Dr. Nana Anima Wiafe-Akenten, the first person to have written her dissertation in Twi has said she was inspired by the language being used properly and appropriately.
She told Morning Starr host, Francis Abban that the passion and the need for the Twi language to be learnt and utilise well for the development and growth of the nation led to writing her dissertation in Twi.
“Couple of things inspired me to write my entire dissertation in Twi, passion for the language and to see the language being used properly and appropriately just like the English language”.
Just last week, she graduated from the University of Ghana with a Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Ghanaian Language Studies (Akan Linguistics – Media Discourse).
Significantly, she happens to be the first person to have written her dissertation in Twi. Over 200 pages with about 15 pages of data all in Twi. The work was supervised by Prof Kwesi Yankah and Prof Kofi Agyekum while Prof Akosua Anyidoho Prof Ohene Afoakwa, Dr. Daniel Appiah-Adjei, Mr Kwasi Adomako, Mrs Helen Boatemaa Denteh among others, gave her the support.
Dr. Anima explained that it was very challenging translating everything in Twi but with the support of people like Prof Kofi Agyekum she was able to sail through.
“I was concerned with the analysis of word meanings and relations between them. All quotes in the English Language had to be translated to Twi to mean exactly what the quote means.
Even if it is a terminology in English, you have to get the exact Akan word, not just nearest in meaning,” she stated.
Dr Anima’s specialisation
Currently, Dr Anima is the Head of the Akan-Nzema Department of the College of Languages Education, Ajumako Campus of the University of Education, Winneba.
She loves to research into Ethnography of Communication and media discourse (Political and Socio-cultural discourse). Media discourse refers to interactions that take place through a broadcast platform, whether spoken or written, in which the discourse is oriented to a non-present reader, listener or viewer.
Apart from this, Dr Anima, who is herself a media practitioner, loves to explore media linguistics as well. Media linguistics is basically the study of media speech. For instance, “There are things that are known to be taboos but are mentioned anyhow on the radio by some of these Twi presenters on both TV and radio,” she states.
She teaches Phonetics of Akan, Language use in Media, Translation, Interpretation, Akan Written Literature, Oral Literature of Akan and Ethnography of Speaking.
