of his claim that those modal adverbs can occur in interrogatives,

Perkins (1983: 92-94), explains that a sentence such as the one in (34) is possible

because “the question here is used to shift the assessment of truth from the speaker

onto the hearer.” In line with this is Nuyt’s (ibid.) explanation that “by means of

(such) an example, the speaker indicates that she has prior expectations regarding

the interlocutor’s knowledge about the state of affairs, and possibly even that she

suspects that the interlocutor has been withholding relevant information from him.”

As Nuyts (ibid.) further describes regarding his observation on the scope of the

question in relation to the adverb, he makes a claim that “Actually, in (an example

like this one: ‘Did/Have they perhaps run out of fuel?)’, it is not even the adverb

but the state of affairs which is being questioned: the question is whether they have

run out of fuel, not whether this is (somewhat) likely.”

In the Akan examples discussed in this section, there is the same disparity between

what the speakers are using the form for and what it is normally used to do. The

form does not make any possibility assessment of the state of affairs because in a

neutral question there is no speaker evaluation. In formal terms, a neutral question

is a non-truth-conditional. Thus, gyama is an epistemic possibility adverb as

exemplified above, but when it occurs in interrogative sentences, it does not

perform its normal duty. In all these sentences gyama has lost its ‘speaker

possibility evaluation’.

36. Gyama mo sukuu hᴐ wᴐnkyerԑ mo Asante Kasa? (ETI AS)

Gyama mo sukuu hᴐ wᴐ-ø-n-kyerԑ

perhaps 2PL.POSS school there 3PL-HAB-NEG-teach

mo Asante Kasa?

2PL Asante language

‘Don’t they, possibly, teach the Asante language in your school?’

37. Gyama ᴐbaa kᴐkᴐᴐ korokorowa bi no a? (ETI AS)

Gyama ᴐbaa kᴐkᴐᴐ korokorowa bi no a?

perhaps woman fair cute DEM DET PART?

‘Is it possible to be the fair coloured cute lady?’


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38. Gyama mesomaa Foriwaa no ᴐmmaeԑ? (DUE AS)

Gyama me-soma-a Foriwaa no ᴐ-m-ma-eԑ?

perhaps 1SG-send-PAST Foriwaa DET 3SG-NEG-come-PERF?

‘Has Foriwaa possibly not returned from the errand?’

The Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2010:1141) states that in a question

possibly is “used to emphasize that you are surprised, annoyed etc., about

something.” We observe similar situations with the examples of gyama in

questions. The definition of the dictionary confirms what writers call ‘a speech act

modifying use’ of adverbs in questions. One obviously asks tendentious questions

because one is in a quarrel or opposition with the hearer. It is not asking about

possibilities. In (39) and (40), the speakers demonstrate anger in the clauses

containing gyama, whereas (41) and (42) show the speakers’ surprise in the

clauses.

39. Gyama w’ani so rebiri wo? Enti na wuse wo werɛ ahow yi? (ϽKR AK)

Gyama w’-ani so re-biri wo?

perhaps 2SG.POSS-eye on PROG-dizzy you?

Enti na wu-se wo werɛ.ahow yi?

that is why EMPH 2SG-say 2SG.POSS sad.STEM-PERF PART

‘Are you possibly dizzy? Is that why you say you are sad?’

40. Gyama biribi reyε wo anaasε w'ani so rebiri wo? (MENE AS)

Gyama biribi re-yε wo anaasε w'ani so re-biri wo?

perhaps something PROG-do 2SG CONJ 2SG PROG-dizzy

‘Is something possibly wrong with you or you are feeling dizzy?’

Of course, it is not the form which expresses anger per se, neither can we say it is

redundant in the clauses because it participates in the overall semantics of the

clause. Akans often express resentment when they use gyama in their questions.

Also with the ‘surprise’ questions below, the form does not in itself express

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surprise or shock, but it assists in conveying the import of the speakers’

astonishment or amazement.

41. Aa, Nana Bᴐnsra, gyama wowᴐ Barima Ɔfεe Kwasi menaase bi?

(ƆSƐ AK)

Aa, N. B., gyama wo-ø-wᴐ Barima Ɔfεe Kwasi menaase bi?

Aa N. B. perhaps 2SG-STAT-have Barima Ɔfɛe Kwasi grudge some

‘Aa, Nana Bɔnsra, are you possibly holding a grudge against Barima

Ɔfɛe Kwasi?’

42. Ntsi a!Gyama wo kun so n’adwen ara nye no? (ABO FA)

Ntsi a! Gyama wo kun so

that is why perhaps 2SG.POSS husband also

n’adwen ara nye no?

3SG.POSS’mind EMPH be that?

‘That is why! Is that possibly your husband’s idea too?’

In (43) below, Vida has been a promiscuous lady in the town and for that matter

has lost respect with the citizens. The listener’s demonstration of high affection for

her therefore came as a surprise to her (Vida).

43. Ɛha na awura Vida nso bᴐᴐ mmᴐden bisaa Nyameama sԑ gyama wo yԑ

ᴐhᴐho wᴐ kuro yi mu? (SURO AK)

Ɛha na awura Vida nso bᴐ-ᴐ.mmᴐden bisa-a Nyameama sԑ

here EMPH lady Vida also try-PAST ask-PAST Nyameama COMP

gyama wo yԑ ᴐhᴐho wᴐ kuro yi mu?

perhaps 2SG be stranger LOC town DET in?

‘This is when lady Vida also tried to ask Nyameama that, “Are you

possibly a stranger in this town?”’

The fact that the two other modal adverbs discussed above do not occur in

interrogations, and that gyama’s occurrence in these interrogative sentences does


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not evaluate the epistemic possibility, go a long way to support earlier claims made

by writers that modal adverbs do not occur or do not feel comfortable in

interrogatives.

5.3 Predicative Modal Adjectives and Adjectival Constructions

The frequencies and modal meanings of the two predicative modal adjectives we

treat here, viz. ehia and eye are represented in Tables 5.1 and 5.2.

5.3.1 The Predicative Adjective eye

The predicative adjective eye/ɛyɛ/oye ‘it is good’ expresses moral desirability and

acceptability, i.e. deontic modality (see § 3.5 for details of its formation). The form

is also used non-evaluatively. Before we discuss its evaluative uses, the concern of

this section, we will give a few examples of its non-modal/evaluative uses.

44. Na Onyankopɔn abɔde nyinaa ye, na sɛ yɛde aseda gye a, ɛnde ɛnsɛ sɛ

yekyi biribiara. (1Timothy 4:4 AK)

Na Onyankopɔn abɔde nyinaa ø-ye, na sɛ yɛ-de

for God creation all COP-good CONJ CM 1PL-take

aseda gye a, ɛnde ɛ-n-sɛ sɛ ye-kyi biribiara.

thanksgiving receive CM then 3SG-NEG-must 1PL-taboo everything.

‘For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if

it is received with thanksgiving.’

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45. Anka ahemfi ara na eye, nanso ohui sε, εhᴐ yε beae bi a εnyε bere

nyinaa na εhᴐ da hᴐ. (BRA AK)

Anka ahemfi ara na e-ø-ye,

would have palace EMPH EMPH 3SG-COP-good,

nanso o-hu-i sε, εhᴐ yε beae bi a

CONJ 3SG-see-PAST COMP there be place DET REL

ε-n-yε bere nyinaa na εhᴐ da hᴐ.

3SG-NEG-be time all EMPH there lie there.

‘It is the palace which would have been good/suitable (for their

meeting), but he realized that that place is not often free.’

This manner of use is what Byloo (2009: 305) labelled as “quality evaluation”,

following Nuyts (2004). The evaluation is one of entities, things or people, but not

a of state of affairs.

The evaluative use of this form, as noted about other forms discussed, involves the

assessment of the deontic acceptability, suitability or desirability of a state of

affairs often occurring in complement clauses. In our glossing, we represent the

form as ‘it is good’ in the word for word translation and indicate which specific

deontic value it conveys in the literal translations.

The form in (46 and 47) expresses the acceptability/unacceptability of the state of

affairs in the complement clauses, respectively. In (46), Yaa reports the

irresponsible lifestyle of her husband to his best friend, and a cousin for them to

advise the husband. The speaker (the friend) sees this act as an acceptable thing to

do because, if the wife were to report the issue to her family, it could lead to bigger

problems, and ultimately, divorce. His assessment ‘it is good’, demonstrates the

acceptability value in the state of affairs. In other contexts, the form could also

express desirability but in this context, acceptability is more reliable.


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46. Ɛyε sε Yaa nso adi yεn ni abεka saa asɛm yi akyerε yεn. (ETI AS)

Ɛ-ø-yε sε Yaa nso a-di yεn ni

3SG-COP-good COMP Yaa also PERF-respect 1PL STEM

a-bε-ka saa asεm yi a-kyerε yεn.

PERF-come-tell DEM issue DEF PERF-STEM 1PL

‘It is good that Yaa has given us the respect by coming to report this

issue to us.’

The speaker in (47) was among school children who broke school laws by fighting

in school and as such received lashes for their punishment. He recounted the

offence and the extent of the punishment and concluded that the punishment was

too much, so it was not acceptable. The negative form, enye, communicates the

unacceptability of the state of affairs in the complement clause.

47. Ɔtoaa so se, enye sԑ anka akyerԑkyerԑfo no bᴐ wᴐn mmaa saa nanso

wᴐbᴐe enti sԑ papa nyԑ hwee a, bᴐne nso nyԑ hwee. (ƆBA AK)

Ɔ-toa-a so se, e-ø-n-ye sԑ

3SG-continue-PAST STEM say.COMP 3SG-COP-NEG-good COMP

akyerԑkyerԑfo no ø-bᴐ wᴐn mmaa saa nanso wᴐ-bᴐ-e

teachers DEF SUBJ-whip 3PL STEM DEM CONJ 3PL-whip-PAST

enti sԑ papa n-yԑ hwee a, bᴐne nso n-yԑ hwee.

so CM good NEG-be nothing CM bad also NEG-be nothing.

‘He continued by saying that, it is not good for the teachers to have

whipped them that much, but they did, so they will revenge.’

Examples (48) and (49) express deontic desirability. In (48), the speaker reports

the elders’ evaluation of the state of affairs as desirable. He uses their advice to

remind his interlocutors that, even when one is suffering, it is always morally

desirable to wait patiently to die a natural death instead of committing suicide.

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48. Nananom aka ato hᴐ sԑ, wode bewu atᴐfo wu de, na eye sԑ wubedi yaw

wᴐ ᴐhonam yi mu. (ƆSA AK)

Nananom a-ka a-to hᴐ sԑ, wo-de be-wu

Elders PERF-say PERF-put there COMP 3SG-take FUT-die

atᴐfo wu de, na e-ø-ye sԑ

accident die EMPH CONJ 3SG-COP-good COMP

wu-be-di yaw wᴐ ᴐhonam yi mu.

3SG-FUT-suffer STEM in flesh DET in

‘The elders have said that it is better for one to endure suffering in life

(and die a natural death) than to commit suicide.’

In (49), a wife supports the husband’s decision and so advises the mother that in

her opinion it is morally desirable for her to agree to what the husband has earlier

on suggested.

49. Ewura Efuwa so kaa kyerεε no dε ᴐgye dzi dε obeye dε ᴐbεpen dza

n'asew edzi kan aka akyerε no no do. (ABO FA)

Ewura Efuwa so ka-a kyerεε no dε ᴐ-ø-gye dzi

Ewura Efuwa also tell-PAST STEM 3SG COPM 3SG-STAT-believe STEM

dε o-be-ø-ye dε ᴐ-bε-pen dza n'-asew

COMP 3SG-FUT-COP-good COMP 3SG-SUBJ-agree what 3SG.POSS-inlaw

e-dzi kan a-ka a-kyerε no no do.

PEF-first STEM PERF-tell PERF-STEM 3SG DET on.

‘Ewura Efuwa also told her (her mother) that she (E. E) thinks that it

will be desirable that she agrees to what her son-in-law has told her.’

Examples (50) and (51) present states of affairs considered suitable, appropriate or

beneficial in the deontic assessment. The assessment of the deontic appropriateness

of the state of affairs in (50) is induced by the speaker’s view in the clause

preceding the deontic assessment, i.e., ‘in my opinion, it is good…’


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50. Me de, migye di sε eye sε yεbεsεe bere kakra na yεapaw nea oye na ne

ho nni asεm prεko. (ƆSƐ AK)

Me de, mi-ø-gye di sε e-ø-ye sε

1SG EMPH 1SG-STAT-believe STEM COMP 3SG-COP-good COMP

yε-bε-sεe bere kakra na yε-a-paw nea

1PL-FUT-spoil time little CONJ 1SG-CONS-elect who

o-ye na ne ho n-ø-ni asεm prεko.

3SG-be.good CONJ 3SG.POSS self NEG-STAT-have issue once.

‘As for me, I think that it is good that we spend some more time to elect

the one who is blameless right away.’

With the use of interrogation in (51), the speaker is tossing up the possibility that

it is beneficial and appropriate to cut down on the expenditure for their wedding.

It is also used to check the hearer’s position according to that deontic assessment.

51. Kofi, wonnye nni sԑ ԑyԑ sԑ wotete nneԑma hodoᴐ a woabobᴐ din yi so na

ka no ba fam? (GUA AK)

Kofi, wo-ø-n-nye n-ni sԑ ԑ-ø-yԑ

Kofi 2SG-STAT-NEG-believe NEG-STEM COMP 3SG-COP-good

sԑ wo-ø-tete nneԑma hodoᴐ a wo-a-bo.bᴐ

COMP 2SG-HAB-reduce things different REL 2SG-PERF-mention

din yi so na ka no ba fam?

Name DEF on for debt DEF come down?

‘Kofi, don’t you think it is good that you reduce the various things you

have mentioned for the cost to come down?’

5.3.2 The Predicative Adjective Ehia

Ehia ‘it is necessary/important/needed’ is a predicative adjectival construction

which expresses deontic and dynamic necessity and dynamic need in the state of

affairs being evaluated. As we have noted about other deontic/dynamic forms,

without context, it is possible for the form to be ambiguous between the two modal

meanings. We have labelled the specific meanings they express according to the

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context in which they appear. (52) and (53) are examples of its expression of

dynamic need.

The speaker in (52) asserts that ‘understanding for each other’ is what they need,

because to him, that is the only thing which can help his people to develop and

progress in life. (53) indicates that the place where the host will sleep was not

important to think about.

52. Nea ehia ma yɛn ne ntease pa. (AKU AK)

Nea e-ø-hia ma yɛn ne ntease pa.

What 3SG-STAT-need for us be understanding good

‘What we need most is good understanding for each other.’

53. Me deɛ deɛ, enhia. Wo na woyɛ ᴐhᴐhoᴐ. Akonnwa yi mu koraa metumi

da mu saa ara. (ETI AS)

Me deɛ deɛ, e-ø-n-hia. Wo na wo-yɛ ᴐhᴐhoᴐ.

1SG.POSS own EMPH 3SG-NEG-be.important 2SG EMPH 2SG-be visitor

Akonnwa yi mu koraa me-tumi da mu saa ara.

chair DEF in EMPH 1SG-can sleep in that EMPH

‘Mine is not important. You are a visitor. I can even sleep in this sofa.’

The speaker in (54) is assessing the ‘sending Epaphroditus to the other brethren’

as a necessary thing to do. Likewise, (55) describes the state of affairs of ironing

one’s clothing or uniforms for the week as a necessary thing to do, given the

frequent power cuts they experience in their neighbourhood.


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54. Nanso mibui sɛ ehia sɛ mesoma Epafrodito a ɔyɛ me nua ne yɔnko

dwumayɛfo ne yɔnko sraani ne mo somafo ne me dɛɛfoɔ, mema ɔba mo

nkyɛn. (Philipians 2:25 AK).

Nanso mi-bu-i sɛ e-ø-hia sɛ me-ø-soma

but 1SG-think-PAST COMP 3SG-COP-important COMP 1SG-SUBJ-send

Epafrodito a ɔ-yɛ me nua ne yɔnko dwumayɛfo

Epaphroditus REL 3SG-be 1SG.POSS brother CONJ friend worker

ne yɔnko sraani ne mo somafo ne

CONJ friend soldier CONJ 2PL.POSS messenger CONJ

me dɛɛfoɔ, me-ma ɔ-ba mo nkyɛn.

1SG.POSS helper 1SG-CAUS 3SG-come 2PL there.

‘But I thought it necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother,

fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger, whom you

sent to take care of me.’ (NIV)

55. Dumsɔdumsɔ nti sɛ kanea wɔ hɔ a, ehia sɛ motow mo adwuma ntade

nyinaa gu hɔ. (CONS AK)

Dumsɔdumsɔ nti sɛ kanea wɔ hɔ a e-ø-hia

power-cut because CM light be there CM 3SG-COP-important

sɛ mo-ø-tow mo adwuma ntade nyinaa gu hɔ.

COMP 2SG-SUBJ-iron 2SG.POSS’work dress all put there.

‘Because of the frequent power-cuts, it is necessary to iron all your

uniforms when there is electricity power.’

Speakers in (56) and (57) are describing the propositions in the complement

clauses, ‘going with the speaker’ and ‘coming along’, respectively, as important,

thereby expressing the dynamic necessity of the state of affairs in those utterances.

56. Akua, ԑyԑ a ma wo ho nyԑ hare na anwummerԑ yi yԑbԑkᴐ m’adamfo bi

nkyԑn. Ehia pa ara sԑ me ne wo kᴐ. (DUE AS)

Akua, ԑ-yԑ a ma wo ho n-yԑ hare na

Akua 3SG-be EMPH let 2SG.POSS self IMP-be fast CONJ

anwummerԑ yi yԑ-bԑ-kᴐ m’-adamfo bi nkyԑn.

evening DEF 1PL-FUT-go 1SG.POSS’-friend DEM there

E-ø-hia pa ara sԑ me ne wo ø-kᴐ.

3SG-COP-important very much COMP 1SG CONJ 2SG SUBJ-go

‘Akua, hurry up because we will go to a friend of mine this evening. It is

very important that I go with you.’

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57. ε-hia sε wo-bε-ba. (Boadi 2005:54)

ε-ø-hia sε wo-bε-ba.

3SG-COP-important COMP 3SG-SUBJ-come

‘It is important that you come.’

Moral necessity is demonstrated by the form ehia in (58) to show how important a

state of affairs is. At a meeting, it is always important for every member to express

his/her views. It is therefore not surprising that the chairman of the meeting calls

on the attention of all the members to show how important it is for them to cut their

arguments short enough for the rest of the members to have the chance of

expressing their views as well.

58. Mbom so ohia dɛ enuanom nkaa no so benya mber dze akasa kakra.

Megye dzi dɛ ebɛtse me ase. (EWU FA)

Mbom so o-ø-hia dɛ enuanom

but also 3SG-COP-important COMP brothers

nkaa no so be-nya mber dze a-kasa kakra.

remaining DEF also SUBJ-get time use CONS-talk little

Me-ø-gye dzi dɛ e-bɛ-tse me ase.

1SG-STAT-believe STEM COMP 2SG-FUT-understand 1SG STEM

‘But it is also important that the rest of the members get the chance to

express their views. I believe that you will understand me.’

5.3.3 (Sɛ) (wo)anhwε a

(Sɛ) (wo) anhwɛ a ‘maybe/perhaps’ is an epistemic form which expresses

likelihood or possibility. Diachronically, this verbal construction is a dependent

clause which has been grammaticalized to become an idiomatic form (see § 3.5 for

its formation). The major difference between this construction and ebia or some

other epistemic likelihood forms is that, whereas the evaluation of the situation

with the other forms may occur with different tense/aspect markers, this


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construction occurs with only the future tense. The choice of this form over ebia is

very subtle. Apart from the fact that sε wo anhwɛ a only co-occurs with future

evaluations, it also has a stronger overtone of evaluation towards probability on the

epistemic scale. Both are possibility markers, but sε wo anhwɛ a is stronger than

ebia. Ebia is also replaceable in all the environments where sε wo anhwɛ a occurs,

but not vice versa.

Using the form, speakers seem to be basing their utterances on stronger

evidence/background knowledge. The possibility markers used here indicate that

the speakers see the occurrence of the states of affairs as a stronger possibility than

what ebia could imply. (59) is an example of the form with the pronoun (wo) but

without (sɛ). Most of the remaining examples do not feature (sɛ) or (wo).

59. Obi nnim, woanhwԑ a, na wakᴐ asan de ne ho sᴐnn aba. (AFR AK)

Obi n-ø-nim, woanhwԑ a, na w-a-kᴐ

someone NEG-STAT-know perhaps CONJ 3SG-FUT-go

a-san de ne ho sᴐnn a-ba.

CONS-return take 3SG.POSS self free CONS-come

‘No one knows, perhaps, he will go and return unharmed.’

60. Anhwε a, me wu akyi, na obi de manso abεtetare wo. (BRA AK)

Anhwε a, me wu akyi, na obi

maybe 1SG.POSS death back CONJ someone

de manso a-bε-tetare wo.

take litigation FUT-come-hit you

‘Maybe, after my death, someone will come and disturb you with

litigation.’

The speaker in (61) presents the background knowledge on which her evaluation

of the state of affairs is based. In (62) and (63) the speakers present the personal

views/evaluations they hold at the moment of speaking and what their assessment

of the state of affairs in future will likely be.

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61. Ɛnnɛ Kwasie a nnipa redi afoofi a ɔde ne nkɔmmɔ rekɔtwan woɔ yi,

anhwɛ a na wamma wo amma seesei, nso aduane yi aben. (ETI AS)

Ɛnnɛ Kwasie a nnipa re-di afoofi a ɔ-de ne

today Sunday REL people PROG-spend holiday REL 3SG-take 3SG.POSS

nkɔmmɔ re-kɔ-twan woɔ yi, anhwɛ a na w-a-m-ma

conversation PROG-go-cross you DETlikely CONJ 3SG-FUT-NEG-

CAUS

wo a-m-ma seesei, nso aduane yi a-ben.

you FUT-NEG-come soon but food DEF PERF-cook

‘Today Sunday being a holiday, if he engages you in conversation, it

is likely he will not let you to come anytime soon, but the food is

ready.’

62. Ɛyԑ me sԑ afei de, wotu no fo a, anhwԑ a, obetie. (JUL AK)

Ɛ-yԑ me sԑ afei de, wo-tu no fo a,

3SG-do 1SG COMP now EMPH 2PL-give 3SG advice CM

anhwԑ a, o-be-tie.

likely 3SG-FUT-listen

‘I think that henceforth he is likely to be receptive to advice.’

63. Na m'adwene kyerε me sε anhwε a, na Nana akᴐmemene nsu mmom

agu asu. (ƆSƐ AK)

Na m'adwene kyerε me sε anhwε a, na

PART 1SG.POSS’mind show 1SG COMP likely CONJ

Nana a-kᴐ-me.mene nsu mmom a-gu asu.

Nana FUT-go-RED.drink water EMPH CONS-drown water.

‘I thought that it was likely for Nana to get drowned instead.’

Speakers in (64) and (65) seem to be basing their utterances on stronger

evidence/background knowledge. The possibility markers used here indicate that

the speakers see the occurrences of the states of affairs as stronger possibility than

what ebia could imply. In (64), the speaker considers her future actions or dealings

with the man (Paa Kofi) as something which normal people cannot stand. She

therefore estimates the chances that her actions/bad deeds will have a strong impact

on him.


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64. Paa Kofi yi … ne nkɔmmɔdie mu nyɛ me fɛ. Nanso deɛ mɛyɔ ama no

koraa anhwɛ a ɔbɛgyae ne yere nnɛ nko ara. (ETI AS)

Paa Kofi yi … ne nkɔmmɔdie mu ø-n-yɛ me fɛ.

Paa Kofi DEF… 3SG.POSS conversation in STAT-NEG-be me nice

Nanso deɛ mɛ-ø-yɔ a-ma no koraa anhwɛ a

but what 1SG-FUT-do CONS-give him EMPH possibly

ɔ-bɛ-gyae ne yere nnɛ nko ara.

3SG-FUT-leave 3SG.POSS wife today only EMPH

‘I don’t like the way Paa Kofi talks. In any case, what I am going to

do for him, it is likely for him to divorce his wife this very day.’

In (65), the subject had the fear of being seen by familiar people because the city

in which he was, was a busy market place where people from his own village go

for trading every market day. So, as it was a market day, he was much more

optimistic of the possibility than just saying that the state of affairs may occur.

65. Na ᴐsuro sε anhwε a, na obi abεfiri hᴐ ama n'anim agu ase.

(MENE AS)

Na ᴐ-suro sε anhwε a, na obi

PART 3SG-afraid COMP possibly CONJ someone

a-bε-firi hᴐ a-ma n'-anim a-gu ase.

FUT-come-reach there CONS-let 3SG.POSS’-face PERF-fall down

‘He was afraid that someone will likely come around to find him, for

him to be ashamed.’

(66) and (67) present conditional clauses as the parameters within which the

speakers’ high level of epistemic assessments in the lower clauses are based.

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66. Sԑ ehwԑ mbrԑ nna ᴐrekeka kᴐ no a, annhwԑ a, dza ebԑka ara nye dԑ nna

Caesar nya hen a ankyԑ obedzi. (JUL FA)

Sԑ e-ø-hwԑ mbrԑ nna ᴐ-re-keka kᴐ

CM 3SG-HAB-look how PART 3SG-PROG-move go

no a, annhwԑ a, dza e-bԑ-ka ara nye dԑ

DET SUB possibly what 3SG-FUT-say EMPH is COMP

nna Caesar ø-nya hen a ankyԑ o-be-dzi.

PART Caesar SUBJ-become king CM IRR 3SG-FUT-reign

‘When one looks at how things were going on, one was likely to

think/say that Caesar would have liked to be a king.’

67. Sԑ ᴐyԑ onipa bᴐne a, anhwԑ a, na ankᴐsi no yie. Sԑ ᴐyԑ nneԑma a ԑgu ne

ho fi a, anhwԑ a, na mmusuo akᴐdi n’akyi. (ABƆF AS)

Sԑ ᴐ-yԑ onipa bᴐne a, anhwԑ a, na ø-a-n-kᴐ-si no yie.

CM 3SG-be person bad CM maybe CONJ FUT-NEG-end 3SG- well

Sԑ ᴐ-ø-yԑ nneԑma a ԑ-ø-gu ne ho fi a,

CM 3SG-HAB-do things REL 3SG-HAB-cover 3SG.POSS self dirty CM

anhwԑ a, na mmusuo a-kᴐ-di n’akyi.

maybe CONJ curse CONS-go-follow 3SG.POSS’STEM

‘If he is a bad person, it is likely it will not end well with him. If he does

abominable things, it is likely bad luck/curses will follow him.’

The use of the conditional clauses indicates that, if the set conditions are fulfilled,

there is a high degree of possibility that the state of affairs will also occur in the

future.

5.3.4 Akyinnye nnim sɛ

Akyinnye nnim ‘there is no doubt’, ‘it is certain’ or ‘undoubtedly’ is used to confirm

that the state of affairs it qualifies is certain, indisputable, definite or

unquestionable (see § 3.5 for its formation). This construction has its base from the

verb gye akyinnye ‘to argue’ or ‘to doubt’.

We noted one instance in (68) in which the base form has been used. This use

corresponds to the mental state predicate ‘to doubt’. In the clause to which the form


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pertains, the speaker is expressing her belief in the listener by telling him that she

does not doubt what he has said so it is used here non-evaluatively.

68. Merentumi nnye ho akyinnye, εfiri sε, sεdeε wosi kasa faeε no, megye

medi sε wobεtumi atᴐ ntoma a εgu me srε soᴐ yi nyinaa mpo. (ETI AS)

Me-re-n-tumi n-nye ho akyinnye, εfiri sε, sεdeε

1SG-FUT-NEG-can NEG-argue abiut STEM because how

wo-si kasa faeε no, me-gye me-di sε wo-bε-tumi

2SG-take speak how DET 1SG-believe 1SG-STEM COMP 2SG-FUT-can

a-tᴐ ntoma a ε-gu me srε soᴐ yi nyinaa mpo.

CONS-buy cloth REL 3PL-lie 1SG.POSS lap on DEF all EMPH

‘I cannot argue about it/I cannot doubt it, because the way you spoke, I

believe that you can buy all these clothes on my laps.’

This non-qualificational usage is not the focus of the section. We now present

instances where the construction is used for the assessment of epistemic certainty.

As would be expected, the construction scopes over the clauses they occur in. There

is no affirmative counterpart of the seemingly negated construction.

In utterance (69), Crocodile was a very good friend of Kwaku Ananse and his

family. Asɔ, Ananse’s wife, went to the riverside to fetch water every day, and

since they were friends, they met to chat whenever she went to the river. Her report

about Crocodile’s death, therefore, did not come as a surprise to Ananse. Actually,

he (Ananse) had tried to kill Crocodile the previous day but did not succeed. His

assessment of the certainty of Crocodile’s death, therefore, was in place. Since

certainty does not assert the truth of SOA, it turned out to be that Crocodile was

not dead after all. The speaker in (70) is certain that their past joy has turned into

curses and that is why they now cry whenever they remember their past times.

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69. Asɔ ankasa na wabɛka sɛ Ɔdɛnkyɛm awu da nsunoa yi deɛ, akyinnyeɛ

biara nni ho. (ASI 2 AS)

Asᴐ ankasa na w-a-bԑ-ka sԑ ᴐdԑnkyԑm

Asᴐ EMPH that 3SG-PERF-come-say COMP crocodile

a-wu da nsunoa yi deԑ, akyinnyeԑ biara nni ho.

PERF-die lie river.mouth DET EMPH there is no doubt

‘Since it is Asᴐ herself who has come to report that Crocodile has died

and was lying on the river bank, there is no doubt.’

70. Daano dza ᴐmaa enyigye, ndԑ yԑkae a, yekyi nyinsu, osiandԑ afei

ekyingye nnyi ho dԑ ᴐadan hԑn mbusu. (AO! FA)

Daano dza ᴐ-ma-a enyigye, ndԑ yԑ-ø-kae

sometimes ago what 3SG-give-PAST joy today 3PL-HAB-remember

a, ye-ø-kyi nyinsu, osiandԑ afei ekyingye nnyi ho dԑ

CM 1PL-HAB-shed tears because now there is no doubt COMP

ᴐ-a-dan hԑn mbusu.

3SG-PERF-turn 3PL curse.

‘The things which once gave us joy, when we remember today, we shed

tears, because there is no doubt that it has turned into a curse for us.’

In (71), the boy’s smiling was giving a clue to the indisputable assessment that he

was developing an interest in the father’s recommendation.

71. Bere a Egya Ata rekasa nyina nna Kodwo reyerԑw n'ano, nna ekyingye

biara nnyi ho dԑ oenya pԑ wᴐ n'egya ne nhyehyԑԑ no ho. (ƆBRA FA)

Bere a Egya Ata re-kasa nyina nna Kodwo re-yerԑw

time when E. A PROG-talk all PART K. PROG-wide

n'-ano, nna ekyingye biara nnyi ho dԑ o-e-nya

3SG.POSS-mouth PART there was no doubt COMP 3SG-PERF-get

pԑ wᴐ n'-egya ne nhyehyԑԑ no ho.

like in 3SG.POSS-father 3SG.POSS arrangement DEF on

‘While Mr. Ata was talking, Kodwo was beaming with smile, so there

was no doubt that he had developed an interest in his father’s

arrangement (suggestion).’

The issue under consideration for the epistemic assessment in (72) is whether the


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husband takes good care of his wife (Ewura Efuwa) or not. According to their

traditional standards, there is no doubt, they are certain that she is taken good care

of.

72. Ekyingye biara nnyi ho dε ᴐhwε Ewura Efuwa papaapa, naaso nnyε

ahodze na sika ntsi na Ewura Efuwa kᴐwaree. (ABO FA)

Ekyingye biara nnyi ho dε ᴐ-ø-hwε E. E. papaapa,

naaso there is no

doubt COMP 3SG-HAB-take care E. E. well but

n-nyε ahodze na sika ntsi na E. E. kᴐ-ware-e.

NEG-be clothing CONJ money because EMHP E. E. go-marry-PAST.

‘There is no doubt that he takes good care of E. E., but it is not

because of clothing and money that E. E. went into marriage.’

In some of the utterances clauses preceding or following the propositions

containing the construction act as the basis for evaluating the epistemic certainty.

In (73), the speaker gives two different factual instances on which his evaluation

is based.

