Nzema
/ˈnzɛmə/noun
Nzema refers to an Akan-speaking ethnic group and their language, chiefly found in southwestern Ghana and southeastern Côte d’Ivoire.
Did you know?Nzema is closely associated with the Akan cultural-linguistic world, but scholars do not have a securely established ancient literal meaning for the name itself.
Etymological Timeline
Precolonial period
Nzema
Nzema
“An indigenous ethnonym and language name used in the southwestern Gold Coast region; the earliest spoken history is not preserved in writing.”
18th–19th Century
Akan languages
Nzema
“The name continued in local oral and political usage among an Akan-related population along the Ghana–Côte d’Ivoire coastal borderlands.”
19th Century
English
Nzema
“European and colonial records began using Nzema as the name of the people and language, alongside variant exonyms such as Appolo.”
20th Century
English
Nzema
“Linguistic and ethnographic publications standardized Nzema as the principal name for the language and its speakers.”
Modern English
English
Nzema
“A proper noun for the Nzema people, their language, and the associated cultural region in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire.”