Why The Congolese Soukous (African Rhumba) Superstar Koffi Olomide Has West African Names

Koffi OLOMIDE, August 10, 2019
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Total # of views for this YouTube video as of October 7, 2022 at 6:31 PM = 33,307,489

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Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part I of a two part pancocojams series on Congolese superstar Koffi Olomide.

Both posts showcases Koffi Olomide's official YouTube video entitled "Papa Ngwasuma". 

This post also presents some information about Koffi Olomide and  information about the meaning of his name. This pancocojams post also presents information the meaning of Koffi's Olomide's nickname Mopao along with information about the meaning of the word "ngwasuma" in the title of his 2019 song "Papa Ngwasuma".

The pancocojams comment section that is found below this post features a few comments from that discussion thread about what Koffi Olomide's song means. 

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2022/10/fans-of-congolese-superstar-koffi.html for Part II of this pancocojams series. That post presents selected comments from the discussion thread of that showcase video. Most of these comments are from long time fans of Koffi Olomide, including some who remember listening to his music during their childhood. 

The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to Koffi Olomide for his musical legacy. Thanks also to all those who are featured in this video and thanks all those who are quoted in this post. And thanks to the producer of this video and the video's publisher on YouTube.
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The Wikipedia excerpt that is given in this post includes a section entitled "Allegations" that details some very disturbing information about Koffi Olomide. By including that section I acknowlege that information while still recognizing Olomide's cultural legacy. 

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INFORMATION ABOUT KOFFI OLOMIDE
Excerpt #1
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koffi_Olomide
"Antoine Christophe Agbepa Mumba (13 July 1956),[1] known professionally as Koffi Olomidé, is a Congolese Soukus singer, dancer, producer, and composer. He has had several gold records in his career. He is the founder of the Quartier Latin International orchestra with many notable artists, including Fally Ipupa and Ferré Gola.

Background

Olomide was born on 13 July 1956 in Kisangani, DRC. His mother named him Koffi because he was born on Friday. He grew up in a middle-class family, without any musical background. During his youth, Olomide improvised by singing popular songs with his own lyrics and altered rhythms until a neighbor taught him how to play the guitar.[2][3]

[...]

Koffi ..mostly refers to himself as "Mopao"...

Allegations

In 2012, Koffi Olomide allegedly assaulted one of his producer for abuse and no respect of contract and received a suspended three month sentence.[5]

In July 2016, while on a concert trip to Kenya,[6] Olomide was filmed making a kicking move towards one of his dancers. The action was widely condemned and caused the suspension of the concert as the video went viral. On his return to his home country, he was arrested five days later in Kenya Airport, allegedly for the same unpunished action. He was subsequently jailed for 4 days without judgement and released with no explanation. However, it was later revealed that the former Congolese president's wife, Mrs Olive Lembe Kabila, was behind the arrest because of her association for women's protection against violence and rape.[7]

In, 2018 he was ordered for arrest of a photographer in Zambia,[8] he left the country before arrest.

In 2019, He was found guilty by a French court of statutory rape of one of his former dancers when she was 15 years old.[8] He was handed a two-year suspended jail sentence in absentia, as he did not attend court in France.

Legacy

Koffi Olomide is among the greatest Congolese and African musical artists of all time."...

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Excerpt #2
From https://www.last.fm/music/Koffi+Olomide/+wiki

"Antoine Koffi Olomide (born August 13, 1956), is a Congolese soukous singer, producer, and composer.

Born in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of Congo to a Congolese mother and Ghanaian father, Koffi grew up in Kinshasa.

He went to France to study, while in Paris, he began playing the guitar and writing songs. On his return to Congo he was a member of Viva la Musica, Papa Wemba's band. Koffi repopularized the slower style of soukous, which had fallen out of fashion. He dubbed this style Tcha Tcho, and it gained popularity outside Congo. Koffi's music can be quite controversial, taking on current events and topics considered taboo in some conservative societies. He has also participated in the salsa music project Africando.”…

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Excerpt #3
https://kenyapage.net/koffi/bio.php
"Koffi Olomide was born Antoine Christophe Agepa Mumba in Kisangani ,Democratic Republic of Congo on July 13 1958. His father Charles Agbepa is Congolese (from the Gbandi tribe) while his mother Amy is of Sierra Leonean and Congolese descent (Songye tribe from Kasai region).  His mother named him Koffi which means Friday as is the tradition in parts of West Africa where children are named based on the day of the week they are born.

At the time of his birth, Koffi's mother was in poor health, a condition that was triggered by depression caused by loneliness and isolation. Koffi's father had abandoned her and was considering leaving his wife and children altogether. She was so depressed that she could not breastfeed newly born Koffi. To make matters worse, Koffi was in poor health and most people thought he would not survive beyond infancy. He was nicknamed Antoine Makila Mabe (Antoine bad blood).

Even in childhood, he showed signs of being passionate about music. At age 7 he would go around singing a song "Soso ameli Ngando" which means The Chicken has swallowed a Crocodile. He would sing it so often that it became his nickname. Nobody knows the origin of that song, not even Koffi. By his teens he would simulate songs by famous musicians but add his own spin on them. He was especially enamored with the music of Tabu Ley.

He soon became adept at writing his own songs. One neighbour was so impressed by Koffi's songwriting skills that he offered to teach him how to play the guitar. Koffi would soon be borrowing the guitar often to practice on his own.

Meanwhile Koffi also excelled in the classroom. He was born into a family where education took precedence above everything else. He has earned a bachelors degree in Business and Economics from Bordeaux University and a masters in Mathematics from the University of Paris.

His father was not keen on Koffi's musical career. It was his elder brother Johnny Ko who encouraged Koffi to pursue a career in music and even convinced their father to let Koffi pursue his musical dreams.   He commenced his musical career as a songwriter. In the late 1970s sung with Papa Wemba's band Viva La Musica. Here He learned his vocal and stage techniques. He launched his solo career in the mid 80s and has turned out to be one of the biggest success stories in African music."...
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The words in italics were written that way in that article. 

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Excerpt #4
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kofi
"Kofi is an Akan masculine given name among the Akan people (such as the Ashanti and Fante) in Ghana that is given to a boy born on Friday. Traditionally in Ghana, a child would receive their Akan day name during their Outdooring, eight days after birth.[1][2]

According to Akan tradition, people born on particular days exhibit certain characteristics or attributes.[1][2] Kofi has the appellation "Kyini", "Otuo" and "Ntiful" meaning "wanderer" and "traveller."[1][2]"...

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Excerpt #5
From https://www.name-doctor.com/name-olumide-meaning-of-olumide-10474.html Meaning Of Olumide
"AFRICAN (YORÙBÁ)

NAME ROOT: OLUMIDE

MEANING: This name derives from the African (Yorùbá) “Olumide”, meaning “God has come”. Main body of the name is composed of “Olú-Ọ̀rún” (God, master, lord, our God). Olú or Olòrún is the Yorùbá name given to one of the three manifestations of the Supreme God in the Yoruba pantheon. Olorun is the owner of the heavens and is commonly associated with the Sun. The vital energy of Olorun manifests in humans as Ashé, which is the life force that runs through all living things."
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I believe that Koffi Olomide gave himself this last name just as he gave himselves multiple nicknames, including "Mopao". 

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WHAT KOFFI OLOMIDE'S NICKNAME "MOPAO" MEANS
From https://www.capitalfm.co.ke/lifestyle/2016/04/07/kenya-music-africa-koroga-festival-koffi-olomide-footsteps-le-grand-mopao/ Koffi Olomide: In The Footsteps Of  "Le Grand Mopao", by editor April 7, 2016  

“Mopao means Boss, Le Chef and Grand Mopao means The Big Boss”, Koffi explained."

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WHAT "NGWASUMA" MEANS
"Papa Ngwasuma" is another nickname that Congolese Soukous (African  Rhumba) superstar Koffi Olomide (probably) gave to himself.  Koffi Olomide has given a number of other superlative nicknames to himself (such as Mopao) and used a few of them as the titles of his songs.  

Click https://www.ghafla.com/most-of-you-know-him-as-koffi-olomide-but-did-you-know-that-this-man-has-created-some-35-other-crazy-nicknames-that-he-likes-to-call-himself-here-are-his-other-names-warning-theyre-very-weird/ for the 2016 article entitled "Most Of You Know Him As Koffi Olomide. But Did You Know That This Man Has Created Some 35 Other Crazy Nicknames That He Likes To Call Himself? Here Are His Other Names. WARNING: They’re Very Weird.