73. Yaa Konadu yԑ Kwadwo adamfowaa a obiara nim. Afei Kwadwo dan

mu na ᴐkᴐwuiԑ, enti akyinnyeԑ biara nni ho sԑ ɔno na ᴐmaa Yaa aduro

nomoeԑ a ᴐnam so wuiԑ. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Yaa Konadu yԑ Kwadwo adamfowaa a obiara ø-nim.

Yaa Konadu be Kwadwo girlfriend REL everybody STAT-know

Afei Kwadwo dan mu na ᴐ-kᴐ-wu-iԑ enti

Again Kwadwo room in EMPH 3SG-go-die-PAST so

akyinnyeԑ biara nni ho sԑ ɔno na ᴐ-ma-a Yaa

there is no doubt COMP 3SG EMPH 3SG-give-PAST Yaa

aduro nom-oeԑ a ᴐ-nam so wu-iԑ.

medicine drink-PAST REL 3SG-pass on die-PAST

‘Everyone knew that Yaa Konadu was Kwadwo’s girlfriend. Also, it

was in Kwadwo’s room she died, so there was no doubt that he was the

one who gave some medicine to Yaa to drink, which eventually killed

her.’

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74. Sԑ obi hwԑ sԑdeԑ asԑm no teԑ no a, na akyinnyeԑ biara nni ho sԑ deԑ

ᴐkᴐwiaa kookoo no de kᴐkaa Kwame deԑ no ho. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Sԑ obi hwԑ sԑdeԑ asԑm no teԑ no a, na

CM someone look how issue DEF be DET CM PART

akyinnyeԑ biara nni ho sԑ deԑ ᴐ-kᴐ-wia-a

there is no doubt COMP the one 3SG-go-steal-PAST

kookoo no de kᴐ-ka-a Kwame deԑ no ho.

cocoa DEF take go-add-PAST Kwame own DEF on

‘When one considers how the issue is, there is no doubt that the one who

stole the cocoa added them to Kwame’s.’

75. Nso akyinnyeε biara nni mu sε deε ͻkyεne soͻ no na ͻhyira akumaa.

(Hebrews 7: 7. AS)

Nso akyinnyeԑ biara nni mu sε deε ͻ-kyεne.soͻ

CONJ there is no doubt COMP who 3SG-be.big

no na ͻ-ø-hyira akumaa.

DET MPH 3SG-HAB-bless little.one

‘And without doubt the lessor person is blessed by the greater.’ (NIV)

The next sections present two adverbial/adjectival constructions used to express

evidentiality. With the use of (me) hwɛ a, and biribiara kyerɛ sε the speaker may

present both the evidence and the epistemically modalized or non-modalized

SOA in one clause.

5.3.5 (me) hwε a as an Evidential Marker

(Me) hwɛ a is used to indicate evidentiality meaning ‘(it is) evident

(ly)/apparent(ly)/obvious(ly) that the situation under consideration is the case’. The

use of the form is a means to substantiate the basis of our evaluation of the state of

affairs, be it modalized or non-modalized (see § 3.5 above for its formation). The

construction presents divergent strengths in the evidential assessment (evident vs

apparent, seemingly vs obviously), possibly because of the base word hwɛ ‘look’,


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which concerns both physical and mental ability of acquiring information. Based

on the speaker’s observation of the listener’s excessive talking in (76), the speaker

makes a judgement that the listener is getting drunk.

76. Paa, mehwε a, woreyε abo pa ara nti ne ntoatoa yi. (ETI AS)

Paa, mehwε a, wo-re-yε a-bo

Paa, apparently 2SG-PROG-do CONS-intoxicate

pa ara nti ne ntoatoa yi.

much EMPH that is why that talking DEF

‘Paa, you are apparently getting really drunk and that is why you are

talking this much.’ (Considering your behaviour, you are really getting

drunk and that is why you are talking this much.)’

Similarly, the speaker makes his evidential judgement from observing the

condition under which the killing of Caesar was done in (77).

77. Ntsi Caesar no ku no dze, ehwԑ a, nna nnyԑ hen a wᴐse ᴐpԑ dԑ odzi no

ntsi bia; dԑ mbrԑ Shakespeare noara kae no, nna n’enim yԑ har; no ho yԑ

apamfo no ehi: ᴐtan ara kwa! (JUL FA)

Ntsi Caesar no ku no dze, ehwԑ a, nna ø-nn-yԑ

So Caesar 3SG.POSS kill DEF EMPH obviously PART STAT-NEG-be

hen a wᴐ-se ᴐ-ø-pԑ dԑ o-ø-dzi no ntsi bia;

king REL 3PL-say 3SG-STAT-like COMP 3SG-HAB-reign DEF because PART

dԑ mbrԑ Shakespeare noara ka-e no, nna n’-enyim

like how Shakespeare himself say-PAST DET PART 3SG.POSS-face

yԑ har; no ho yԑ apamfo no ehi: ᴐtan ara kwa!

be light 3SG.POSS skin be conspirators DEF bored: hate EMPH vain!

‘And so as for the assassination of Caesar, it was obvious that, it is not

because of the allegation that he wanted to be a king (as Shakespeare

himself described). He was despised and hated by the conspirators. It was

mere jealousy!’

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Since this type of evidence is based on deduction, our evaluation may not always

be concrete. We can, therefore, indicate our epistemically modalized state of affairs

as in (78) where the state of affairs only seems to be the case.

78. Kwame Tua ne Akwasi Bonsam duruu ayie no ase no deԑ, na ԑsԑ w’ani.

Wohwԑ a, wobԑka sԑ wᴐn na ayie no wᴐ wᴐn. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Kwame Tua ne Akwasi Bonsam duru-u ayie no ase

Kwame Tua CONJ Akwasi Bonsam reach-PAST funeral DEF under

no deԑ, na ԑ-sԑ w’-ani. Wohwԑ a,

DET EMPH PART 3SG-deserve 2SG.POSS-eye. Apparently

wobԑka sԑ wᴐn na ayie no wᴐ wᴐn.

2SG-may-think 3PL EMPH funeral DEF belong.to 3PL

‘The behaviour Kwame Tua and Akwasi Bonsam put up when they got

to the funeral grounds was amazing. Apparently (because of their

behaviour), one might think they were the chief mourners.’

Examples (79) and (80) also indicate that the speakers are not just presenting the

state of affairs out of nothing. They justify their evaluation with their observation

or deduction from available situations serving as the source of evidence.

79. Ooho, nnyԑ mbrԑ wosi yi asԑm ano nye no; ‘mepԑ’ anaa ‘memmpԑ’, nna

erekasa ma matse. Mohwԑ a emmpԑ, ntsi fa asԑm no ne nan si famu na ka

no yie. (ƆBRA FA)

Ooho, nn-yԑ mbrԑ wo-si yi asԑm ano nye no; ‘me-ø-pԑ’

no NEG-be how 3PL-take answer question be that 1SG-STAT-like’

anaa ‘me-ø-mm-pԑ’, nna e-re-kasa ma ma-tse. Mohwԑ a

CONJ 1SG-STAT-NEG-like CONJ 3SG-PROG-talk let 1SG-hear it is obvious

e-ø-mm-pԑ, ntsi ‘fa asԑm no ne nan si famu na ka no yie’.

2SG-STAT-NEG-like CONJ say it clearly

‘No, that is not how to answer questions. Just tell us ‘yes I like it’ or ‘no I

don’t like it’ for us to know your mind. It is obvious that you do not like

it, so just tell us in plain words.’


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80. Afei so mara mohwε a, noara ᴐabᴐ ne bra ma aka kakra ma oeewie, ntsi

morohwehwε mara so me nyεnko tsipεn banyin nye no ahyε bra ase.

(ABO FA)

Afei so m-ara mohwε a, no-ara ᴐ-a-bᴐ ne

again also 1SG-EMPH it is obvious 3SG-EMPH 3SG-PERF-live 3SG.POSS

bra ma a-ka kakra ma o-ee-wie,

life CONJ PERF-remain little for 3SG-PERF-finish

ntsi mo-ro-hwehwε m-ara so me

CONJ 1SG-PROG-search 1SG-EMPH also 1SG.POSS

nyεnko tsipεn banyin nye no a-hyε bra ase.

friend equal male CONJ 3SG CONS-begin life STEM

‘Moreover, it is obvious that he was far advanced in life, as such, I am

looking for someone of my own age to begin life with.’

5.3.6 Biribiara kyerε sε as an Evidential Marker

One of the constructions used to express evidentiality in Akan is biribiara kyerɛ. It

translates as ‘everything shows/testifies, it is evident/obvious’. It is used as an

evidential component of a clause to indicate that based on available evidence, the

state of affairs is the case or potentially the case. Although the proposition in the

complement clause is presupposed to be true, it is possible for it to turn out to be

false when the evidence turns out to depict something different (§ 3.5 has its

formation).

In (81) and (82), speakers considered every available traces or evidences which

were sufficient grounds to arrive at the conclusions that the states of affairs were

the case.

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81. Asԑm a polisifoᴐ panin no kaeԑ ne sԑ, deԑ asԑm no akᴐyԑ no, biribiara di

adanseԑ sԑ deԑ ᴐkᴐwiaa kookoo no de kᴐkaa Kwame Tua deԑ no ho.

(ƆBRƐ AS)

Asԑm a polisifoᴐ panin no ka-eԑ ne sԑ, deԑ asԑm no

issue REL police leader DEF say-PAST be COMP how issue DEF

a-kᴐ-yԑ no, biribiara di adanseԑ sԑ deԑ ᴐ-kᴐ-wi-aa

PERF-go-do DET it is evident that who 3SG-go-steal-PAST

kookoo no de kᴐ-kaa Kwame Tua deԑ no ho.

cocoa DEF take go-add Kwame Tua.POSS own DEF on

‘What the police inspector said was that, looking at how the issue has

turned out to be, it is evident that the one who stole the cocoa added it to

Kwame Tua’s cocoa.’

82. Nkyɛ Paa Kow dze biribiara kyerɛ dɛ ɔno na ɔnom nkwan no. (OBS.FA)

Nkyɛ Paa Kow dze biribiara kyerɛ dɛ

but Paa Kow EMPH it is evident COMP

ɔno na ɔ-nom nkwan no.

3SG EMPH 3SG-drink-PAST soup DEF

‘But as for Paa Kow, it is evident that he ate the soup.’

The utterance in (83) presents two different pieces of evidence before the state of

affairs is evaluated. The issue here is that the speaker uses the two evidential

constructions for emphasis.

83. Sɛ wohwɛ sɛnea na ɛdan no mu ayɛ basaa na efunu no ho apirapira no a

na biribiara kyerɛ sɛ ɔne obi peree so ansa na onii no reku no.

(RADIO. AS)

Sɛ wo-hwɛ sɛnea na ɛdan no mu a-yɛ basaa na

CM 2SG-look how PART room DET in PERF-do disorganize CONJ

efunu no ho a-pirapira no a na biribiara kyerɛ sɛ

dead.body DET on PERF-wound DET CM CONJ it is evident COMP

ɔ-ne obi pere-e so ansa.na onii no re-ku no.

3SG-CONJ someone struggle-PAST on before that.one DEF PROG-kill 3SG

‘Looking at how messy the room had become and how wounded the

body was, it was evident that he struggled with someone before that one

murdered him.’


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The speaker in (84) made this assertion probably because s/he has observed the

amount of properties the subject has or even the expensive things she uses often.

84. Ewuraba yi dze, biribiara kyerɛ dɛ ɔwɔ sika paa. (OBS FA)

Ewuraba yi dze, biribiara kyerɛ dɛ ɔ-ø-wɔ sika paa.

lady DEF EMPH it is evident COMP 3SG-STAT-have money much

‘As for this lady, it is evident that she has lots of money.’

5.4 Conclusion

We have discussed the use of modal adverbs and predicative modal adjectives in

this chapter and pointed out that all the forms have both evaluative and non-

evaluative uses. And that all the three modal adverbs express only epistemic

modality and the predicative modal adjectives express deontic and dynamic

modalities. The chapter also features adverbial/adjectival constructions, some of

which express epistemic modality and others evidentiality. In the following

chapter, we discuss the use of verbs and verbal constructions to express modality

and evidentiality.

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6 Verbs and Verbal Constructions

6.1 Introduction

This chapter discusses the use of verbs and verbal constructions to express

modality and evidentiality in the language. Analysis of verbs has been noted to be

more complex than that of adverbs and adjectives. They are described as more open

in expressing various modalities and/or evidentiality than any of the word classes

or other devices. Yet, it is one area which has not received much attention (see

Nuyts 2001). In spite of this observation, we have attempted to fit our discussion

of these forms into the few existing investigations.

We divide the chapter into two for easy analysis of modality and evidentiality. The

first part on modality generally considers such parameters as the qualificational

and non-qualificational uses of forms and where necessary, their occurrence with

tense/aspect, negation, questioning, conditionals and parentheticals. We note that,

despite their non-evaluative meanings, they express modality depending on the

context in which they occur. We will categorize these verbs and verbal

constructions into identifiable groups depending on the modal meanings they

express. For evidentiality, we note the inseparable evidential/non-evidential

meanings some of the forms have. Tables 6.1 and 6.2 below give the breakdown

of their frequencies and the modal/evidential meanings they possess.

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Form Spk Wrt Tot

dwene 9 34 45

gye di 98 202 300

susu 8 24 32

ɛyε me sɛ 20 64 84

fa no sɛ 6 2 8

wobεka sԑ 6 16 22

ɛbԑyԑ sɛ 8 10 18

ka/se 66 180 246

te 12 68 80

nim 33 198 231

hu 21 96 117

Table 6.1 Frequency of verbs/verbal constructions in written and spoken data

Form Epi Deon Dyn Evi Non Tot

dwene 29 - - - 16 45

gye di 198 - - - 102 300

susuw 20 - - - 12 32

ɛyε me sɛ 84 - - - - 84

fa no 8 - - - - 8

wobεka sԑ 22 - - - - 22

ɛbԑyԑ sɛ 18 - - - - 18

ka/se - - - 181 65 246

te - - - 62 18 80

nim - - - 162 69 231

hu - - - 66 51 117

Table 6.2 Modal and Evidential meanings of verbs/verbal constructions.

Table 6.1 has the frequency of the verbs and verbal constructions in spoken and

written data. Table 6.2 shows that three of the verbs, viz. dwene, gye di and susuw


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have epistemic and non-modal meanings and ka/se, te, nim and hu have evidential

and non-evidential meanings. The verbal constructions have epistemic meanings

only.

6.2 Epistemic Verbs/Verbal Constructions

In the first group of verbs and verbal constructions we consider the mental state

predicates dwene ‘to think’, gye di ‘to believe’, susuw ‘to guess’, and the verbal

constructions sɛ woanhwɛ a ‘perhaps’, ɛyɛ me sɛ ‘to think’, fa no sɛ ‘to suppose’,

wobɛka sɛ ‘may’, ɛbɛyɛ sɛ ‘may’ and akyinnye nnim sɛ ‘there is no doubt’ used to

express epistemic modality. Each of these mental state predicates has an inherent

meaning component in the non-qualificational use as mentioned in the preceding

section. This notwithstanding, one finds overlaps in meaning when it comes to their

expression of epistemic certainty. A peculiar thing about these predicates is that

depending on the context, there is meaning convergence where all of these forms

mean ‘to think’. In the glosses, we give the inherent meaning of the forms in the

morpheme to morpheme translation and present the contextual meaning in the

idiomatic translation. Regarding the verbal constructions, we note that their

semantic components are bounded and idiomatic. As such, they are mainly used

evaluatively.

6.2.1 The Mental State Predicate dwene

The mental state predicate dwene ‘to think’ is used in the non-evaluative utterances

to indicate the mental process of deliberating or cogitating on issues (see 1 & 2

below).

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1. Gyae me haw na meredwene me ba ho. (CONS AK)

Gyae me haw na me-re-dwene me ba ho.

Stop 1SG disturb CONJ 1SG-PRO-think 1SG.POSS son self.

‘Stop disturbing me because I am thinking about my son.’

2. Meda na mani so te me a me yam hye me ɛfiri sɛ ɛba saa a na mafiri aseɛ

redwene nea mεdi ne me ‘bilse’ ho. (OBS AS)

Me-da na m’ani so te me a me yam ø-hye me

1SG-sleep CONJ 1SG-wake up CM 1SG-panic HAB-STEM

ɛfiri sɛ ɛ-ba saa a na m-a-firi aseɛ

because 3SG-come DEM CM CONJ 1SG-PERF-start STEM

re-dwene nea m-ε-di ne me ‘bilse’ ho.

PROG-think what 1SG-FUT-eat CONJ 1SG.POSS bills on.

‘When I wake up suddenly from sleep, I panic because then I start

thinking about what I will eat and about my bills.’

In (3) and (4), dwene is not used to evaluate any state of affairs, neither is it used

to indicate the speakers cogitating on an issue. It is used here to express emotions

(resentment) of the one who utters it. Its meaning is parallel to ‘but’ in English,

when one is replying to someone with surprise, disagreement or annoyance.

a. But you promised not to do anything without asking me first.

The resentful use of but in Akan is na sɛ, which is considered impolite in the

society. Speakers can avoid the impoliteness of their resentment when they employ

other items. The speakers’ use of dwene here connotes polite resentment. In these

examples, the speakers are merely narrating what previous speakers had said

without quoting them. Although the meaning of the form as but, does not come out

clearly in such environments, especially in the English translations, it is understood

in the language as carrying resentment.


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3. Yewura Kwesi kaa dε ᴐdwen dε daano nkᴐmbᴐ a wodzii no, dza opuee

mu nye dε wᴐbεma Ewura Efuwa ayε datser no n'edur no kakra ahwε

ansaana wᴐbεfa adwen fofor bi a wᴐafa. (ABO FA)

Yewura Kwesi ka-a dε ᴐ-ø-dwen dε daano

Mr. Kwesi say-PAST COMP 3SG-STAT-think COMP last time

nkᴐmbᴐ a wo-dzi-i no, dza o-pue-e

conversation REL 3PL-converse-PAST DET what 3SG-come out-PAST

mu nye dε wᴐ-bε-ma Ewura Efuwa a-yε datser no

in be COMP 3PL-FUT-let Ewura Efuwa CONS-do doctor DEF

n'edur no kakra a-hwε ansaana wᴐ-bε-fa

3SG.POSS’medicine DET little CONS-look before 3PL-FUT-decide STEM

adwen fofor bi a wɔ-a-fa.

new some PART 3PL-CONS-STEM.

‘Mr. Kwesi said that what came out of their last conversation was that

they will allow Ewura Efuwa to take the doctor’s treatment for some time

to see the outcome before they decide on any other thing.’

4. Ɔkaa dε ᴐdwen dε daano ᴐdaa no edzi ma wᴐgyee too mu dε ᴐwᴐ dε

wᴐkᴐhwehwε EwuraEfuwa ne yafun no ho. (ABO FA)

Ɔ-ka-a dε ᴐ-dwen dε daano

3SG-say-PAST COMP 3SG-think COMP last

ᴐ-da-a no edzi ma wᴐ-gye-e to-o

3SG-reveal-PAST DET STEM CAUS 3PL-agree-PAST STEM-PAST

mu dε ᴐ-wᴐ dε wᴐ-kᴐ-hwehwε

STEM COMP 3SG-has.to.be COMP 3PL-go-consult

Ewura Efuwa ne yafun no ho.

Ewura Efuwa POSS stomach DET on

‘She said that she proposed and they agreed to it that they have to go and

consult (the fetish) for assistance for Ewura Efuawa’s infertility.’

When the original speaker’s direct utterance is presented, the resentful but becomes

evident. In (3) for instance, the original speaker might have said Modwen dε daano

nkᴐmbᴐ a yedzii no… ‘But in our last conversation….’ In (4) she might have said

Modwen dε daano medaa no edzi ma wᴐgyee too mu dε… ‘But I proposed, and you

agreed to it that…’ The use of the form in these non-evaluative utterances is

therefore considered as a marker used to tone down direct resentment.

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In the examples that follow, we discuss two ways of evaluation, viz., descriptive

and performative use. Nuyts (2001: 39) explains that “expressions which report on

an epistemic qualification of a state of affairs without involving speaker

commitment to it at the moment of speaking …is called ‘descriptive’.” For a

performative use he says that “the epistemic forms which express the speaker’s

current attitude towards the state of affairs, i.e. which do involve his/her

commitment to the qualification at the moment of speaking is called

‘performative’.” The forms are used descriptively to evaluate the epistemic

certainty of the situations in (5), (6) and (7). Two dimensions are recognized in the

descriptive use: (a) when the evaluation was done in the past and (b) when the

evaluation is someone else’s. In (a) the form projects the epistemic evaluation into

what the speaker used to hold about the state of affairs, for which he may or may

not subscribe to it in the present situation. Epistemic forms under (b) do not reflect

the speaker’s own evaluation. They report on other people’s evaluation in which

case the current speaker is not responsible for the evaluation as in (6) and (7).

5. Eduu baabi po, na midwen sԑ woredi fԑw, sԑnea ԑtᴐ da bi a, mo mmarima

yi paserew no. (JUL AK)

E-du-u baabi po (no), na mi-ø-dwen sԑ

3SG-reach-PAST somewhere even SUB PART 1SG-HAB-think COMP

wo-re-di fԑw, sԑnea ԑtᴐ.da.bi a,

2SG-PROG-joke STEM how sometimes CM

mo mmarima yi paserew no.

2PL boys DEF giggle DET

‘Even at a point in time, I thought you were joking, like the way you boys

sometimes joke by giggling.’

6. Na wᴐdwene mpo sε gyama akorᴐmfoᴐ bi na wᴐakᴐsesa. (MENE AS)

Na wᴐ-ø-dwene mpo sε gyama

PART 3PL-STAT-think even COMP maybe

akorᴐmfoᴐ bi na wᴐ-a-kᴐ-sesa.

thieves DET EMPH 3PL-PERF-go-take

‘They even thought that maybe thieves have gone to take them.’


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7. Aborᴐfo no tuu abᴐfo baa Nyanewase bԑsan wᴐn ho kyerԑԑ ᴐhene, srԑe sԑ

na wᴐdwene sԑ asotwe kakra a wᴐde rema mmerante no bԑma wᴐn ani aba

fam kakra. (ƆSA AK)

Aborᴐfo no tu-u abᴐfo ba-a Nyanewase

white.men DEF send-PAST messangers come-PAST Nyanewase

bԑ-san-ø wᴐn ho kyerԑ-ԑ ᴐhene, srԑ-e sԑ na

come-defend-PAST 3PL self STEM-PAST king, beg-PAST COMP PART

wᴐ-ø-dwene sԑ asotwe kakra a wᴐ-de re-ma

3PL-STAT-think COMP punishment little REL 3PL-take PROG-give

mmerante no bԑ-ma wᴐn ani a-ba fam kakra.

gentlemen DEF FUT-CAUS 3PL.POSS eye CONS-come down little

‘The white men sent a delegation to Nyanewase to defend them and to

plead with the King that, they thought the little punishment given to the

gentlemen will make them a little sober.’

Direct performative use of the form is the default in all epistemic mental state

predicates in some languages (see Nuyts ibid.), but one remarkable observation is

that medwene sɛ ‘I think that’ is not attested in our current corpus, although it is

possible in the language. This absence may be due to the sources used for the

corpus. However, the expression M’adwene kyerԑ me sԑ in (8) and (9) means the

same thing, and as such represents the performative use of the form in these two

utterances.

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8. M’adwene kyerԑ me sԑ, yesi yԑn bo na yԑde nnam kᴐ Ɔmanhene anim, de

mfomso a ᴐyԑ no si n’anim pen a, ebia obehu ne mfomso, anu ne ho na

wasakra. (NANA AK)

M’adwene kyerԑ me sԑ, ye-si yԑn bo

1SG.POSS’mind show 1SG COMP 1SG-hard 1PL.POSS chest

na yԑ-de nnam kᴐ Ɔmanhene anim,

CONJ 1PL-take bold go chief face,

de mfomso a ᴐ-ø-yԑ no si n’anim

take mistakes REL 3SG-HAB-do DET put 3SG.POSS’face

pen a, ebia o-be-hu ne mfomso,

EMPH CM maybe 3SG-FUT-see 3SG.POSS mistakes

a-nu ne ho na w-a-sakra.

CONS-regret 3SG STEM CONJ 3SG-CONS-change

‘I think that when we muster courage and go boldly to the chief, and lay

his mistakes bare to him, maybe he will realize his mistakes, regret and

turn away from them.’ (to me)

9. M’adwene kyerԑ me sԑ, yԑreyԑ ayԑ mfomso kԑse. Nsԑm akԑse a aba yԑn

anim pԑn no, ԑnyԑ bi ni koraa. (NANA AK)

M’adwene kyerԑ me sԑ, yԑ-re-yԑ a-yԑ

1SG.POSS’mind show 1SG COMP 1PL-PROG-do CONS-do

mfomso kԑse. Nsԑm akԑse a a-ba

mistake big issues big REL PERF-come

yԑn anim pԑn no, ɛ-n-yԑ bi ni koraa.

1PL.POSS face before DET 3SG-NEG-be some this at.all

‘I think that we are about to make a big mistake. The bigger issues we

have handled here cannot be compared to this one at all.’

Dwene as an epistemic form is not often used in negation. The only one we came

across in our corpus is in (10) below. As it will be apparent in the other forms to

be exemplified in the subsequent sections, the negative of gye di (nnye nni) or some

other forms are used to indicate the speakers’ negative evaluation of the form

‘think’.


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10. Ɔwᴐ dԑ hom yԑ edwuma, na mbom akrakyedwuma dze monndwen dԑ oye

biara. (ƆBRA FA)

Ɔwᴐ dԑ hom yԑ edwuma, na mbom

it has to be COMP 2PL do work CONJ EMPH

akrakyedwuma dze mo-ø-nn-dwen

gentlemen.job EMPH 1SG-STAT-NEG-think

dԑ o-ye biara.

COMP 3SG-be.good any

‘You have to work, but as for white-collar job, I do not think it is a good

option.’

6.2.2 The mental state predicate Gye di

In the non-qualificational use, the mental state predicate Gye di means ‘to believe’

in something or someone as exemplified in (11 & 12).

11. Wɔgye hɔn anyame no dzi papa no ara. (OBS FA)

Wɔ-gye hɔn anyame no dzi papa no ara.

2PL-believe 2PL.POSS gods DEF STEM well PART EMPH.

‘They believe in their gods so much.’

12. Nsɛm a woka kyerɛɛ me no megye ne nyinaa di. (CONS AS)

Nsɛm a wo-ka kyerɛ-ɛ me no

story REL 2SG-tell STEM-PAST 1SG DEF

me-gye ne nyinaa di.

1SG-believe 3SG all STEM.

‘I believe in all that you told me.’

Since the form occurs as a multi-word verb, it is normally used in a discontinuous

way whereby the object believed in is inserted between ‘gye and di’. In its

evaluative use, however, gye and di occur following each other directly. Gye di

occurred in three interrogative sentences in our data as exemplified in (13), (14)

and (15).

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13. Na anka ɛhᴐ na mewᴐ. Wugye di sɛ dɛn nti na masan abɛtena akuraa?

(BRA AK)

Na anka ɛhᴐ na me-ø-wᴐ. Wu-gye di sɛ

PART IRR there EMPH 1SG-STAT-be 2SG-believe STEM COMP

dɛn nti na m-a-san a-bɛ-tena akuraa?

what because EMPH 1SG-PERF-return PERF-come-sit village?

‘That is where I used to live. What do you think is the reason why I have

returned to live in the village?

14. Sɛ ɛnyɛ wᴐn adaworoma na wᴐbᴐ mo ho ban a anka mugye di sɛ mote ase

besi nnɛ? (ϽKR AK)

Sɛ ɛ-n-yɛ wᴐn adaworoma na wᴐ-ø-bᴐ

CM 3SG-NEG-be their kindness CONJ 3PL-HAB-protect

mo ho ban a anka

2PL STEM STEM CM would have

mu-gye di sɛ mo-ø-te ase besi nnɛ?

2PL-believe STEM COMP 2PL-STAT-live STEM till today?

‘Had it not been by their kind protection over you, do you think you

would have been alive until today?’

15. Wonnye nni sε wo yere no awoᴐ no, ho daeε na wosoeε? (ETI AS)

Wo-ø-n-nye n-ni sε wo yere no

2SG-STAT-NEG-believe NEG-STEM COM 2SG.POSS wife DEF

awoᴐ no, ho daeε na wo-so-eε?

Delivery DEF on dream EMPH 2SG-STEM-PAST?

‘Don’t you think it is your wife’s delivery you dreamt about?’

It is observed that in these interrogative sentences, gye di is translated as ‘think’

although one can perfectly insert ‘believe’ in (15) without changing the meaning.

In (13) and (14), it actually means ‘what is your opinion’ and ‘what do you think’

respectively, thus expressing a descriptive epistemic use.

The speaker in (15) has made his own inference from what the listener has

previously told him about, that is, his consultation with an herbalist for his wife to

conceive. His dream about the said herbalist and his wife’s delivery, therefore,

made the speaker think that the proposition in the utterance is possible. Hence, he

enquires from the listener whether he does not have the same conjecture. The form


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is not evaluating the state of affairs but it is only used to ask the listener to

(dis)confirm it.

Contextually, the Akan epistemic marker gye di could have ambiguous meanings

because in one context it means ‘believe’ and in another ‘think’.

16. Me-gye di sɛ wo-a-pra dan mu ha a-ma me. (Agye AS)

Me-ø-gye ø-di sɛ wo-a-pra

1SG-STAT-believe STAT-STEM COMP 2SG-PERF-sweep

dan mu ha a-ma me.

room in here PERF-give me.

‘I believe/think that you have swept this room for me.’

17. Megye di sε osuo no rentᴐ. (Agyekum 2002:133)

Me-ø-gye ø-di sε osuo no re-n-tᴐ.

1SG-STAT-belive STAT-STEM COMP rain DET FUT-NEG-STEM

‘I believe/think that the rain will not fall.’ (There is the chance that the

rain will not fall).

18. Megye di sε Kwame baeε. (Agyekum 2002:133 AS)

Me-ø-gye ø-di sε Kwame ba-eε.

1SG-STAT-believe STAT-STEM COMP Kwame come-PAST

‘I believe/think that Kwame came.’

In (16), if the sweeper told the speaker that s/he has swept the room, the speaker’s

assessment with gye di will mean ‘to believe’, which could mean ‘I accept the

information that’ and then this is the literal mental state meaning of the verb. If on

the other hand the speaker saw that his/her room was cleaner than how it was before

he left, then his assessment is based on his own observation, hence his assessment

with the form will mean ‘to think’ (it is likely that you have swept the room). (17)

may be translated as ‘to believe’, if someone asserts the proposition that ‘it will not

rain’, and the speaker is confident that the state of affairs can occur. (18) could also

express the speaker’s high level of certainty based on what someone has said, in

which case, ‘believe’ is the appropriate form to use. His observation of the clearing

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of the clouds or other available evidence in (17) and observable evidence at his

disposal in (18) will permit him to use ‘think’ as the obvious form to assess his

epistemic likelihood instead of ‘believe’.

Taking the context and pragmatics into consideration, (19) is understood as the

speaker’s inference, and as such we present only the purported form in the

translation. All the other examples below will also be handled in the same fashion,

that is, we will present only the right form in the translation.

19. Megye dzi dɛ obiara a ᴐwᴐ ha no n’enyi aber papaapa, osiandɛ yenngyina

yie koraa. (EWU FA)

Me-ø-gye ø-dzi dɛ obiara a ᴐ-wᴐ ha

1SG-STAT-believe STAT-STEM COMP everybody REL 3SG-be here

no n’-enyi a-ber papaapa, osiandɛ

DET 3SG-serious PERF-STEM well because

yen-ø-n-gyina yie koraa.

1PL-STAT-NEG-living STEM at all.

‘I am certain that everyone here is very serious, because we are not living

well at all.’

In (20), the speaker uses the form descriptively, but from the writer’s view, it is

evaluating the epistemic certainty based on his own observation, knowledge or

some kind of evidence.

20. Ͻkyerɛwfo no gye di sɛ nhoma yi ho bɛyɛ nnipa bebree anigye ama wᴐapɛ

Twi nhoma kan. (AKU AK)

Ͻkyerɛwfo no ø-gye di sɛ nhoma yi

writer DEF STAT-believe STEM COMP book DEM

ho bɛ-yɛ nnipa bebree anigye

self FUT-be people many happy

a-ma wᴐ-a-pɛ Twi nhoma ø-kan.

CONS-CAUS 3PL-CONS-like Twi book INF-read

‘The writer is certain that this book will excite lots of people and it will

make them like to read Twi books.’


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The negative form of gye di (nnye nni) is used when the speaker does not believe

or does not think the proposition in the complement clause can occur. As we noted

with dwene above, the negative form of this mental state predicate is often used to

indicate the negative form of dwene.

