HONAM AKWAA NE WOREKYERɛ BAABI A ɛYɛ WO YA (BODY PARTS AND EXPRESSIONS ON THE THE PART HURTING YOU)

Objective

After working your way through this chapter you must be able to 1. Identify the parts of the body 2. Express sickness 3. Form plural of nouns

Introduction

In the next unit we will be talking about visiting the hospital so it is appropriate to talk about the parts of the body so that we can tell the doctor. There are certain parts of the body which are not openly talked about or their names are not mentioned in public. Idiomatic expressions are used for those parts. Care must be taken so that you do not mention them in public or else people will brand you as being profane. We also do not curse with any part of the human body. People most of the time express sickness by talking about the part hurting. Illness or sickness among the Akans is not only a physical occurrence but also a social fact. When one is sick one’s relatives are all affected. Individuals are seen as bad neighbors when they do not show concern for a sick friend or relative or show concern in their recovery.

Lesson Vocabulary

Aane		Yes
Abasa		Arm
Adom		Grace
Akwaa/saakwa		Parts
Ayaresabea		Hospital
Bio		Again
Daabi		No
Dodo		Alot
Etire(ti)		Head
He?		Where
Honam		Skin
Kaka		Toothache
Kakra		A little
Koraa		At all/entirely
Kosɛ		Sorry
mmadwoa kotokuo		Ovaries
Mogya fi ntini		Veins
Mogya mmoawa		Blood cells
Mogya mmoawa fitaa		White blood cells
Mogya mmowa kɔkɔɔ		Red blood cells
Mogya ntini		Blood vessels
Mogya pa ntini		Arteries
Nipa bɔbea/nipadua		Body
Nkasεε		Bone
Nnwi		Hair
Nsono kɛseɛ		Large intestine
Ntini		Vein
Onyame		God
Seseiara		Now
Suban		Character
Tan		Spleen
Tipaeɛ		Headache
Yare		To be sick
Yareε (Nyarewa)		Disease
ɛdeɛn		What
εnan		Leg
…yε ya		hurt/pain

Lesson Conversation:

Abena	Onua, mema wo akye	?
Okosua	Yaa onua.	?
Abena	Apɔw mu ɛ?	?
Okosua	ɛnyɛ koraa. Na wo ɛ?	?
Abena	Onyame adom ɛyɛ paa.	?
Okosua	Yɛda Onyame ase	?
Abena	ɛdeɛn yɛ wo?	?
Okosua	Meyare kakra	?
Abena	Woyare wo he?	?
Okosua	Me nan ne me ti yɛ me ya dodo	?
Okosua	Me nan ne me ti yɛ me ya dodo	?
Abena	ɛhe bio?	?
Okosua	Me kɔn ne me se yɛ me ya	?
Abena	Abia, ɛyɛ kaka	?
Okosua	Daabi, menni kaka	?
Abena	Kosɛ, ɔkyena kɔ ayaresabea. Seseiara kɔtɔ tipaeɛ aduro na fa bi	?
Okosua	Meda ase, mɛkɔ. Wokɔ a, mekyia wo papa. Mate sɛ ɔyare	?
Abena	Aane, ne kotodwe ne n’asen y no ya	?
Okosua	ɔnkosɛ	?
Abena	Yoo, ɔbɛte.	?
Abena	Yoo, ɔbɛte. Akosua te apɔw ntɛm. Yɛbɛhyia ɔkyena	?
Okosua	Yoo, nante yie	?

Lesson Monologue

Kwadwo ankɔ sukuu. ɔhyia Kwame na ɔbisa no adeɛ a wɔsuaeɛ. Kenkan deɛ Kwame kaeɛ (Kwadwo did not go to school. He meets Kwame and asks about what they learned. Read what Kwame said).

Kwadwo ankɔ sukuu. ɔhyia Kwame na ɔbisa no adeɛ a wɔsuaeɛ. Kenkan deɛ Kwame kaeɛ (Kwadwo did not go to school. He meets Kwame and asks about what they learned. Read what Kwame said).