Here's the only online information that I've found to date about the meaning of the word "ngwasuma":
From https://www.herald.co.zw/rhumba-group-bana-ngwasuma-gains-ground/ Rhumba Group Bana Ngwasuma Gains Ground, 24 May 2019

..."The group has seven Congolese members and four Zimbabweans...

"Bana Ngwasuma" is a Lingala phrase that means "children of good things"."...
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"Bana" is a Lingala word that means "children" [Google translate from Lingala to English.]

"Papa Ngwasuma" means something like "papa (father) of good things or "Great father".

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This concludes Part II of this two part pancocojams series.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Jamaican Patois Words That Have African Origins (YouTube vlog with selected discussion thread comments)

Shan's Patwa Academy, May 27, 2021 Jamaican Patois is made up of many different languages. Some of the Jamaican Patois words from African Origin can trace their roots back to the languages on the West Coast of Africa. These languages include the Ga language, Akan Language, Ashante Language, Ewe Language, Congo Language and many more. In this video I highlight a few of these examples. African Influence in Jamaican Patois. -snip- This video log's (vlog's) summary statement includes two incorrect terms: "Ashante language" and "Congo language". Read comment #55 below for a commenter's correction for the term "Ashante language". Also, read #56 below for a commenter's correction for the term "Congo language". In this vlog summary, Shan's Patwa Academy also incorrectly labeled languages from the Congo as being part of "the West Coast of Africa". That is incorrect since the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Congo-Kinshasa) and the Republic of the Congo (Congo Brazzaville) are located in Central Africa. ****

Edited by Azizi Powell This pancocojams post showcase a YouTube vlog about Jamaican Patois (Patwa) words that have African origins. This post includes selected comments from this vlog's discussion thread that agrees with, disagrees with, corrects, and/or adds additional information to the information that the vlogger shared. Some comments in this compilation presents other words to the lists that the vlogger shared of Jamaican Patois words that have African origins. The content of this post is presented for historical, socio-cultural, linguistic, and educational purposes. Thanks to Shan's Patwa Academy for this research and presentation and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. -snip- Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2022/08/what-word-nyam-means-in-fula-serer.html for the closely related pancocojams post entitled "What The Word "Nyam" Means In Fula, Serer, Wolof, Akan, & What "Nyam" Means In Jamaican Patois"

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WORDS THAT ARE LISTED IN THIS VLOG

The vlogger indicated that Wikipedia was her source for the origin of these Jamaican Patwa words. She asked for corrections and additional information for those who were viewing this vlog.

The vlogger gave the African meaning/s and origins and the Jamaican Patwa meanings for each word. I didn't include those origins/meanings because while some commenters agreed with the origins and meanings that the vlogger gave, a number of commenters disagreed with those origins/meanings and/or corrected her statements. Some commenters also added other Jamaican Patois words that have African origins to the list that she gave in this vlog.

The words that Shan's Patwa Academy listed in this vlog begin at 3:44 to 8:05. Prior to that, the vlogger shared information about the African languages of orign for for these Jamaican Patwa words:

Accompong = surname meaning destined for greatness Ackee = type of fruit Adope/duppy = ghost doti/dutty= soil, sand, dirt Kooya= Look here afu = yam Akan = wild/ inferior yam Anansi = spider bafan = baby or toddler; more commonly used to mean someone who is stupid or slow bissy = kola nut dukunu = dessert item in Jamaica similar to pudding cocobay = leprosy gynal - con-man kaba-kaba= inferior, unreliable, worthless kungkus= gossip mumu= dump/stupid obeah= witchcraft patu= owl poto-poto = mud/muddy backra= white man juk= poke attoo= chewing stick breechee = nobleman chink = bed bug himba= type of yam nyam = eat okra = type of vegetable unu = you (plural) dingki= funeral ceremony dundus= albino djumbi = ghost pinda= peanut

Update: August 21, 2022: Here's the link to the Wikipedia page that Shan's Patwa Academy used for that episode of her vlog: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Jamaican_Patois_words_of_African_origin That list includes African origins for those words. Some commenters in that vlog's discussion thread disagreed with the meanings/origins and/or gave other meanings and/or African origins for those words.

**** SELECTED COMMENTS FROM THIS VIDEO'S DISCUSSION THREAD These comments are given in relative chronological order except for replies. Numbers are given for referencing purposes only.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyA6S9hPaC8&t=316s 2021

1. Osei Tutu Tawiah "These are some of the Akan words I heard some Maroon Jamaicans speak when I met them in Grand Anse Beach in Grenada.

1. Bommo = Cloth used as menstrual pad in ancient Akan.

2. Abe = Palm  Tree🌴  or Palm nut.

3. Aben = Flute

4. Ananse = Spider

5. Odum = Hardwood Tree

6. Afu = Farm

7. Adru = Herbal Medicine

8. Kokobe = Leprosy

9. Bafan = Crawler

10. Opete = Vulture

11. Patu = Owl

12. Nyam = Grind

13. Mumu = Dummy

** Reply 2. johnjackissorryinfrench "I wonder if Bommo if the origin of the saying "Bomba claat" because, correct me if I am wrong, I think that's what it means i.e menstrual rag." ** Reply 3. Osei Tutu Tawiah " @johnjackissorryinfrench  Of course, Bommo was the first cloth invented by Akans before Kente. It was the Akans regular wear. Kente was only used by Royals during ceremonies. Bommo was heavy and dirty brown in color so women used its strips as menstrual pads. This is why Bommo Cloth was used by Jamaican slaves to insult people who are considered dirty. So the words Bombo Clat is actually Bombo or Bommo Cloth. In ancient Akan it was called Kantanchi Bommo, meaning the Cloth that covers all parts." ** Reply 4. Agoogo, 2022 " @Osei Tutu Tawiah  I don't know which Akan group you come frome, because The word Bommo  meant blanket." ** Reply 5. Osei Tutu Tawiah, 2022 "@Agoogo  It's true, Bommo was also used as a blanket in the olden days because it was very heavy but the true Akan word for a blanket is Kuntu. As a matter of fact Bommo was described as the poor man's cloth because it had so many purposes. It was used as an everyday wear, a blanket, a wound pad, a menstrual pad, a kitchen wipe and even as a toilet paper when it gets old." ** Reply 6. Shammy M, 2022 "You must have got this from Wikipedia that any and anybody can edit but what you copy and pasted is not true. We don't use any of those terms. A spider is just called a spider. We don't say "mumu" that's Nigerian, we say "foo, foo". Vulture is called "jancro".

Nyam means to eat and all the other ones are not used in Jamaica at all." ** Reply 7. Osei Tutu Tawiah, 2022 "Please, we're not talking about the everyday street language in Kingston or Mobay. I've visited Jamaica twice and I know these words are not in your everyday Jamaican Patois. You maybe Jamaican but you may be too young and not a Maroon if you say you've never heard the word Anansi before. If nothing at all you've heard the word Bombo Clat which is the patois slang for Bombo Cloth or Menstrual Cloth. You need to do your research well. Ask the older heads from places like Accompong Town and Nanny Town in the Maroon land if they don't know that Anansi is a spider and Aben is a Flute. Some older Maroons can speak a different version of Patois and please don't forget they're also Jamaicans." ** Reply 8. Shammy M, 2022 "@Osei Tutu Tawiah   You're gonna try to tell me about a place where I grew up? Go sit down and don't try to school me about my own culture. I am not a Maroon, why do you people think a tiny village as any impact on the majority of Jamaicans. How silly does one have to be to believe that .

A spider is a spider we don't call spiders that🤦🏾‍♀️ and I've never heard this "aben" ever. You're just making up stories at this point saying that swear word comes from you. The point is your entire comment is a made up lie." ** Reply 9. Osei Tutu Tawiah, 2022 "@Shammy M  Massa, I don't care if you're the only Jamaican on the planet. If you say you've not heard the words Bombo Clat and Anansi before,  then you're a big time liar." ** Reply 10. C D, 2022 "@Osei Tutu Tawiah  You are absolutely right!! I am Jamaican, and I am very impressed with your knowledge of Jamaica! The person saying these words are not used don’t know the true Jamaican culture and history. I am from Portland and my grandparents and people of that generation used these words all the time. My ancestors were maroons from Moore town on the eastern side of the island and they were bought to Jamaica from Ghana. They were Akan and Ga people, and even after three hundreds years when I meet Ghanaian they tell me that I look like I am from there!," ** Reply 11. johnjackissorryinfrench, 2022 "@Shammy M  I think you might have to understand that have historically been different types of regional patois spoken over the years in Jamaica. It is maybe only recently that a single type of emerging patois is dominant. If you look into the historical archives you'll see that old patois was very similar to West African Pidgin. I have seen footage of old Jamaicans using words like 'waka' which means 'to walk' and 'sabi' which means 'to know' (from savoir), 'buckra' which meant white man. But Nobody uses those terms now.