Depending on the type of utterance, the negative of the form may be used to

indicate a rather ‘quite high certainty that not’ or uncertainty. In (23) and (24) for

instance, speakers use of the negative form of gye di to express their high epistemic

certainty that the state of affairs will not occur.

21. Nanso mennye nni sε yadeε yei bεtumi aku no. (ETI AS)

Nanso me-ø-n-nye ø-n-ni sε yadeε

but 1SG-STAT-NEG-believe STAT-NEG-STEM COMP sickness

yei bε-tumi a-ku no.

DEF FUT-can CONS-kill 2SG

‘But I don’t think this sickness can kill her.’

22. Seseiara dze menngye minndzi dԑ asopitsi edur botum ayԑ ho hwee.

(ABO FA)

Seseiara dze me-ø-nn-gye mi-ø-nn-dzi

now EMPH 1SG-STAT-NEG-believe 1SG-STAT-NEG-STEM

dԑ asopitsi edur bo-tum a-yԑ ho hwee.

COMP hospital drug FUT-can CONS-do on nothing

‘At the moment, I don’t think that the hospital drugs can do anything

about it.’

In the two utterances below, the speaker is expressing his high epistemic certainty

by the use of ‘don’t think’ because the evaluation is based on his own background

knowledge.

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23. Me de, minnye nni sε Barima ᴐfεe ho wᴐ asεm bi. (NANA AK)

Me de, mi-ø-n-nye ø-n-ni

1SG EMPH 1SG-STAT-NEG-believe STAT-NEG-STEM

sε Barima Ɔfεe ho wᴐ asεm bi.

COMP Barima Ɔfɛe on be issue any.

‘As for me, I don’t think there is anything wrong with Barima Ɔfɛe.’

24. Me de, minnye nni sε wobetumi de wᴐn nsa aka ᴐsafohene da.

(NANA AK)

Me de, mi-ø-n-nye ø-n-ni sε

1SG EMPH, 1SG-STAT-NEG-believe STAT-NEG-STEM COMP

wo-be-tumi de wᴐn nsa a-ka ᴐsafohene da.

3PL-FUT-can take 3PL.POSS hand CONS-touch warrior ever.

‘As for me, I don’t think they can ever lay hands on such a warrior.’

The speaker’s use of me de ‘as for me’ at the beginning of each of his utterances

indicates his purely personal evaluation and it goes a long way to strengthen his

level of high certainty that the state of affairs cannot occur (see Nuyts’ 2001

description of subjectivity)

6.2.3 The mental state predicate Susuw

Susuw is another mental state predicate used evaluatively to assess the epistemic

(un)certainty in a state of affairs where the agent of the verb makes a conjecture

with the proposition in the lower clause. In its non-evaluative use, however, the

form could mean ‘to think’, which indicates that the agent is engaged in a mental

process of thinking about an issue or ‘discussing’ an issue with somebody etc.

These two meanings may not be considered obvious at a first glance due to its

divergent implications. Whereas ‘to think’ is a mental state predicate, ‘to discuss’

is a communication verb but that is how the form is used in the language. Of course,

when people are discussing an issue, they are brainstorming, and as such, thinking


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about the issue. The English word ‘deliberate’ subsumes these rather divergent

verb forms into its meaning as well.

We present two of the non-evaluative uses of the form in (25) and (26) below.

25. Mesusuu m’asɛm no ho kyerɛɛ no. (OBS AS)

Me-susu-u m’-asɛm no ho

1SG-discuss-PAST 1SG.POSS’-issue DEF on

kyerɛ-ɛ no.

show-PAST 2SG

‘I discussed my issue with him.’

26. Ɔboaa hɔn paa, naaso hɔn dze, wosusuw no ho bɔn. (OBS FA)

Ɔ-boa-a hɔn paa, naaso hɔn dze,

3SG-help-PAST 3PL well CONJ 3PL EMPH

wo-susu-w no ho bɔn.

3PL-think-PAST 3SG self evil.

‘S/he helped them so much, but as for them, they thought evil about

him/her.’

Very few instances of ‘performative’ (1SG present tense) use of the form are

recorded in our corpus. This could be expected considering the type of sources used

for our corpus (written texts, in which writers might have taken their time to

reword, rethink or just report on other people’s ideas). The few we had occurred in

speeches as seen in (27) and (28).

27. Metie maame no nsɛnka no yie a mesusu sɛ krakye yi ara na ɔkum ɔkra

no. (OBS AS)

Me-ø-tie maame no nsɛnka no yie a

1SG-HAB-listern woman DEF story DET well SUB

me-ø-susu sɛ krakye yi ara na

1SG-STAT-think COMP gentleman DEF EMPH EMPH

ɔ-ku-u ɔkra no.

3SG-kill-PAST cat DEF

‘When I listen to the woman’s story, I think it is this particular gentleman

who killed the cat.’

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28. Ame dze mususuw dɛ, dɛ ma nsu no dze no kɔr nnansa ne n’ekyir a

yennhuu no yi dze weewu. (RADIO FA)

Ame dze mu-ø-susuw dɛ, dɛ.ma nsu no

1SG FOC 1SG-STAT-think COMP how water DET

dze no kɔ-r nnansa ne n’-ekyir a

take 3SG go-PAST three.days CONJ over REL

ye-nn-hu-u no yi dze o-e-wu.

1PL-NEG-see-PERF 3SG DET EMPH 2SG-PERF-die.

‘As for me, I think that once he has been drowned for three or more days

without being found, he is dead.’

All these performative instances indicate the speakers’ disposition and their

evaluation of the states of affairs at the moment of speaking, hence, the relevance

of the evaluations persists. All the utterances indicate the likely occurrences of the

states of affairs.

Examples in (29), (30) and (31) also contain the 1SG/PL speakers but the time of

evaluation (reporting on past evaluations) make them ‘descriptive’ and hence the

relevance of the evaluation of the state of affairs may or may not be viable at the

time of speaking (see Nuyts 2001:129).

Note that although the utterances in (29) and (30) do not have the past morpheme

attached to the epistemic forms in the main clauses, their subordinate clauses carry

the tense marking (cf § 3.6.2.2.3). In (29) the subordinate clause is not given but

(30) has its subordinate clause preceding it. In (31), the form itself has the past

marker.

29. Na me mpo mesusu sε gyama ᴐfiri Nsuta. (ETI AS)

Na me mpo me-ø-susu sε

PART 1SG EMPH 1SG-STAT-think COMP

gyama ᴐ-ø-firi Nsuta.

maybe 3SG-STAT-hail.from Nsuta

‘I even thought that perhaps she hails from Nsuta.’


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30. Saa berε no a na yεn ani mmueiε no, na yεsusu sε gyama ᴐwᴐ aduro a ᴐde

gye mmaa. (ETI AS)

Saa berε no a na yεn ani

DEM time DET REL PART 3PL.POSS eye

m-mue-eε no, na yε-ø-susu sε

NEG-open-PERF DET PART 1PL-STAT-think COMP

gyama ᴐ-ø-wᴐ aduro a ᴐ-de gye mmaa.

perhaps 3SG-STAT-have charm REL 3SG-use take lashes

‘At the time when we were naïve, we thought that perhaps he had some

charms which helped him to take lashes without feeling it.’

In (29) and (30), the use of two epistemic forms in the utterances are both

descriptive. The speakers’ real evaluation of the state of affairs at the point of

evaluation was gyama in the lower clause. Susuw in the main clauses reconfirms

the likelihood judgment the speakers used to hold.

31. Na Yacob bua see Laban sɛ: Misuroe, efisɛ misusuwii sɛ wubegye wo

mmabea afi me nsam.(Genesis 31:31 AK)

Na Yacob bua-ø se-e Laban sɛ: Mi-suro-e,

CONJ Jacob answer-PAST tell-PAST Laban COMP 1SG-fear-PAST

efisɛ mi-susuwi-i sɛ wu-be-gye wo

because 1SG-think-PAST COMP 2SG-FUT-take 2SG.POSS

mmabea a-fi me nsam.

daughters CONS-from 1SG.POSS hands

‘Jacob answered Laban, "I was afraid, because I thought you would take

your daughters away from me by force.”’ (NIV)

The speaker’s use of the past tense in (31) indicates that his use of the epistemic

form is descriptive. Here, the form scopes over his assertive view contained in the

lower clause and he presents that view as an issue which is no more significant in

the current situation.

Other descriptive evaluations involving 2nd and 3rd persons are presented in the

examples below. In these sentences, speakers are presenting other people’s

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assessment at a point in time. The speaker in (32) enquires from his interlocutor

what his epistemic evaluation of the state of affairs is.

32. Kofi, asɛm yi wususuw sɛ ɛbɛyɛ ɔhene dɛ? (FORO AK)

Kofi, asɛm yi wu-ø-susuw sɛ

Kofi, issue DET 2SG-STAT-think COMP

ɛ-bɛ-yɛ ɔhene dɛ?

3SG-FUT-glad king STEM

‘Kofi, do you think that the king will be glad about this issue?

The 3rd person singular and plural use in (33) and (34), and their respective past

and present usage of the form, indicate that the epistemic assessment was/is held

by the subjects at the point of assessment. However, in the current speakers’ views

(as presented in the utterances), they are descriptive. They are like the 1st person

descriptive where we cannot determine whether the previous assessor’s evaluation

has current significance.

33. Nnipa pii susuw sԑ onipa wu a, ᴐsan ba ma wᴐwo no bio ma ᴐbԑtena

wiase. (ƆKR AK)

Nnipa pii ø-susuw sԑ onipa wu a, ᴐ-ø-san ba

people many STAT-think COMP person die CM 3SG-HAB-return come

ma wᴐ-ø-wo no bio ma ᴐ-ø-bԑ-tena wiase.

for 3PL-HAB-born 3SG again for 3SG-HAB-come-live world.

‘Many people think that when a person dies, he comes back for him to be

reborn to live again in the world.’


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34. Ɔsebᴐ susuu sԑ ᴐbԑtumi akorᴐkorᴐ wᴐn ama wᴐasane aba biem enti ᴐfrԑԑ

wᴐn sԑ wᴐnsane mmra mmԑgye sika ne ayԑyԑdeԑ nanso wᴐansane amma.

(ASI 2 AS)

Ɔsebᴐ susu-u sԑ ᴐ-bԑ-tumi a-korᴐkorᴐ wᴐn a-ma

tiger think-PAST COMP 3SG-FUT-can CONS-pamper 3PL CONS-CAUS

wᴐ-a-sane a-ba biem enti ᴐ-frԑ-ԑ wᴐn sԑ

3PL-CONS-return CONS-come again so 3SG-call-PAST 3PL COMP

wᴐ-n-sane m-mra m-mԑ-gye sika

3PL-IMP-return IMP-come IMP-come-take money

ne ayԑyԑdeԑ nanso wᴐ-a-n-sane a-m-ma.

CONJ presents CONJ 3PL-PAST-NEG-return PAST-NEG-come.

‘Tiger thought that he could pamper them to return so he called them that

they should come back for money and presents but they did not.’

The negative form of this mental predicate exemplified below indicates the

assessors’ doubt or uncertainty.

(35) demonstrates a 1st person descriptive assessment in which the speaker

indicates his past and negative evaluation of the form, whereas (36) expresses a 3rd

person assessor’s past and his negative evaluation of the same form.

35. Na Israel ka kyerɛɛ Yosef sɛ: Mansusu sɛ mεhunu w’anim, na hwɛ,

Onyankopɔn ama mahunu wo mma nso. (Gen. 48:11 AS)

Na Israel ka-ø kyerɛ-ɛ Yosef sɛ: M-a-n-susuw

CONJ Israel tell-PAST STEM-PAST Joseph COMP 1SG-PAST-NEG-think

sɛ m-e-hu w’anim, na hwɛ, Onyankopɔn

COMP 1SG-FUT-see 2SG.POSS’face CONJ look God

a-ma m-a-hu wo mma nso.

PERF-CAUS 1SG-PERF-see 2SG.POSS children also.

‘And Israel said to Joseph, “I did not think I will see your face again, but

now God has allowed me to see your children too.”’ (free translation)

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36. Afei obisaa no faako a ᴐte. Akokᴐba ansusuw sԑ ᴐkraman no wᴐ ne ho

adwemmᴐne bi nti ᴐkyerԑԑ no ne fi. (MWA AK)

Afei o-bisa-a no faako a ᴐ-ø-te. Akokᴐba

Then 2SG-ask-PAST 3SG where REL 3SG-STAT-live chick

a-n-susuw sԑ ᴐkraman no ø-wᴐ ne ho

PAST-NEG-think COMP dog DEF STAT-have 3SG self

adwemmᴐne bi nti ᴐ-kyerԑ-ԑ no ne fi.

bad.intension any CONJ 3SG-show-PAST 3SG 3SG.POSS house

‘The dog then asked the chick where it lives. The chick did not think that

the dog had any bad intensions about it, so it directed the dog to its

house.’

In examples (37) and (38) the speaker appeals to the listener not to think or suppose

the state of affairs is the case. This s/he does, based on his or her experience that

the listener carries such an assumption.

37. Nsusu sԑ wagya me hᴐ ama adeԑ ayԑ me, Kontoponi. (ANW AS)

N-ø-susu sԑ w-a-gya me hᴐ a-ma

NEG-HAB-think COMP 2SG-PERF-leave 1SG there CONS-CAUS

adeԑ a-yԑ me, Kontoponi.

something CONS-do 1SG perfidious.

‘Do not think that you have left me to become miserable, you perfidious!’

38. Nsusu sԑ woabᴐ me ko a, meredi awerԑhoᴐ, Kontoponi. (ANW AS)

N-ø-susu sԑ wo-a-bᴐ me ko a,

NEG-STAT-think COMP 2SG-PERF-made 1SG vagrant CM

me-re-di awerԑhoᴐ, Kontoponi.

1SG-PROG-become sad STEM perfidious

‘Do not think that if you have made me a vagrant, I am grieving, you

perfidious!’

N-susu in these utterances may or may not be the true evaluation of the listener. In

any case, it has been used descriptively, and thus, compelling the listener to

abandon that idea if that is what he holds about the state of affairs.


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6.2.4 The Verbal construction Ɛyε me sɛ

Ɛyε me sɛ ‘to think/to suppose’ is a verbal construction which expresses the

likelihood of states of affairs in complement clauses. Comparatively, this

construction has more performative instances than the previous forms whose

performative uses are rare. This must not come as a surprise because this is a verbal

construction involving the 1st person pronoun and as such its expression of

performative use is in order. As was indicated in (§ 3.5) the 1st person pronoun in

this construction can be changed to the other personal pronouns to reflect the one

assessing the epistemic situation, though.

39. Ɛyε me sε dᴐm no na εreba no. (ƆSƐ AK)

Ɛyε me sε dᴐm no na ε-re-ba no.

1SG-STAT-think crowd DEF EMPH 3PL-PROG-come PART.

‘I think it is the crowd which is coming.’

40. M'agyanom ne me nanom, momma yensi yεn adwene pi, na εyε me sε

twe-ma-mentwe no reyε adᴐᴐso dodo. (NANA AK)

M'agyanom ne me nanom, mo-m-ma

1SG.POSS’fathers and 1SG.POSS mothers 2PL-IMP-CAUS

ye-n-si yεn adwene pi, na εyε me sε

1PL-IMP-decide 1PL.POSS STEM STEM CONJ 1SG-STAT-think

twe-ma-mentwe no re-yε a-dᴐᴐso dodo.

dragging DET PROG-become CONS-plenty too.much

‘My elders, let us make a firm decision, because I think the dragging is

becoming too much.’

In (41), one of the interlocutors had told the others that he is not good in drinking

and so the little alcohol he had taken was already taking over him. The current

speaker, after observing the behaviour of the former speaker, presents his

assessment that what the former speaker told them may be true, and so he has to

be left alone.

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41. Kweku, εyε me sε ᴐreyε aboro ampa, na ma ᴐnnyae. (ETI AS)

Kwaku, εyε me sε ᴐ-re-yε

Kwaku 1SG-STAT-think 3SG-PROG-become

a-boro ampa, na ma ᴐ-n-nyae.

CONS-drunk true CONJ CAUS 3SG-IMP-stop.

‘Kwaku, I think he is really getting drunk so let him stop drinking.’

A similar phenomenon is presented here in (42), where the speaker agrees with

what his interlocutor had said in the first clause (that his wife likes rivalry). In the

subsequent proposition, he uses the form to make his own assessment that it is

possible all other women like rivalry.

42. Ɛwom, Adwoa pε koratwe deε, nanso εyε me sε ᴐbaa biara te saa.

(ETI AS)

Ɛwom, Adwoa pε koratwe deε,

true Adwoa like rivalry though,

nanso εyε me sε ᴐbaa biara ø-te saa.

CONJ 1SG-STAT-think female every STAT-be same

‘Adwoa likes rivalry though, but I suppose it is the same with every

woman.’

This verbal construction does not combine with negation, but it can be used to

evaluate negative state of affairs. (43) and (44) are examples.

43. Yaw, εyε me sε merentumi ntena Nkran ha bio. (BRA AK)

Yaw, εyε me sε me-re-n-tumi

Yaw 1SG-STAT-think 1SG-FUT-NEG-can

ø-n-tena Nkran ha bio.

FUT-NEG-live Accra here again

‘Yaw, I think I cannot (I don’t think I can) live in Accra anymore.’


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44. M'agyanom ne me nanom, εyε me sε εnyε fε sε obiara bεba ha abεhwε

ᴐhene adagyaw mu saa. (ƆSƐ AK)

M'-agyanom ne me nanom, ɛyɛ me sɛ

1SG.POSS-fathers CONJ 1SG.POSS mothers 1SG-STAT-think

ε-ø-n-yε fε sε obiara bε-ba

3SG-STAT-NEG-be nice COMP everyone FUT-come

ha a-bε-hwε ᴐhene adagyaw mu saa.

here CONS-come-look king.POSS nakedness in like.that

‘My elders, I think it is not nice/proper (I don’t think it is nice/proper) for

everyone to come here and look at the nakedness of the King.’

The descriptive use of the construction is illustrated in the observed and

constructed examples in (45) and (46) below.

45. Ɛyɛ wo sɛ wobɛtumi asoa. (CONS AS)

Ɛyɛ wo sɛ wo-bɛ-tumi a-soa.

2SG-STAT-think 2SG-FUT-can CONS-carry.

‘You think that you can carry it.’

46. Ɛyɛ no sɛ ɔwɔ sika sen obiara. (OBS AK)

Ɛyɛ no sɛ ɔ-ø-wɔ sika sen obiara.

3SG-STAT-think 3SG-STAT-have money pass everyone.

‘S/he thinks s/he has more money than everyone.’

The construction has been used descriptively in these utterances to indicate that the

speakers present the other people’s evaluation of the state of affairs and not their

own. Their utterances are only assertions. In (47), the speaker begins by presenting

his evidence on which his assertion is based.

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47. Sɛ wotwa wo ho dendeenden na wogyina a, ɛbɛyɛ wo sɛ asase ne nneɛma

a ɛwɔ hɔ nyinaa retwa wɔn ho. (CONS AS)

Sɛ wo-twa wo ho dendeenden na wo-gyina a,

CM 2SG-whirl 2SG.POSS self hard CONJ 2SG-stop CM

ɛ-bɛ-yɛ wo sɛ asase ne nneɛma a ɛ-wɔ hɔ

3SG-may-think 2SG COMP land CONJ things REL 3PL-be there

nyinaa re-twa wɔn ho.

all PROG-whirl 3PL.POSS self.

‘When you whirl for some time and you stop, you may think the earth and

everything around you is turning around.’

This construction also occurs with the past tense as in (48).

48. Ɔyɛɛ hɔn dɛ wobotum eguar etwa asu no. (OBS)

Ɔ-yɛ-ɛ hɔn dɛ wo-bo-tum

3SG-do-PAST 3PL COMP 3PL-FUT-can

e-guar e-twa asu no.

CONS-swim CONS-cross river DEF.

‘They thought they could swim across the river.’

6.2.5 The Verbal Construction- Fa no sε

Two translations are possible for this verbal construction. In the first instance it

means ‘to imagine’ or ‘to feign’, which does not express modality. In the other

instance, it means ‘to suppose’, ‘to assume’ or ‘to think’ that a state of affairs is a

possibility (see 3.5 for its formation). (49) and (50) are examples of its non-modal

use. In these instances, the speakers are only inviting the listeners to imagine that

the states of affairs were true, although both parties know it is not true. The

construction appears mostly in conversations where listeners are implored to

assume or imagine they were something/somebody else.


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49. Fa no sɛ wo na obi reyɛ wo saa, ɛdeɛn na anka wobɛyɛ? (OBS AS)

ø-fa no sɛ wo na obi re-yɛ

IMP-take it COMP you EMPH someone PROG-do

wo saa, ɛdeɛn na anka wo-bɛ-yɛ?

you that what EMPH would have 2SG-FUT-do

‘Supposing you were the one someone is maltreating, what would you

do?’

50. Yɛmfa no sɛ me na meyɛ ɔhemea wɔ ha. (CONS AK)

Yɛ-m-fa no sɛ me na me-yɛ ɔhemea wɔ ha.

1SG-take 3SG COMP 1SG EMPH 1SG-be queen LOC here

‘Let’s take it that I am the queen here/let’s assume I am the queen here.’

In its epistemic evaluation, the construction expresses possibility in the sense that

the assessor takes the state of affairs to be possible. In the non-modal examples

above, the states of affairs are known to be not true. In its modal uses as in (51-53),

although the speakers are not certain that the states of affairs in view are the case

or not, at least they know it is a possibility in the real world. The proposition in

(51) indicates the possibility that the one who entered the head-teacher’s office was

actually the head-teacher, although any of the teachers could enter the head-

teacher’s office at any given time.

51. Oduu ha no, mefaa no sɛ ɔno mmom ne ɔkyerɛkyerɛfo panyin no. (OBS)

O-du-u ha no, me-fa-a no sɛ

3SG-reach-PAST here DET 1SG-take-PAST it COMP

ɔno mmom ne ɔkyerɛkyerɛfo panyin no.

3SG EMPH be teacher elder DEF

‘When he got here (the head-teacher’s office), I thought/supposed that he

was the head-teacher.’

Speakers in (52) and (53) are not the assessors of the epistemic possibility in the

utterances but they are demonstrating the likely assessment of future assessors. The

future assessment of the said assessors may or may not be the case in real world.

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52. Ekyerԑ suban bᴐn biara a, nkorᴐfo bԑfa no dԑ gyama w’ebusua nyina mbrԑ

wᴐtse ara nye no. (TWER FA)

E-kyerԑ suban bᴐn biara a, nkorᴐfo

2SG-show character bad any CM people

bԑ-fa no dԑ gyama w’-ebusua

FUT-take it COMP probably 2SG.POSS-family

nyina mbrԑ wᴐ-tse ara nye no.

all how 3PL-sit EMPH be that

‘If you demonstrate any kind of misbehaviour, people will suppose/think

that all your family members are probably the same.’

53. Sԑ obi bᴐto hԑn wᴐ nhyiamu yi mu, na ohu dԑ Dwuw na ᴐtse hԑn egua mu

a, ᴐbԑserew hԑn. Ɔbԑfa no dԑ yeridzi agor. (EWU FA)

Sԑ obi bᴐ-to hԑn wᴐ nhyiamu yi mu, na o-hu

CM someone come-meet us be.at meeting DEF in CONJ 3SG-see

dԑ Dwuw na ᴐ-tse hԑn egua mu a,

COMP Louse EMPH 3SG-sit 3PL.POSS chair in CM

ᴐ-bԑ-serew hԑn. Ɔ-bԑ-fa no dԑ ye-ri-dzi agor’.

3SG-FUT-laugh us 3SG-FUT-take DET COMP 1PL-PROG-eat play

‘If someone comes to meet us at this meeting and sees that it is Louse

who is chairing our meeting, he will laugh at us. He will assume/think that

we are playing/joking.’

6.2.6 The Verbal construction Wobɛka sɛ

wobԑka sԑ is another idiomatic verbal construction which expresses epistemic

possibility/likelihood of states of affairs (see § 3.5 for discussion of its formation).

Depending on the context, it can mean ‘may think’, ‘seems’ or ‘appears’. In the

Asante dialect, the construction can be shortened to become asε. In (54), the state

of affairs evaluated is the speaker’s frequent visit to the toilet which is being

compared to someone who has taken a purgative. Thus, looking at the action of

visiting the toilet, one might assume or think that the subject has taken a purgative.


307

54. Mebaa ha foforᴐ no, na εyε den pa ara. Sε medi wᴐn Nkran dᴐkono no a,

mentumi nna. Ɛnkanka wᴐn mako tuntum no, gyae. Medi a, wobεka sε

mafa afaseduro. (ETI AS)

Me-ba-a ha foforᴐ no, na ε-yε den pa.ara. Sε

1SG-come-PAST here new DET PART 3SG-be hard very CM

me-di wᴐn Nkran dᴐkono no a, me-n-tumi n-na.

1SG-eat 3PL.POSS Accra kenkey DEF CM 1SG-NEG-can NEG-sleep

Ɛnkanka wᴐn mako tuntum no, gyae. Me-di a,

especially 3PL.POSS pepper black DEF stop 1SG-eat CM

wobԑka sε m-a-fa afaseduro.

2SG-may-think 1SG-PERF-take purgative

‘When I came here initially, things were very difficult. Whenever I ate

their Ga-kenkey, I was unable to sleep. As for their black-pepper sauce,

stop! Whenever I eat it (and you look at how often I visit the toilet), you

may think I have taken a purgative.’

The epistemic assessments of the states of affairs in (55), (56) and (57) also indicate

the speaker’s uncertainty.

55. Wohwε wᴐn nsa ho mmaa atape a, wobεka sε wᴐahyε da aka wᴐn mpire.

(BRA AK)

Wo-hwε wᴐn nsa ho mmaa atape a,

2SG-look 3PL.POSS hands on cane marks CM

wobεka sε wᴐ-a-hyε da a-ka wᴐn mpire.

2SG-may think 2PL-PERF-intentionally STEM PERF-whip 3PL STEM

‘When you look at the marks on their arms, you may think some people

have intentionally whipped them.’

56. Wohwɛ ewiem a wobεka sε osuo rebεtᴐ (OBS AS)

Wo-hwɛ ewiem a wobεka sε osuo re-bε-tᴐ

3SG-look sky CM 2SG-may think rain PROG-come-fall

‘When you look at the weather you may think it is going to rain.’

57. Ebεka dε oewu. (OBS FA)

Ebεka dε o-e-wu.

2SG-may think 3SG-PERF-die

‘You may think he is dead/he seems/appears dead.’

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In each utterance, the state of affairs may or may not be as it appears. In (57), for

instance, the speaker does not indicate his evidence, although it could be a

perceptual one involving looking at, touching, or listening to the heartbeat of the

person in question etc.

According to the stories from which examples (58) and (59) were extracted, the

speakers were evaluating the state of affairs based on what they were looking at

(we have put those evidences in brackets to enhance meaning).

58. Ne ntoma no nso wobεka sε obi de sekan na atwitwa mu. (MENE AS)

Ne ntoma no nso wobεka sε

2SG.POSS cloth DEF also 2SG-may think

obi de sekan na a-twitwa mu.

someone use knife EMPH PERF-cut in

‘And his cloth too (when you look at how tattered they had become) you

may think someone has used a knife to cut it into pieces.’

59. Ne se a egu n’anom, wobԑka sԑ onnidi so, ne emu gyaw. (FORO AK)

Ne se a e-gu n’-anom, wobԑka sԑ

2SG.POSS teeth REL 3PL-be 2SG.POSS-mouth in 2SG-may think

o-n-nidi so, ne e-mu gyaw.

2SG-NEG-eat on CONJ 3PL-in gab

‘(When you look at) his beautifully patted teeth, you may think he does

not eat with them.’

In (60), the assessment is based on hearing or listening to noises a chief made due

to a painful experience he was going through.


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60. Ɔbᴐ mu na wugyina nohoa a, wobεka sε ᴐdeneho no ara pε na ᴐrebobᴐ

mu. (ƆSƐ AK)

Ɔ-ø-bᴐ mu na wu-gyina nohoa a, wobεka sε

3SG-HAB-shout STEM CONJ 2SG-stand far CM 2SG-may think

ᴐdeneho no ara pε na ᴐ-re-bobᴐ.mu.

lion DET EMPH self CONJ 3SG-PROG-roaring

‘When he shouts and you hear it from afar, you may think it is a real lion

which is roaring.’

The examples that follow are with the shortened form of the construction. (61)

means that the speaker was not sure that she had smaller denominations. When she

started loosening her girdle, she felt some metal objects which could have been

coins, keys or anything. Consequently, she used the form to express the possibility

of her having some of the coins.

61. Ma menhwε. (ɔsane n’abɔsoɔ) Asε mewᴐ nketewa wᴐ hᴐ. Ebi nie.

(ETI AS)

Ma me-n-hwε. Asε me-ø-wᴐ

CAUS 1SG-IMP-look seems 1SG-STAT-have

n-ketewa wᴐ hᴐ. Ebi nie.

PL-small be there. Some this

‘Let me check. (she loosens her girdle) It seems I have smaller

denominations. Here you are.’

In (62), the speaker was not sure it was a knock he heard behind his door. It could

be any noise and that is why he did not assert that someone is knocking at his door.

The use of the form, therefore expresses his epistemic assessment of the state of

affairs.

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62. Araba tie na asε mate sε obi repae agoo. (ETI AS)

Araba ø-tie na asε m-a-te sε

Araba IMP-listen CONJ sounds 1SG-PERF-hear COMP

obi re-pae agoo.

Someone PROG-hit knock.

‘Araba listen, I think I have heard someone knocking at the door.’

(63) and (64) are both expressing the possibility of the states of affairs based on

what the speakers see.

63. Na Anᴐpawi, wonkᴐ na asε deε wonnwareeε yi? (ETI AS)

Na Anᴐpawi, wo-ø-n-kᴐ na asε deε

But Anɔpawi 2SG-FUT-NEG-go CONJ appear like

wo-n-nware-eε yi?

2SG-NEG-bath-PERF DEM?

‘Anɔpawi, wouldn’t you go (to school)? It seems you haven’t washed

down.’

64. Mehu sԑ asԑ asԑm no atᴐ Octavius so: asԑ wafᴐ bi saa. (JUL AS)

Me-ø-hu sԑ asԑ asԑm no a-tᴐ

1SG-PRES-see COMP appears issue DEF PERF-fall

Octavius so: asԑ w-a-fᴐ bi.saa.

Octavius on: seems 2SG-PERF-wet DEM

‘From what I see, I think Octavius is traumatized: he looks abashed.’


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6.2.7 The Verbal construction ɛbԑyԑ sɛ

The construction is used to express epistemic possibility/likelihood. It is one of the

least frequent forms in our data which did not occur in the written corpus. There

was only one occurrence in recorded speech and we have added a few observed

and constructed examples to illustrate its function. Discussion of its formation is

in (§ 3.5). The construction features the prefix bε-’ discussed in Chapter 4 above.

It is discussed here because it forms part of the unsegmentable construction.

The construction εbεyε sε ‘it may be that’, presents a stronger evaluation than bε-

and ebia so that when one says, “Ɛbεyε sε ͻwͻ hͻ”,

65. Ɛbεyε sε ͻwͻ hͻ. (CONS AK/AS)

Ɛbεyε sε ͻ-wͻ hͻ.

it may be that 3SG-be there

‘It may be that he is there.’

one is demonstrating a higher level of possibility than saying, “Ↄbεwͻ hͻ”.

66. Ↄbεwͻ hͻ. (CONS AK/AS)

Ↄ-bε-wͻ hͻ.

3SG-may-be there

‘S/he may be there.’

Speaker A’s utterance in (67), coupled with what B might have seen about the said

man, made him think of the possibility of that man’s insanity. If speaker B knew

of the information provided by speaker C there wouldn’t be the need for him to use

this epistemic construction in his utterance.

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67. A: Akoa no a na ᴐrekyerԑ emumufoᴐ kasa ase wᴐ Mandela ayie no ase

no, yԑse nea na ᴐreka ara ne sԑ, “ԑmo si gya so aka kakra na aben”.

(RADIO AS)

Akoa no a na ᴐ-re-kyerԑ emumufoᴐ

guy DET REL PART 3SG-PROG-explain dumbs

kasa ase wᴐ Mandela ayie no ase no,

language STEM LOC Mandela funeral DEF under DET

yԑ-se nea na ᴐ-re-ka ara ne sԑ,

1PL-say what PART 3SG-PROG-say EMPH be COMP

“ԑmo si gya so a-ka kakra na a-ben”.