ɛnnɛ yɛsuaa adeɛ faa nipa akwaa ho. Mennim sɛ nipa akwaa dɔɔ so saa. Tikya dii kan ne yɛn kaa ti ho asɛm. ɔkaa sɛ nipa wɔ ani mienu ne aso mienu enti sɛ wohu obi a n’ani baako anaa n’aso baako a, ɛyɛ yare. ɔse nipa biara wɔ hwene, ano, (ɛ)se, anofafa ne abɔdwe. (Abere Kwame kaa saa no, Kwadwo sɔɔ n’abɔdwe mu). Tikya wiee saa no, ɔma yɛhuu sɛ yɛwɔ nsa mienu ne ɛnan mienu . Yei akyi, no ɔfaa yɛn nsa kaa ho asɛm. ɔse nsa wɔ nkyekyɛm(u) pii; abati, abasa, abatwɛ, nsakɔn, nsateaa, nsam(u), ne bɔwerɛ. ɔduu ha no, osuani baako bisaa tikya sɛ na yɛn (ɛ)nan nso wɔ nkyekyɛm(u) sɛn. Tikya buaa sɛ yɛwɔ serɛ, kotodwe, nantuo, nantabono, nantini, nampɔw ne nansoa. Tikya se sɛ nipa biara bɛtumi ayɛ biribi a, ɛfiri n’akoma. Yɛduu ha no na mmere reyɛ aso enti ɔma yɛdii agorɔ kakra. Agorɔ no din de “Kofi se”. Sɛ tikya ka sɛ “Kofi se nsa a” na obiara asɔ ne nsa. Sɛ woanhunu a, na woatena ase. ɔsan kyerɛɛ yɛn nnwom fa nipa akwaa ho. Sukuudan no mu yɛɛ anigye paa. ɔkyena yɛbɛtoa so.

Lesson Note

Cultural Notes

HONAM AKWAA NE WOREKYERɛ BAABI A ɛYɛ WO YA (BODY PARTS AND EXPRESSIONS ON THE THE PART HURTING YOU)

* it is profane to say it in public while the female genital organ ɛtwɛ is referred to as ammɔdin (we don’t mention its name) or basia (woman).

Grammar Notes

Worekyerɛ sɛ woyare (Showing that you are sick - expressing sickness) Sua nsɛm ɛyinom (learn these expressions)

Meyare	I am sick
Me (ti) yɛ me ya	My (head) hurts me
Fa/nom aduro	take/drink medicine
Te apɔw	to be well
Meyare me nan	I am sick in my leg

KASA MMARA (GRAMMAR) - DODO (PLURAL)

Akan like most languages do not have a single way of forming plurals. The formation of plurals in Akan sometimes depends on what initiates the noun. There are some rules to be learned to be able to deal with the situation. Though there are rules to help you, some do not follow any rule and therefore need to be learned individually. There are also some nouns which do not have plurals. The following are some rules to help you:

When a singular noun has the prefix o,ɔ, e, ɛ or it has no prefix, the plural is formed by using a as the prefix (plural maker).

NOUN	BAAKO (SINGULAR)	DODO (PLURAL)
house	ɛdan	adan
priest	ɔsɔfo	asɔfo
head	(e)ti	ati
gun	etuo	atuo
elephant	ɔsono	asono
rock	(ɛ)boɔ	aboɔ
home	efie	afie
snake	ɔwɔ	awɔ
farmer	okuafo	akuafo
country	ɔman	aman

Some nouns with prefix a, ɔ, o, ɛ and some with no prefix have their plurals formed by using the prefix n or m

NOUN	BAAKO (SINGULAR)	DODO (PLURAL)
sheep	odwan	nnwan (ndwan)
tree	dua	nnua (ndua)
tilapia	apataa	mpataa
knife	sekan	nsekan
rat	okusie	nkusie
elder	ɔpanin	mpanin
female	ɔbaa	Mmaa (mbaa)
person	onipa	nnipa
child	abofra	mmofra
flag	frankaa	mfranka

c. Nouns that have the prefix like those discussed earlier and have the suffix –ni have their plurals formed by replacing the suffix –ni with –fo(ɔ)

NOUN	BAAKO (SINGULAR)	DODO (PLURAL)
Rich person	osikani	asikafo(ɔ)
teacher	Tikyani	atikyafo(ɔ)
trader	odwadini	adwadifo(ɔ)
politician	ɔmanyɛni	amanyɛfo(ɔ)
nurse	nɛɛse(ni)	anɛɛsefo(ɔ)
tailor	adepamni	adepamfo(ɔ)
Akan	Akanni	Akanfo(ɔ)
student	sukuuni	asukuufo(ɔ)
American	Amɛrekani	Amɛrekafo(ɔ)
teacher	kyerɛkyerɛni	akyerɛkyerɛfo(ɔ)

d. The plural of some nouns are performed by adding the suffix –nom to the singular noun and the prefix change where necessary.

NOUN	BAAKO (SINGULAR)	DODO (PLURAL)
gentleman	owura	awuranom
husband	kunu	(n)kununom
wife	yere	(n)yerenom
friend	adamfo	nnamfonom
father	agya	agyanom
mother	ɛna	ɛnanom
aunt	sewaa	sewaanom
uncle	wɔfa	wɔfanom
grandparent	nana	nananom
sibling	onua	anuanom

There some nouns which have their plural formed by reduplicating the noun form (stem). Remember that these nouns have their usual plural formation as discussed earlier. Also note that when some words are reduplicated, in some cases there are slight changes.

NOUN	BAAKO (SINGULAR)	DODO (PLURAL)
organization	kuo	akuakuo
country	ɔman	amanaman
home	(e)fie	afiafi
town	kuro	nkuronkuro
knot	pɔw	apɔwapɔw
head	(e)ti	atiati

f. Some nouns do not have plural forms. The singular and the plural are the same. They include most parts of the body, uncountable nouns, food and mass nouns.