During Sam Sharpe's uprising when the British set up all those kangaroo courts to condemn hundreds of Jamaicans to death, one of the judges famously quipped "You sabi dat?" when frustrated that the condemned person did not understand English. This account is given in the book "Island on Fire" and the book's author describes the judge sarcastically switching to Jamaican Patois to say "I am sentencing you to death, Do you understand that then?". My point is it is possible that these phrases exist or survive in remote areas across the island.

Your description of Maroons as 'one village' is dismissively inaccurate. Jamaica had 2 broad Maroon groups called Leeward and Windward Maroons and within that there  were several other groups, so they were significant in number, at least more than a 'tiny village'. And when you question how an insignificant group of people could impact the majority of Jamaicans, I implore you to go and research the origins of Jerk cooking in Jamaica. I think you'll find the Maroons in there somewhere." ** Reply 12. Chambers United, 2022 " @Osei Tutu Tawiah  Ignore that fool. She clearly can’t read. You stated that you heard this spoken by Maroons!!! and I have heard a lot of jamaicans call spider Anansi." ** Reply 13. Kwekwe, 2022 "@Shammy M  I don't think he's suggesting ananse (anansi) is used as an everyday word for spider, I assume he means as in the folk tales "brah (brother) Anansi" which are told not just in Jamaica but all over the Caribbean"

** Reply 14. Ralston Haley, 2022 "@Osei Tutu Tawiah  Anansi is a common word in Jamaica.

** Reply 15. Mark Springer, 2022 "@Chambers United

dem  nevah hear anansi story lol...afu is a yam ...aben might be flute but we know Abeng which is conch shell ...to blow warning etc ....bafan mean clumsy etc ...dem say bullfrog will spray kokobe pon yuh lol ...nyam a eat ...but what about fenke fenke and pickney and dut and potto potto....lol ....the Akan people are 2 groups ...the Ashanti and the Fanti..these 2 groups coexisted peacefully...the Fanti on the coast and Ashanti inland.....they went to war in Africa ever since  the outsiders visited the African shore." -snip- "fenke fenke" = "puny, frail, weak" (definition from https://jamaicans.com/fenke-fenke/#:~:text=fenke%20fenke%20(Phrase),Description%3A%20puny%2C%20frail%2C%20weak Learn the Jamaican Patois Word – fenke fenke, published by staff reporter, 2018
**

Reply 16. Misspoundcake, 2022 "@Osei Tutu Tawiah  I’m a Jamaican born on the island but left the there as a very young girl when my mom went to the USA. I must say! From I left Jamaica since Which is over 50 years now at an early age  I’m still familiar with the words (Duppy) (Anansy) (bombo claat or pu**y claat) so if anyone say that they never heard or know those words are clowns, trying only to impress themselves 😁😁😁😁😁😁my mom often used the word ( nyam) especially when we were young and didn’t like to eat certain things, she would get impatient and started yelling “nyam the food”😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂" ** Reply 17. Kay Carter, 2022 "@Shammy M  if i may interject, your opinion on the matter of spider at least is ill informed. Whilst the word spider may be generally used. In Jamaican folklore Ananse or Nancy stories are widely known  Jamaica and in fact many parts of the world where the African diaspora was taken (Brer rabbit in some cases). In Akan these tales are known as Anansesem or Ananse stories, where Anansi means SPIDER!!!

So it may be that it is used without the knowledge of what the word actually means but never the less is widely known, you may be one of the few who is unaware of this.

I think i recall reading somewhere the significance of these Anansesem where such that they often conveyed hidden messages of resistance and often were used to ridicule those who caused people to suffer in bondage."

** Reply 18. Shammy M, 2022 " @Kay Carter  We don't call spiders that at all. A spider is just called a spider." ** Reply 19. Kay Carter, 2022 "@Shammy M  maybe you didnt read what i have said

I acknowledged that the english word spider is used but i also add that unknowingly the word Ananse (which means spider) or variants of it  are used to describe the character in folklore.

There are other words too such as Obeah, ackee, susu

Tell me those are not used in the Jamaican vernacular

Obeah from Obeyie - a person said to have mystical powers

Ackee- ankye a fruit and tree that came from West Africa

Susu to whisper or gossip

Beyond words the syntax of sentences also correspond with African languages" ** Reply 20. Kay Carter, 2022 "@Shammy M  i cant see your question in the thread but no i am not Jamaican

However; look at what other people have responded who claim to be Jamaican and they all say they are familiar with the word Anansi. You seem to be the very rare exception.

Are you also going to deny the other examples i.e. obeah are not widely used in J.A.  ?" ** Reply 21. Shammy M, 2022 "@Kay Carter  I didn't read any of those comment my entire point is that we don't call spiders that. The op is saying spider translates to that which is incorrect. It's always non Jamaicans that never lived in or been to Jamaica with the most to say." ** Reply 22. Kay Carter, 2022 "@Shammy M  but you can concur that without knowing it when referring to what we call Kwaku Ananse the Jamaicans correctly use the Akan word for spider Ananse even if the meaning of it has been lost , this word for spider is widely used in certain context." ** Reply 23. Kay Carter, 2022 "@Shammy M  it has been demonstrated that the word Ananse means spider in both Akan and in Jamaican vernacular can you give a coherent and sound explanation of why in Jamaican folklore they refer to a character who can transform between a man and a spider as Ananse it cant be just coincidence especially when considering other words in Jamaican lexicon which also have African origin - and there are many. If you can produce an alternative it can be considered but you havent. Surely every word has an origin ?

Argument, you say, but you were fine to contradict the initiator of this thread.

Again i ask can we dismiss several others who claim to be Jamiacan and recognise the use of the word and that it relates to a spider character ? ...

Ananse when originally used in Jamaica referred to this Spider character because it means spider and it was introduced by enslaved people who brought some of the folklore with them." ** Reply 24. Kay Carter, 2022 "@Mark Springer  i think you are right about Abeng Obeng as there is a horn not a flute called Obeng/Abeng. Flute is atɛntɛbɛn, quite similar wind instruments. The Abeng has a similar use in Ghana." ** Reply 25. Shammy M, 2022 "@Kay Carter  It makes no sense to aruge with a non Jamaican about Jamaican culture, seriously. There's more important and serious issues in life. Caribbeans have a different culture from Africans." ** Reply 26. Kay Carter, 2022 "@Shammy M  or maybe that is being evasive?

I think it is good to debate to get to the truth or arrive at some understanding.

But you havent articulated your points at all for them to be convincing.

Yes i am at a disadvantage by not being Jamaican but this can be compensated by my contact and interactions with countless Jamaicans and  also reading.

Yes the culture is distinct but heavily influenced by a plethora of African ideas. Sometimes that diffference came about because of environment not choice. Let us not also forget the deliberate erosion of the culture by europeans to reduce the threat of uprisings.

Do you think it is coincidence that those who retained African culture such as Maroons often had uprisings. Or look at Haiti which had a succesful uprising in 18th century making it an independent nation.

There is a lot more connecting us" ** Reply 27. Shammy M, 2022 "@Kay Carter  But you cannot speak on a culture you don't know. Just how I cannot speak on your culture. The Maroons are not the majority in Jamaica. Too many of you base your information off of them and you can't believe everyone who claims to be Jamaican. I've come across so many people who lie. I doubt any of those people who tagged me are Jamaican. Most of the information on Wikipedia written about us is false. With the first as people referring to us as "afro-Jamaican". There's no such thing as afro-Jamaican lol. We don't call ourselves that. I first heard that made up term on social media." ** Reply 28. Osei Tutu Tawiah, 2022 "@Shammy M  Who told you Anansi doesn't mean Spider? Anansi is the Akan word for Spider. So, Anansi means Spider 🕷,  period."

** Reply 29. Crystal Washington, 2022

"@Osei Tutu Tawiah  & @Kay Carter u guys seem to know more about our culture than some of these young people,  'weh jus born', who unfortunately entered the world at a time when the focus was too much on Americanizing our culture. So much of our authentic Jamaican culture started to unfortunately evolve including the language. However, much of the African connection still lives on in different aspects of our culture including the language.

I am a Jamaican, bawn/born in d 80's & grow up inna d hills of St. Catherine & still live ya, so I have authority to speak on my culture. I am familiar with alot of those words. As a child, whenever we see a spider, we used to call it anansi spider (si wan 'nansi spider deh). We used to hear alot of Anansi stories too.

