Ewe (Eʋegbe)

Ewe is member of the Volta�Niger branch of Niger-Congo languages with about 3 million in the Volta Region of south-east Ghana, and also in southwest Togo and in parts of Benin. It is recognised as a national language in Ghana, where English is the official language, and in Togo, where French is the official language.

Ewe is also known as Ebwe, Efe, Ehwe, Eibe, Eue, Eve, Gbe, Krepe, Krepi, Popo and Vhe. Ewe is closely related Gbe languages such as Fon, Gen, Phla, Phera and Aja.

The Ewe people believe that their ancestors came from Ketu, a town in Benin, and migrated to the southeast of Ghana. Some of the Ewe also settled in Togo.

Diedrich Hermann Westermann (1875-1956), German missionary linguist published dictionaries and grammars for Ewe and related languages, and other linguists have worked on various aspects of Ewe.

Ewe alphabet and pronunciation

Notes

A tilde (~) indicates a nasal.
Ewe is a tonal language with four tones: a rising tone marked by an acute accent (é), a falling tone marked by a grave accent (è), a falling-rising tone marked by a caron accent (ě), and a rising-falling accent marked by circumflex accent (ê). However the tones are not always marked.

Sample text in Ewe

Wodzi amegbetɔwo katã ablɔɖeviwoe eye wodzena bubu kple gomekpɔkpɔ sɔsɔe. Susu kple dzitsinya le wo dometɔ ɖesiaɖe si eyata wodze be woanɔ anyi le ɖekawɔwɔ blibo me.

Translation

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

Tower of Babel in Ewe | Useful phrases in Ewe