NOUN	BAAKO (SINGULAR)	DODO (PLURAL)
termite	mfɔte	mfɔte
flour	esiam	esiam
sugar	asikyire	asikyire
heart	akoma	akoma
government	aban	aban
water	nsuo	nsuo
hand	nsa	nsa
tongue	tɛkrɛma	tɛkrɛma
sand	anhwea	anhwea
rice	ɛmo	ɛmo

The plural of uncountable nouns or nouns without plurals are expressed by using numerals or quantifiers.

Examples:

Mehunuu mfɔte pii. (I saw many termites)
Mewɔ asikyire mmɔtɔ du. (I have ten bags of sugar)
Manya tɛkrɛma mpem ato nwom (I wish I get thousand tongues to sing)

Lesson Exercise

Activity:

Can you name the various parts of the whole hand?

Can you mention the various parts on your head?

What about your leg? Can you do it?

Play the game “Kofi says hold your ...” with your colleague.

Activity:

Can you group the parts of the body into the following? Practice with a colleague.

(e)tire akwaa b. nsa akwaa c. (ɛ)nan akwaa d. koko akwaa e. yafunu akwaa

Label the parts indicated in Twi (Try it without your notes).

2. Write down the English equivalent of the following (Try without your notes):

a. εse …………………… g. moma ……………………………..

b. suban ………………… h. akoma ……………………………..

c. apɔw …………………. i. ani ntɔn …………………………….

d. bɔnwoma ………………. J. nyarewa ……………………………

e. tεkrεma ……………….. k. nipadua …………………………….

f. mogya …………………. l. awotwaa……………………………

3. What do we use the following parts for? (Example one is done for you)

a. Yεde (ε)nan yε deεn? Yεde εnan nante.

b. Yεde nsa yε deεn? …………………………………………….

c. Yεde aso yε deεn? ……………………………………………..

d. Yεde (ε)se yε deεn? ……………………………………………..

e. Yεde ani yε deεn? ………………………………………….......

f. Yεde hwene yε deεn? ………………………………………………

g. Yεde yafunu yε deεn? ………………………………………………

h. Yεde (ε)to yε deεn? ………………………………………………

4. Say that the following part of your body hurts you or you are sick at the following parts of your body:

a. yafunu ……………………………………………………….

b. kɔn ………………………………………………………..

c. sisi ………………………………………………………..

d. ti ………………………………………………………..

e. nufo ……………………………………………………….

f. nan ………………………………………………………..

g. mfepare ………………………………………………………..

h. nsakɔn ………………………………………………………..

i. abati ………………………………………………………..

j. nsateaa …………………………………………………………

5. Complete the chart below by writing the singular or plural of the given words.

BAAKO KABEA (SINGULAR)	DODO KABEA (PLURAL)
aduane
dompe
	mmorɔfo
adaka
	mpataa
dua
	ntadeε
aboa
	nnuro
odwan
	mpuro
adwuma
ɔbaa
	mmarima
osuani

6. Do this activity with a colleague. Hold a part of your body and ask your colleague to say its name in Twi. Reverse roles until all parts of the body have been dealt with.

7. Change the following singular sentences to plural. The nouns to change to plural are boldfaced.

a. Osuani no hunuu kyerεkyerεni ………………………………………………………………

b. Kofi wɔ nuabarima ………………………………………………………………

c. Yεwɔ dan mu ………………………………………………………………

d. Me nuabaa wɔ fie ………………………………………………………………

e. Apɔnkye nenam fie hɔ. ………………………………………………………………

f. Yɛfi kuro mu ………………………………………………………………

g. Yɛn kunu wɔ hɔ ………………………………………………………………

h. Wɔn papa aba ………………………………………………………………

i. Yɛwɔ nsuo wɔ fie ………………………………………………………………

j. Me maame kɔ sukuu ………………………………………………………………

8. Translate the following to English or Twi.

a. Nipa biara wɔ ani mienu, aso mienu, funuma baako ne nsa mienu. ……………………………

b. Abofra no yare ne yafunu. ………………………………………………………………………

c. Nnora yEsuaa nnoɔma pii faa nipa ti(ri) ho. ……………………………………………………

d. Anofafa, se ne tɛkrɛma yɛ ano akwaa …………………………………………………………..

e. Yɛde yɛn nsa didi, yɛn ano kasa na yɛ nan nante ……………………………………………….

f. The parts of the leg are the thigh, knee, calf, ankle, heel and the foot. …………………………

g. I have intestine, liver, bile and kidney in the middle part of my body. …………………………

h. Every human being has blood in his body. ……………………………………………………..

i. Yesterday, we saw a man who has no hand, has one eye and one ear. ………………………….

j. Humans have two types of blood; red and white blood cells. …………………………………..