Wi still from time to time use words like nyam,  fenke fenke (like how yu look so fenke fenke?), plaka plaka (da food de plaka plaka eeh?), bafan etc... Patois is a dynamic dialect so depending on the part of the island that we live, there are variations to it.

It is very unfortunate that alot of the younger Jamaicans did not get the kind of exposure we did to the richer part of our culture." ** Reply 30. Mark Springer, 2022 "@Shammy M  well have you ever considered the fact that maybe the use of ackee as food was lost to the other islands ? In Hait, the leaves are used as a detergent ...in Jamaica too when there was a shortage on laundry soap. So maybe the knowledge of ackee has been lost to the other islands but survived in Jamaica.  Also the African diaspora in the Caribbean is so diverse as some sub cultures may not see it as food source.Ackee in South America is more likely among Brazilians. Brazil has the largest population of Africans outside of Africa." ** Reply 31. Mark Springer, 2022 "@Shammy M  aren't you the one that don't know the word ANANSI ....you know miss Lou...I don't know where your from but you're NOT JAMAICAN...go ahead and practice cultural imperialism and try to control narratives of cultures ..." ** Reply 32. Crystal Washington, 2022 "@Mark Springer  I was thinking the same thing...that this rude young lady must have been borned in the 90's or 2000's to know so little about our culture. Or maybe not b'cuz I know persons born within that period who knows that Anansi is in reference to a spider. Maybe her exposure is limited to not know about Anansi." ** Reply 33. SlimThickaz, 2022 "@Shammy M  You sure you never heard the term Anansi?" ** Reply 34. Shammy M, 2022 "@SlimThickaz  I heard it, I heard the stories as a child but I've never heard my parents or grandparents ever refer to a spider as "Anansi". " ** Reply 35. SlimThickaz, 2022 "@Shammy M  It's more of the older generation so I understand where you're coming from but you shouldn't say we don't because many of us do." ** Reply 36. Shammy M, 2022 "@SlimThickaz  Both of my parents were Rasta and I've never heard them refer to a spider like that. I asked my husband and he said it's more of the old school ones from the country (he's from Sandy Bay). So it's probably the older generation of Jamaicans who use it. I've never heard it and lot of those terms mentioned aren't used much less Jamaican like "mumu"." ** Reply 37. SlimThickaz, 2022 " @Shammy M  I like to come at people with respect. If you genuinely didn't hear your elders use it then that's not your fault. I'm sorry all of these people are attacking you. It is used but language changes overtime. Yeah, mumu is Nigerian." ** Reply 38. Shammy M, 2022 "@SlimThickaz  Yeah ignorant man is still talking about me.

This is how our people stay that's why we can't ever rise. 3 hours later and he's chatting me but yeah you're right. There's many terms that aren't used anymore." ** Reply 39. Mark Springer, 2022 "@SlimThickaz  nobody was attacking her ...she admitted now that she has never heard the word anansi applied to a spider...and that's fine ...it's when most Jamaicans and others are surprised that she's not familiar with it and then she's insisting that everyone else is wrong because SHE NEVER HEAR HER GRANDPARENTS CALLED IT THAT ...and that is her reasoning to refute facts ...arrogant  !" ** Reply 40. Shammy M "@Errol Taylor  Not once did I say I didn't hear the word Anansi. I said I never heard my parents refer to a spider as Anansi. I also said I heard Anansi stories as child. Many similarities but many more differences as well." ** Reply 41. Michael Miller, 2022 "@Shammy M  everybody inna jamdung kno dem ting de  wey yu com from?  Dis is a learning moment for you. Tek it an gwaan." -snip- This is a very condensed version of that sub-thread. There are a number of comments from Shammy and replies to her that I didn't included in this compilation. In one of those comments, Shammy wrote that she lives in Canada. The comment that is given as #41 is the last comment from that particular sub-thread of this discussion thread as of August 19, 2022 when I published this pancocojams post. ** 42. Albert Mac "Shan ,  “Patu” is owl from Akan (Twi). — this is so true all the Akan and twi words in English are true… I’m glad. I’m an Akan (a Kwahu or Kwawu). I decided to learn history this month and I’m seeing many things omg. I want to learn patwa … may be you are even part of my lineages still living in Jamaica. 😀" ** 43. kwabena Poku "Thanks a lot for the informative blog. Aben or the horn in akan,I believe is also in Jamaican patois. "Jama maka"  (Maybe am stuck here) in Akan could be one." ** 44. Kwaku Adusei "Very informative but I'm from ghana 🇬🇭 and an Ashanti one thing I will like to point out is the name accompong. In ghana we say acheampong and it's a name given to the male thanks" ** Reply 45. Osei Tutu Tawiah "No, Accompong is different from Acheampong. The name Accompong is usually found in Denkyira and Assin while the name Acheampong is very common in Ashanti.  Anytime you see the word "pong", it means great or big. For instance, Oppong means the big or great one. Akropong means the big or great town. Manpong means the big or great state. So, Accompong from the word Ako ( war) means the great warrior while Acheampong  from the word Okyeame or Akyeame (assistant ) means a great assistant. The true Akan spelling for Accompong and Acheampong are Akompong and Akyeampong. In Twi, KY is pronounced CH like Chinese and HY is pronounced SH like Shanghai or Shoe while the letter C as in the word Capital or Cape, is written as K." ** Reply 46. nathaniel wood "@Osei Tutu Tawiah  ooh nice. Didn't know" ** Reply 47. C D, 2022 "@Osei Tutu Tawiah  Wow, thanks for the input! You really know your stuff!!" ** Reply 48. J Moseley, 2022 "@Osei Tutu Tawiah  I wish I had someone like you to teach me Twi. Your last name is my ex-husband's middle name. He was born after twins!" ** Reply 49. Kay Carter, 2022 "@Osei Tutu Tawiah  you may be right on this one

But we must also be mindful that often the words are usually corruptions made by non native speakers.

I am just looking at archived documents from my home Oman

And there are several variants of the name of our Kings Kaku Atta - such as Quacoe Attah, Kwaku Attah and from Kaku Kyina to Kwaku Kinnah, Quacoe Kinneh.

** Reply 50. Errol Taylor, 2022 "Naturally most of my ancestry is from Nigeria, Togo and Benine I'm over 50 percent Nigerian ,it is known that Northern Jamaicans like myself are mostly of Nigerian ancestry, I understand now why we use the word unnu, when referring to several other people" ** Reply 51. Tvs, 2022 "@Osei Tutu Tawiah great information. This is what I often tell Jamaicans who say they are Ashanti.  The people being sold in the Early 1700s were mostly Fetus, Entsis, Aowins, Assin and Denkyira because they were the ones losing wars at the time but because most have only heard about Ashantis, and don't know that there are many other Akan and Guan tribes including those in Ivory Coast, everyone immediately assumes an Akan name/word means they are Ashanti descent." ** 52. Ruth-Ann Grant "I have never heard : Breechee, Kungkus, attoo, himba, djumbi, Pinda." ** Reply 53. Shan's Patwa Academy " "Popsi paisi go PINDA shell, bees ago bite yuh tenda swell”

does that ring a bell? 😂 😂" ** Reply 54. Ruth-Ann Grant "@Shan's Patwa Academy  oh yes...yuh right"

**** 2022

55. Kwame Amponsa-Achiano
"I'm from Ghana 🇬🇭. Akan is one of the dominant tribes in Ghana. The people of Akan speak Akan language. Twi and fante are two major dialects of Akan. Other dialects include sefwi, nzema, anyii/burosa, ahanta.

Twi has "sub-dialects": asante (not Ashanti which is just the whiteman's corrupted version), assin, twifo, akyem, kwahu, wassa, akwapim, bono, denkyira, akwamu, others...

Fante (better known as mfantse) also has sub-dialects: abura, guae (of Oguaa or Cape Coast) edina/komenda; gomoa, ekumfi, agona (arguably more twi than fante), enyan, breman, nkusukum, ajumako & others.

In fact, one will struggle to identify the difference with the sub-dialects of TWI on the one hand & fante on the other.

What I'm sure about is Asanti Twi, Akwampim Twi, Abura fantse & Oguaa fantse are the ones currently written as examinable languages of the Akan FANTSE & TWI language in schools.

Never say asante & twi languages. It is even worse to say ASHANTI!!

There's is a large Akan tribe in  La Cote d'Ivoire."