‘rice be fire on PERF-remain little CONJ PERF-cook’

‘It was reported that what the gentleman who was doing the sign language

at Mandela’s funeral was saying was, “there is rice on the fire, it will soon

be ready.”’

B: Hahahaha! Saa akoa no ankasa ԑbԑyԑ sԑ ne tiri mu ka no kakra.

Hahahaha! Saa akoa no ankasa ԑ-bԑ-yԑ sԑ

Hahahaha! that guy DEF EMPH 3SG-may-be COMP

ne tiri mu ka no kakra.

3SG.POSS head in prick 3SG little

‘Hahahaha! As for that gentleman it may be that he is a little insane.’

C: O, yԑse ofi psychiatrist hᴐ baeԑ nkyԑree.

O, yԑ-se o-fi psychiatrist hᴐ ba-eԑ n-kyԑ-ree.

O 1PL-say 3SG-leave psychiatrist there come-PAST NEG-long-PAST

‘O, it was reported that he had just returned from the psychiatrist.’

B’s attribution of the loud noise to the possible arrival of Kukua’s suitors in (68)

presents a stronger evaluation. Of course, lots of things could cause the crowd to

make noise, but she evaluated this state of affairs as the most likely occurrence,

hence the use of the form.

68. A: Ebei o! Na dede pii yi so ԑ? (OBS FA)

Ebei o! Na dede pii yi so ԑ?

what! and noise plenty DET also INT?

What! And what is all that noise about?


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B: Ɔbԑyԑ dԑ afei Kukua ne nkorᴐfo no aba.

Ɔ-bԑ-yԑ dԑ afei Kukuwa no nkorᴐfo no a-ba.

3SG-may-be COMP now Kukuwa POSS people DEF PERF-come

‘It may be that Kukuwa’s people (suitors) have finally arrived.’

We observe that the speakers in (69) and (70) are basing their assessment of the

possible occurrence of the state of affairs on what they were observing at the time.

69. Ebesi saa bere yi a onnuu ha yi de ɛbɛyɛ sɛ biribi asiw no kwan.

(CONS. AK )

E-be-si saa bere yi a o-n-nu-u

3SG-come-reach this time DET REL 3SG-NEG-reach-PAST

ha yi de ɛ-bɛ-yɛ sɛ biribi a-siw no kwan.

here DET EMPH 3SG-may-be COMP something PERF-block 3SG road.

‘Up until now that she hasn’t reached here, it may be that something has

prevented her from coming.’

70. Sɛnea akyerɛkyerɛfoɔ yi ani agye yi deɛ ɛbɛyɛ sɛ wɔn ‘alawanse’ no aba.

(OBS. AS)

Sɛnea akyerɛkyerɛfoɔ yi ani a-gye yi deɛ

how teachers DEF eye PERF-get DET EMPH

ɛ-bɛ-yɛ sɛ wɔn ‘alawanse’ no a-ba.

3SG-may-be COMP 3PL.POSS allowance DEF PERF-come.

‘The way these teachers are happy, it may be that their allowances have

been paid.’

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6.3 Indicating Evidentiality with Verbs

The previous section has discussed how verbs and verbal constructions are used to

express modality. Aside the non-modal use of the verbs, all the forms identified

express epistemic modality. We can identify with earlier writers and Aikhenvald

(2004, 2018) and state that Akan has evidential strategies in the form of clauses or

grammaticalized verbal/adjectival constructions (discussed in the previous

chapter). It also has lexical means including verbs of perception and cognition to

express three main modes of evidence as direct, inferred and reported.

In this section, we consider the use of verbs and their expression of evidentiality in

utterances. The verbs ka/se, te, hu and nim are used both as literal and evidential

verbs and they often present the question of which roles they are playing in

sentences, whether evidential or non-evidential. However, literal usage occurs with

‘entities’ while the non-literal ones focus on states of affairs. We must, of course,

point out that with these verbs their occurrences with states of affairs code both

literal and non-literal use depending on how one wants to look at it. Each of these

forms’ function as literal or non-literal is highly contextual, though. Take for

example that someone is falling off the stairs and I witness it. I can say ‘I see him

falling off the stairs.’ The form is used here as an evidential to support our assertion

and could just as well be a report of the observation which is the literal use.

Moreover, if I said, ‘I see him falling off the stairs (everyday)’ or ‘I saw his falling

off the stairs’, then I am presenting both the literal and evidential use of the form

at the same time.

These forms often present only the non-modalized assertions. In most cases where

any of these forms occur in an utterance with an epistemic modal form, the said

utterance is often a reportative one in which the modal evaluation was carried out

by the original speaker of the reported view. In other words, the modal assessment

is someone else’s assessment and not the current speaker’s.


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The data presented in this section are utterances which give the evaluation of states

of affairs, be it modalized or non-modalized, as well as the basis for the evaluation.

The evidential forms normally precede the states of affairs in such utterances. Both

evidence and the state of affairs are presented in one utterance to avoid being asked

the basis for which the said assessment was made.

6.3.1 The Evidential form ka/se and ka kyerε

The verb ka/se ‘to say’ and ka kyerɛ ‘to tell’ are used to communicate both literal

and evidential meanings. (71) and (72) are examples of the literal use.

71. Mekaa meba no ho asɛm kyerɛɛ no. (CONS. FA)

Me-ka-a me-ba no ho asɛm kyerɛ-ɛ no.

1SG-say-PAST 1SG.POSS-child DET self isuue STEM-PAST 3SG

‘I told him/her about my child.’

72. Ka bio. (AK)

ø-Ka bio.

IMP.2SG-say again

‘Say it again.’

Ka kyerɛ is one of the multi-word verb forms. With its literal use, the entity spoken

about is inserted between the two forms before the person to whom it was told is

mentioned. However, when it is used as an evidential form, the two forms follow

each other directly before the state of affairs occurs.

When the form ka/se or ka kyerɛ is used to introduce a complement clause which

is the state of affairs in view, it marks reportative evidentiality, in which case it

means ‘it is said, allegedly, reportedly or according to.’ When se (AS) se (AK/FA)

‘to say’ is used, the complementizer sɛ does not occur.

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In (73), the state of affairs ‘He may come’ is not the current speaker’s own

evaluation of the likelihood that the person spoken about may come. It is only a

reported view of the original speaker of the utterance. He said, in the translation,

is not presenting a communicative use of the verb, but it is used here to indicate

the current speaker’s evidence.

73. Ɔkaa sε ebia ᴐbεba. (CONS AS)

Ɔ-ka-a sε ebia ᴐ-bε-ba.

2SG-say-PAST COMP maybe 2SG-FUT-come

‘He said he may come.’

(74) presents a state of affairs which has not been witnessed by the speaker but

has been told by other people. The first part of the utterance, ‘The people told us’

therefore serves as the source of our evidence or basis for which we report the state

of affairs.

74. Nkrɔfo no ka kyerɛɛ yɛn sɛ dua bi abu asiw kwan no. (AK)

Nkrɔfo no ka kyerɛ-ɛ yɛn sɛ

people DEF say STEM-PAST 1PL COMP

dua bi a-bu a-siw kwan no.

tree IND PERF-break CONS-block road DET.

‘The people told us that a certain tree has fallen and blocked the road.’

If on the other hand we say, ‘The people told us about the fallen tree which has

blocked the road’, then the form is only presenting a literal/non-evidential use.

If someone presented the state of affairs in (75), we would expect a positive

occurrence of it due to the confidence residing in the utterance. However, since we

are assessing a future occurrence, we could also expect a threat because the

situation could as well not occur. The moment the speaker indicates his source of

information as the agent’s own utterance, confidence is increased. The whole

utterance could therefore be taken to indicate that ‘He said he would come, so I am


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confident that he comes’ or ‘He said he would come, but he didn’t, as such I am

disappointed in him.’ In this case, the speaker distances himself from taking

responsibility of the SOA.

75. Ɔ-ka-a sε ᴐ-bε-ba. (Boadi 2005:75 AS)

Ɔ-ka-a sε ᴐ-bε-ba.

2SG-say-PAST COMP 2SG-FUT-come

‘He said that he would come.’

The speaker (an animal) in utterance (76) also presents a state of affairs which is

not coming from itself but as a propounded theory by human beings.

76. Adasa ka dɛ ‘Obirekunam wodzi no hyew.’ (EWU FA)

Adasa ka dɛ ‘Obirekunam wo-ø-dzi no hyew.

Humans say COMP dove.meat 3PL-HAB-eat it hot

‘People say that “the dove is eaten when it is hot”.’

In (77), (78) and (79), speakers are presenting the states of affairs as issues coming

from other people. They may be reports, allegations or things which have been

presented by other speakers.

77. Nkrᴐfoᴐ ka sε Ama papa a-ba. (Agyekum, 2002:130)

Nkrᴐfoᴐ ø-ka sε Ama papa a-ba.

People HAB-say COMP Ama.POSS father Perf-come

‘People say/it is alleged that Ama’s father has come.’

78. Yε-a-ka no radio so sε yε-re-bε-to kookoo mu. (Agyekum, 2002:143)

Yε-a-ka no radio so sε yε-re-bε-to kookoo mu.

1PL-PERF-say 3SG radio on COMP 1PL-PROG-come-increase cocoa STEM

‘It has been said/reported on the radio that cocoa price would be

increased.’

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79. Wᴐka sɛ ᴐbosom a da bi na ɛwᴐ Akwamu no po ase fi hᴐ. (FORO AK)

Wᴐ-ø-ka sɛ ᴐbosom a da bi na ɛ-wᴐ

2PL-HAB-say COMP idol REL day DEM PART 3SG-be

Akwamu no po ase fi hᴐ.

Akwamu DET EMPH hail from there

‘It is said/alleged that even the deity which was in Akwamu hails from

there.’

The form se is used in (80) and (81) to indicate what other people have said, i.e.,

the states of affairs here are reported views of the original speakers.

80. Wose, sɛ abayifo no rekᴐ adidi a, ebinom tena apᴐnkᴐ so. (ϽKR AK)

Wo-ø-se, sɛ abayifo no re-kᴐ adidi a, ebinom tena apᴐnkᴐ so.

3PL-HAB-say CM witches DEF PROG-go eat CM some sit horses on.

‘It is said that when witches are going for meetings, some of them ride on

horses.’

81. Ose, nsamanfo no de, wotumi fi asamando ba wiase daa na onipa teasefo

ntumi mfa n’ani nhu wᴐn da. (ϽKR AK)

O-ø-se, n-samanfo no de, wo-tumi fi

3SG-HAB-say ghosts DEF EMPH 3PL-can come.from

asamando ba wiase daa na onipa teasefo

ghost.place STEM earth everyday CONJ human living

n-tumi m-fa n’ani n-hu wᴐn da

NEG-can NEG-take 3SG.POSS’eye NEG-see 3PL never

‘She says that, as for the dead they are able to come back to earth, but

living beings are never able to see them with their naked eyes.’


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6.3.2 The Evidential te

The verb te ‘to hear’ or ‘to acquire information through the ear’ is a perceptual

verb, used literally to indicate that someone hears something. (82) and (83) are

examples.

82. Metee wɔn nkɔmmɔ no. (CONS. AK)

Me-te-e wɔn nkɔmmɔ no.

1SG-hear-PAST 3PL.POSS conversation DET

‘I heard their conversation.’

83. Obiara nte mmofra no dedeyɛ no. (CONS. AS)

Obiara n-te mmofra no dedeyɛ no.

Every one NEG-hear children DEF noise DEF

‘No one hears the children’s noise/children’s disturbances.’

In these literal examples, the subjects are only demonstrating their (non)acquisition

of information.

The form is also used as an evidential verb to indicate the basis for a state of affairs.

The information contained in the state of affairs may be hearsay, in which case the

speaker merely quotes what s/he heard from a previous speaker. The state of affairs

may also be the speaker’s own evaluation if s/he acquired the information or heard

about it by him/herself.

84. Metsee dɛ nna worusu wɔ dan no mu. (CONS. FA)

Me-tse-e dɛ nna wo-ru-su wɔ dan no mu.

1SG-hear-PAST COMP PART 3PL-PROG-cry LOC room DET in

‘I heard that they were crying in the room.’

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The proposition, ‘they were crying in the room’, is the speaker’s non-modalized

evaluation. He indicates his evidence by telling the listener that he heard the crying.

As indicated about the dual function of such forms, the use of the form could as

well be considered as literal.

The rest of the examples are all presenting hearsay states of affairs which are never

the speakers’ own evaluations. Since they were said by people other than the

speakers, such evidentials are replaceable with se ‘to say’ discussed in the previous

section, and vice versa. (85) could then be reproduced with the form se as in (86).

85. Mate sɛ nea worekɔ no mmabaa ano bɔre sen aboa ɔwɔ de. (BRA. AK)

M-a-te sɛ nea wo-re-kᴐ no

1SG-PERF-hear COMP where 2SG-PROG-go DEF

mmabaa ano bᴐre sen aboa ᴐwᴐ de.

ladies mouth poison pass animal snake own

‘I have heard that at the place where you are going, women are more

poisonous than snakes.’

86. Wose nea worekɔ no mmabaa ano bɔre sen aboa ɔwɔ de. (CONS. AK)

Wo-ø-se nea wo-re-kᴐ no

3PL-CONT-say where 2SG-PROG-go DEF



‘It is said that at the place where you are going, women are more

poisonous than snakes.’

The information contained in the complement clause is a hearsay or reportative

state of affairs. Examples (87-89) also present assertive and non-modalized states

of affairs whose evaluations are not the speakers’ but other entities’.


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87. Mate sɛ wɔrebɛgye no awareɛ. Ne papa na wɔretwɛn no. (DUE AS)

M-a-te sԑ wᴐ-re-bԑ-gye no awareԑ.

1SG-PERF-hear COMP 3PL-PROG-come-take 3SG marriage

Ne papa na wᴐ-re-twԑn no.

3SG.POSS father EMPH 3PL-PROG-wait him

‘I have heard that someone is coming to marry her. It is her father they

are waiting for.’

88. Mate sɛ akrɔmfo abɛwia ne nneɛma nyinaa.

(Agyekum, 2002:131)

M-a-te sɛ akrᴐmfoɔ a-bε-wia

1SG-PERF-hear COMP thieves PERF-come-steal

ne nneεma nyinaa.

3SG.POSS things all

‘I have heard that thieves have stolen all his belongings.’

89. Ɛyɛ, obiara nsoo daeɛ nkɔɔ deɛ wɔreku no da. Mate sɛ ɛha yɛ dɛ nti na

maba no. (ETI AS)

Ɛ-yɛ, obiara n-so-o daeɛ n-kᴐ-ᴐ

3SG-good everybody NEG-dream-PERF NEG-go-PERF

deɛ wᴐ-re-ku no da. M-a-te sɛ

where 3PL-PROG-kill 3SG never 1SG-PERF-hear COMP

ɛha yɛ dɛ nti na m-a-ba no.

here be sweet that~is~why EMPH 1SG-PERF-come DET

‘Alright, nobody has ever dreamt of going to a place where he is being

killed. I have heard that this place is exciting and that is why I have

come.’

6.3.3. Hu as an Evidential Marker

The verb hu is ambiguous between the perception verb ‘to see’ and the mental state

verb ‘to realize’. It is used literally to indicate that the speaker sees or realizes

something in the real world before s/he makes any utterance.

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90. Mihuu nnipa bԑyԑ baasia anaa baason sԑ wɔaba wo nkyԑn, na

wᴐakatakata wᴐn anim wᴐ sum no mu. (CONS. AK)

Mi-hu-u nnipa bԑyԑ baasia anaa baason

1SG-see-PAST people about six or seven

sԑ wɔ-a-ba wo nkyԑn, na

COMP 3PL-PERF-come 2SG.POSS self CONJ

wᴐ-a-kata.kata wᴐn anim wᴐ sum no mu.

3PL-PERF-cover 3PL.POSS face in dark DET in

‘I saw about six or seven people who had come to you, and they had

covered their faces in the darkness.’

91. Meehu me gyim. (OBS FA)

Me-e-hu me gyim.

1SG-PERF-see 1SG.POSS folly

‘I have seen/realized my folly.’

(90), which is constructed after example (92), demonstrates the difference between

a literal and evidential use. In (90), the speaker describes an entity s/he saw and in

(91) the speaker realizes something, i.e., ‘his folly’, all of which express the literal

use.

In its evidential use, the marker introduces a complement clause in which the state

of affairs occurs. We distinguish between ‘see’ which utilizes the visual sense to

acquire information, and ‘realize’, which is also acquiring information from

observation or deduction. Since hu ‘to see’, indicates the subject’s personal

experience, its complement is often taken to be reliable or true. However, hu ‘to

realize’ does not often present a strong reliability since it mostly depends on

deductions. Hu ‘to see’, therefore, often moves with non-modalized assertions.

In (92) and (93) the form presents states of affairs witnessed through seeing.

Although it is the same form in (90) and (92), (90) presents a pure perceptual

meaning of the form contextually, but (92) gives both literal and evidential use.


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92. Mihuu sԑ nnipa bԑyԑ baasia anaa baason aba wo nkyԑn, na wᴐakatakata

wᴐn anim wᴐ sum no mu. (JUL AK)

Mi-hu-u sԑ nnipa bԑyԑ baasia anaa baason a-ba

1SG-see-PAST COMP people about six or seven PERF-come

wo nkyԑn, na wᴐ-a-kata.kata wᴐn anim wᴐ sum no mu.

2SG.POSS self CONJ 3PL-PERF-cover 3PL.POSS face in dark DET in

‘I saw that about six or seven people had come to you, and they had

covered their faces in the darkness.’

93. Aber a Ewura Efuwa rokᴐ aprᴐw rekyerεkyerε nkataasia no, ohun dε hᴐn

mu kor mmbaa noho yie dε mbrε nkyε ᴐba a, ᴐyε no. (ABO FA)

Aber a Ewura Efuwa ro-kᴐ aprᴐw re-kyerεkyerε

time REL Ewura Efuwa PROG-go round PROG-teach

nkataasia no, o-hun-ø dε hᴐn mu kor

girls DET 3SG-see-PAST COMP 3PL in one

mm-baa no-ho yie dε mbrε nkyε ᴐ-ba a, ᴐ-yε no.

NEG-open 3SG-self well like how use.to 3SG-come 3SG-do DET.

‘When Ewura Efuwa was going around in the class, she saw that one of

the girls was not as active as she used to be.’

In (94), the speaker uses the form to indicate his evidence for stating the

proposition.

94. Mahunu sɛ apolisifoɔ abɛkyekye mmeranteɛkyekye mmeranteɛ no nyinaa

kɔ. (OBS AS)

M-a-hunu sɛ apolisifoɔ a-bɛ-kye-kye

1SG-PERF-see COMP police PERF-come-DUP-arest

mmeranteɛ no nyinaa ø-kɔ.

men DEF all CONS-go.

‘I have seen that the police has come to arrest all those men.’

In (95 -98), observation and/or deduction is being applied to arrive at the evidential

basis of realization. As we have already indicated that ‘realization’ evidence is able

to have scope over epistemically modalized utterances, (95) has been constructed

after (96) to indicate this phenomenon. If ‘to see’ were used, there wouldn’t be any

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need for a possibility marker, but since ‘realization’ is the meaning invoked here,

it could contain a possibility or probability marker.

95. Agyinamoa no tee eyi no, ᴐserewee na ohui sԑ gyama nkura mma no

nnim no. (CONS. AK)

Agyinamoa no te-e eyi no, ᴐ-serew-ee na

cat DEF hear-PAST this DET 3SG-laugh-PAST CONJ

o-hu-i sԑ gyama nkura mma no n-nim no.

3SG-see-PAST COMP maybe mice children DEF NEG-know 3SG

‘When the cat heard this, it laughed because it realized that maybe the

little mice did not know it/it is possible the little mice did not know it.’

96. Agyinamoa no tee eyi no, ᴐserewee na ohui sԑ nkura mma no nnim no.

(NKU AK)

Agyinamoa no te-e eyi no, ᴐ-serew-ee

cat DEF hear-PAST this DET 3SG-laugh-PAST

na o-hu-i sԑ nkura mma no n-nim no.

CONJ 3SG-see-PAST COMP mice children DEF NEG-know 3SG

‘When the cat heard this, it laughed because it realized that the little

mice did not know it.’

Further examples with ‘realization’ are those in (97) and (98).

97. Muhu dԑ Dwuw no dᴐm na n’akadofo hᴐn ase rutu. (EWU FA)

Mu-hu dԑ Dwuw no dᴐm na

1SG-see COMP louse 3SG.POSS people CONJ

n’-akadofo hᴐn ase ru-tu.

3PL.POSS-family 3PL.POSS under PROG-extinct

‘It is apparent that louse and its family are suffering extinction.’


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98. Mara muhu dε ᴐyε hᴐn ehi dε oenya obi ma ᴐawar no. (ABO FA)

M-ara mu-hu dε ᴐ-yε hᴐn ehi dε

1SG-EMPH 1SG-see COMP 3SG-do 3PL jealous COMP

o-e-nya obi ma ᴐ-a-war no.

3SG-PERF-get someone give 3SG-PERF-marry 3SG.

‘I myself, it is apparent to me that they are jealous of her marriage.’

6.3.4. The Evidential Form nim

Nim ‘to know/to be aware of’ is one of the mental state verbs used both literally

and non-literally. Literally, it could either mean having knowledge about

someone/something as in (99) or possessing a potential to do something accurately

as exemplified in (100).

99. Yenim ɔkyerɛkyerɛni no a ɔbaa ha no. (AK)

Ye-ø-nim ɔkyerɛkyerɛni

1PL-STAT-know teacher

no a ɔ-ba-a ha no.

DEF REL 3SG-come-PAST here DET

‘We know the teacher who came here.’

This could be interpreted as we know the teacher because he teaches us, we are

familiar/friendly with him/her or we have even read/heard about him/her.

In (100), the form is used to indicate the subject’s inherent ability or competence

in the act of dancing.

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100. Kofi nim/nnim asaw. (AK)

Kofi ø-nim/ø-nnim asaw.

Kofi STAT-know/STAT-NEG-know dancing

‘Kofi knows /does not know how to dance (Kofi is able to dance

well/doesn’t dance well).’

In its non-literal use, the form has been one of the few forms discussed under

epistemic modality and/or evidentiality, which not many people keep separate (see

Nuyts 2001:111). Probably because of how the form demonstrates itself in certain

languages, it has been treated as an epistemic modal form to indicate certainty.

Nuyts (2001: 111) for instance, describes ‘to know’ as a form which means: “I

consider it (quite) certain/I am convinced that… although I have no hard proof for

it and can only say so on the basis of intuition” – thus presenting it as an epistemic

form.

The form has also been described as a cognitive verb which can express common

knowledge as the source of information. Storch and Jacques (2014: 205) describe

knowledge as expressing different ideas including referring to source of

information in Maaka, a language of north-eastern Nigeria. They indicate in that

language that “This verb can also express common knowledge as the source of

information. In rhetorical questions, it evokes implied answers about shared

wisdom.” They presented examples in which the speaker refers to a habit that is

common knowledge and therefore true. They further noted that the form

emphasizes possession and control of knowledge, exclusively shared insights and

the common experience of truth. The situation in Akan is not different from what

has been described here (see Sakyi 2017).

In Akan, the form expresses evidence, possession of knowledge and indicates

source of information rather than modal certainty. In the utterances that follow,

what the form expresses is being aware of information, or be knowledgeable about

the state of affairs. As an evidential marker, it determines the grounds for asserting

the state of affairs in the complement clause. Examples (101) and (102) are


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presenting factual states of affairs based on the speaker’s knowledge and

experience he has with the listener. Being a father who has lived with his son (the

listener) for all these years, his assertion could not have come as being certain or

uncertain. He had enough knowledge about his expertise and capabilities, hence

the form indicates his evidence or background.

101. Minim sɛ wonka mu wᴐ eyinom biara mu. Nanso nea ɛsɛ sɛ wokae ne

sɛ, dua a aboa no nsuro so no, na owu da ase. (BRA AK)

Mi-nim sɛ wo-n-ka mu wᴐ eyinom

1SG-know COMP 2SG-NEG-fall short in STEM STEM these

biara mu. Nanso nea ɛ-sɛ sɛ wo-kae ne sɛ, dua a

every in but what 3SG-has to 2SG-remember be COMP tree REL

aboa no n-suro so no, na o-wu da ase.

animal DET NEG-fear on DET EMPH 3SG-die sleep under

‘I know that you do not fall short in any of these good qualities. But what

you have to remember is that, the evil you are not afraid of is the one that

destroys you.’

102. Ɛno nso nti minim sɛ biribi nni hᴐ a wubehyia a, ebebu afa w’abasa so.

(BRA AK)

Ɛno nso nti mi-ø-nim sɛ biribi

3SG also because 1SG-STAT-know COMP something

n-ø-ni hᴐ a wu-be-hyia a,

NEG-STAT-be there REL 2SG-FUT-meet REL

e-be-bu a-fa w’-abasa so.

3SG-FUT-break CONS-take 2SG.POSS’-arm on

‘And because of that, I know there is nothing you will meet in life which

can overcome you.’

The speakers in (103) and (104) present the states of affairs in the complement

clauses as facts according to their knowledge or experience. It is possible they

acquired their knowledge from hearsay or through personal observation. In

whichever way knowledge is acquired, it still becomes the evidence for asserting

an information.

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103. Menim sε Onyame te ase. (Agye AS)

Me-ø-nim sε Onyame te ase.

I-STAT-know COMP God stay under

‘I know that God exists.’

104. Menim sɛ mereha wo deɛ nanso wo ara na mɛha wo. (Agye AS)

Me-nim sɛ me-re-ha wo deɛ

1SG-know COMP 1SG-PROG-worry 2SG though

nanso wo ara na mɛ-ø-ha wo.

CONJ 2SG EMPH EMPH 1SG-FUT-worry 2SG

‘I know I am bothering you but you are the only person I can bother.’

The speaker in (105) presents two different states of affairs which are both factual.

Being factual states of affairs, it is not uncommon for the listener to be aware of or

have knowledge about them. The speaker’s use of the form does not express the

listener’s evaluation of whether or not the states of affairs are what they are. It is

only used to induce the listener’s understanding or acceptance of the speaker’s

attitude towards her daughter on which the listener had commented. She justifies

her behaviour by employing the listener’s background knowledge or experience.

105. Hmm, maame ԑnyԑ saa O! wo ara wonim sԑ medi no ba koro. Afei nso

ԑnnԑ sukuu yi a aba yi, wopԑ sԑ wo ba kᴐ bi na ᴐkᴐ no yie a, ԑnyԑ gyaade

hyehyԑ. (DUE AS)

Hmm, maame ԑ-n-yԑ saa O! wo ara wo-nim sԑ

Hmm maame 3SG-NEG-be DEM O 2SG EMPH 2SG-know COMP

me-di no ba koro. Afei.nso ԑnnԑ sukuu yi a a-ba

1SG-have 3SG child one CONJ today school DET REL PERF-come

yi, wo-ø-pԑ sԑ wo ba ø-kᴐ bi

DET 2SG-STAT-like COMP 2SG.POSS child HAB-go some

na ᴐ-kᴐ no yie a, ԑ-ø-n-yԑ gyaade hyehyԑ

CONJ 3SG-go 3SG good CM 3SG-STAT-NEG-be kitchen enter

‘Hmm, mother that is not the case! You know it yourself that she is the

only child I have. Moreover, if you want your child to excel in today’s

type of schools, you should not allow her to be working in the kitchen

too often.’


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Another factual claim is presented in (106). The use of the form to describe the

listener’s knowledge of the state of affairs shows that the state of affairs is a general

fact about life, and as such no epistemic evaluation is needed for it.

106. Wudi mu awerɛhow ne mmuada a, wo nso w’ahoᴐden so behuan.

Nanso wunim sɛ ahoᴐden yi ara ne nkwa ɛsa a, na nkwa asa. (ϽKR AK)

Wu-di awerɛhow ne mmuada a, wo nso w’-ahoᴐden

2SG-eat sad CONJ starving CM 2SG also 2SG.POSS’-strength

so be-huan. Nanso wu-ø-nim sɛ ahoᴐden yi

on FUT-reduce but 2SG-STAT-know COMP strength DEF

ara ne nkwa ɛ-sa a, na nkwa a-sa.

EMPH be life 3SG-finish CM then life PERF-finish

‘When you brood and starve yourself too much (because of death), you

will also become weak. But you know that strength is life, when strength

is gone, life is gone.’

All these instances indicate that the use of nim in these constructions expresses

evidentiality and not modality.

6.3.5 Evidentiality and Attenuation

Evidentiality has been related to attenuation in the literature. This attenuating

mechanism is considered as ‘face-saving’ even when the utterance is not palatable.

The process of mitigating or lessening effects of otherwise harsh and unpleasant

propositional content is achieved through attenuation devices. Generally,

languages do not have specific lexical items which are solely dedicated to

attenuation, thus, Estellés & Albelda (2014: 37) argue that attenuation is a

pragmatic category that can apply to virtually any level of language in order to

produce specific pragmatic effects. Since it is its objective to mitigate potential

damage towards the interlocutors’ face, attenuation often results in politeness,

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although that is not the only function it plays. Using evidentiality to support

assertions which may not be pleasant to listeners, is one way of attenuating in the

sense that the speaker attributes all the damaging effects associated with the

utterance to a different entity. Estellés and Albelda (ibid.) have it that “The

underlying reason why speakers use evidentials as attenuating devices is that,

through using them, speakers are no longer the source of the utterance, which is

attributed to someone else.” They explained further that, when the speaker

expresses his/her lack of responsibility towards these words, he/she can

legitimately disagree with their content, thus soothing the damage caused by the

message contained in the utterance, be it damage towards the addressee, or towards

him/herself.

This intended mitigation effect which goes a long way to sooth damages caused to

the interlocutors’ face is what Coates (1987: 122) observes and comments on that

"...it is important for speakers to avoid making outright assertions: each speaker

must allow room for further discussion and for the modification of points of view".

We note, however, that in instances where the speaker uses his own personal

experience or knowledge to indicate his evidence for a particular assertion, such

mitigating effects cannot be achieved. Moreover, in instances where speakers are

the sole experiencers of evidence, there is no need to try to attribute it to any other

person or avoid making outright assertions.

We note further that, although there is attenuation in the overall use of evidentiality,

in Akan, there is also the issue of (im)politeness when certain emphatic particles

occur in evidential constructions. This must be expected because when it comes to

pragmatic interpretations, a variety of things come to play. Urbanova (2003) points

out that pragmatic means are context-sensitive: the same pragmatic means can be

interpreted as means of attenuation in certain contexts, while in others, as

accentuation devices.

Comparing the function of emphatic particles in utterances, they should be adding

emphasis to focused items they are attached to, but in addition to that, we can see


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these particles playing other pragmatic roles such as lending themselves as

(im)politeness mechanisms in evidential clauses containing them.

In this section, we consider how evidentiality in Akan is attenuated and also point

out that it is not in every evidential utterance that attenuation occurs. It is argued

in Sakyi (2017), that when certain emphatic particles occur in evidential utterances,

there is ‘face-threat’ instead of ‘face-save’.

(Im)politeness is generally considered as the process whereby a speech partner

demonstrates consideration or not to the other partner. Expression of (im)politeness

is culturally or socially bound. As such, a speaker can sometimes express politeness

through the use of boosting, intensification and other devices, socially recognized

and understood by the speech parties (see Estellés & Albelda 2014). In line with

this observation, we note that some of the emphatic particles are boosting or

intensification devices. They do not only function in utterances as pragmatic

politeness but also as impoliteness strategies in certain contexts. According to

Leech (1983: 139), “Politeness is manifested not only in the content of

conversation, but also in the way conversation is managed and structured by its

participants”. A speaker may structure his conversation to positively or negatively

enhance the face of the listener. According to Brown & Levinson (1987: 311),

“Face is something that is emotionally invested, and that can be lost, maintained,

or enhanced, and must be constantly attended to in interaction.” Attending to face

positively is always desirable, but the use of ara ‘(my) self’, koraa and mpo ‘even’

to focus source of information, is a way of reducing the listener’s face rather than

boosting it.

Examples (107) and (108) are among the few instances where emphatic particles

occurred with evidential constructions in our corpus. In both instances, the

speakers are referring to themselves as sources of evidence for their claims. Aside

the fact that both constructions do not attenuate, they also provoke listeners’ face

threat. Pragmatically, speakers are saying they themselves have adequate

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knowledge about the states of affairs and as such listeners’ views are not

welcomed.

