Day 1: Arrival in Accra and a first meeting with teaching staff of the University of Ghana (UG)
Right after our arrival at “Yiri Lodge”, the university’s on-campus guesthouse, we are warmly welcomed by Jemima A. Anderson, professor at the Department of English. The first meeting with our host provides the opportunity to get to know each other and exchange first experiences regarding African languages, language varieties and cultures as well as student’s individual points of interest in these topics.
Day 2: Exploring the university campus & Christmas Carol Singing
On the second day of our trip, a graduate student of the UG takes us on a guided tour around the campus area. That way, we are introduced to various institutes, above all to the Department of Modern Languages forming part of the library complex.
After the tour we are invited to take part in the university’s interdisciplinary Christmas Carol Singing, an outstanding event for all of us if one considers the UG’s celebration of its 75th anniversary. In each of the songs performed by different university choirs, the voices of Potsdam students merge with those of UG graduate and undergraduate students, creating a joyful and welcoming atmosphere. We are especially intrigued by the performance of an indigenous band presenting their rewritten versions of classical English Christmas carols (i.e. Jingle Bells) that are now sung in a Ghanaian language variety and have a rhythmical twist to them but, however, still stick to the original melody.
Day 3: Odododiodioo (Jamestown)
The third day of our trip is dedicated to visiting Odododiodioo (Jamestown), the oldest district of Accra. Both from a historical and postcolonial point of view, the guided tour we are taking through the harbour area is significant to all of us: Fort James, a trading venue erected in 1673 by the Royal African Company of England during British colonialism, was used in these days as a base for international trade with gold – and enslaved African people. By the time Ghana had achieved independence from the British, the fort was used as a prison by the Ghanaian state only until 2007. Inside the fort building, both traces of the past slave trade and the venue’s function as a prison are still clearly visible everywhere, an experience that is perceived by the group at least as intense if not emotionally overwhelming. Right after having visited the fort, our guide takes us through some of the narrow streets of the nearby fishing village and introduces us to a local community school financed only by donations.
Since the beginning of our field trip, it has been particularly noticeable that English is being used dominantly on the onset of conversations. However, at the same time, one is also struck by the lively mixture of language varieties (i.e. the dialects of Akan, Ewe and many others) that are part and parcel of Ghana’s linguistic landscape. Likewise, this multilingual atmosphere is reflected in written language in the public space, i.e. in advertisements or street signs. Regarding the phonetics of Ghanaian English, there are striking differences to those standard varieties of English (British English or American English) usually taught in Europe.
We are looking forward to the forthcoming days of our trip.
To the travel diaries published so far (in German): https://www.uni-potsdam.de/de/up-entdecken/upaktuell/up-unterwegs-reisetagebuecher