**
56.  KIWI YDA
"In congo we mainly speak Lingala or kikongo, congo is not a language"

 **
57. Obeahman
"It is not really Kungkus but Kunggusa meaning to criticise or gossip about"

**
Reply
58. Matthew Dackers
"@Obeahman  I am a Maroon and yes we say Kongkosa= Gossip. 🇯🇲"

**
Reply
59. Wilson Gyimah
"@Matthew Dackers  I’m a Ghanaian ( specifically an Asante) living in Canada. In our Twi language, we say KONKONSA and it means GOSSIP. This is further proof that indeed some the early so-called AFRICANS in Jamaica originated from Ghana. So as you can see, Jamaicans and Ghanaians are actually one people. Needless to say that it was due to European illegal invasion of the so-called AFRICA that separated our people."

**
Reply
60. Matthew Dackers
"@Wilson Gyimah  that was my point as above but slight spelling or pronunciation differences in which I understood but not all people in "Jamaica" know that and barely anyone my age speak "AKAN KASA" as sadly many prefer other languages over there own....

Yes many of us are aware of our "Asante" and "Fante" ancestry along with various other "African " peoples... Medase pa for the reply.💯🙂"
-snip-
Read the comment in this pancocojams post's comment section about the term "Akan Kasa" and the difference between the Akan language and Twi.

**
Reply
61. Wilson Gyimah
"@Matthew Dackers  Indeed the maroons of Jamaica did very well for keeping their Akan identity alive. I mean the fact that you can use the expression “AKAN KASA” and “ Medase pa” is a testament to the fact that Jamaicans and Ghanaians are actually one people. Many prefer other languages over their own original Akan language because they have been conditioned to feel that preservation of the Akan culture and traditions are no longer relevant. Same thing is going on in Ghana to a certain extent. For example, some people of Akan background prefer to communicate with each other in English instead of Twi, the native language of Akan. This is not common in Ghana though. But it does exist. By the way, Me nso da woase or daase for your quick response. Take care my brother."

**
Reply
62. Matthew Dackers
"@Wilson Gyimah  Yes, we are, more than a tribe, but one family in many places... You are right on how many of us feel conditioned to speak the language of others in preference to our own but I believe a day will come when our language will meet a higher standard and our people will reunite and I could go on with this little hope and dream of mine for a better future for our people. Again, I express much gratitude and as many elder Maroons of Jamaica say

"Onyankipong bles na u"💯

**
63. Emmanuel Etuk
"Mbakara meaning colonial master, colonialists, white man, white people, European in Efik & Ibibio languages of Nigeria."

**
64. George Dzacka
"Voodoo is Ewe language which means spiritism"

**
65. Dori Aqua
"Photo poto is a GA word spelt Kpoto Kpoto or morto.  The Akan word, for muddy is peche."

**
66.  Irene, queen supreme
"Not sure where it’s from but the Krio word in Sierra Leone fro child is pikin (pee-keen) and in JA it’s pikney of course.sounds the same"

**
Reply
67. Durodami Lisk
"Many of these words are in the Krio language of Sierra Leone. Poto poto for example. Also the word chaka chaka meaning untidy is also a krio word."

**
Reply
68.  Atlas24gh
"the krio are decendants of ex slaves from the Caribbean so it makes sense"

**
69. Kafanga slam banguni
"Hello Shan.... Great stuff hahhah actually the Djumbi = Zombie came from nzambi with the small n'  and the Nzambi is the good one'' the Creator per say.. the the be nzambie nzambie is to refer to small gods etc.. spirits , Interesting and how much do you know about the 'KUMINA'"

**
Reply
70. Dane Taylor
"Kumina is a dance we do In Jamaica at a wake or nine night to invoke the ancestors."

**
71. Desmond Brown
"Chaka Chaka. Is Ga. And it means messy  as it does in Jamaica 🇯🇲"

**
72. ERUPTED
"Chaka chaka is used around West Africa( Ivory Coast,Ghana,Nigeria to be specific)."

**
73. MissBabyloved
"Kyakakyaka or potopoto is Twi/Akan meaning messy"

**
Reply
74. eKinematics
"@MissBabyloved  Poto poto is Twi? I'm just hearing this for this first time. Also I saw mumu listed as Akan.. mmmh. Guess all west African languages are related because this is so Nigerian too and I hear it more from Nigerians than Ghanaians."

**
Reply
75. MissBabyloved
"@eKinematics  in Twi, mmumu or mumu means deaf or deaf and dumb but because of the sensitive nature of it Ghanaians don’t normally use it as insult, potoo, potopoto means dirty or muddy and also poto or potopoto means grinding wet substances like grinding wet vegetables and derived a food called Mpotompoto which is Cocoyam or Yam porridge."

**
76. madewithrealdiamonds
"I like the references but some of these pronunciations are off. I'd be lost, if anyone said them like this, since I'd never heard some of these words pronounced the way you did. I'm from MoBay."

**
77. Adama Janko
"Poto-poto and Nyam which means mud and to eat are also Senegambia origins"

**
78. Chioke Silva
"No no no haahahaha. Doti is pidgin English from west Africa, Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone etc and it is derived from the English word ‘Dirty’ but we say Doti or Dutti or Dutty. Period!"

**
79. Taha DEUX
"Nyam means eat in fula not in wolf when a Fula say ar nyam he is telling you to came eat lèck means eat In wolf poto poto In wolf means mud or muddy too"

**
80. ragwar kanisa
"Poto almost mean the same thing in my traditional language? Also nyam mean the same thing am from Kenya."

**
81. bface1873
"yes kaba kaba is yoruba. u are correct. Oni kaba kaba kebe kebe. unserious unreliable"

**
82. migf27
"Adope in ga is dwarf not ghost. Sisa is ghost in ga."

**
83. Abdoulie Jammeh
"My brother I am from Gambia,aïne means lunch and nyam means food from wollof people."

**
84. Abdoulie Jammeh
"Serer people of Senegal and Gambia also use nyam as eat.my ancestoral tribe are Mandinka,Serer and Wollof."

**
85. Gladstone Fuller
"Thanks for this video. It reminds me of some of the words my grandmother and people of my community used during my childhood years in Jamaica. One example is the word “jumbi”, which means ghost. One inescapable fact is that Jamaicans descend from the countries which make up West Africa today. Back in the day, before the enslavers and colonizers divided up Africa, West Africa was a region with kingdoms or peoples. I have always maintained that one can see the various peoples of West African countries in the Jamaican population. Some think we have connections with only Ghana, but it goes much wider."

**

86. Chimezie Obi "Interesting stuff. You can see how everything was corrupted.

However, the good thing is how they were able to retain the original meaning.  it's also an eye opener on some words we thought came from the West.

 We also use Doti in Igbo to refer to dirt.  The Efik call it Mbakara which you corrupted to Backra. Chinchi is bed bug. That BREECHEE was something else. Its a tribal mark you put on the forehead of those who have matured to adulthood, as a sign of nobility. So in Igbo is called IGBU ICHI." ** 87. Abdoulie Jallow " "Nyam" is a Fulani or Serer word meaning "eat". These are two different languages though. The Wolof word for "eat" is "lecka" and "leck" in Gambian and Senegalese dialects respectively. A lot of Serer people in both Gambia and Senegal have generally become a Wolofized population but nevertheless, it is a distinct language in its own right.." ** Reply 88. J Wills "Exactly.  .I learnt Akans gave the name Jamaica ja/gya...ma ...yaka (meaning....maybe we are not coming come hack) ....to the motherland. 

The British may have turned it to Jamaica because all the gya in Ghana are written as Ja"
** 89. African Child "Patuo - owl in Akan

Nyam - means grind in Akan

Dukunu is dokono in Akan ( popular term is kenkey)" ** 90. Kirky Nachulus "More Patois/Patwa words that is from Ghana:

plaka plaka (pleki pleki)/ muddy, woie woe/a place far away, susumba (susumuoa) green round bean. Please forgive my spellings." ** 91. Ancient House Video Production "There are many words from the fulani language not just Juk but pian means to shoot, Duppa and jiny or jinal mean ghost,MI and mimi means I and ey mean yes ,Nyam mean to eat not grind,Bouy mean to leave bolo means only like bolo slush, ah mean a question,buttu mean fat.The tonation, pitch and pattern is fulani in general with some exception.hall and pullup "Hal Pulaar " meaning pulaar people Etc only name a few." ** 92. DnB Brett #M22 "In South Africa The Nguni languages  uDoti meaning dirt especially Ndebeles, Zulu although there are other words like “ukungcola” meaning Dirt" ** 93. Beyoutiful Thatfasttravel "Susu means savings in Akan language. Susu has a different mean in patois though." ** 94. BLESS VIKU "Ewes never  call spider Ananse, rather Ayi"

** 95. Achuil Ajak "Nyam Nyam is also a Dinka and Nuer word eating or someone assume to eat people.

Dinka and Nuer are in South Sudan and there are Nuer in Ethiopia as well." ** 96. Meek Aghogho "Attoo or Ato for chewing stick is an Urhobo word (Deltan/Edoid). Thank you."