107. Mara muhu dε ᴐyε hᴐn ehi dε oenya obi ma ᴐawar no. (ABO, FA)

M-ara mu-hu dε ᴐ-yε hᴐn ehi dε

1SG-EMP-self 1SG-see COMP 3SG-make 3PL jealous COMP

o-e-nya obi ma ᴐ-a-war no.

3SG-PERF-get someone give 3SG-PERF-marry 3SG

‘I myself, it is apparent to me that they are jealous of her marriage.’

108. Me ara mihu sε ebia εnkaa me nna santen bi bio ε. (BRA, AK)

Me ara mi-hu sε ebia ε-n-ka-a

1SG EMP-self 1SG-see COMP perhaps 3SG-Neg-remain-PERF

me nna santen bi bio ε.

1SG.POSS days plenty some again

‘It is apparent to me myself, that perhaps I am not left with many days

to live.’

The use of nim in the following sentences indicates that the states of affairs are

factual. Being factual states of affairs, it is assumed that the listeners are aware of

them or have knowledge about them. In (105) repeated here as (109), for example,

the occurrence of the emphatic particle in the construction indicates that the listener

might have said something she shouldn’t have said based on the general truth in

the state of affairs at hand. The whole construction therefore comes as a face threat

resulting in impoliteness.


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109. Hmm, maame ԑnyԑ saa o! wo ara wonim sԑ medi no ba koro.

(DUE AS)

Hmm, maame ԑ-n-yԑ saa o! wo ara wo-nim sԑ

Hmm maame 3SG-NEG-be DEM o 2SG EMPH 2SG-know COMP

me-di no ba koro.....

1SG-have 3SG child one

‘Hmm, mother that is not the case! You know it yourself that she is the

only child I have.’

The proposition in (110) means my source of information for asserting increase

in cocoa prices is the radio but I did not fabricate the story (both interlocutors’

face is safe). In (111) however, another level of interpretation is revealed with the

addition of the emphatic particle. The use of the emphatic particle indicates that

if the radio has reported an issue, who are you (the listener) to doubt it or say

something different. Pragmatically, this is a clear example of face threat showing

impoliteness to the listener.

110. Yε-a-ka no radio so sε yε-re-bε-to kookoo mu. (Agye, AS)

Yε-a-ka no radio so sε yε-re.bε-to kookoo mu.

1PL-PERF-say 3SG radio on COMP 1PL-PROS-increase cocoa in

‘It has been said/reported on the radio that cocoa price is going to be

increased.’

111. Radio koraa a-ka sε yε-re-bε-to kookoo mu. (CONS AS)

Radio koraa a-ka sε yε-re.bε-to kookoo mu.

radio even PERF-say COMP 1PL-PROS-increase cocoa in

‘Even the radio has said/reported that cocoa price is going to be

increased.’

Both (112) and (113) contain the first person subject me but that is not the source

of information. They are both referring to allegations and so they both attenuate

but whereas (112) remains silent on the status of the listener, (113) involves the

speaker comparing himself to the listener, thereby implying impoliteness.

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112. Mate sɛ nea worekɔ no mmabaa ano bɔre sen aboa ɔwɔ de.

(BRA, AK)

M-a-te sɛ nea wo-re-kᴐ no

1SG-PERF-hear COMP where 2SG-PROG-go DEF



‘I have heard/it is alleged that women are more poisonous than snakes

at the place where you are going.’

113. Me mpo mate sɛ akrɔmfo abɛwia ne nneɛma nyinaa. (CONS. AS)

Me mpo m-a-te sɛ akrᴐmfoɔ a-bε-wia

1SG EMHP 1SG-PERF-hear COMP thieves PERF-come-steal

ne nneεma nyinaa.

3SG.POSS things all

‘Even I have heard (the allegation) that thieves have stolen all his

belongings.’

(113), therefore, does not attenuate.

6.4 Conclusion

We have discussed and illustrated verbs and verbal constructions which express

modality and evidentiality in this chapter. All the forms identified as expressing

modality express only epistemic modality. Three verbs, viz., dwene, gye di and

susuw have non-evaluative, next to their epistemic use. Where necessary, we

pointed out how expressions of epistemic modality with these forms interact with

evidentiality.

On evidentiality, we have discussed how other verbs are used to code the source of

information for asserting both modalized and non-modalized uterances in the

language. It was observed that the verbs feature both evidential and non-evidential

meanings and that sometimes these two notions are tied together in a single clause.

The chapter has also considered how evidentiality interacts with attenuation in the

language. Our results support earlier studies that evidentiality as a category is an


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important strategy for attenuation. The study has also proved that it is not all

evidentially marked utterances which attenuate because when the evidence is the

speaker’s own experience, there is no attenuation. Further, we have demonstrated

that in the environment of evidentials, some emphatic particles not only function

as emphasizers but also, they pragmatically indicate (im)politeness. That is to say,

evidentially attenuated utterances may be rendered (im)polite in the face of these

emphatic particles, thereby cancelling the attenuation effect.

The next chapter offers a preview of analysis of certain forms earlier writers have

described as expressing epistemic modality but which we classify under other

notions because they do not estimate the chances of the SOA occurring.

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7 Review of Previous Analysis of some so-called Epistemic

Forms

7.1 Introduction

In this chapter, we discuss forms which have been described by earlier writers as

expressing epistemic modality in Akan, but which are in variance with our working

definition of epistemic modality in this study. Saah & Agbedor (2004); Sakyi 2013

a & b and Owusu 2014, for example, discuss ampa ‘true’ and nokware15 ‘true’ as

epistemic adverbs and Amfo (2005) proposes an epistemic interpretation for anka

‘would have’. We demonstrate in this study that ampa, nokware and ɛwom assert

the truth of propositions but they do not estimate the chances of occurrences of

states of affairs under view. For anka, Christaller (1933: 219) describes it as a

particle in Akan which denotes counter-factuality. Of course, this particle has many

other functions, as noted by earlier writers, its supposed expression of epistemic

modality is however questionable. We discuss its occurrences and indicate why we

do not accept it as an epistemic marker.

15 Ampa and nokware are adjectives used as adverbs without any change in form but ɛwom

does not have an adverbial counterpart.

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338

7.2 Ɛwom, ampa and nokware as ‘Modes of Truth’

The object of this section is to discuss ɛwom, ampa and nokware as predicative

adjectives/adverbs basically used to convey the speaker’s evaluation of truth.

Conceptually, they refer to asserting or accepting the truthfulness of states of

affairs in utterances.

The table below gives the breakdown of their occurrences in our corpus.

Form Spk Wrt Tot

nokware 30 98 128

ampa 41 125 166

ewom 20 78 98

Table 7.1 Frequency of forms expressing modes of truth in spoken and written

data.

These three forms have been put together in one section as a result of their semantic

affinity ‘(it is) true/a fact’.

‘True’ is used to admit that a particular state of affairs is correct or a fact rather

than things that have been invented or guessed. In modality, such evaluations have

been discussed under ‘Alethic modality’.

Researchers, no doubt, include alethic modality in the discussion of epistemic

modality because they both evaluate propositions in a similar manner. The question

then is whether this modality should be considered distinct from, or it should be

integrated into epistemic modality. This association with epistemic modality in

research may be controversial when one considers the fact that asserting the truth

presents a different value from guessing or estimating chances of occurrence.


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Nuyts (2001: 28) does not attempt to distinguish a category of ‘alethic’ modality

next to epistemic modality. He points out that the traditions of modal logic and

formal semantics often indicate that alethic modality concerns the necessary or

contingent truth of propositions (i.e. ‘modes of truth’), while epistemic modality

concerns the state of a proposition in terms of knowledge and belief (i.e. ‘modes

of knowing’), (see Lyons 1977: 791f; Palmer 1979: 2-3; 1986:10-11).

Although we also do not make an effort to strictly separate mode of truth and

epistemic modality in this study, we do recognize the different cognitive

evaluations these different notions offer in utterances. We therefore attempt to

clarify this to avoid mix-ups with some of the forms discussed in this work.

In Akan literature, ampa and nokware are among the few forms discussed under

epistemic or “speaker-oriented” modality as adverbs expressing ‘epistemic

certainty’, Saah & Agbedor (2004: 210).

1. Kofi yε osikani ampa. (Saah & Agbedor 2004: 210 AK)

Kofi yε osikani ampa.

Kofi COP rich.person truly

‘Kofi is rich/a rich person truly.’

2. Ampa/nokware Kofi yε osikani. (Saah, 2004:210 AK)

Ampa/nokware Kofi yε osikani.

truly Kofi COP rich.person

‘Truly Kofi is rich/a rich person.’

We fail to recognize that these forms express epistemic meanings of certainty,

probability or possibility for that matter. Going by our operational definition of

epistemic modality, being the assessment of likelihood, probability or certainty of

the occurrences of states of affairs, these forms are not epistemic modal forms at

all. Both their adverbial and predicative adjectival use, ‘(it is) true’, do not assess

the likelihood of states of affairs but they only assert or state truthfulness of

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propositions. Since truthfulness is different from assessing possibility of

occurrence, the two notions could be kept apart to a certain level.

Also, when we try to substitute ‘it is true’ with ‘it is certain’ or any of the epistemic

forms in any utterance containing a situation where the first-person subject is

making an assessment involving him/herself, the result will not be valid. Assessing

likelihood is only relevant if one has not witnessed the facts, does not have much

knowledge, or does not have strong and concrete evidence for the assessment. In

all the occurrences of these forms, however, speakers have knowledge, strong

evidence or experience about the states of affairs. Considering the examples in this

section, speakers are accepting or confirming the state of affairs in the complement

clauses as facts or truths. They are not guessing or evaluating likelihood. Some of

the subsequent propositions (if any) are often additional information stating other

views or reasons why the states of affairs are true.

Ewom is used only predicatively. Nokware and ampa may be used both as

predicative adjectives or adverbs but the semantics of the form is the same. In their

use as predicative adjectives, all the forms may occur with or without a

complementizer and the complement clauses evaluated may precede the matrix

clauses in which the forms occur.

Examples (3-5) involve ewom, while (6-8) and (9-12) cover nokware and ampa

respectively. The speaker in (3) is admitting that she has not given birth, and since

she knows that fact, the only appropriate form to use in this case is one involving

accepting or confirming the truth rather than one of possibility or certainty.


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3. Ɛwom sε menwoo da deε nanso adagye a wᴐde hwԑ abᴐfra deε, megye

medi sε mεnya bi ahwe no kama. (ETI AS)

Ɛ-ø-wom sε me-n-wo-o da

3SG-COP-true COMP 1SG-NEG-give.birth-PERF never

deε nanso adagye a wᴐ-de hwԑ abᴐfra deε,

EMPH but time REL 3PL-use take care of child EMPH,

me-gye me-di sε m-ε-nya bi

1SG-take 1SG-eat COMP 1SG-FUT-get some

a-hwε no kama.

CONS-take care of 3SG nice.

‘It is true that I have never given birth but as for time for caring for a

child, I am sure I will get it to take good care of her well.’

The evaluation in (4) involves first person subjects. In this utterance, any of the

epistemic forms could be used to assess the state of affairs if the speaker did not

have much information. In this situation, however, he had enough information and

evidence involving someone who had come to Accra to report to them that their

people who fled from Nyanewase were already settled in Akwamu. With this

background knowledge, it was appropriate to use a form involving truthfulness. (5)

works on the same principle.

4. Anuanom, ԑwom sԑ yԑne nananom ntam kwan aware de, nanso migye di

sԑ, sԑ yԑyԑ amanne kakra bi a, anka eye. (ƆSABEA AK)

Anuanom, ԑ-ø-wom sԑ yԑ-ne

brothers 3SG-COP-true COMP 3PL-CONJ

nananom ntam kwan a-ware de,

grandfathers between road PERF-long EMPH

nanso mi-gye di sԑ, sԑ yԑ-yԑ

but 1SG-take eat COMP CM 1PL-do

amanne kakra bi a, anka e-ø-ye.

rite small DEF CM would.have 3SG-STAT-be-good

‘Brothers, it is true that the distance between us and our people has

become far apart, but I believe that, if we performed a little rite (to

commemorate the day), it would have been nice.’

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5. Ewom sԑ Kwadwo Bani yԑ mmᴐdenbᴐfo sԑԑ de, nanso ԑyԑ sԑ gyama

ᴐkrabiri ne mmusu bi di n’akyi a enti nea ᴐyԑ biara nsi akwanten.

(AKU AK)

E-ø-wom sԑ Kwadwo Bani yԑ mmᴐdenbᴐfo

3SG-COP-true COMP Kwadwo Bani be hard-working

sԑԑ de, nanso ԑ-yԑ sԑ gyama ᴐkrabiri

this EMPH but 3SG-be COMP maybe bad luck

ne mmusu bi di n’-akyi

CONJ evil DET follow 3SG.POSS’-back

a enti nea ᴐ-yԑ biara n-si akwanten.

PART so what 3SG-do every NEG-go road

‘It is true that Kwadwo Bani is this hard-working but it is as if a certain

bad luck and evil are possibly following him and that is why whatever

he does, doesn’t become successful.’

The proposition in (6) is a situation the speaker and, probably, all the other

interlocutors know about. His admission of its truth serves as a confirmation and

acceptance of the statement. The forms in (7) and (8) are also accepting the

propositions as facts or truths.

6. Ɛyԑ ampa, wukura sika a, wokyere dᴐm. (ƆSABEA AK)

Ɛ-yԑ ampa, wu-kura sika a, wo-kyere dᴐm

3SG-COP true 2SG-hold money CM 2SG-catch crowd

‘It is true, if you have money, you command a crowd.’

7. Ɔyε ampa dε hᴐn mu kor bedzi'. (ABO FA)

Ɔ-yε ampa dε hᴐn mu kor be-dzi.

3SG-COP true COMP 3PL among one FUT-eat.

‘It is true that one of them will squander it.’


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8. Ɔdze sii do dε ᴐyε ampa dε Ewura Efuwa nnyaa yafun, naaso ᴐmmfaa

nntoo famu. (ABO FA)

Ɔ-dze si-i do dε ᴐ-yε ampa dε

3SG-take put-PAST on COMP 3SG-COP true COMP

Ewura Efuwa n-nya-a yafun,

Ewura Efuwa NEG-get-PERF stomach

naaso ᴐ-mm-fa-a nn-to-o famu.

but 3SG-NEG-take-PERF NEG-put-PERF down

‘He added that it is true that Ewura Efua has not been able to conceive

as yet but he has not relented on his effort in trying for her to conceive.’

The speaker in (9) has also witnessed that the subjects came here. He uses the form

to indicate his confirmation of the truth in that state of affairs.

9. Ɛyε nokware sε wᴐbaa ha (CONS AS)

Ɛ-yε nokware sε wᴐ-ba-a ha.

3SG-COP true COMP 3PL come-PAST here

‘It is true that they came here.’

The assertions made by the initial speakers in (10) and (11) have been admitted by

the current speakers as the truth.

10. Ɔpanyin, ᴐyε nokwar dε biribiara mmpuee mu, naaso mowᴐ enyidado dε

ᴐbεyε yie. (ABO FA)

Ɔpanyin, ᴐ-yε nokwar dε biribiara

elder 3SG-COP true COMP everything

mm-pue-e mu, naaso mo-ø-wᴐ

NEG-come.out-PERF in but 1SG-STAT-have

enyidado dε ᴐ-bε-yε yie.

hope COMP 3SG-FUT-do good

‘Sir, it is true that nothing has come out of it yet but I have the hope that

it shall be well.’

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11. Ɛyɛ nokware sɛ Kofi yε osikani. (CONS AK)

Ɛ-yɛ nokware sɛ Kofi ø-yε osikani.

3SG-COP true COMP Kofi STAT-be rich.person

‘It is true that Kofi is rich/a rich person.’

The negatives of these forms, as exemplified below, present complete rejection of

the truth in the states of affairs. They render all the propositions as false. Unlike

with epistemic forms whose negatives do not express the falsehood of the states of

affairs in view.

12. Ennim sɛ yeduu hɔ no na mmoa no nyinaa awuwu. (OBS)

E-ø-n-nim sɛ ye-du-u hɔ no

3SG-COP-NEG-true COMP 1PL-reach-PAST there DET

na mmoa no nyinaa a-wu.wu.

PART animals DET all PERF-RED-die

‘It is not true that when we reached there, all the animals had died.’

13. Ɛnyɛ ampa/ɛnyɛ nokware sɛ osuo tɔɔ nnera. (CONS)

Ɛ-n-yɛ ampa/ɛ-n-yɛ nokware sɛ osuo tɔɔ nnera.

3SG-COP-NEG-true COMP rain fall-PAST yesterday

‘It is not true that it rained yesterday.

In all instances where these forms under scrutiny occur in our corpus, they function

as qualifying or modifying their states of affairs as being true, and in the case of

their negatives, as being false. That is to say, they are used to confirm the

propositions in the lower clause to be true or false, and so it is something entirely

different from what real epistemic adverbs and adjectives do.


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7.3 The particle – Anka

Anka is the form with the highest frequency in our corpus, probably due to its

numerous semantic functions.

The table below presents the frequency of the particle in our corpus.

Form Spk Wrt Tot

anka 204 728 932

Table 7.2 Frequency of anka in written and spoken data

Christaller (1933: 219) notes how under certain circumstances this word is put at

the beginning of sentences to indicate that the ideas expressed in the sentences are

not present reality. It indicates that either the proposition is (a) a thing of the past

or (b) merely imaginary. Its reality is made impossible by another fact, or the reality

depends on another idea expressed.

14. Kan no na anka Onyankopɔn bɛn fam. (AK)

Kan no na anka Onyankopɔn bɛn fam.

First DET PART use to be God near ground

‘Formerly, God used to be close to the earth.’ (Christaller, 1933:219)

15. Meyɛ prɛsidɛnte a anka mɛyɛ wɔn nkanea no ama wɔn. (CONS. AS)

Me-yɛ prɛsidɛnte a anka mɛ-yɛ

1SG-COP president CM would have 1SG-do

wɔn nkanea no a-ma wɔn.

3PL.POSS light DET CONS-give 3PL

‘If I were the president, I would have restored their electricity for them.’

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The form’s function as marking counter-factuality has been taken further by

various writers (see Boadi 2005; Agyekum 2005 and Amfo 2005). Adopting a

relevance-theoretic approach, Amfo (2005:998) claims that “anka is a modal

marker because it encodes a specific epistemic attitude to the proposition expressed

by the clause in which it appears. More particularly, it encodes the assumption that

the state of affairs described by the propositional content is not factual at the time

of the utterance.” She gives four disparate uses of anka as:

(a) a politeness marker in the performance of indirect requests:

16. Anka mepɛ sɛ mesrɛ w’akongwa yi kakra. (AK)

Anka me-pɛ sɛ me-srɛ

Would have 1SG-like COMP 1SG-beg

w’-akongwa yi kakra.

2SG.POSS’-chair DEF small

‘I would have liked to borrow your chair for a while.’ (Could I borrow

your chair please?) (Amfo 2005:1000)

(b) a marker in communicating someone’s unfulfilled intentions and desires in what

serves as a kind of counterfactual conditional construction:

17. Anka ɔreba ha na ɔtee sɛ Kofi nni hɔ. (AS)

Anka ɔ-re-ba ha na

was 3SG-PROG-come here CONJ

ɔ-te-e sɛ Kofi n-ni hɔ.

3SG-hear-PAST COMP Kofi NEG-be there

‘He was coming here, and then he heard Kofi was not here.’

(Amfo, 2005:1000)

(c) a marker communicating the existence of a state of affairs which belongs to the

past and has ceased to exist, and


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18. Na anka ɔkyerɛ ade wɔ kurom. (AK)

Na anka ɔ-kyerɛ ade wɔ kurom.

PART use.to 3SG-teach thing in town

‘S/he used to teach downtown.’ (Amfo, 2005:1000)

(d) a marker which indicates that what is described did not actually happen but almost

happened.

19. Nsɔe yi wowɔɔ ɔbea no ne ne ba no ara ma anka ade reyɛ atɔ wɔn so.

(AK)

Nsɔe yi wowɔ-ɔ ɔbea no ne ne ba no

thorns DET prick-PAST woman DEF CONJ 3SG.POSS child DEF

ara ma anka ade re-yɛ a-tɔ wɔn so.

EMPH PART almost thing PROG-do CONS-fall 3PL on

‘These thorns pricked the woman and her child so much so that they

almost fainted.’ (Amfo, 2005:1000)

She further claims that the lexical meaning of “anka is vague rather than

ambiguous, i.e., it has a univocal lexical meaning which serves as a basis for

context-dependent pragmatic enrichment in various directions. In all its uses it

indicates that the proposition expressed represents a state of affairs that is not in

existence at the time of utterance” (2005: 998).

Boadi (2005:87), observed that “the embedded clause governed by the verbs pɛ and

twa express a wish and an obligation, respectively. The propositions expressed by

their complements are non-factual. It is because of the non-factual nature of the

complements that the whole sentence in which they occur can be introduced by the

modal anka, whose function is to mark propositions as counter-factual.”

He emphasized that, “while the sense of the modal anka is consistent with the

meaning expressed by the embedded complements of (hwehwɛ ‘wish’ (pɛ ‘wish’,

twa ‘unavoidable’ and others - my emphasis), there is clear incompatibility

between this modal and matrix clauses containing verbs like ka ‘to declare/say’,

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nim ‘to know’ and kyerɛ ‘to indicate’. The propositions expressed by the

complements of these other verbs are factual”.

Our current data, however, reveal otherwise. In some of the examples below, modal

and evidential forms including gye di (believe), dwene (think), ka (declare) and nim

(know) consistently occur in matrix clauses governing states of affairs containing

this particle.

Despite the importance of Amfo’s (2005) expansion on the proposed functions by

Christaller (1933), and Boadi’s (2005) explanations, we do not recognize any

modal use of this particle in any of the above classifications or examples at all, at

least not in the sense of any of the three modal meanings considered in this study

– epistemic, deontic or dynamic. All there is in it is that anka occurs in irrealis

propositions and expresses counterfactual states of affairs, but it is not a modal by

itself. There is no environment in which this particle indicates the possibility,

probability or certainty of the occurrence of the state of affairs. Contextually it

means ‘used to, about to/almost, would have, and was/were’, which are all

expressing the counter-factuality or non-existence/occurrence of the state of

affairs.

Regarding its syntax, Boadi (ibid.) argues that, “Despite its occurrence on the left

of the principal clause as in:

20. Anka mehwehwɛ sɛ obiara fire. (AS)

Anka me-hwehwɛ sɛ obiara ø-fire.

would have 1SG-wish COMP everyone SUBJ-leave

‘I would have wished that everyone left.’ (Boadi, 2005:87)

the modal anka is more closely associated with the embedded subjunctive clause

in terms of semantic content”. He further indicates that “In fact, its alternative

syntactic position is in the embedded clause:


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21. Mehwehwɛ sɛ anka obiara fire. (AS)

Me-hwehwɛ sɛ anka obiara ø-fire.

1SG-wish COMP would have everyone SUBJ-leave

‘I would have wished that everyone left.’ (Boadi, 2005:87)

We subscribe to Christaller’s (1933) description of the form as occurring at the

beginning of sentences, and that of Boadi’s point, and expatiate further that, in a

simple sentence, the only appropriate position is at the beginning of it. In complex

sentences, its position is the beginning of the clause which has to be rendered

counterfactual, as such, anka can actually occur in main as well as in subordinate

clauses. In fact, its occurrence in both clauses is possible in one complex sentence

(see Amfo 2005).

Three types of sentences in which anka occurs are simple sentences, conditional

sentences and sentences containing the subjunctive. All the utterances from

examples (22) to (24) are plain assertions of states of affairs. Their modalized

counterparts are examples (25) and (26), which are constructed after (23) and (24)

for convenience.

22. Ebo, anka yεreba wo hᴐ. (ETI AS)

Ebo, anka yε-re-ba wo hᴐ.

ebo, were 3PL-PROG-come you there

‘Ebo, we were coming to you.’

The speaker and her friends were already on their way to visit ‘Ebo’, but they met

her on the way. The use of the particle, therefore, suggests that once they have met

her their visit to her home cannot be a reality.

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23. Anka ntasuo reyε atram me. (ETI AS)

Anka ntasuo re-yε a-tram me.

almost saliva PROG-do CONS-chock me

‘I was almost chocked by saliva.’

24. Mfitiaseε no, na anka ᴐpanin no nyε agye Nkrabea adi.

(MENE AS)

Mfitiaseε no, na anka ᴐpanin no

beginning DEF PART almost oldman DEF

n-yε a-gye Nkrabea a-di.

NEG-do CONS-take Nkrabea CONS-eat

‘In the beginning, the oldman almost didn’t want to believe what

Nkrabea said.’

The speaker used the particle in (23) to assert that she was almost chocked by

saliva, which implies that s/he was not chocked. In (24), the particle only indicates

the old man’s reluctance in believing in an issue until another development forced

him to believe what he was told.

In both utterances, the particle anka serves as a counter-factual element which

indicates that the states of affairs were not actualized. None of these sentences

contain any form of epistemic modality per se. One can evaluate their epistemic

status by prefixing them with epistemic forms.

The constructed examples in (25) and (26) are modalized versions of the asserted

utterances just seen. In these other propositions, speakers are presenting their

assessments of the occurrences of the states of affairs.

25. Ɛyɛ me sɛ anka ntasuo reyε atram me. (CONS AS)

Ɛyɛ me sɛ anka ntasuo re-yε a-tram me.

I think COMP almost saliva PROG-do CON-chock me.

‘I think that I was almost chocked by saliva.’


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26. Ebia mfitiaseε no, na anka ᴐpanin no nyε agye Nkrabea adi.

(CONS AS)

Ebia mfitiaseε no, na anka ᴐpanin no

maybe beginning DEF PART almost oldman DEF

n-yε a-gye Nkrabea a-di.

NEG-do CONS-take Nkrabea CON-eat.

‘Maybe in the beginning, the oldman almost didn’t want to believe what

Nkrabea said.’

Since chocking could be caused by things other than saliva, the speaker’s use of

the epistemic form in (25) to evaluate this utterance indicates the chance that saliva

is the substance which almost chocked him/her.

(26) contains an epistemic form which also indicates that epistemic evaluation does

not reside in anka. Here, ebia has been used to assess the chances that the old man

almost did not want to believe in the issue at hand. The epistemic modal evaluations

of these utterances, therefore, are only residing in the epistemic forms in the

utterances.

In a similar vein, the counter-factual conditional clauses are in themselves not

indicating any modal meanings. Conditional protasis are per definition irrealist.

They formulate hypothetical states of affairs which become the context (the

condition) for what is being stated in the apodosis and that is also a matter of

(ir)realist, or hypotheticality, not of epistemic modality. A conditional ‘if-clause’

does not offer an estimation of how likely the state of affairs contained in it is.

In (27) and (28), the original counterfactual form occurs in the apodosis but as we

pointed out concerning its syntactic occurrence, it is possible for it to occur in the

protasis as in the constructed example in (29).

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27. Hεn ha a, nkyε hᴐn a wotum yε dεm yi wᴐse abayifo a. (ABO FA)

Hεn ha a, nkyε hᴐn a

1PL.POSS here CM would have 3PL REL

wo-tum yε dεm yi wᴐ-se abayifo a.

3PL-be.able do this DET 3PL-say witches PART

‘If it were to be our place here, those who are able to do such things

would have been thought of as being witches.’

28. Sε ᴐbᴐᴐ apolisifoɔ amanneε a, anka wᴐn nso bεhunu εkwan ko a wᴐbεfa

so ne saa akoa no adi asie. (MENE AS)

Sε ᴐ-bᴐ-ᴐ apolisifoɔ amanneε a,

CM 3SG-report-PAST police issue CM

anka wᴐn nso bε-hunu εkwan ko a wᴐ-bε-fa so

would have they also FUT-see way EMPH REL 3PL-FUT-take on

ne saa akoa no a-di asie.

CONJ DEM guy DEF CONS-deal with STEM

‘If he reported the issue to the police, they would have known how (the

tactics to use) to deal with that guy (thief).’

The use of the particle in the apodosis in (27) and (28) is only an indication that

the proposition in the protasis is not real, hence, the occurrence of the state of

affairs in the apodosis also does not exist. The occurrences of the particle in both

the protasis and apodosis in (39) do not offer anything different from indicating the

non-existence and counter-factuality of the states of affairs.

29. Sε (Anka) ᴐbᴐᴐ apolisifoɔ amanneε a, anka wᴐn nso bεhunu εkwan ko a

wᴐbεfa so ne saa akoa no adi asie. (MENE AS)

Sε anka ᴐ-bᴐ-ᴐ apolisifoɔ amanneε a,

CM had 3SG-report-PAST police issue CM

anka wᴐn nso bε-hunu εkwan ko a

would have they also FUT-see way EMPH REL

wᴐ-bε-fa so ne saa akoa no a-di asie.

3PL-FUT-take on CONJ DEM guy DEF CONS-deal with

‘If he had reported the incidence to the police, they would have known

how (the tactics to use) to deal with that guy (thief).’


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In (30-34), these counterfactual-conditional clauses follow the epistemic or

evidential matrix clauses (also with modal adverbs, of course). These evaluative

forms or clauses are the forms which carry the modal or evidential forces in these

utterances and not the particle anka. (30) is constructed after (15) to illustrate how

the various epistemic modal and evidential forms discussed in this study could be

used to evaluate the imaginary/counter-factual conditional clauses.

30. (Ebia/megye di/ɛyɛ me/ɛyɛ ampa/minim/wose/mate sɛ) meyɛ prɛsidɛnte

a, (…) anka mɛyɛ wɔn nkanea no ama wɔn. (CONS AK)

Ebia/megye di/ɛyɛ me/ɛyɛ ampa/minim/wose/mate sɛ

me-yɛ prɛsidɛnte a anka mɛ-yɛ

1SG-COP president CM would have 1SG-do

wɔn nkanea no a-ma wɔn.

3PL.POSS light DET CONS-give 3PL

‘Maybe/I believe/I think/it is true/I know/it is said/I have heard that if I

were the president, I would have restored their electricity for them.’

It must be noted that, just like the counterfactual particle is able to occur in both

clauses, modal and evidential forms are also able to occur in both clauses. This is

an issue which emphasizes the non-modal use of the particle. The bracket in front

of the apodosis (…) in (30), is where evaluative forms could occur. In (31 - 34), all

the utterances are either evaluated epistemically or they are the basis for the

assertions in the counterfactual utterance given.

31. Megye di sԑ abosom ne nsamanfoᴐ ammoa amma Dᴐkota yi ankᴐfiri

ayaresabea hᴐ a, anka Akwasi Agyei renkye. (ƐNNƐ AS)

Me-ø-gye di sԑ abosom ne nsamanfoᴐ a-m-moa

1SG-STAT-believe STEM COMP gods CONJ ancestors PAST-NEG-help

a-m-ma Dᴐkota yi a-n-kᴐ-firi ayaresabea

PAST-NEG-CAUS doctor DEF PAST-NEG-go-reach hospital

hᴐ a, anka Akwasi Agyei re-n-kye.

there CM would have Akwasi Agyei FUT-NEG-live

‘I believe that if the gods and ancestors did not help in sending this

doctor to the hospital, Akwasi Agyei wouldn’t have lived.’

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32. Modwen dε sε nkorᴐfo ayε enunsimfo dεm a, nkyε woegyaa. (ABO FA)

Mo-dwen dε sε nkorᴐfo a-yε enunsimfo

1SG-think COMP CM people PERF-do herbalists

dεm a, nkyε wo-e-gyaa.

DEM CM would have 3PL-PERF-stop

‘I think that if people have treated herbalists this way, they would have

stopped (the undesirable things they do).’

I believe and I think are epistemic evaluation forms used to assess the chances of

the occurrence of the asserted counterfactual propositions in (31) and (32)

respectively.

The form used in (33) to admit the truth of the state of affairs indicates that the

assertion in the counterfactual conditional clause is true. It is the whole

counterfactual conditional clause which is admitted as being true.

33. Ɛyɛ nokware sɛ, sε εnyε sε na wᴐmmεn kurow a, anka wᴐn mu fa kεse

sanee. (BRA AK)

Ɛ-yɛ nokware sɛ, sε ε-n-yε sε na wɔ-m-mεn

3SG-COP true COMP CM 3SG-NEG-be COMP PART 3PL-NEG-close.to

kurow a, anka wᴐn mu fa kεse sane-e.

town CM would have 3PL in half big return-PAST

‘It is true that if they were not too far from town, most of them would

have discontinued their journey.’