** 97. Superblack "I think you missed "soso"... an Igbo word meaning "only" or "just"

Pronounced "soh soh"."

** 98. Oum Lowe "Poto-Poto in Wolof also means mud/muddy" ** 99. Michael Mills "im Ghanaian. nyam is Akan, to mash or grind. like mashed yams,  mashed potatoes. mashed pepper.

some other words i heard as part of the koromanteng language

abeng is akan for horn

obroni is also akan for foreigner" ** 100. MadSolja Trukka "🇯🇲 a Bafan in St Mary is someone who is slight, not very handy, clumsy." ** 101. Takyi Foster Edem "'Kaba-kaba' in the Ewe language means 'fast', 'quick' or 'swift'. Please correct that😊" **** Thanks for visiting pancocojams. Visitor comments are welcome.

Akan Words And Other African Cultural Retentions In Jamaica's Maroon Communities

vagabrothers, March 26, 2017

We dive deeper into Jamaica's Blue Mountains and get welcomed into the Scotts Hall Maroon Community. Join us for an UNBELIEVABLE day in the Blue Mountains as we explore Maroon culture!
-snip-
Pancocojams Editor's Note:
I'm showcasing this YouTube video mostly because of its cinematography, its content, and  the comments in its discussion thread. However, I'd like to note that a number of Jamaican commenters disagreed with this video's title, and wrote that Maroons aren't forgotten people in Jamaica.

****
Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post showcase a YouTube video of the Scotts Hall Maroon community in Jamaica.

This post includes a definition of the term "cultural retentions", definitions of the word "Akan", and an excerpt from the Wikipedia page about Jamaica's Maroons.

This pancocojams post also includes some comments from that video's discussion thread that refer to Jamaica's Maroon communities' retention of Akan words from Ghana and The Ivory Coast's (west Africa) Akan language as well as some other African retentions.     

The content of this post is provided for linguistic, historical, and socio-cultural information.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to the Scotts Hall Maroon community and other Maroon communities in Jamaica and elsewhere. Thanks to the vagabrothers for the information included in this video and the high quality cinematography of this video. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post.
-snip-
This post is part of an ongoing pancocojams series about Maroons in Jamaica and in other nations of the Caribbean and South America.

****
A DEFINITION OF "AFRICAN CULTURAL RETENTION" 
The definition of "African cultural retention" that is used in this post is "the retention of African names and other terms, and the retentions of African cultural practices and aesthetics in the African Diaspora". 

****
A DEFINITION OF THE AFRICAN WORD "AKAN"

From https://www.yourdictionary.com/akan
"A Kwa language spoken in parts of Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire whose two main varieties are Fante and Twi. (noun)

*
Of the Akan or their language or culture. (adjective)

*
A member of a people of Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire, including the Fante and the Twi. (noun)"

-snip-
I added the parts of speech in parenthesis. 
Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire are West African nations. The English translation of "Côte d'Ivoire" is "The Ivory Coast". 

Click https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akan_people for information about Akan people. That page notes that "Akan" is an ethnic group which is found in present day Ghana and The Ivory Coast. There are a number of sub-groups of Akan people. Two sub-groups of Akan people are "Ashanti"* and "Fante".
-snip-
In the Akan language, the Ashanti are called "Asante" (ah SAHN tee" . The name for this West African ethnic group is  spelled the same but way but is pronounced differently and has a different meaning from the KiSwahili (East and Central African) language word that means "thank you".

Click https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnnHQTytGHE&ab_channel=LearnTwiwithEfiaBAE for a YouTube vlog about how the word "Twi" is pronounced.

Here are a few comments from that video's discussion thread about how the word "Twi" is pronouned:
1. ebert beeman, 2019
" @Elroy Rigsby-Leday  Twi as in "she"?"

**
Reply
2. Elroy Rigsby-Leday, 2019
"@ebert beeman  more like ch - ee or ch - we.  The ch is meant to sound strong like chew and the ee is streched out. I find success when I say chwe it's not technically correct as the w sound should disappear because tw is supposed to translate into ch, but everyone says it sounds right."

**
Reply
3. Learn Twi with Efia BAE, 2019
"As the response before mine explains, no, it doesn't sound like the word "tree" or "she". But more like "tchwi" with a soft "t". It doesn't even sound like the sound an English native speaker would make when saying "chew" or "chewing gum" but it's the closest sound I could think of that expresses part of the sound made in pronouncing "Twi". I hope repeating the video several time and with practice it will get easier :). Good luck."

****
EXCERPT FROM THE WIKIPEDIA PAGE ABOUT "MAROON"
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamaican_Maroons
"Jamaican Maroons descend from maroons, Africans who escaped from slavery on the Colony of Jamaica and established free communities in the mountainous interior, primarily in the eastern parishes. Escaped Africans who were enslaved during Spanish rule over Jamaica (1493–1656) may have been the first to develop such refugee communities.

The English, who invaded the island in 1655, expanded the importation of slaves to support their extensive development of sugar-cane plantations. Africans in Jamaica continually fought and revolted, with many who escaped becoming maroons. 

[...]

Origins

The word "maroon" is derived via French from the Spanish word cimarrón, meaning "wild" or "untamed". This word usually referred to runaways, castaways, or the shipwrecked; those marooned probably would never return. The origin of the Spanish word cimarrón is unknown.[1]

When the English invaded Jamaica in 1655, most Spanish colonists fled. Many of their slaves escaped and, together with free blacks and mulattoes, former slaves, and some native Taíno,[2][3][4] coalesced into a number of ethnically diverse groups in the Jamaican interior.[5]"...

****
SELECTED COMMENTS FROM THIS VIDEO'S DISCUSSION THREAD

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJfVfH09SK8&ab_channel=vagabrothers

Numbers are added for referencing purposes only.

1. konkonbishl, 2017
"These guys are Akans of Ghana abeng is horn in twi. Their ancestors may have been taken from kormanteng and Abanzi in the central region of Ghana. To be specific they are Fantis. Very stubborn people. The Akans lived under strict military structures. Read about the Akans of Ghana and you would know it. An Akan would never live under any oppressor they would rebel."

**
2. MissBabyloved, 2017
"My heart is filled with joy seeing my Akan people transformed as maroons but they didn't loose all the Twi language of the Akans. "Nyankonpo"= the almighty God, "Aben"= ivory horn specifically in Ghana 🇬🇭. 😅 would really like to visit them. ❤️❤️❤️🙏🏽🇬🇭"

**
3. Mahcyah S., 2017
"Awwwhs👣me video! L😍ve it! The history,culture,the tour of the interior of the Maroons territory!

🎵📽🎤🇯🇲🏞🗻🍠🍎🌽🍹🎵😀

 Am from the Parish of Portland. They have another Maroon🇯🇲🔆 community call Acompong! Courageous,amazing people! Thanxs for the tour guys, it really rocks! 🛤Am from there and never been personally went there but read and watch a lot of videos on the Maroons! So well done, am visiting very soon!

PS  breathtaking views from your environmental friendly  lodge? How refreshing that must be?😊😊😊"

**
4. Friedrich, 2017
..."Well in current day Jamaican patoi language. There are many Akans Ghanaian language words fused into it. There also still exist Ghanaian culture, naming and languages maintained by descendants of escaped slaves sent to not only Jamaica but Guyana, Suriman, St Lucia, Aruba and even further to state of Lousiana in USA. I would love to invite you guys to Ghana to explore with me someday, whenever you are able to do so. "

**
5. Nana K.N. Owusu, 2018
"Ghana and Jamaica must establish an intercultural program.  The Jamaicans are Akans with names like Nanny(Nana), Cudjoe, Quao, Tacky etc.

Cola nuts are called Bese in both places, the staple cornmeal is called Dokunu, and the Akye tree is called Akee."

**
6. Laugh Jungle, 2018
"abeng-horn

nyankopong-God

 both Ghanaian Twi Language

Bless Up Africa"

**
Reply
7. Koku, 2021
"Akan, it  could be Fanti"

**
8. Yvonne Asare, 2018
"Truly Ghanaians. This fishing method plus the small rivers brings my childhood memories back. So innocence and loved the rural growing up in eastern region on the akuapem mountains."

**
9. Str88 Money Movement, 2018
"Most are akans but many came from Kongo too"

**
Reply
10. carsty, 2018
"@Str88 Money Movement  erm well from wat i was taught our ancestors  (slaves) were from West Africa...i thought Congo/Kongo was Central Africa or is it a different Country I dont know of?"

**
Reply
11. Str88 Money Movement, 2018
" @carsty   well you have to overstand the kingdom of Kongo was situaded in west central Afraka stretching from northern Angola, western Kongo Kinshasa aka DRC and Kongo Brazzaville aka ROC.

When people hear Kongo they think of the modern nation in central Afraka which was colonised by Belgium because its the biggest country in sub Sahara Afraka and have been through the worse genocide.

So when I said Kongo was talking about the kingdom of Kongo and not the current nations.

Lastly we have to remember Jamaica was not always controlled by the English but the Spanish too, these European nations brought enslaved Afrakans from the gold coast all the way down to west central Afraka.

**
Reply
12. Str88 Money Movement, 2018
"@carsty  Based on the phoenix ship records, enslaved Africans mostly came from the Akan people (Twi [Ashanti Akyem, etc.], Fante and Bono) followed by Igbo, Yoruba, Kongo, Fon people and Ibibio people. Akan (then called Coromantee) culture was the dominant African culture in Jamaica"

**
Reply
13. Str88 Money Movement, 2018
"@carsty  "It was pure Congo people who was living in here, straight from Africa, after slavery was up, real black African. My great-great-grandfather come from Africa. We all are from the African tribe," declared the 72-year-old grandfather, who has spent most of his life in Congo Town, Wakefield, Trelawny.

In an email response to a query about Guy's claim, Professor Verene Shepherd, social historian and lecturer in history at the Mona campus of the University of the West Indies, says: "There are several Bongo towns and Congo towns in Jamaica. That speaks to the presence of Jamaicans descended from people from the Congo/Angola area of Africa. Read Maureen Warner Lewis' book, Central Africa in the Caribbean. Also remember ... (the) victims of the last ship, Zong? Some of those on the Zong were from Angola/Congo area."

Congo Town, Wakefield, was indeed a big slave settlement and, after slavery, it was a vibrant place; even in the 1940s and '50s when Guy was growing up, decades after the abolition. And as he talked about his life and time in Congo Town, Wakefield, Trelawny, my mind strayed. I looked right through him, and was transported to a time when life was hard, but sacred, and so very different from what it is today. The greying man beside me was a link between now and then, when the hypnotic sounds of the Tambo drums in Congo Town echoed from the hills surrounding Wakefield.

There was a yard near where Guy now lives in Congo Town, where people from all over the parish would meet to play the drums and dance to their message-laden beats, carrying on what their forebears had brought from Africa. The drums were loud and could be heard miles away, and few could resist their calling, to go dance and sing, and be merry.

"We used to have the Congo people dem who come in. We have Congo people who come from up Duansvale, we have Congo people from Maroon Town, and same place here in Wakefield. We used to have the dance over there so, over there so used to be for my grandfather. That was actually the camp for Congo people," he recalled."

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Reply
14. Str88 Money Movement, 2018
" @carsty  there's a lot more information available if you need it.

But my point is we brothers regardless. I'm from Kongo and I know my people were part of the maroons and the revolts in Jamaica and the rest of the Caribbeans even in mainland Brazil, Mexico and of course the USA.

G-d* willing one day I will visit the maroons in Jamaica and it will be emotional for me to say the least!

Peace love and light to you and yours."
-snip-
*This is the way this word is spelled in this comment.

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15. Superblack, 2018
"The Maroons are a mixture of West African ethnicities.... Not just Ashanti, you will definitely find a big Igbo element as well as Yoruba

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Reply
16. "SUNSHINE GIRL, 2019
"Incoginto One you are so right about this even the Igbo culture is so much in Jamaica but because of Nanny the Akan culture dominates. Emprezz Golding mother traces her roots back to the Igbo tribe in Nigeria. There a lot of things associated with the Nigerians. Calabar high name after a port in Nigeria and yam festival and jonkunu from there too. So they need to educate kids about their other tribes"

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17. Ofori Amanfo, 2019
"Jamaicans are real asantes cos the sound of the abeng is used for communication even now when u visit the village and go the farm, the farmers  use it to communicate like telling each other when they are leaving their farms when is getting late"

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18. DREAMER, 2019
"OMG 11:29 did I hear a word Nyankinpong,  it makes me cry.

Nyankopon is an akan or let me say Ashanti word meaning Almighty God.

The  Maroons are the direct descendants of the Asante ( Ashanti) people, who were taken away from modern day Ghana.

Maximum respect and love from Asante land."

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19. Ruthy Ruth, 2019
"Was just about to state the same, Ghanaians say Nyakopong. Some Jamaicans also share some Ghanaian stories like ‘Anase the Spider’ and have Ghanaian names like Kofi and Kwame. This shows how the Maroons really tried to preserve as much of their West African culture as the could. 🇬🇭🇯🇲"

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20. Atlas24gh, 2019
"They are AKan  but they are more Fanti than Ashanti They were mostly from Abanzi and Koromantee sectin f the central region"

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Reply
21. Enoch Adjei, 2019
"They are not Asante because you hear a few akan words.They are from  all over West Africa.My research point to Fulani as Majority.Who can be found everywhere in West Africa even Northern Ghana.

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Reply
22. kofi Sachey, 2019
" @Atlas24gh  Now that hit home! Because the rhythm from those drums are not typically Ashanti. And the dance moves further prove my point. Now I understand."

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Reply
23. kofi Sachey, 2019
@Max A  The maroons were mostly Ghanaians, no doubt about that. However it's also obvious that the cultural influences aren't just Akan. It seems to me other tribes from other nations joined the Akan maroons on their rebellious flight into the blue mountains. Very fascinating piece of history."

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Examples Of The Ghanaian terms "Chale" ("Charlie") & "Paa" In Discussion Threads Of A. Y. Poyoo YouTube Videos

Edited by Azizi Powell

Latest update: Feb. 7, 2022

This is Part III of a three part pancocojams series that focuses on the upcoming Ghanaian comic rapper whose stage name is "AY Payoo".

Part III provides examples of the Ghanaian Pidgin term "chale" ("charlie", "charlee" and other spelling) and the Twi term "paa" from various discussion threads of A. Y. Payoo YouTube videos.

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2020/06/ghanaian-comic-rapper-y-payoo-and-his.html for Part I of this pancocojams series. Part I presents information about AY Payoo and showcases two of his YouTube videos.

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2020/06/examples-of-referent-payorians-term.html for Part II of this pancocojams series. Part II provides examples from various discussion threads of AY Payoo videos of commenters use of the referent "Payorians", the term "washout", and the self-bragging statement that Payoo is "the face of Ghanaian rap".

The content of this post is presented for cultural and linguistic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to AY Payoo for is his creative performances and branding strategies. Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to AY Payoo for publishing these videos on YouTube.

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DEFINITION OF THE GHANAIAN PIDGIN TERM "CHALE"
From https://www.quora.com/Why-do-Ghanaians-say-Charlie

[Numbers given for referencing purposes only.] 

1. Kwadwo Omari Boateng, studies at University of Ghana,

posted on May 4, 2020

"Charlie, pronounced “charley” has its roots in our colonial times. See Ghana was previously the Gold Coast under British imperial rule. The British lords had many names obviously but for some reason, the ones that stood out were Charlie and Jack. The names became so popular amongst the Gold Coasters (Ghanaians) that we began to refer to strangers as Charlie/Jack, much like how Americans use “dude”. Overtime, Charlie was bastardized “Charley” though Jack remained Jack. Anyone at all can be Charley, well anyone except the older folks haha. You’ve got to show respect to them. But amongst themselves they use Charley too. Jack is less popular."...

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2. posted by Bright M Nontaa, studied at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Answered May 4, 2020

" I was born in Ghana and have strictly lived here for well over 25 years.

The word "Charlie" first off has various spelling variants including but not limited to "Charley, chale, challey chally", all meaning the same regardless.

One must also note that the word in reference is a "pidgin" word. Pidgin is an informal language (developed over time by the interaction of the various local languages and the English language, with few foreign imports) spoken in Ghana and many other African countries (different variants) especially Nigeria.

The word "Charlie" is one of the most versatile and commonly used informal words in Ghana and it cuts across all social classes. Transliterally, it means dude, buddy, mate and Friend.

It is casual and is most likely used among peers but almost never used by younger peers to refer to older peers as it is mostly considered disrespectful.

For instance, 'Charlie wassup?' could mean 'dude what's up'. 'Charlie me I Taya' could mean 'dude I'm tired' etc.

The word "Charlie" could serve as a form of greeting or saying 'hi', 'hello', 'hey' etc.

Also by stretching the word "Charlie'and or adding words like 'Oh' or 'Ah', could serve as a statement or sentence without actually making one.