In (34), the evidential menim ‘I know’, has been used to indicate the speaker’s basis

for making the plain assertion in the conditional clause. Here, the speaker is not

assessing the likely occurrence of the state of affairs but s/he is only telling his/her

interlocutors that he has strong knowledge on such occasions where excessive

happiness ends up in crying because of mixed-feelings.


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34. Menim sε, sε εberε baa mu a, anka anigyeε bεdane esu. (ETI AS)

Me-nim sε, sε εberε ba-a mu a,

1SG-know COMP CM time come-PAST in CM

anka anigyeε bε-dane esu.

would have happiness FUT-turn crying

‘I know that if there was enough time, there would have been tears of

joy.’

Hearsay or reported evidence is also possible in this environment. These adverbs

or verbs occurring in the matrix clauses to indicate the epistemic value or evidential

strength are those Boadi (2005:87) refers to as being incompatible with the particle

anka.

Subjunctive utterances contain deontic modal forms (also volitives) in the matrix

clauses. The deontic evaluations of such utterances, therefore, depend on those

deontic modal forms. In (35), εnsε sε in the matrix clause evaluates the

undesirability of the counterfactual state of affairs. In this instance, a city taxi driver

had picked stranded but familiar passengers for a short distance and thinks that

because of the familiarity he shouldn’t have charged them, but he charges them

due to the hardship prevailing in the city. In whichever position the particle occurs

in this (and other) similar clause(s), the proposition in the state of affairs boils down

to the same view held by the speaker, in this case, that charging the passengers was

undesirable.

35. Anka εnsε sε/(εnsε sε anka) megye mo sika koraa, nanso Nkran asεm.

(ETI AS)

Anka ε-n-sε sε me-gye

would have 3SG-NEG-should 1SG-take

mo sika koraa, nanso Nkran asεm.

2PL money at all but Accra issue

‘I shouldn’t have charged you at all (it is not desirable that I charge you)

but life in Accra (wouldn’t permit that).’

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The speaker in (36) uses a deontic form to indicate that it was obligatory on the

part of the subject to have brought the proposition in the state of affairs into being.

The use of the particle points to the fact that the performance of the rite did not

occur.

36. Sεε na wadi n'akyiwadeε bi a anka εsε sε ᴐyε ho anyankomadeε bi na

wanyᴐ. (MENE AS)

Sεε.na w-a-di n'-akyiwadeε bi

not.knowing 3SG-PERF-eat 3SG.POSS’-taboo certain

a anka ε-sε sε ᴐ-yε ho

REL would have 3SG-should COMP 3SG-IMP-do on

anyankomadeε bi na wa-n-yᴐ.

rite certain CONJ 3SG-NEG-do

‘Not knowing he had eaten something he taboos and so he should have

performed certain rites (to cleans himself) but he did not do it.’

37. Nkyε oye ara dε nunsinnyi yi a yεkᴐr no hᴐ yi hu dε nnyε dεm nkorᴐfo yi

bi nye hεn. (ABO FA)

Nkyε o-ø-ye ara dε nunsinnyi yi

would have 3SG-COP-good EMP COMP herbalist DEF

a yε-kᴐr-ø no hᴐ yi ø-hu dε

REL 1PL-go-PAST 3SG there DET CONS-see COMP

nn-yε dεm nkorᴐfo yi bi nye hεn.

NEG-be DET people DET some be 1PL

‘It would have been good for the herbalist to whom we went to realize

that we are not like those kind of people (he is able to deceive).’

38. Me deε anka mepε sε mede n'adeε sane kᴐma no. (ETI AS)

Me deε anka me-ø-pε sε

1SG EMPH would have 1SG-STAT-like COMP

me-de n'adeε sane ø-kᴐ-ma no.

1SG-take 3SG.POSS’-thing return CONS-go-give 3SG

‘As for me, I would have wished that I returned her present to her.’


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In (37) and (38), deontic desirability and volitive (wish or want) are used in the

matrix clauses respectively. Both are indicating that the states of affairs are

desirable but the use of the particle does not in itself express any modality.

7.4 Conclusion

This chapter has reviewed three adjectives/adverbs and a particle which earlier

writers have analyzed as expressing epistemic modality. We pointed out that ewom,

ampa and nokware assert that propositions are true and anka presents situations as

unreal. Our point has been that none of these forms express likelihood or estimation

of the chances that a SOA is the case (as indicated in our working definition), so

they cannot be described as epistemic markers. The issue now is whether these

adjectives/adverbs we have described under alethic modality ought to be classified

as a different modal meaning in addition to the three main ones or as a subset of

epistemic modality, as some writers do.

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8 Conclusion

Our dissertation presents a detailed description of forms and constructions used to

express modality and evidentiality in Akan. The in-depth analysis which draws on

the semantics and ‘pragmatic’ use of forms in context has unraveled the functions

of many forms and constructions Akan utilizes in discourse.

This achievement was possible through a self-created corpus data from Akan books

and radio discussions in the Akan language, coupled with observation and

constructed examples based on the researcher’s native competence. Being a

descriptive venture, the methodology used was straight forward. Each form

identified was extracted with the utterance in which it occurred. Based on the

context in which the forms occurred, we were able to interpret and categorize them

into three major modality meanings of epistemic, deontic and dynamic modalities.

We also had forms indicating evidence, which is the basis for assessments.

Generally, this method was useful in clearing doubts about functions of some of

the forms and settling issues of ambiguities. With the whole background in view,

regarding the contextual occurrences, we were able to point out the functions forms

perform in different utterances.

The objectives we had for the various chapters were met. Chapter 3 in particular,

has the humble ambition to be an added value to this work and maybe to the study

of Akan in general. A study of this nature which deals with the three dialects of

Akan in equal proportions is rare and complex. Writers often select one dialect or

the other and name it Akan, describe it, cite one or two examples from the other

dialects and make generalizations and rules. This practice goes a long way to

conflict rules made by writers of the other dialects. In this study, however, we have

taken time to describe vital rules and processes in the three dialects separately. The

chapter also covers issues about the standard writing systems which will assist

readers and writers to appreciate why forms are represented variously in the

dialects. Although our major aims of identifying modal and evidential forms in the

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language, and describing their uses were well attended to, we couldn’t have been

more helpful without this chapter.

Our aims in Chapter 4 was to try to answer the question of whether Akan has

auxiliaries, and to find out which modal auxiliaries are available in the language.

We have suggested that since most languages differ in form and structure, certain

notions and concepts should be considered based on the functions they play in the

various languages. With this in view, we have made the claim that the forms bɛ-

‘may’, tumi ‘can’, ma ‘let’, ɛsɛ sɛ ‘must’ and etwa sɛ ‘must’ which express

epistemic, deontic and dynamic meanings should be considered as modal

auxiliaries despite their forms.

All our identified adverbs in Chapter 5 express epistemic modality, whereas the

predicative adjectives and adjectival/adverbial constructions express evidentiality,

epistemic, deontic, and dynamic modalities. Some of the verbs and verbal

constructions in Chapter 6 express only epistemic modality and others express

evidentiality. What we draw from this analysis is that although some of the forms

are ambiguous in nature, their modal meanings were restricted in a certain way.

The forms that expressed deontic meanings could as well have dynamic

interpretations in different contexts, and vice versa. Verbs and verbal constructions

had either epistemic or evidential meanings. There were no deontic or dynamic

meanings in any of the verbs and verbal constructions discussed in this dissertation.

Moreover, there were no forms expressing both epistemic modality and

evidentiality.

We briefly discussed the notion of attenuation and evidentiality. Our results

confirmed what earlier writers have put forward that there is attenuation in

evidentiality. We also noted, however, that it is not in all instances of evidentiality

that attenuation occurs because when the evidence for a proposition is the speaker’s

own assessment, there is no attenuation. Moreover, when certain emphatic particles

occur in evidential constructions, they express impoliteness, thereby cancelling the

attenuating effect.


361

In Chapter 7, we analyzed forms which have previously been described as

epistemic modals in Akan. These forms did not feature in our discussions of

epistemic modality because they did not fit into our working definition of epistemic

modality adopted, being ‘the evaluation of the chances of the occurrences of

SOAs’. Ewom, ampa and nokware ‘(it is) true’ are used to confirm SOAs as being

true. In the meanwhile, we have described them as alethic modals, which has also

been related in a way to epistemic modality in the literature. Anka is an irrealis

marker used to indicate that SOAs did not occur, etc.

There were pertinent issues we could not address fully. The issue of ‘subjectivity’

(see Nuyts 2001;1999; Timotijevic 2009; Keith 2009) and other related notions are

possible areas of future research. Furthermore, asserting, admitting or accepting

states of affairs as true, conditional utterances and modality, as well as the relation

between counterfactuality and epistemic modality, are areas which need renewed

attention (see Saah & Agbedor 2004; Amfo 2005 and Kratzer 2012).

Current forms identified are quite numerous and exhaustive. However, it must be

observed that in Appendix 3 we have highlighted a number of forms which did not

appear in the forms studied in this dissertation at all. Some of these forms are nya

anidaso ‘to hope’, pɛ ‘to like/want/wish for’, nya awerɛhyɛm ‘to be confident’, bɔ

mmɔden ‘to try’, and hyɛ bɔ ‘to promise’. Most of them have been mentioned

elsewhere in the literature as expressing other modality meanings, viz., volition,

and boulomaic attitude. Others are described as speech act forms used to give

directions or commit oneself to doing something. We did not discuss any of these

as a result of their complexities. As such, we encourage further investigations to

come out with their appropriate status so as to merge them into or separate them

from the three main modality meanings.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

362


363

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Appendices

Appendix 1. List of Books Used for the Corpus

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English Akan Linguistic and Media Glossary. Adwinsa Publications (GH) Ltd.

(TERM AKN) 12, 648

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(KASA AS) 62, 640

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Publications. (AS) (AKD). 113,400

Ahene-Affoh. 1991. Ɔsεnnahᴐ ne Agoru Foforo Bi. Ghana Publishing Corp.

(ƆSƐ AK). 17,040

Amarteifio, Victor. 1996/2010. Bediako. Accra: Amaabooks

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Amarteifio, Victor. 2000. Nenyinaa yε. Accra: Amaabooks Publication.

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Amoako B. O. 1976. Etire Nni Safoa. Accra: Bureau of Ghana

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Amoako B. O. 1994. Ɛnnε Nso Bio. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

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Ampah, E,. Boesiwa K. & Boronteng E. 2008. Mfantse Kasasua Na Amambra

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Annobil, J. A. (N.D). Abotar (Patience) Cape Coast: Mfantsiman Press Ltd.

(ABO FA). 23,700

Anonymous. 1961/93. Anansesεm Yε Asisie 1. Accra: Bureau of Ghana

Languages. (AYA 1 AS). 4,320





Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

380

Anonymous. 1975/99. Nimdeε Kwan 2A. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(AYA 2A AK). 3,600

Anonymous. 1986. Language Guide – Fante Version. Accra: Bureau of Ghana

Languages (LG FA). 7,800

Anonymous. 1995. Akan Orthography. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages

(Ortho AKN). 11,760

Apraku, L. D. 1959/2003. Aku Sika. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(AKU AK). 17,408

Apraku, L. D. 1993. Ɔbᴐfoᴐ Ba Ampomaa. Accra: Bureau of Ghana

Languages. (ƆBƆ AK). 15,360

Arthur, C. 2004. Akanfo Amammerε Ho Adesua 2. (AAA AS). 23,490

Arthur, C. 2005. Twi Kasa Twerεbea Ho Adesua. (TKT AS). 15,876

Baah, K. S. G. 2012. Afrafra - Mfiaseε Sukuu Nwoma 1. Afrafra Ventures.

(MSN AS). 15,866

Bamfi-Adomako, E. 1998. Ɔbrԑguo. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(ƆBRƐ AS). 33,485

Boham, Issac. 1997. Mfantse Kasa Ho Mbra. Accra: Bureau of Ghana

Languages. (FKM FA). 31,536

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Coleman, S.K. 1995. Egya yε Sunsum. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(EGYA FA). 34, 920

Efa, E. 1944/68. Forosie. Cape Coast: Methodist Book Depot. (FORO AK).

35, 960

Efa, E. 1995. Ɔsabea Anima. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

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Forson, B. 2001. Akan Shakespeare (Julius Caesar). Apra Services Ltd.

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Gyate, Akwa K. 1967. Ao! M’akoma Mu. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(AO! FA). 8,000

Gyate, Akwa K. 1987. Twer Nyame. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(TWER FA). 20,350

Gyekye-Aboagye, J. 1967/93. Wosum Borᴐdeε a Sum Kwadu Bi. Accra:

Bureau of Ghana Languages. (WOS AS) 9, 600

Gyekye-Aboagye, J. 1971/80. Me Ne M’akyinkyinakyinkyini yi. Accra: Bureau of

Ghana Languages. (MENE AS). 23, 040


381

Kissiedu, I. D. 2008. Twi Nimdeε Ho Akwankyerε. Abeam Series.

(TNA AS). 20, 160

Kobi, Y. 2009. Amammerε Fie. Mighty Winners Services. (AMF AK)

24, 624

Korama, Abena. 1976. Ma Menka Wo Asεm Bi 4- Nkura Bi Ne Wᴐn Na.

Ghana Publishing Corp. (NKU AK). 720

Korama, Abena. 1977. Ma Menka Wo Asεm Bi 3- Ɔkraman bi ne Akokᴐ Ba bi

ho Asεm. Ghana Publishing Corp. (ƆKR AK). 720

Krampah, D. E. K. 1989. Ↄbra Wᴐtᴐ bo bᴐ. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(ƆBRA FA). 35,840

Krampah, D. E. K. 1997. Mfantse Kodzisεm Ho Adzesua. Accra: Bureau of

Ghana Languages. (KODZI FA). 58,800

Kwafo, S. J. 1997. Fa Bi Sie. Twi Kasakoa Ahorow Bi (A dictionary of

Idiomatic Expressions, Phrases and their Meanings). Accra: Bureau of

Ghana Languages (FBS AK). 28, 188

Kyeremanteng, K. 2004. Twi Kasa Akode. (YKA AK) 92,880

Kyerεw Kronkron, Akuapem. 1964. Accra: The Bible Society of Ghana.

Manu, S. Y. 1992. Mmᴐfra Agorᴐ. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(MMƆ AS). 11, 520

Nkansa-Kyeremanteng, K. 2003. Sεnea Amansan Hwehwε Onyame. Sebewie

Publishers. (SAH AK/AS). 11, 799

Nketia, Kwabena. J. H. 1944/49. Anwonsεm (Poetry). Afram Publications.

(ANWAS). 6, 720

Nketia, Kwabena J. H. 1973. Abᴐfoᴐdwom. Ghana Publishing Corp.

(ABƆF AS). 16, 170

Nwoma Krͻnkrͻn, Fante. 1974. Accra: The Bible Society of Ghana.

Obiri, Aubrey F. 1995. Ɔba Bᴐne Dane. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages

(ƆBA AS). 23, 040

Oduro, J. 1964/71. Seanteε. Ghana Publishing Corp. (SEAN AS).

24, 552

Offeibea, A. 2006. Anasesεm Asi So O. Novelty Publishing Services.

(ANA AK). 3, 450

Ofori-Panin, K. 2010. Akan Mme 1000 (A compilation of Popular Akan

Proverbs with Translation in English. Living Education Aid.

(AKM AS). 8, 068.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

382

Opoku, A. A. 1971/95. Mese Wo Amen. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(MESE AK). 7, 340.

Osei, Owusu S. 2009. Akanfoᴐ Amammerε. NyameHaig Publications.

(AMA AS). 37, 490.

Osene, Ankoma Paul. 1968/90. Ɛhia Wo a Nwu. Accra: Bureau of Ghana

Languages (AS) (ƐHIA AS). 21,700

Otchere, Ofosu P. N. 2009. Asante Twi Akenkan ne εho Dwumadie Nnwoma.

Nyansa mfitiaseε Series. (AAD AS). 11, 310

Otoo, S. K. 1966. Ewudzifo Nhyiam. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(EWU FA). 12, 160

Owusu, J. N. 1992. Wo gyegyiregye! Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(GYE AK). 21, 840

Owusu, J. N. 2007. Ɔkrabiri. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(ƆKRA AK). 32, 643

Owusu, Koranteng E. 2007. Guasohantan. Accra: Bureau of Ghana

Languages. (GUA AK). 18, 560

Safo, E. N. 1996. Afrakoma. Accra: Bureau of Ghana Languages.

(AFRA AK). 19, 950

Sapong, Paul 2006. Abasεm Bi Ho Nsεmmisa 1. (ABN AS).

26, 216.

Sapong, Paul. 2009. Asante Twi Mmara Ho Dwumadie 2. (TMD AS)

19, 950.

The Holy Bible, New International Version. 1984. Grand Rapids: Zondervan

Publishing House.

Twerε Kronkron, Asante. 2012. Accra: The Bible Society of Ghana.

Yeboa, A. & Osei K. 2011. Nnimdeε Safe – Gyinapεn 7. Papertalk Books.

(NSF AK). 17, 415

Yedu, B. J. 2005. Ghana Ekunyin Edzikamfo Ho Awensεm (Vol.1).

Center for Indigenous Knowledge Systems. (GHA FA). 40, 986


383

Unpublished Books

Amponsah, M. 2010. Suro Mmea. University of Education, Winneba.

(SURO AK). 6,080

Antwi, D. J. 2010. Kae Dabi. University of Education, Winneba.

(KAE AS). 5,399

Asante, S. M. 2010. Kwaseabu So Akatua. University of Education,

Winneba. (KWA AK). 7,183

Baffoe, E. 2010 Wonni Panin a Due. University of Education,

Winneba. (DUE AS). 8,248.

Bioh, J. 2010. Abusua. University of Education, Winneba. (ABUS AS)

7,068.

Entsir, F. 2010. Ɔbra Yԑ Ɔko. University of Education, Winneba.

(ƆKO AS). 5603.

Flynt, C. 2010. Krᴐbea Asantewaa. University of Education, Winneba.

(KRƆBEA AS). 6,173.

Mantey, M. 2010. Afotuo Nsakra Nnipa. University of Education,

Winneba. (AFO AS). 8,108.

Mensah, L. 2010. Nna Nyinaa Nsԑ. University of Education, Winneba.

(NSƐ AS). 6,131.

Ottu, D. 2010. Aniberԑ Nnyԑ. University of Education, Winneba.

(ANI AS). 8,576.

Owusu, E. 2010. Mmᴐdemmᴐ. University of Education, Winneba.

(MMƆ AK). 5,488.

Owusu, A. 2010. Obi Nnim Ɔkyena Asԑm. University of Education, Winneba.

(OBI AS). 8,133

Sarfo, S. 2010. Abuburo Kosua. University of Education, Winneba.

(KOSUA AS). 7,122

Bosiwah, L. 2010. Amansuon Dawur. University of Cape Coast

(DAW FA) 8,102.

Eminah, M. and Bosiwah, L. 2008 NFED. (NFED FA) 12, 501.

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384

Web Sources

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Commissioner for Human Rights. (Rights FA). 2,146.

Nkwa Asɛm Apam Foforo Ne Nnwom. 2000. Biblica, Inc. (Nkwa AK). 5,105.

Apendix 2. Excerpts from Radio Broadcast

VN-20131213-00001 00-2:52. Peace FM Accra 13-12-2013

Sikakorasoafoᴐ Dr. Kwabena Dufoᴐ kᴐᴐ mmarahyԑbadwam ԑde ho asԑm kᴐtoo

dwa sԑ One million Ghana Cedis (Gh. 1,000,000.00) ԑna yԑde ԑrema ᴐman yi

nsԑntwerԑ adwuma. Ɛho nsԑm asan apagya bio ama sԑ yԑrekasa yi ara yi, ԑho

nkontaabuo no ayԑ kabisii, ama dawubᴐ nwuma ne akuakuo ahodoᴐ no ahyԑ aseԑ

ԑrekeka sԑ ԑho hia sԑ yԑyԑ nhwehwԑmu. Deԑ ᴐrekasa sesei yi yԑ Media Foundation

for West Africa, wᴐmmo resrԑ Ghana Journalists Association a ԑyԑ ᴐman yi

nsԑntwerԑfoᴐ kubaatan ԑne aku hodoᴐ a ԑwᴐ Ghana ha sei sԑ laptop a information

ministry emu soafoᴐ Mahama Ayarega ԑde ato mmrahyԑ badwafoᴐ anim sԑ

wᴐmmo akyekyԑ laptop maako maako ahankron (900) ԑna ԑde ama Ghana

nsԑntwerԑfoᴐ ԑde atu wᴐn abrabᴐ mu mpᴐn ԑne wᴐn nnimdeԑ mu mpᴐn a dodoᴐ no

ara kᴐfaa GJA nsam no, yԑnhwehwԑ mu anaasԑ wᴐmfa nkyerԑkyerԑmu mmra efisԑ

asԑm no ayԑ keserennee. Deԑ nti a Media Foundation for West Africa akᴐka nnipa

a ԑrekasa sesei ho no ne sԑ Owura Mahama Ayarega akᴐ akᴐka akyerԑ [mmarahyԑ

badwafoᴐ naano Wukuada yi a etwaa mu yi sԑ wᴐmmo de 1m Gh Cedis sika a

yetwa too hᴐ sԑ yԑde bԑboa dawubᴐ nwuma, de aboa nsԑntwerԑfoᴐ, aterԑterԑ wᴐn


385

nimdeԑ mu no, wᴐmmo huu sԑ dawubᴐfoᴐ anaa nsԑntwerԑfoᴐ ehia computers enti

wᴐmmo de totᴐᴐ laptop computers ԑna ԑde ԑmaa wᴐmmo, na laptop mmaako

mmaako ahankron no wᴐmmo kyerԑ a dodoᴐ no ara na ԑkᴐfaa GJAfoᴐ nsam.

Programs coordinator ԑma Media foundation for West Africa, Sulemana Braima

ԑne nsԑntwerԑfoᴐ nkᴐmᴐtwetweԑ mu no, ᴐkyerԑ sԑ asԑm wei deԑ edi nhwehԑmu a

emu dᴐ efisԑ ԑyԑ ade a ԑhwehwe asom. Executive director ԑma Ghana Independent

Broadcasters Association, Owura Gerald Ankrah ԑnsoso ԑfa mu no, ᴐkyԑrԑ sԑ ԑnyԑ

ade a wᴐmmo nsa aka laptop biara afiri ministry hᴐ sԑ yԑnkyekyԑ mfa mma ekuo

mma yaa ԑwᴐ Ghana Independence Broadcasters Association no ase. Ɔkyerԑ sԑ sԑ

yԑrekasa yi a yi, ԑnyԑ deԑ dawubᴐfoᴐ ne nsԑntwerԑfoᴐ hia ne computers, ԑno nyԑ

ade a ehia yԑn kԑsekԑse saa, enti wᴐmmo tetetetee ho nsԑm no, wᴐmmo kaa sԑ

yԑmfa sika no ԑnyԑ ade foforᴐ, na wᴐmmo anhyԑda ante ho hwee bio ekosi ԑnnԑ yi

a yԑreka sԑ yԑde computers kᴐmaa GJA sԑ ᴐnkyekyԑ ԑmma nsԑntwerԑfoᴐ. Enti ahia

ᴐman yi mu dawubᴐ nwuma, ankorankorԑ dawubᴐ nwuma no Ghana Independent

Broadcasters Association nso kyerԑ sԑ ԑho hia nhwehwԑmu. Afe 2011, saa berԑ no

na Ɔman panini Dramani Mahama ԑyԑ Vice President, man panin abadiakyire, ԑna

ᴐkyerԑ sԑ wᴐmmo abie Media Development Fund, yaa finance minister Dr.

Kwabena Dufour, 2012 budget mu okogyiaa hᴐ ԑkaa sԑ ᴐde 1million Ghana Cedis

atom, yaa ԑno ho asԑm ԑna sesei deԑ information ministry kryerԑ sԑ ᴐde 1 million

Gh Cedis no atotᴐ computers akyekyԑ de ama nsԑntwerԑfoᴐ afe a etwaa mu no.

Wei so na yԑregyina ahome kaseԑbᴐ yi so ato nkra yi taw. Yԑbԑtoa so. (466 words

for 2:52mn) = 155/m

NV-20131213-0001 (05:27-29) Peace FM Accra 13-12-2013

When all else fail, read the Bible, efisԑ ԑno ne abrabᴐ mu manual. Saa Paul White

yi yԑ obi a na ᴐngye Nyame ndi, na ᴐse Nyankopᴐn enni wiase. Sԑ wowᴐ pԑn ne

paper a anka mepԑ sԑ wotwerԑ adeԑ ketewaa bi, na me ma wo example bi, ade a

ԑtoo Paul White. Paul White ne office table so, ᴐyԑ obi a ᴐyԑ ᴐdefoᴐ paa, lawyer a

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

386

waben, na wobԑkᴐ ne chamber anaa ne table so na watwerԑ “God is nowhere”. If

you have a pen and a paper, you can just write “God is nowhere”. Na ade a na ԑyԑ

ne ya koraa ne sԑ na ne yere, ne yere enni ba. Ɛnam so ԑma ebeduu time bi a ntᴐkwa,

wanhyԑda ampam ne yere but na ne yere enhu no, na wokᴐ ne table so a adeԑ a na

esi ne table so no, wakyerԑw “God is nowhere”. Na ᴐwᴐ hᴐ ara na yԑbԑbᴐᴐ no

amaneԑ ԑyԑ after seven months a ᴐne ne yere ntam atete na ᴐnhwehwԑ ne yere na

ne yere nso nhwehwԑ no, ԑna yԑbԑbᴐᴐ no amaneԑ sԑ Paul White, wo yere, wawo,

ԑna ᴐse ‘what?’ Ɔngye ndi na ᴐresᴐre afi ne table so no na saa board a watwerԑ wᴐ

so sԑ “God is nowhere” no firii ne table no so na ԑbᴐᴐ fam na emu paeԑ. Guess

what! Emu ԑpaeԑ no “God is nowhere” no emu kyԑԑ mmienu na ᴐfaeԑ no na baako,

one side eriidi “God is now…” na emu apae na the other half no eriidi “here” enti

the very board no a na papa no akyerԑw so “God is nowhere” no, ԑbᴐᴐ fam no,

ԑbᴐeԑ ԑmaa the end no four letters pԑ na ԑkaa wᴐ so a ԑyԑ “here” enti ᴐfaa board no

mienu no na baako eriidi “God is now” ԑna baaako no nso “here”. Obiara ankyerԑw

bi, obiara ampepa bi. (313 words for two minutes) = 156/m

NV-20131212-00001 36:44-49:00 Peace FM Accra 12-12-2013

Ɔpanin Agyekum, Nelson Mandela yԑ obi a ne wuo yi, yebetumi asua biribi wᴐ

mu? Sԑ yԑka sԑ Nelson Mandela a, ԑ.. ԑwᴐ mu sԑ ᴐyԑ nipa, wawu, but ne ho dede

bebrebe yi, nnipa dodoᴐ a akᴐ n’ayie ne ade yi nyinaa, Ɔpanin wode w’adwenkyerԑ

ba a anka ԑbԑyԑ me dԑ.

Kwame, woahu sԑ onipa biara a wowᴐ wiase biara, ԑmfa ho ne sԑnea woteԑ biara,

wowᴐ nneԑma bi a ԑyԑ papa wᴐ wo ho ԑna wowᴐ nanso bi nso wᴐ wo ho. Ɛnte saa

deԑ a sԑ anka wonyԑ nnipa. Nea ԑma yԑrehwԑ a onipa wu a yԑhwԑ ԑneԑma papa bi

a ԑwᴐ mu a nkorᴐfoᴐ ebetumi anya ho mfasoᴐ. Esiane sԑ sԑ wokᴐfa bᴐne no a ԑwᴐ

ho no dea, obiara nsua hwee mfiri mu. Na Mandela yi, yԑnmu binom ka sԑ ogyina

hᴐ ma deԑn? Ogyina hᴐ ma obi a ᴐde ne nkwa too hᴐ sԑ ne man benya faahodie,

ԑno yԑ adeԑ baako. Sԑ ԑmfa ho sԑ mode no bԑkᴐ akᴐto afiase, deԑ mayԑ m’adwene


387

sԑ mԑyԑ no, deԑ na abibifoᴐ anya faahodie no, mԑyԑ. Ɔyԑԑeԑ ara kᴐdaa afiase mfeԑ

aduonu nson. Ɔbae, ne man no ԑhyԑԑ no anionyam ehuu sԑ, papa yi ᴐde ne kraa ne

n’ahoᴐden ne biribiara ԑtoo hᴐ ԑmaa yԑn enti ᴐdi yԑn anim ԑma yԑnya faahodie a

ԑyԑ, ԑna wᴐmmo too aba maa no. Kwame, ԑfa baabi a mehwԑ paa a ԑma megye no

to mu ne sԑ, nkorᴐfoᴐ wᴐ nkyerԑkyerԑmu dodoᴐ a wᴐmmo de bԑma. Sԑ obi yԑ

president a, ᴐyԑ president. Sԑ osi n’adwene sԑ ԑnneԑma bi ᴐbԑyԑ a, ᴐne aborᴐfo no

a wᴐkyeree no kᴐtoo mu no ᴐne wᴐn bԑdi no nwonwono a Kwame, anka nkorᴐfoᴐ

bԑtumi aka deԑ nanso ᴐne wᴐn bedi a ᴐne wᴐn bedi., But saa bᴐnefakyԑ honhom

bi bԑtenaa ne mu ԑma ohuu sԑ ԑmfa ho ne ayakayakadeԑ a yԑayԑ me, sesei deԑ ᴐman

no yԑn nyinaa pԑ sԑ yԑnya nkabom baako enti ammmuo nyehyԑe sei na mepԑ sԑ

mede kᴐ. Kwame, yԑmmera yԑn ara yԑn man yi mu koraa, ᴐman baako a yԑn deԑ

yԑn nyinaa koraa yԑyԑ tuntum no, ebi wᴐ hᴐ a bᴐnefakyԑ nnim. MP bi ayԑ

n’adwene, sԑ me bᴐᴐso te ha yi, ebia ᴐne obi akᴐ ayi…, na ԑneԑma bi a ᴐbaako ayԑ

no atia no no, ᴐbԑka sԑ wo deԑ twԑn, m’aban ba a… yԑte no daa, ᴐse o twԑn ma

maban mmera, m’aban ba a deԑ mede bԑyԑ woᴐ no… Enti saa ayi no na anka

obetumi ayԑ, but yensua mfirim sԑ yԑyԑ ᴐman baako mu nnipa sԑ biribi si a yensua

bᴐne fakyԑ. Ɛno ho hia pa ara.

Yensua Bᴐne fakyԑ. Wo a mayԑ wo bᴐne biara ԑnnԑ fa kyԑ me wate!