For instance, if someone accidentally steps on your toes you could exclaim" Charlieeeee", "Ah Charlieeeee" or "Oh Charlieeeee" and not have to make an entire statement to express your feelings about the situation."

**
3. Yaw Djin, , knows Twi
Answered Jan 22, 2021
"The word is ‘chale’ as Ghanaian languages are very phonetic without extra letters that arent pronounced (Except when the pronunciation or sound made can only be understood by the combination of the two characters)

There is no ‘r’ ‘ey’ or ‘ie’ in Chale. This is a very, very recent rehash (Most probably to appeal to Western sensibilities, which I for one find stupid)

The word has been chale as far back as I can remember and I can remember as far back as 1988.

The spelling chale itself is somewhat problematic as it is the Akan language, Twi that uses the phonetic character ‘Ch’ and as I understand it, chale is of a Ga origin. Gas do not have a C, nevermind a ‘Ch’. So further evidence of even earlier bastardization to appeal to Western sensibilities. The word should be correctly ‘Tsale’. But let’s go with chale for convenience.

Chale essentially means ‘buddy’ or ‘mate’, ‘bruv’ or most accurately ‘dude’ in the salutation sense - Not in the classic use of describing in third person.

So “Chale, make we go” meaning, “dude, let us go”

or “chale” as emphasis on a situation that cannot be expressed, like simply saying “dude”. For further emphasis “chale, chale, chale” is often heard for the same purposes.

If someone steps on your heel, “chale”… “dude!”

"Chale wote’ are the kind of flipflops you see in Ghana and is Ghanaian-speak (Although most of them are made in China or imported, they may have started life made here… sans patent). ‘wo te’ is Ga for ‘we are going’ or ‘we go’ and likely originated sometime after ‘chale’ became a thing. So ‘chalewote’ means ‘dude, we’re off’, given credibility to the Ga origin of the word ‘Chale’

 Until the influence of Twi radio in the 2000s, Ga was the most dominant language in Accra and a lot more so in earlier decades. So unlike words like ‘Tsooboi’ which ARE two languages put together (apt, as it means ‘working together’), chalewote is likely homogeneous. Hence ‘chale’ is probably of Ga origin.

As to what time period it came from, the consensus seems to be during WWII and from American radio communication. My issue with that explanation is that it’s curious that Americans were stationed in the Gold Coast (Today, Ghana) at any period of time to leave an impression. The Americans landed in Cassablanca during Operation Torch. They moved on to Kassarine Pass where they experienced their baptism of fire, facing the Germans. The logistics of stationing them in Ghana doesnt add up as the war was in the Arab-speaking countries of Northern Africa (Tunisia, Egypt and Libya), and there were countries north and West of the Gold Coast much, much closer to that. But let’s assume they were stationed here in large numbers.

During WWII the Americans only ever used ‘Charlie’ in pre-NATO radio communication for the letter ‘C’ i.e ‘Able for A, Baker for B, Charlie for C, Dog for D’ etc.

How this would translate from radio communication that do refer to companies of soldiers into one that refers to a peer is curious as these terms were extremely formal (The point of them was to make letters understood by relating them to an unmistakable word spelled with that letter). Also, why Charlie was chosen by Ghanaians over any other pre-NATO term is also quite arbitrary.

The Americans would really use ‘Charlie’ during the Vietnam war (1965 - 1973) where the term referred to enemy Vietnamese formations e.g. “We have Charlie all over the LZ” i.e. “We have Vietming troops at the landing zone”. Ghanaians were not friends of America during the Vietnam era and nowhere close to the front when we were (after the CIA-led 1966 coup).

Americans never casually referred to each other as Charlie at any point in their history. In WWII, the term for a stranger they were being familiar with was ‘buddy’ and this is well-documented from as far back as the start of talkies in 1926. The American expression Ghanaians picked came more from jive. This was ‘man’ or ‘mehn’ and that’s from much later, about the 1970s, and remained a clearly an English word. Not a word adopted into Ghanaian language.

Like ‘Obroni’, the origin of the term ‘Chale’ seems to be coopted to make Ghanaian expression seem more flattering to English speaking nations in a way that often erases real African history and is unflattering to Ghanaians in a way I find especially obnoxious.

No, Obroni doesnt mean ‘the people from over the horizon’. It’s meaning is ‘people who cannot be trusted’. Likewise, I am skeptical that chale comes from the word ‘charlie’ during WWII as the Urban dictionary claims without any evidence of its use not pre-dating WWII and being specific to ‘charlie’ or what actual terms the Americans curiously stationed in Ghana were using with the word ‘Charlie’.

There may actually be a local term lost over time. Words like Achimota, depending on who you ask, mean one thing to some people, and another to others. In my family, our surname Djin has been attributed to various terms at the turn of the 20th century. So there are lost meanings to words that had local meanings, so we really didn’t need to have misheard a term from English-speakers and bastardized it into something local."
-snip-
"Obroni" is an informal referent that is used in Ghana as a referent for White people.

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DEFINITIONS OF THE GHANAIAN TERM "PAA"
Excerpt #1:
From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVi3QrJFi2s.
Reading Your Comments With Mama A | TWINGLISH

Pancocojams Editor: On May 28, 2020 I posted a question in the discussion thread for this YouTube video (vlog) asking about the meaning of the word "paa".  Within one hour Zomgirene,  the Ghanaian vlogger for that YouTube channel reposted this reply to my question.  Thanks Zomgirine!

[Regarding the word "paa"] "It’s to add emphasis to whatever your saying. So “ekom di mi” is I’m hungry. “Ekom di mi paa” is Im REALLY hungry. Sometimes you might even see/hear “papaaapa” which is really heavy emphasis. I hope this helps and thank you for watching ❣️"
-snip-
I originally wrote that "paa" is a Twi term. Excerpt #2 implies that "paa" is from the Twi language, but Zongirine didn't indicate this. For that reason, I'm changing this heading to a more general attribution.

Ghanaians or anyone with this information, please share information about this term and confirm whether "paa" came from the Twi language. Thanks!   

**
Excerpt #2
From https://www.papapaa.org/background.html "Pa Pa Paa -Background Briefing About Fair Trade And Cocoa
"Kuapa Kokoo- good cocoa farmers
The farmers featured on this website are members of the Kuapa Kokoo co-operative, an association of around 100,000 cocoa farmers in Ghana. Kuapa Kokoo was set up to develop fairer trading practices and represent the interests of cocoa farmers. Kuapa Kokoo means "good cocoa farmer in the Twi language. Their motto is 'Pa Pa Paa' which means 'the best of the best' in Twi.
..."Kuapa Kokoo - good cocoa farmers

-snip-

I added italics to highlight this sentence.

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EXAMPLES OF THE GHANAIAN TERMS "CHALE" ("CHARLIE") AND "PAA" IN DISCUSSION THREADS FOR VARIOUS AY PAYOO YOUTUBE VIDEOS
This is a very small compilation of comments that include the word "chale" ("charlie") & "paa') from discussion threads for three YouTube videos that the newly trending Ghanaian entertainer AY Payoo published on YouTube from May 17, 2020 to June 8,  2020.

These video sources are given as hyperlinks in no particular order except the first video which is that performer's most viral video to date.  The video's title, publisher, and publication date are given after the hyperlink .

Numbers are added for references purposes only.

I. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZzFj0NNqOY
AY Payoo - Toto Style (Viral Video)
Official AY Payoo, May 17, 2020

1. Ali Babs, May 2020
"Charley this foolishness must STOP!"

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2. Sky Emma, May 2020
""Chale bra Poyo, u no dey change ur boxer 😅😅

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3.  Jewel Kofi Emmanuel, May 2020
"Poyoo I study u paa why u get only one Boxer shorts"

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4. ll Magician ll, June 2020
"On a real dis be vibe chale🔥"

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From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOKxF-gOYV0

AY Poyoo - Gospel Video (Viral Video)

Official AY Payoo, May 24, 2020

1. Chorkor Youth Tv, May 2020

..."Comment President am here paaaa. CP"

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2. Dark_Trendz, June 2020
"Chaley,you are good musician but reduce the fooling small 😪,its too much 🥴"

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III
From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_GMi6lCbCwAY Poyoo Ft Wanlov The Kubolor - Alcoholics (Audio Slide)
Offficial AY Poyoo, May 23, 2000
1. Frederick dove, May 2020

"Poyoo featured de right artiste...Dope track paaa ooo"

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2. Kuubetersob Addy Jackson, June 2020
"Talent paa"

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This concludes Part III of this three part pancocojams series on AY Payoo.

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Visitor comments are welcome.