Kwame, sԑ, woahu, afeefeeԑ de akaakaeԑ ba. woyԑ w’adwene sԑ wobԑfee, ԑna,

ԑnaano wei yԑԑ bi… enti na ԑtᴐ daa me ne amanyԑfoᴐ no bԑhyia ha na obiara kᴐ ara

na ᴐse o Kwame Nkoroma, ԑna moyԑԑ no sei, ԑna moyԑԑ no sei, na obi nso se o,

ԑna Rawlings nso yԑԑ sei, sԑ yԑka sԑ yԑreka a Kwame, yԑbԑka akyire da biara saa

ara, na ennipa nso abrabᴐ no yԑkᴐ, yԑbᴐ kᴐ yԑn anim. Wokᴐkae akyire nneԑma a

ԑyԑe no bi pii a ԑsԑe nneԑma enti yensua ԑno. Deԑ ԑtᴐ so mmienu ne sԑ, obi a wakoda

afiase mfe aduonu nson na waba na wobedi adeԑ mfeԑ num pԑ, ᴐno ara hwԑ ne

wedeԑ mu na ᴐhwԑ nneԑma a atwa ne ho ahyia, onim sԑ wanyini enti merema kwan

na onipa foforᴐ bi ԑmmԑtena so. Yԑn ha yi? Ao, Kwame! ԑkaa ebinom nko a anka

yԑn abatoᴐ no, yԑto no mfeԑ nwᴐtwe mfeԑ nwᴐtwe, enti anka onya baako a, mfeԑ

nwᴐtwe nsoeԑ a.. Mugabe, Muselveni.. bobᴐ wᴐn nyinaa din. .. Enti ayԑ sԑ wᴐmmo

nkae sԑ tumidie yenni nka so. Enti ᴐbԑyԑ neԑma pii na ԑkeka kᴐ sԑ ԑmmera kwan a

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

388

yԑde ama no sԑ ebia aka afe aka mfeԑ mmienu na woanhwԑ yiye a.. wei deԑ wopԑ

o, wompԑ o yԑmma wonyinna koraa na yԑato aba no, ԑhᴐ no na na ayawdie no ahyԑ

aseԑ no. Enti sԑ yԑresua biribi a yԑnsua nhunu sԑ ԑnnyԑ wo nko ara baakofoᴐ ԑna

ᴐman no wobԑtumi ayԑ no yiye akᴐpem sԑ ebedu baabi a aduro, enti Mandela saa

nneԑma no, nneԑma mmienu titire wei a ᴐyԑԑ no, Kwame, yԑsua biribi efiri mu a

ԑyԑ. Woyi amanyԑsԑm koraa firi mu a, obi kᴐyԑ CEO, adwuma no nyԑ ne dea, obi

akodi minister bi, adwuma no nyԑ ne dea. Kwame, yԑka sԑ ommfiri mu… Hwԑ

bᴐᴐl, bᴐᴐl yԑyi obi firi mu sԑ ᴐmmԑtena ase, coach no ahu sԑ nea ԑrekᴐ yi ԑnkᴐ yie

bԑtena ase, obi wᴐ hᴐ a yeyi no firi mu ara na ne bo afu, kyerԑ sԑ ᴐno nko ara na

onim bᴐ kyԑn obiara, enti weinom yԑ adesuade a Kwame, ԑsԑ sԑ yesua biribi firi

mu. Ɛbԑma yԑn aman ahoroᴐ no yԑbԑtumi ako akᴐ yԑn anim. Ɛbԑyi ntawantawa

ԑnso ne tumi hunu a obi... ԑneԑ ne ti koraa ᴐde bԑto hᴐ apere anya no, ԑno nso afiri

hᴐnom. (836 words for 5:16 minutes) = 167/mn

Appendix 3. Excerpts of Some Modal and Evidential forms in

selected books

Ɔsabea Anima

Kwadwo, ԑhena na obesusuw sԑ, se, Akuapemfo wᴐ hᴐ yi wobenya akokoduru aso

atuo mu ne yԑn Akwamufo ako? Nnipa a wᴐn atuo ara ne akuapem. (ƆSA AK)

Aborᴐfo no nso hui sԑ asԑm a aba no nye, na afei ԑnyԑ nea wᴐpԑ enti wotuu abᴐfo

baa Nyanewase bԑsan wᴐ ho biara sԑnea ԑsԑ kyerԑԑ ᴐhene, srԑe sԑ na wᴐdwene sԑ

asotwe kakra a wᴐde rema mmerante no bԑma wᴐn ani aba fam kakra, nanso sԑ

amma saa na mmerante no akunkum wᴐn ho a, wᴐnkyerԑ nea bobegye de asie wᴐn

na sԑ wᴐafom akum a, wᴐmma ԑmma sԑ ᴐhene nso bԑfom agua. (ƆSA AK)

Firaw agya hᴐ de adepa biara nni hᴐ, nanso w’ani rebᴐ na ԑtԑ resi so, na gyama

ԑfanim ԑtԑ no. (ƆSA AK)


389

Ade pa bi kye yԑn a, yԑbԑkᴐ akᴐhwԑ asᴐre hᴐ, ebia yetena hᴐ a ԑbԑyԑ yiye. (ƆSA

AK)

Sԑ migyaw mo wᴐ hᴐ na ԑbԑyԑ yiye a, metiw me wᴐfanom ahwԑ sԑ metumi akᴐ

Firaw agya hᴐ bi anaa. (ƆSA AK)

Wim fԑ a ayԑ ne nnomaa yi atusi a wᴐredi yi, ԑnyԑ ᴐkwa. Ɛnnԑ sԑ ԑda bi a wᴐde gye

wᴐn ani. Ama mabu nna mawhԑ, na ԑyԑ me sԑ ԑnnԑ yԑ Akwasidae Mumuaka de too

so sԑ da no bԑyԑ Akwasidae ampa. (ƆSA AK)

Mԑnsa Kantimpo kae sԑ, sԑ wᴐahyia atamfo anaa aboa bᴐne bi a, anka otuo bԑtow.

Afei ose onnye nni sԑ aboa bi betumi akyere dᴐmmarima baanu no awia ketee saa.

(ƆSA AK)

Nananom aka ato hᴐ sԑ, wode bewu atᴐfo wu de, na eye sԑ wubedi yaw wᴐ ᴐhonam

yi mu, na nkakrankakra sԑ ᴐdomankoma wu de n’apakan bԑto wo ntwuronoo mu

a, na sԑbe worekᴐda dinn. Twa wo koma to wo yam bere pa foforo bi bԑba.

Yebenya adᴐfonom foforo, na ebia daakye anigye bԑsen da bi de no. (ƆSA AK)

Yԑwᴐ nkwam yi, ԑsԑ sԑ yԑbᴐ yԑn ho mmᴐden, na yetumi gyina sᴐhwԑ, ᴐhaw ne

ᴐbrԑ biara ano mmarima so, na yԑanguan ankᴐtoa owu. Nananom ka sԑ nkwa yԑ dԑ

a, na ne nkyerԑase ne sԑ onipa tumi biribiara yԑ wᴐ nkwa yi mu ha. (ƆSA AK)

Efi ha kᴐ Ɔboᴐsisum asᴐre pᴐw kԑse yi ano bԑyԑ akwansin awotwe, ԑnyԑ abiԑsa

sԑnea na Mumuaka susuw no. (ƆSA AK)

Me nko de a, anka mԑpԑ sԑ yԑbԑkᴐ Ɔkwawu. Yԑn Aduanafo yi mu binom tu

kᴐtenaa hᴐ nyԑ nnԑ. (ƆSA AK)

Ɔkwawufo wᴐ timmᴐbᴐ, wᴐntane ahᴐho ani, wᴐnyԑ mansotwefo, wᴐnyԑ aninyanne

na wᴐmpԑ mogyahwiegu na fei wᴐpԑ ade a ԑyԑ fԑ nso. Wᴐn man mu mframa dԑ

de, wᴐka ho asԑm a, ԑmma ᴐka. Mepԑ Ɔkwawu makᴐ. (ƆSA AK)

Ao! Wᴐfa, enti yԑrenkᴐ asu Firaw ho hᴐ bi anaa? Ebia yԑkᴐ hᴐ a, yebehu adᴐfonom

ne abusuafo binom a yԑne wᴐn apaapaem bԑyԑ afe ni no. (ƆSA AK)

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

390

Ɔkraman bi ne akokɔ ba bi ho asɛm

Da bi a kraman yi repase no, ohui sԑ akokᴐ ba no afi adi resosᴐw nneԑma wᴐ fam.

(ƆKR AK).

Afei obisaa no faako a ᴐte. Akokᴐba ansusuw sԑ ᴐkraman no wᴐ ne ho

adwemmᴐne bi nti ᴐkyerԑԑ no ne fi. (ƆKR AK).

Ɔkraman no faa nyansakwan ahoro bebree so pԑe sԑ ᴐkyere akokᴐ ba no we nanso

ᴐyԑe yԑe a, wantumi ankyere no. (ƆKR AK)

Oduu kwan so no na wabrԑ enti ᴐde n’adesoa no too hᴐ sԑ ᴐrehome kakra. Ɔfaa mu

dae na bere a akokᴐ ba no hui sԑ wada no, ᴐyԑԑ brԑoo fii kotoku no mu na ᴐtam

ᴐbo kԑse bi hyԑԑ mu. (ƆKR AK)

Ɔrekᴐ no, ohui sԑ n’adesoa no mu ayԑ duru kakra nanso wanka hwee. (ƆKR AK)

Okoduu hᴐ no, ohui sԑ nsu no rehuru. Ɔyԑԑ ntԑm de kotoku no ano kyerԑԑ nsu a

ԑrehuru no so. (ƆKR AK)

Nkura bi ne wɔn na

Wᴐn na no ampԑ sԑ wobefi adi. Osuroe sԑ wofi adi a, ԑbԑyԑ na agyinamoa bi

akᴐkyere wᴐn awe. (NKU AK)

Ɛna no buae se: “Agyinamoa wᴐhᴐ yi, ne ho yԑ fukufuku, na n’anim nso yԑ

kurukuruwa fԑfԑ. N’aniwa yԑ hyԑnn. N’awerԑw yԑ nnam yiye na etumi twa ade te

sԑ nea wᴐde sekan atwa. (NKU AK)

Esiane sԑ womfii adi da nti, biribiara a wohuu wᴐ kwan so no yԑ wᴐn nwonwa na

wᴐsԑee bere hwԑԑ ne nyinaa. (NKU AK)


391

Wohuu awia a afi ama wiase ayԑ fԑfԑ, na wᴐhwԑԑ nnua, nkhwiren ne abo nso a

atwa wᴐn ho ahyia no. (NKU AK)

Wohuu aboa bi a ᴐwᴐ anan abien na ade kᴐkᴐᴐ bi nso si n’atifi. (NKU AK)

Wᴐhyԑn mu na wohuu ᴐdan bi nso a ano da hᴐ. Wᴐyԑԑ ntԑm kᴐᴐ ᴐdan no mu.

(NKU AK)

Wohuu bodobodo a wᴐabubu mu agu fam ne nam a wᴐakyew nso sԑ esi adaka bi

atifi (NKU AK)

Nkura mma yi huu aboa a ne ho yԑ fukufuku na n’anim yԑ kurukuruwa yi. Wᴐn

mu baako kae se: “Gyama saa aboa yi yԑ agyinamoa?” (NKU AK)

Ɔbaako nso se: Ɔnyԑ agyinamoa. Sԑ ᴐyԑ agyinamoa a, anka onni mfemfem. Afei

nso sԑ ᴐyԑ agyinamoa a, anka ohuu yԑn yi wato ahyԑ yԑn so akyere yԑn. (NKU

AK)

Nea otwa to no nso kae se: “Ampa, ᴐnyԑ agyinamoa efisԑ yԑn na kaa agyinamoa

ho asԑm no, wanka se ᴐwᴐ mfemfem. Ɔbԑyԑ aboa foforo bi.” (NKU AK)

Agyinamoa no tee eyi no, ᴐserewee na ohui sԑ nkura mma no nnim no. Eyi nti,

ᴐdaadaa wᴐn sԑ ᴐpԑ wᴐn asԑm na ᴐne wᴐn bedi agoru. (NKU AK)

Anansesɛm Asi So o.

Na ᴐhwԑ sԑnea wᴐayԑ frᴐmm afa no a, nea ᴐkae wᴐ ne tim ara ne sԑ, “Aa, akokᴐ

mma yi nam bԑyԑ dԑ. (ANA AK)

Otu baa fam na nkokᴐ mma no huu no pԑ na woguan kᴐhintawee wᴐ wᴐn maame

ntaban ase. (ANA AK)

Akrᴐma kae se “Ampa sԑ wo mma yi ho yԑ fԑ!” (ANA AK)

Na akrᴐma huu wᴐn no, na ԑyԑ no sԑ gyama akokᴐba. (ANA AK)

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

392

Ɔbᴐfo yi hyԑ mukaase na ᴐtee sԑ akrᴐma resu. Ɔyԑԑ ntԑm faa ne tuo. Oduu hᴐ pԑ

na okum akrᴐma na ᴐdaa ᴐkᴐtᴐ ase. (ANA AK)

Afei Ogyam ntumi mmue n’ano mpo na wakasa. Ɔhwee fam a na ayԑ sԑ wawu.

Wanhu hwee bio. (ANA AK)

Owiee n’afiase da no, na obiara nim sԑ afei de ᴐbԑsakra. Afei koraa na asԑm no

asԑe. (ANA AK) Da bi anᴐpa tutuutu, nteateam a ano yԑ den nyan Kuropafo. Ɛyԑԑ

wᴐn sԑ gyama onipa bᴐnefo bi na ᴐredi obi awu. (ANA AK)

Anansesɛm Yɛ Asisie 3

Sԑ abᴐfra yi didi wie a, ᴐtumi nom nsuo ara ma ne fie hᴐ deԑ nyinaa sa sane de siaa

wᴐn a wᴐne no bᴐ afipam, nom wᴐn deԑ nyinaa ma ԑsa kawee. (AYA 3 AS)

Sԑ wo ara wohunu akoa no tebea mu, ԑne nsԑbԑ a atwa ne ho ahyia no a, na

akyinnyeԑ biara nni ho sԑ waben. (AYA 3 AS)Na wᴐpԑ sԑ wᴐyera wᴐn akyiri

kwan nti, wᴐkᴐᴐ akyiri. (AYA 3 AS)

Nwi a ԑgu ne tiri soᴐ wobԑka sԑ wᴐde sika asra mu. (AYA 3 AS)

Ɔhene no hunuu sԑ wasesa wᴐ n’awofoᴐ anim soᴐ no, ᴐno ara yii ne ho adi kyerԑԑ

wᴐn sԑ wᴐn ba Tikono bi a wᴐtoo no asaworam sԑ ᴐkᴐm nku no wᴐ wᴐn bepᴐ-so-

fie no mu no. (AYA 3 AS)

Owuo hunuu sԑ Ananse gyina a, ԑnnyina no, ᴐkᴐpԑԑ no daberԑ. (AYA 3 AS)

Dadwene maa nnakorokoro nyaa Kwaku. Ɛkyԑreeԑ ansa na ᴐretumi ada kakra.

(AYA 3 AS)

Nkᴐmmᴐdie no ara mu na Owuo ka kyerԑԑ Kwaku sԑ ᴐde nyansa no bԑma no, nanso

ԑsԑ sԑ ᴐyԑ nnoᴐma bi. (AYA 3 AS)

Anka ᴐreyԑ anya adwene bi sԑ ᴐbԑkyԑ ama adasamma, nanso ᴐdwene ᴐbrԑ ne

abԑbbrԑsԑ a wafa mu no ho a, na ԑnsԑ sԑ ᴐma obi bie. (AYA 3 AS)


393

Ntikuma hwԑ din na ᴐkaa sԑ: “Megye medi sԑ yԑbԑtumi de kukuo yi afa dua yi ase

bi na yԑanya kwan akᴐ fie ntԑm.” (AYA 3 AS)

Wᴐn botaeԑ ara ne sԑ, wᴐpԑԑ sԑ, wᴐhwehwԑ ᴐkwan a wᴐfa so a, wᴐbԑnya wᴐn ho

atete wᴐ ᴐbᴐfoᴐ nsam. (AYA 3 AS)

Ɔdidi wieeԑ pԑ, na ᴐbᴐfoᴐ ka guu so faa ne tuo ne nnoᴐma a ԑho hia no nyinaa kᴐᴐ

amia mu. (AYA 3 AS)

Dԑnkyԑm yere yi hyԑԑ Kwaku ketee sԑ twa ara na ԑtwa sԑ ᴐhu no. Yei nti ᴐhyԑԑ

no da a ᴐbԑba abԑfa no maa ᴐbaa no penee so. (AYA 3 AS)

Ɔde Dԑnkyԑm yere yi faa mfikyikwan bi so kᴐpuee ne dan mu sei wurudu. Ɛhᴐ na

Kwaku ho tᴐᴐ no, ԑfiri sԑ na ᴐnim sԑ deԑ ԑbԑyᴐ biara waye nam. (AYA 3 AS)

Anansesɛm Yɛ Asisie 2

Ɔbaa no hunuu sԑ ne kunu no nyԑ hyeԑ nti, ᴐhyehyԑԑ awaregyaeԑ ho, nanso

nkurᴐfoᴐ tuu no fo maa no tenaa hᴐ saa ara. (AYA 2 AS)

Akoan no sane bԑfaa no dwanee a ᴐse no antumi anka “na” koraa. (AYA 2 AS)

Otumfoᴐ se wahunu atoyerԑnkyԑm a ato mo nnansa yi, enti yԑmfa saa nnoᴐma

mmiԑnsa yi mmra na monyi mu deԑ mopԑ. (AYA 2 AS)

Wᴐbԑka kyerԑԑ Nyame abᴐfoᴐ no, wᴐn ani gyee sԑ ᴐbaa ne okunu yi atumi ahunu

adepa ayi, ԑfiri sԑ ԑno na ԑbԑma wᴐn aseten mu ayԑ bᴐkᴐᴐ kama. (AYA 2 AS)

Na ᴐnhunu deԑ ᴐnka. Nokorԑ ara na ԑtwa sԑ ᴐka. (AYA 2 AS)

Abirekyie hyԑԑ nkura no bᴐ sԑ sԑ wᴐtu bᴐn no ma no a, ᴐbԑma wᴐn adwe. (AYA 2

AS)

Ɔsebᴐ susuu sԑ ᴐbԑtumi akorᴐkorᴐ wᴐn ama wᴐasane aba biem enti ᴐfrԑԑ wᴐn sԑ

wᴐnsane mmra mmԑgye sika ne ayԑyԑdeԑ nanso wᴐansane amma. (AYA 2 AS)

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

394

Sakraman de bԑtoo wᴐn anim sԑ ᴐpԑ sԑ ᴐne wᴐn fa nnamfoᴐ. Nanso Anene deԑ, na

ᴐnim Sakraman. Ɔnim sԑ dua a ԑbԑwᴐ w’ani no, wᴐtu aseԑ, na wᴐntwa so, enti

wampene sԑ wᴐne Sakraman bԑfa nnamfoᴐ. (AYA 2 AS)

Berԑ a ᴐnyiniiԑ no, ᴐbaa no ka kyerԑԑ no sԑ ᴐnkyiri hwee, na abԑ nkutoo na ԑnsԑ sԑ

ᴐforo bi da. (AYA 2 AS)

Wᴐn baanu sii nkonnwa susuu deԑ wᴐbԑyᴐ ho. Wohunuu sԑ ԑbԑhia wᴐn nsuo, ԑfiri

sԑ faako a wᴐde wᴐn ani kariiԑ no, nsuo nni hᴐ. (AYA 2 AS)

“Ei Kwaku, gyama ᴐdԑnkyԑm a wannya no nti na wode aniwuo retuatua me so

seyie?” (AYA 2 AS)

Asᴐ ankasa na wabԑka sԑ ᴐdԑnkyԑm awu da nsunoa yi deԑ, akyinnyeԑ biara nni

ho. (AYA 2 AS)

Mfantse Kodzisɛm ho Adzesua

Muhun dԑ dza ᴐyԑ Mfantse Anokodzisԑm nye Anansesԑm, mbԑbusԑm, tsetsensԑm

anaa abakᴐsԑm a no mu nokwar no bi ayew. (KODZI FA)

Mbom nsԑm no n’afa bi so wᴐ hᴐ a mepԑԑ dԑ nkyԑ medze ka ho a menntum.

(KODZI FA)

Nkyԑ nwoma yi bԑyԑ kԑse araa ma obiara nnkԑpԑ dԑ ᴐbԑkan. (KODZI FA)

Sԑ obi enndzi kan enntwa sa no amma nyirmba a nna ᴐwᴐ dԑ nkyirmba hᴐnara

wᴐdan hᴐnho edzikanfo. (KODZI FA)

Ehwԑ a nna Aban n’adwene a oenya no wᴐ Ghana Kasa biara no Kodzisԑm no sua

ho nye dԑ ᴐwᴐ dԑ noho nhyehyԑԑ ᴐyԑ dԑ Ngyiresi Kasa mu Kodzisԑm English

Literature) no sua ho dze no ara pԑr. (KODZI FA)

Abᴐtsir a ahemfo hyԑ na edwindzi a ᴐwᴐ ho, ahemfo hᴐn ahyehyԑdze tsetse dԑ

ntweaban, banserԑ, mpԑtesea na mpaboa a wᴐhyԑ no ho Edwin nyina wᴐ asekyerԑ,


395

na obi a onyim no hu dԑm dzԑmba yi mu biara a otum hu, ka kyerԑ ase. (KODZI

FA)

Sԑ ᴐtsaban kor tu anaa ᴐsԑԑ a, ᴐwᴐ dԑ wᴐdze fofor hyԑ ananmu. (KODZI FA)

Akowaa yԑ obi a ᴐsom, yԑ edwumadzen a ᴐwᴐ fie hᴐ nyina. Naaso, ᴐsԑ dԑ wᴐdze

dza akowaa hia biara ma no ama oeetum asom yie. (KODZI FA)

Ɔbrɛguo

Berԑ biara a huhuhuhu bi bԑkᴐ so wᴐ Fahyiakᴐbᴐ no, na asԑnkԑseԑ bi asi akuraa hᴐ.

Enti berԑ a yԑseyԑse hyԑԑ aseԑ wᴐ akuraa hᴐ no, na obiara nim pefee sԑ asԑnkԑseԑ

bi aba. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Ɛkame ayԑ sԑ na obiara ate asԑm a asie, nanso na ᴐmpԑ sԑ ᴐyԑ sԑ wate anaasԑ ᴐnim

deԑ aba. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Sԑ abaayewa biara si so a, ԑsԑ sԑ ᴐhwԑ ne ho yie, bu ᴐbra pa, na ᴐyi ne ho firi

mmarimasԑm ho kᴐsi sԑ ᴐbԑnyini, aso aware na wahunu ᴐbarima. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Sԑ abaayewa bi duru brayᴐ so na ᴐkᴐ afikyire a ԑdi kan a, ԑsԑ sԑ n’awofoᴐ, titire ne

maame de no. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Ɔhunuu sԑ biribiara nni hᴐ a wᴐbԑtumi ayԑ, enti ᴐka kyerԑԑ Brayie sԑ, deԑ ayԑ no,

twa ara na ԑtwa sԑ ᴐbᴐ mmᴐden fo dua no sԑdeԑ wᴐbԑtumi akᴐda aboᴐ no soᴐ.

(ƆBRƐ AS)

Kwame maa Brayie awerԑhyԑm sԑ baabi a wᴐwᴐ hᴐ no nko ara deԑ, gye sԑ ebia

wᴐfiri tᴐ nsuo no mu. Na sԑ ԑno pa ho deԑ a, aboa biara rentumi mfa nsuo no mu

mma deԑ wᴐwᴐ hᴐ mmԑha wᴐn enti ᴐmma ne bo ntᴐ ne yam. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Na wᴐgye di sԑ, ebia, wᴐbԑkᴐ akᴐto kwan bi a ԑba asuo no ho na wᴐafa so. (ƆBRƐ

AS)

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

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Nkurᴐfoᴐ pii kᴐᴐ afikyire hᴐ, hyԑԑ aseԑ hwehwԑԑ Brayie. Adwene a ԑbaa obira tirim

ne sԑ gyama Brayie pԑ sԑ ᴐkᴐyԑ ne ho biribi anaa sԑ wadwane. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Deԑ ԑmaa Agya Nyasԑmhwԑ ne Eno Bimpԑ gye dii pefee sԑ Brayie adwane koraa

ne sԑ, wᴐhunuu sԑ nnoᴐma a wᴐhyehyԑ sii Brayie hᴐ no nni dan no mu. (ƆBRƐ

AS)

Megye di yie sԑ, ԑyԑ mo awofoᴐ yi ara na mo ne atᴐfoᴐ no ayԑ kanana, akyerԑ wᴐn

kwan ama wᴐafa so adwane, na ԑnyԑ kwa. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Berԑ a mpanyimfoᴐ baanu yi dii nse sane wᴐn ho wieeԑ a Nana Asipim firii aseԑ

dwenee mmuaeԑ ko a ԑsԑ sԑ ᴐde bua wᴐn no, na badwam hᴐ atԑm din. Obi hwԑ a,

ᴐbԑka sԑ gyama nnipa mpo nni hᴐ. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Sԑ obi hwԑ sԑdeԑ asԑm no teԑ no a, na akyinnyeԑ biara nni ho sԑ deԑ ᴐkᴐwiaa

kookoo no de kᴐkaa Kwame dekaa Kwame deԑ o ho. Na sԑ ԑte sa dea na hwan na

ԑsԑ sԑ wᴐde asԑm no hyԑ no kyԑn Kwame Tua? (ƆBRƐ AS)

Asԑm a polisifoᴐ panin no kaeԑ ne sԑ, deԑ asԑm no akᴐyԑ no, biribiara di adanseԑ

sԑ deԑ ᴐkᴐwiaa kookoo no de kᴐkaa Kwame Tua deԑ no ho. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Ɔtoaa so sԑ, deԑ wahunu no, sԑ ᴐkᴐ so tena hᴐ a, ᴐnnim deԑ ԑbԑto no bio, enti twa

ara na ԑtwa sԑ wᴐtutu soᴐ. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Kwadwo Mabrԑ kᴐᴐ sukuu no, na ᴐbᴐ mmᴐden yie, enti na n’awofoᴐ wᴐ anidasoᴐ

sԑ da bi abᴐfra no bԑyԑ onipa kԑseԑ abԑboa wᴐn. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Brayie te no saa a, ᴐde su ne awerԑhoᴐ toa so kᴐ deԑ Kwame Tua da hᴐ. Ebia

nkurᴐfoᴐ adaworoma na wᴐqakᴐbᴐ no abomo aba fie. (ƆBRƐ AS)

Wo ara wonim suban a wo se wᴐ mu. Mewᴐ anidasoᴐ sԑ wode bԑtu wo ho fo, na

woayere wo ho asua w’adeԑ, na da bi wode abᴐ wo bra. (ƆBRƐ AS)


397

Abotar

Minyim dԑ ᴐba a, ᴐba gyan. (ABO FA)

Inyim adze a ᴐnam do ma memmpε dε medze ba yi kᴐ asopitsi yi? (ABO FA)

Siatsir wᴐ hᴐ a memmpε dε medze no kᴐ asopitsi. (ABO FA)

Na sε obi bεsεε m’dze a, nna nkyε mara mo nua a menye no fi egye kor na kor a?

(ABO FA)

Dza mara metse na mehu yi a, Aba, menngye minndzi dε oye dε mebεma ᴐakᴐ

asopitsi. (ABO FA)

‘Hmm, Efua, ampa, binom wᴐ mu a wᴐbᴐ mbᴐdzen ,naaso hᴐn dodowara mmfa

asomdwee mmba fidua mu. (ABO FA)

Dza mepe dε medze to w’enyim nye dε bᴐ mbᴐdzen ara hwε woho yie mma aannka

asem bi wᴐ fidua mu a, ne nyiano bεyε dzen ama wo. (ABO FA)

Meyε m’adwen ara a, nna biribi abᴐbᴐ mu, nna otwar dε mutu hyε da. (ABO

FA)

‘Gyama yεbεfa no demara. (ABO FA)

Yewura Kwesi papa kaa dε ᴐnam dε mbrεana Ewura Efuawa ahyε edur a datser no

no ase no, ᴐdwen dε obeye dε wᴐbᴐhwε enyim kakra ansaana wᴐbεsesa wᴐasesa.

(ABO FA)

Me yemu ara a nkyε yafun yi ayε yie, naaso onnyi dε yetutu enguan wᴐ hᴐ.

Oye ara dε yεyε abotar hwe dza datser yi dze ama hεn yi. (ABO FA)

Maame, megye midzi dε etse me asem’(ABO FA)

Ewura Efuwa buaa ne na dε ᴐno ᴐdwen dε dza no kun aka no ,wobesie abotar ahwε

edur a datser no dze ama no no kakra ansaana wᴐbεsakyer edur no a wᴐasakyer.

(ABO FA)

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

398

Maame Efuwa kaa dε sε Ewura Efuwa noara ᴐnye no kuu yε adwen a, nna no so

ᴐnnyi ho hwε ka, na mbom ᴐno biribi ntsi na ᴐnam do ma ᴐreper dε nkyε ᴐmma

wᴐnkᴐ banyin a ᴐwᴐ benyinabᴐto no hᴐ ma ᴐnhwε no no. (ABO FA)

Gyama dza ᴐrehaw hᴐn ara nye yafun kor yi ara'. (ABO FA)

Aber a mekaa Maame Akyerε ne ba no n'asεm kyerε hᴐn no, wᴐanngye enndzi.

(ABO FA)

Minnyim sε wo krataaa kᴐ a, ᴐbεma Ewura Efuwa aba o. (ABO FA)

Mara minyim dε ᴐbεba abεka dε ᴐserε hεn yεmma no kwan ma ᴐnhwε no n'edur

no kakra ana. (ABO FA)

'Efuwa, dza ereka yi nyina matse, na mbom kor a mepε dε Ewura Efuwa no kun

tse nye dε Ewura Efuwa da ebusua mu. (ABO FA)

Amansuon Dawur

Mbasiafo nwomasua yԑ adze a ᴐnnsԑ dԑ awofo dze to fomu koraa, ntsi ᴐserԑԑ

awofo dԑ wᴐma mbasiafo nwomasua nda hᴐn akoma ho papaapa. (DAW FA)

Ɔdze sᴐᴐw do ᴐsԑ dԑ awofo dᴐ hᴐn mba mbasiafo na wᴐhwԑ hᴐn nwomasua so yie.

(DAW FA)

Mpo ma ᴐsԑ dԑ ᴐyԑ wᴐ nwomasua ho nyina ᴐreyԑ na sԑ Awofo, Akyerԑkyerԑfo na

Esuafo annyԑ hᴐn afamu dze ammboa a, dza wᴐayԑ nyinara mfaso biara remmba

ho. (DAW FA)

Banyimba bi a ᴐtaa we wᴐ skuul nsᴐhwԑ mu na da kor bi ᴐkaa kyerԑԑ n’anyԑnkofo

dԑ, “Hmm! Seseiara mayԑ m’adwen dԑ, mepԑ dԑ migyaa skuul osiandԑ mowe

dodow. Meyer moho biara, eso ᴐnnyԑ yie”. (DAW FA)

Nna m’adwen yԑ me dԑ merehaw m’awofo, eso hwԑ mbrԑ mewie? (DAW FA)


399

Brako

Wo ara wunim yεn atwaa mu. (BRA AK)

Ebia na nea yεn ani daa so amma no sa. (BRA AK)

εka ne nko a, anka ade akye ma wasi kwan so. (BRA AK)

Ampa, ntetewmudi nyε adewa. (BRA AK)

Bᴐ mmᴐden sε bere biara wobεwεn w'aso ate afie asεm. (BRA AK)

Yε wo ho ayemfo na woatumi akye ade' (BRA AK)

Sεnea Anidaso si de abu daa n'awofo yi ase fae no ma wuhu sε ᴐyε obi a ofi ampa.

(BRA AK)

Mehyε mo bᴐ sε merengu mo anim ase da.Wohwε wᴐn nsa ho mmaa atape a,

wobεka sε wᴐahyε da aka wᴐn mpire. (BRA AK)

Sε wunim sε na anka mewᴐ Nkran? (BRA AK)

'Na anka εhᴐ na mewᴐ. (BRA AK)

W ugye di sε dεn nti na masan abεtena akuraa? (BRA AK)

Sε manhwε yiye a, anka mede animguase na efi Nkran san bae. (BRA AK)

Sε mise mεka wo nea mihui wᴐ Nkran a, anka adagyew bεbᴐ yεn. (BRA AK)

Ɔkᴐm a εdee me ne mmuada a minhuu hwee na meredi. (BRA AK)

'Sε wo ti ye a, ebia wubenya ᴐdomfo bi na wama wo paa bi adi. (BRA AK)

Nea εyε yaw koraa ne sε, ebia ᴐdomfo bi abᴐ mmᴐden ama woakᴐyε sᴐhwε bi a

wᴐde fa nnipa, na wo ara wugye wo ho di sε wᴐbᴐᴐ mmᴐden. (BRA AK)

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

400

Mene m’akyinkyinakyinkyini yi

Ɛno nti, dwuma yi die mu no, menyaa adεεfoᴐ bi hyεε me kutupa, enti εsε sε me

nso medi wᴐn fori. (MENE AS)

Owura R. M. Opong nso nyε onipa a εsε sε meyi no akwa wᴐ saa dwumadie yi mu.

(MENE AS)

Enti da koro bi ᴐka kyerεε n'aberewa sε ᴐpε sε ᴐtutu so kᴐpε paa bi die εfiri sε,

wote faako a wote w'adeε so. (MENE AS)

Na Akwasi yε ᴐdehyeε kann a ᴐtumi di adeε. (MENE AS)

Ɛyεε sε deε n'ani reka korᴐnobᴐ no so maa ᴐnyaa sika nanso, wantumi ammane

n'aberewa yi da. (MENE AS)

Ɛkame ayε sε baabiara a ᴐbεduru no, ᴐyε bᴐne hᴐ enti n'akwantuo no mu nyinaa,

wantumi antumi antena faako ankyε da. (MENE AS)

Mpanimfoᴐ se: “wodwane Nyame a, wohyε N'ase εnna nnimmo nso antumi wo a,

εtete ntoma.:" (MENE AS)

Ɔyᴐeε yᴐeε no, wᴐkyeree no na asεm a εsiiε deε, agye sε woakan saa nwoma yi

ansa na wobεhunu. (MENE AS)

Ɛnam sε ᴐmanfoᴐ de wᴐn bukyia maa no sε awᴐ ba a wasᴐ mu gya ama wᴐabεto

bie na wantumi anni saa bᴐhyε no soᴐ no nti, wᴐtuu no adeε so apereapere. (MENE

AS)

Anka εdane sε εboᴐ a, ᴐmaame no nso bεdi adeε wᴐ Asεmasa nanso na onua panin

bi a wᴐfrε no Abenaa Pεnnε na ᴐsi so saa bere no. (MENE AS)

Sε kakra nya ka n'ano a, ᴐtumi bᴐ ᴐno ara ne ho mmrane sε: ''Me Adwoa ba Akwasi

dehyeε ne no, mensuro huu.” (MENE AS)

Nanso, sεbe, akora yi antumi annya ade titire biara. (MENE AS)


401

Deε wopε sε woyᴐ yi, mahunu bi ahunu, ahunu, ahunu. (MENE AS)

Etire Nni Safoa

Anka mempε sε mebᴐ saa asεm yi so seesei kyerε mo, nanso mo masetafoᴐ se

mommmisa a, mεka. (ETI AS)

Onyame a ᴐmpε asεmmᴐne, ᴐwoo Anᴐpawi bεyε abosome nsia akyi ara na ᴐwuiε.

(ETI AS)

Gyama mo sukuu hᴐ wᴐnkyerε mo Asante Kasa? (ETI AS)

Gyama wᴐkᴐᴐ nkwaaba ha ara? (ETI AS)

Ei, enti εyε nokorε sε me maame awu ampa? (ETI AS)

Ebia na εnte saa na ᴐpε sε ᴐdi me nya ntira. (ETI AS)

εwom sε osuo no tᴐᴐ ntεm nanso εyε me sε asase no na εyε ntira. (ETI AS)

εyε me sε gyama afe yi, obiara kookoo aso wᴐ ᴐboase ho. (ETI AS)

Ne nsono ne ne mmreεbo nyinaa yε wo dea, nti εsε sε ᴐno na wohwε no sε wowo

ᴐba na wohwε no a, wohwε no ma obi. (ETI AS)

Sε woyε aban adwuma na wotumi hwε wᴐn saa berε no mu a, εbεduru sε

wᴐbεwiewie 'kᴐlegyi' no, na wo nso woapᴐn adwuma afei na wᴐatwa wᴐn ho rehwε

wo. (ETI AS)

Anka ᴐmfa hᴐ nnwane. (ETI AS)

Mese, me ne ᴐkyeameAmpadu na εtumi kᴐᴐ anim. (ETI AS)

Sε Onyame ammoa yεankᴐpue hᴐ a, anka εdii bᴐne. (ETI AS)

Araba koraa sε εnyε tu a ᴐtuu ha ntεm a, anka me na mewaree no. (ETI AS)

Kofi, εnneε εsε sε wode saa asεm yi kᴐ nhyiamu ase ma wᴐhyε mmara sε obi a

ᴐnam kwammᴐne so de makoanaa akakaduro bεhyehyε obi ba anaa ne ba no, εsε

sε aban ne no die. (ETI AS)

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402

Ghana Ekunyin Edzikanfo ho awensɛm

Mpanyimfo se, “Ano na ano hyia a ntoto ba. (GHA FA)

Baebor bᴐ hԑn kᴐkᴐ dԑ, “yԑamfa hwee ammba wiadze. Afei so yerunntum mmfa

hwee mmfi mu nnkᴐ”. (GHA FA)

Ampa, osiandԑ wᴐdze ekuma ku nyimpa; abᴐndua yԑ akondadze mu kor.

Esuantsefo, yenyim wᴐn! Wᴐdze ᴐko rebԑka hԑn bio. (GHA FA)

Mensa Sarbah ennyin annkyԑr. Mpanyimfo se, dua a ᴐyԑ fԑw no ᴐnnkyԑr wᴐ haban

mu. Odzii mfe eduanan esia ara pԑr. (GHA FA)

Wᴐse, nyimpa ᴐbofo, sԑ wᴐdze dabᴐ tsir ma wo dԑ pra ho a, ᴐno yer wo ho yԑ no

yie biana wᴐdze bᴐ nkwan a woara bᴐnom no kԑse. (GHA FA)

America nwoma mu abemfo akakaku bi hun dԑ Aggrey sԑ na ᴐfata dԑ wᴐdze no ka

asomfo bi a nna wᴐrekᴐ Africa nserahwԑ wᴐ nwomasua ho dze etu Ebibifo hᴐn

nwomasua mpon, ntsi wᴐnye no kᴐree. (GHA FA)

Mese Wo Amen

Mmofraase bere a yedii wᴐ ha, ayensin ne abobᴐabobᴐ, afirisum, akᴐtᴐbᴐ ne

aporᴐbᴐ, amanetoᴐ, akᴐkono, awa ne ahweԑ, akᴐnkᴐdeԑ, ntԑ, atimpen ne atee, ԑyԑ

sԑ nnԑra pԑ, yԑ bԑ kae daa. (MESE AK)

Wote me ho asԑm a, fa ntama bᴐ wo yam ebia na mannya osufoᴐ. Dea oni awuo

nka n'asԑm. ᴐtan, su wo ba sie prԑko, Sesԑԑ wo wuo nam kwan so. (MESE AK)

Wote me ho asԑm a, beyi me asotire, woanhwԑ a, na wo ho wom bi. Ofuruntum

wuo na ԑsanne mmatatwene nti, ebia w'asԑm no nam kwan so. (MESE AK)

Wote me ho asԑm a mpԑ ntԑm mmua bi. ƐKaa ᴐtamfo nko a, anka wᴐde me

resen, nso obi deԑ aba obi deԑ nam kwan so. (MESE AK)

Wote me ho asԑm a, mpԑ ntem nnye me ti. Ebia na wodi ka. Mede me ho aba,


403

wᴐnyԑ mma me. Ɔyᴐnko deԑ nam kwanso. (MESE AK)

Wote me ho asԑm a, nnye no ntrԑ ha; ebia na animguasesԑm, asԑm te se ntakra,

mfare tu ara a, na ԑde nenam kwan so. (MESE AK)

Wote me ho asԑm a, nka sԑ: “ᴐtwea, manya no!” Ebia na makonya kamafo.

Ewiem nyԑ sakrana yi anyabie towia de dimafo bԑba, kagynamfoᴐ nam kwan so.

(MESE AK)

Mekᴐ meba bio a, anka mԑkᴐ makᴐbra nea kahire da ara. Mepԑ nea ᴐsom wᴐ sie

ara, ᴐsom na adom me seyie me mmaeԑ yim. (MESE AK)

Mekᴐ meba bio a, anka mԑpԑ sԑ mԑtra ayemfoᴐ mu ara, madᴐm ntetekwaa fekuo,

nyansa dodoᴐ anye me, me mmaeԑ yim. (MESE AK)

Ɔbra Wᴐtᴐ Bo Bᴐ

ᴐwᴐ dԑ hom yԑ edwuma, na mbom akrakyeduma dze monndwen dԑ oye biara.

(ƆBRA FA)

Mepԑ dԑ isua nsaanodwuma bi amma aanndan obi ansaana edzidzi. (ƆBRA FA)

Edwuma a mepԑ dԑ isua no, ekyir yi na mebԑ ka akyerԑ wo. Megye dzi dԑ sԑ

menye wo hyia bio a ebԑ tse me ase. (ƆBRA FA)

Hwԑ, emi megye me ba Kofi dzi na dza ᴐbԑ ka no minyim dԑ ᴐyԑ nokwar.

(ƆBRA FA

ᴐkyԑr kakra no oyii ano dԑ mbom nkyԑ ᴐmmpԑ naaso ne papa aka ntsi ᴐwᴐ dԑ

osua ara. (ƆBRA FA)

Ooho, nyԑ mbrԑ wosi yi asԑ m ano nye no; 'mepԑ ' anaa 'mempԑ ', nna erekasa ma

matse. Mohwԑ a emmpԑ, ntsi fa asԑm no ne nan si famu na ka no yie. (ƆBRA

FA)

Bere a Egya Ata rekasa nyina nna Kodwo reyerԑw n'ano, nna ekyingye biara

nnyi ho dԑ oenya pԑ wᴐ n'egya ne nhyehyԑԑ no ho. (ƆBRA FA)

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

404

Egya yɛ Sunsum

Ampa, nna David na Jonathan hᴐn anyԑnkoyԑ a daa wᴐbᴐ dzin wᴐ nyamesԑm mu

no mpo yԑ Egya Adom na Egya Akᴐm dze yi ho abofra. (EGYA FA)

Mempe dԑ mber gu mu bio osiandԑ mpanyimfo se 'Nda annso a ᴐtra do,' nna

minnyim mbrԑ sika no si moho kyԑr so a ᴐbԑyԑ. (EGYA FA)

Egyir maa asaase no wura tsee ase dԑ, sԑ wodzi borᴐnya wie a, ne ndaawᴐtwe no

obohu n'enyi. Iyi ntsi nna Egyir mmpԑ dԑ ᴐsԑԑ mber pii wᴐ Wawase hᴐ no.

(EGYA FA)

ᴐwᴐ dԑ ᴐfa n'ekuraase Atᴐnkyen so keyi ne seebo na ne ndzԑ mba kakra a obehia

dze ayԑ n'edwuma wᴐ no kwaa fofor no mu na ᴐtoto ndzԑ mba kakra so yie, ama

sԑ ofi hᴐ a, nna n'enyi nnyԑ no n'ekyir n'ekyir biara. (EGYA FA)

Onnyi dԑ hom tsena hᴐ ma biribiara fa hom mprase. (EGYA FA)

Nna mbrԑ wusiw a ofi ebua no mu no esi asaasaado no, obi gyina ekyir a asԑm a

ᴐbԑka are nye dԑ gyama wᴐrehyew kwa bi. (EGYA FA)

Seanteɛ

Ɔbarima no bu bi ma no a ᴐse ᴐmmpԑ. ᴐpԑ sԑ ᴐde ne nyinaa ma no die.

(SEAN AS)

Aa! wo wᴐ he na mefrԑ wo a womfii me koraa yi? Wo nokwa ne ne, sesԑԑ wohyԑ

bokyea mu sԑ ᴐkraman ba. (SEAN AS)

Ɔkaa sԑ, ano watiri a ԑsene ᴐnammᴐn. Ɛkyerԑ sԑ, sԑ woanhwԑ w'ano yie a,

ԑbԑtumi aka asԑm bi ama wᴐatwe w'aso keseԑ asene sԑ woawatiri ahwe ase abᴐ

fԑm. (SEAN AS)

Memeneda anadwofa bi ᴐkᴐgyinaa Asieduwaa mpoma akyi hwԑe sԑ ebia ᴐbԑhu

no. (SEAN AS)

Ɔhwam siwobᴐwerԑ so no de hwԑԑ nana Yaw anim, hwԑԑ sԑ ebia na ᴐyԑ onipa

foforᴐ bi. (SEAN AS)

Mepԑ sԑ mekyerԑ wo sԑ onipa bi wᴐ hᴐ a ne nan tumi de no kᴐ baabi a na ԑnsԑ

sԑ ᴐkorᴐ. (SEAN AS)


405

Ebia na ᴐyԑ okuafo anaase ᴐbԑtwani; ԑnte saa? (SEAN AS)

Ɛnyԑ kasa foforᴐ bi ho asԑm na mereka yi. Minim sԑ wobԑfa wo kuromani

adamfoᴐ, nanso ebia na asԑm a ԑbԑfiri n'ano aba no yԑ tan te sԑ ԑfeԑ . (SEAN AS)

Ah, yei deԑ ԑnsԑ sԑ wobisa koraa. Yei nso wonte aseԑ? (SEAN AS)

Abɔfoɔdwom

Baabiara a megye di sԑ ԑhia no, makyerԑ nsԑmfua ne kasakoa a yԑntaa nhyia no

ase, na baabiara a ԑhia nso makyerԑkyerԑ nnwom no ankasa ase. (ABƆF AS)

Ansa na kookoo rebԑgye ᴐman Ghana no, na anka nnwuma a nkurᴐfoᴐ de bᴐ bra

no mu baako ne ahayᴐ. Ɛyԑ adwum a ԑyԑ den na ԑhia nnamyԑ, akokoduro ne

wiram nimdeԑ pii. Ɛno nti na ԑnyԑ abᴐmmᴐfoᴐ nyinaa na ԑtumi yԑ saa dwuma yi

nya mu sika. Na bebree di hia, na ԑmaa nnipa susuuu sԑ ԑno ara ne ᴐbᴐfoᴐ

hyԑbrԑ. Sԑ obi bԑtumi asᴐ mu yie a, ԑhia no atuduro ne aboba daa. Nso wonni

yaanoma, woyԑ dԑn frԑ yaanbom: Ɛno nti ԑmaa ebinom bobᴐᴐ mmosea a akyire yi

ԑdanee wᴐn so asԑm. (ABƆF AS)

Sԑ wokum ᴐbᴐpᴐn a, na woman kwan so, nanso na wonnuruu akԑseԑ mu. Ɛsԑ sԑ

wotoa so kᴐkum sono ansa na wᴐahyԑ wo animuonyam. (ABƆF AS)

Ɔto aboa na ԑhia sԑ ᴐfoa no a, ԑsԑ sԑ ᴐno ara yԑ ntԑm foa no. Sԑ ᴐto no na ᴐde

mogyahyeԑ dwane a, ԑsԑ sԑ ankonam bᴐfoᴐ toa no. (ABƆF AS)

Banbᴐ yi gu ahodoᴐ mmenu. Deԑ ԑdi kan ne sԑ ᴐno ankasa bԑsᴐre ne ho. Sԑ ᴐyԑ

onipa bᴐne a, anhwԑ a, na ankᴐsi no yie. Sԑ ᴐyԑ nneԑma a ԑgu ne ho fi a, anhwԑ

a, na mmusuo akᴐdi n’akyi. (ABƆF AS)

Ɔbᴐfoᴐ nim sԑ ᴐkᴐ wiram na wannya owuo a, ᴐnya adeԑ. Ɔnim sԑ daa na ᴐgyina

owuo ne nkwa nkwanta, ԑno nti ᴐyԑ ne nneԑma nyinaa sedeԑ ԑbԑyԑ a n’aduma yi

bԑkᴐ so. (ABƆF AS)

Me nua ne Kwase Abunnua. Merepԑ ntԑm akᴐ Awerebi, sԑsԑԑ nkokᴐ resԑe Agya

nneԑma. (ABƆF AS)

Osiadie ee, Kokonte, mepԑ awia. Mepԑ awia nti na meda mu. Konkonte a,

Konkonte, mepԑ awia. (ABƆF AS)

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

406

Wosum Borᴐdeԑ a Sum Kwadu Bi

Aberefo wiee sukuu wᴐ Koransan, wᴐn nkyi a ᴐtuu bata no, obi ante ne ho

mpopoeԑ bio kᴐsi da a ᴐde firim. Gyama mesuae a meyi ne ba Kofi Asaseasa a

na ᴐhwԑ no sukuu sԑdeԑ ԑbԑyᴐ a daakyi bi a’ani ntane. (WOS AS)

Anka m’anidasoᴐ ne wo. Ɛfire sԑ sԑ wokᴐᴐ sukuu yi a anka da bi, me nso mekᴐn

mu bԑhane me. Anyԑ bie koraa no, anka wobԑtumi asᴐ me wo nuanom nkumaa

yi bi mu daakye. (WOS AS)

Ɛbԑtᴐ da sԑ wonsuaa nwoma kakra a, anhwԑ a na w’anoduane koraa reyԑ abᴐ wo

enti… (WOS AS)

Na sika aba nti sԑ wofa Koransan abᴐnten so a wobԑka sԑ gyama Koforidua

baabi. (WOS AS)

Obi ntumi nhunu sunsum ko a na ԑdi saa aberanteԑ no akyire. (WOS AS)

kᴐnkᴐnsani baa, wosᴐre a na woredi me ho nkᴐnkᴐnsa kyerԑ wo kunu no, wogye

di sԑ ԑyԑ a mente? (WOS AS)

Sԑ ᴐbԑnom nsa a, gye sԑ gyama ayie bi aba. Ɛno mpo bᴐwerԑtԑ na ᴐtumi twa

kakra. Sԑ koraa ma mmeinu pԑ bi a, na ᴐno na ᴐhyehyԑ hᴐ no. Ɔhunu sԑ ᴐreyԑ

abo pԑ, ntԑm, na ᴐrekᴐyi ne mpa ayԑ. (WOS AS)

Ɔgyaa nnyaka ntᴐtᴐfefewa bi guu no so a, sԑ wohwԑ a, na ԑyԑ den. Gyama

abarimaa baako bi na ᴐwoo no too Koransan. (WOS AS)

Ɔkanni ba a sԑbe wawu wᴐ akwantuo mu saa deԑ na ԑtwa ara na ԑtwa sԑ wᴐbԑsie

no wᴐ nenkyi. (WOS AS)

Ɔbᴐ nkwandᴐtᴐ papa. Wote akyire hwԑ sԑdeԑ ᴐfe ne nsa ano a, na wohunu sԑ

biribi wᴐ nkwan mu ampa. Sԑ woakᴐhunu sԑdeԑ ᴐrehwe nkwan a wakyea ne som

ato fam a, wobԑka sԑ abasiriwa bi. (WOS AS)

Ɛtᴐ da a na Nkwanta akra n’awofoᴐ sԑ ᴐrekᴐsra ne yere no. Sԑԑ nso na ᴐntee da.

Akyire yi na wᴐtee sԑ, sԑԑ wanya ᴐbaa foforᴐ bi wᴐ Kᴐdᴐbԑda. (WOS AS)


407

Ao! M’akoma Mu

Aber nyina mebԑkaa dԑ sԑ wimu ka si munsumm dԑn, otwar dԑ kan ka sum no

hyԑ, otwar dԑ bio ewia hyerԑn: M’werԑkyekye ne yi. (AO! FA)

Aber a ᴐte dԑm yi mu na ᴐwᴐ dԑ yԑdze serew, akokodur, awerԑhyԑmu yԑ nsi ma

yeenya gyinabew. (AO! FA)

Daano dza ᴐmaa enyigye, ndԑ yԑkae a, yekyi nyinsu, osiandԑ afei ekyingye nni

ho dԑ ᴐadan hԑn mbusu. (AO! FA)

Daano nyinsuwa a yekyii, ndԑ ennigye na yԑdze kae, osiandԑ ndԑ ᴐada edzi dԑ

saa, hԑn mbusu na ᴐpae. (AO! FA)

Enyidado a ᴐammba mu, ndԑ yԑkae a yetu serew, osiandԑ hԑnara yeehu dԑ nkyԑ

ᴐbԑyԑ hԑn abew. (AO! FA)

Wo Gyegyiregye

Saa bere yi mu de, woanhwԑ yie a, obi ade mpo na wobԑkᴐ akᴐfa ama animguase

ato wo. (GYE AK)

Ɛbԑyԑ mfe dunnan a wodᴐᴐ mu, wompԑ sԑ woba fie koraa. Enti wugye di sԑ woyԑ

saa a, eye? (GYE AK)

Nsonowaa bisae se: “Enti wugye di sԑ abofra koro no ara na ᴐkᴐ san ba?

(GYE AK)

Seesei m’agya na meretwɛn. Ebia ᴐkyena ᴐbԑba. (GYE AK)

Aware bᴐne de, na gyama sigyawdi mpo na eye. (GYE AK)

Dansoaa, w’asԑm yi de, ԑyԑ nwonwa mpo. Ɛsԑ sԑ mopԑ baabi fa, na ԑreyԑ saa ama

nsԑm adi bᴐne koraa. (GYE AK)

Wo kunu de, sԑ ᴐbow nsa koraa a, ᴐhwehwԑ aduan akyi kwan. Mede yi de,

onnidi. Sԑ gyama owu na ᴐrepԑ awu.

Aberewa yi tee saa mmuae yi, wobԑka sԑ akᴐm asi no so. (GYE AK)

Wo na koraa nso ayԑ ne ho anim nkyene atiko wisa: ohu me, wobԑka sԑ ᴐpԑ

m’asԑm nso minni hᴐ a, adapaa a ᴐbᴐ me, ԑnyԑ ano bi ni. (GYE AK)

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

408

Ɛhia Wo a Nwu

Ɔnana no buaa no sԑ: “Mamene akoraboᴐ nan, na mafe bi a yei ka ho mmiԑnsa

nti aka baako na da a mԑfe ԑno no, na wonim sԑ wonni nana biem. (ƐHIA AS)

Mfuwa yi ara na hwԑ so yie. Sԑ ԑhia wo sԑ edeԑn mpo a, ntᴐn anaasԑ mfa nsi

awowa na obi nnim, ebia ԑnam so da bi wobԑyԑ yie. (ƐHIA AS)

Seesei Akwasi Bԑԑko anyini aso mmaawadeԑ na sԑdeԑ ᴐnana te ase a ᴐkaeԑ no,

ԑsԑ sԑ ne wᴐfa ba no na ᴐware no. (ƐHIA AS)

Merekᴐ abᴐntene na ԑho gya so na sԑ ԑnni hᴐ deԑ a, na gyama nkraman abԑwe.

(ƐHIA AS)

Aba sei no, ᴐno ara hᴐ na ԑtwa sԑ Bԑԑko kᴐ aboseabᴐ enti ᴐkᴐfaa ne wᴐfa

Gyaesaayᴐ kᴐdii no agyinam. (ƐHIA AS)

Bosea yi ho nhyehyԑe ne sԑ, ԑsԑ sԑ Bԑԑko tua sika no da a ᴐde bԑgyee no afe so

pԑpԑԑpԑ, na ԑsԑ sԑ ᴐtua no sidi aduᴐwᴐtwe. (ƐHIA AS)

Nyhehyԑeԑ yi yԑԑ Bԑԑko dԑ, ԑfiri sԑ, na ᴐwᴐ anidasoᴐ sԑ afe nko ara deԑ ᴐbԑtumi

de ako saa ka yi, nti wansrԑ amma wanto no ԑda no mpo. (ƐHIA AS)

Asԑm a Gyato teeԑ a na ԑha no ne sԑ, sԑ wo tiri anyԑ yie na awԑmfoᴐ no sᴐ wo mu

a, wᴐtumi bo wo a ara kᴐsi sԑ anhwԑ a, na adi bᴐne. (ƐHIA AS)

Deԑ amma wᴐantumi ammoa sika ano ne, sԑ ԑnnԑ wᴐkᴐ aduma na wᴐnya bԑyԑ

didi aduasa a, wᴐnim sԑ ԑsa ԑnnԑ na ᴐkyena bi wᴐsane kᴐ na wᴐyere wᴐ ho nko

ara a, sidi aduanan anaa deԑ ԑboro saa deԑ wᴐbԑnya nti, amma wᴐamfa hwee anyԑ

hwee. (ƐHIA AS)

Na sԑ ԑdan koraa na ᴐrentumi nsi bi a, ᴐno deԑ ᴐwᴐ ԑka bi wᴐ ne kurom a ԑsԑ sԑ

ᴐkᴐtua. (ƐHIA AS)

Wᴐduruu adwuma mu hᴐ no, wᴐtetԑԑ nnua bi akyi hwԑԑ sԑ ebia wᴐbԑte awԑmfoᴐ

no nka anaa. (ƐHIA AS)

Ɔkᴐᴐ aberanteԑ no nkyԑn kᴐbisaa no sԑ: “Owura, ԑyԑ me sԑ menim wo baabi.”


409

Nimdeԑ Kwan 2a

Ɔkraman nso se: ‘Me nso mepԑ okisinam.’ (NIM AK)

Ɔkraman ne ᴐbᴐmmᴐfo kᴐᴐ wuram akyirikyiri no, wohuu ᴐtwe. (NIM AK)

Afi nim ampe bᴐ. Mmeawa bi nso nim ampe bᴐ. (NIM AK)

Adu huu nnipa no sԑ wᴐretwe hama no, n’ani gyei. (NIM AK)

Anwonsԑm

Aduane abu so, akadeԑ nyԑ na. Bakoma te hᴐ rekyene kᴐm. Bakoma, nni abuada,

na me nko medidi a mempԑ. (ANW AS)

Mete pampa so na menhu w’anim a, Menim sԑ wo dᴐ ne me na ԑte hᴐ. (ANW AS)

Mete pampa so na menhu w’anim a, Menim sԑ wo werԑ mfirii me. (ANW AS)

Nnaano mekᴐᴐ Tadeԑ mu kᴐhunuu Otidie sԑ wabᴐ ne ho adwaa akᴐtᴐ adwokuo

mu. (ANW AS)

Nsusu sԑ woabᴐ me ko a, meredi awerԑhoᴐ, Kontoponi. Nsusu sԑ wagya me hᴐ

ama adeԑ ayԑ me, Kontoponi. (ANW AS)

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

410

Appendix 4. Translation of Specimen passages into Akuapem Twi, Asante

Twi, Fante and English.

Asante Twi

Nea ɛwɔ sɛ yɛhwɛ no yie ne sɛ nsianimu a ɛkyerɛ ɔba yi (bɛ-) ne daakye kabea I

nsianimu bɛ- no yɛ pɛ wɔ atwerɛ mu, na mmom ɛnne a yɛde ka ne nsɛmfua nkaeɛ

a ɛwɔ kasamu no mu na ɛma yɛhunu nsosonoeɛ a ɛda wɔn ntam. Daakye kabea bɛ-

no mu, ɛnne no wɔ soro, ɛnna ba- a adane bɛ- no wɔ fam.

Ɔbɛdware ‘He will bath (Daakye Kabea I)

Ɔbɛdware ‘He comes to bath (Ingressive) (Agyekum, 2010:123-124)

Akuapem Twi

Nea ɛsɛ sɛ yɛhwɛ no yiye ne sɛ nsianim a ɛkyerɛ ɔba yi (bɛ-) ne daakye kabea I

nsianim bɛ- no yɛ pɛ wɔ akyerɛw mu, na mmom ɛnne a yɛde ka ne nsɛmfua nkae

a ɛwɔ ɔkasamu no mu na ɛma yehu nsonsonoe a ɛda wɔn ntam. Daakye kabea

bɛ- no mu, ɛnne no wɔ soro, ɛnna ba- a adan bɛ- no wɔ fam.

Obeguare ‘He will bath (Daakye Kabea I)

Obeguare ‘He comes to bath (Ingressive)


411

Fante

Dza ɔwɔ dɛ yɛhwɛ no yiye nye dɛ nsianyim a ɔkyerɛ ɔba yi (bɛ-) na daakye kabea

I nsianyim bɛ- no yɛ pɛ wɔ akyerɛw mu, na mbom ndze a yɛdze ka na nsɛmfua

nkaa a ɔwɔ kasapuruw no mu na ɔma yehu nsonsonoe a ɔda hɔn ntam. Daakye

kabea bɛ- no no mu, ndze no wɔ sor, nna ba- a ɔadan bɛ- no wɔ fom.

Oboguar ‘He will bath (Daakye Kabea I)

Oboguar ‘He comes to bath (Ingressive)

English

One should take note that the ingressive bɛ- prefix and that of the future marker are

the same in writing, but the tones and other lexical items in the clauses bring out

their differences. Bɛ- as a future marker has a high tone, while bɛ- as an ingressive

marker has a low tone.

Akuapem Twi

Aborᴐfo no nso hui sԑ asԑm a aba no nye, na afei ԑnyԑ nea wᴐpԑ enti wotuu abᴐfo

baa Nyanewase bԑsan wᴐ ho biara sԑnea ԑsԑ kyerԑԑ ᴐhene, srԑe sԑ na wᴐdwene sԑ

asotwe kakra a wᴐde rema mmerante no bԑma wᴐn ani aba fam kakra, nanso sԑ

amma saa na mmerante no akunkum wᴐn ho a, wᴐnkyerԑ nea wobegye de asie wᴐn

na sԑ wᴐafom akum a, wᴐmma ԑmma sԑ ᴐhene nso bԑfom agua. (Ɔsabea Anima).

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

412

Asante Twi

Aborᴐfoɔ no nso hunuu sԑ asԑm a aba no nyɛ, na afei ԑnyԑ nea wᴐpԑ enti wotuu

abᴐfoɔ baa Nyanewase bԑsan wᴐ ho biara sԑnea ԑsԑ kyerԑԑ ᴐhene, srԑe sԑ na

wᴐdwen sԑ asotwe kakra a wᴐde rema mmeranteɛ no bԑma wᴐn ani aba fam kakra,

nanso sԑ amma saa na mmeranteɛ no akunkum wᴐn ho a, wᴐnkyerԑ nea wɔbɛgye

de asie wᴐn na sԑ wᴐafom akum a, wᴐmma ԑmma sԑ ᴐhene nso bԑfom adwa.

Fante

Aborᴐfo no nso hun dԑ asԑm a aba no nnye, na afei so ɔnnyԑ dza wᴐpԑ dɛm ntsi

wotuu abᴐfo baa Nyanewase bԑsan hᴐn ho biara dɛ ɔsԑ kyerԑԑ ᴐhen, srԑe dԑ nna

wᴐdwen dԑ asotwe kakra a wᴐdze rema mberante no bԑma wᴐn enyi aba fom

kakra, naaso sԑ ammba dɛm na mberante no ekunkum hᴐn ho a, wᴐnkyerԑ dza

wobegye dze esie hᴐn na sԑ wᴐafom ekum a, wᴐmma ɔmmba dԑ ᴐhen so bɔfom

egua.

English

‘The Europeans also realized that it was not a palatable issue, and it was not what

they intended for. Therefore, they sent messengers to the king at Nyanewase to

plead on their behalf, that they thought the little punishment given to the gentle

men would calm them down a bit, but if it did not happen that way, and they have

committed suicide, the king should tell them what he wants for compensation so

that peace will prevail.’


413

Fante

Fa Bi Yɛ Serew

“Irigyaa Skuul Ma Woana Awe?”

Banyimba bi a ᴐtaa we wᴐ skuul nsᴐhwԑ mu na da kor bi ᴐkaa kyerԑԑ n’anyԑnkofo

dԑ, “Hmm! Seseiara mayԑ m’adwen dԑ, mepԑ dԑ migyaa skuul osiandԑ mowe

dodow. Meyer moho biara, eso ᴐnnyԑ yie”.

Iyi na abofra bi a sԑ Ato annwe a ᴐwe no tseaa mu dԑ, “Hԑԑ Ato ese dԑn? Irigyaa

skuul ma woana awe? Meserԑ wo, kᴐ skuul no na we ma me”. (Lawrence

Bosiwah)

Akuapem Twi

Fa bi yɛ serew “Woregyae sukuu na hena awe?”

Abarimaa bi a ᴐtaa we wᴐ sukuu nsᴐhwԑ mu na da koro bi ᴐka kyerԑԑ

n’anyɔnkofo sԑ, “Hmm! Sesei mayԑ m’adwene sԑ, mepԑ sԑ migyae sukuu efisɛ

mewe dodo. Meyere me ho biara, nso ɛnyԑ yie”.

Eyi na abofra bi a sԑ Ato anwe a ᴐwe no teaa mu sԑ, “Hԑԑ Ato wuse dԑn?

Woregyae sukuu na hena awe? Meserɛ wo, kɔ sukuu no na we ma me”.

Sakyi, J. P. (2019)

414

Asante Twi

Fa bi yɛ sedeɛ “Woregyae sukuu na hwan awe?”

Abarimaa bi a ᴐtaa we wᴐ sukuu nsᴐhwԑ mu na da koro bi ᴐka kyerԑԑ

n’anyɔnkofoɔ sԑ, “Hmm! Sesei mayԑ m’adwene sԑ, mepԑ sԑ megyae sukuu ɛfiri

sɛ mewe dodo. Meyere me ho biara, nso ɛnyԑ yie”.

Wei na abofra bi a sԑ Ato anwe a ᴐwe no teaa mu sԑ, “Hԑԑ Ato wose deԑn?

Woregyae sukuu na hwan awe? Meserԑ wo, kᴐ sukuu no na we ma me”.

English

Laugh it over. “You are going to stop schooling for who to become last in

exams?

A certain boy who was always last in class tests told his mates that, “Hmm! I have

now decided to stop schooling, because I try my best to study but it doesn’t work”.

Now one of his mates who is only able to beat Ato in exams shouted and said,

“What, Ato what are you saying? You are going to stop schooling for who to

become last in exams? Please, continue your schooling so that you will be last in

class exams for me.”

Documents

Modality and Evidentiality in Akan: A Corpus-Based Study