Akan

American  

[ah-kahn] / ˈɑ kɑn /

noun

• Akans,
  plural
• Akan
  plural

1. a language of the Kwa branch of Niger-Congo spoken in much of Ghana and parts of the Ivory Coast.

2. a member of any of various Akan-speaking peoples, including the Ashanti and Fanti.

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Akan British  

/ ˈɑːkɑːn /

noun

1. a member of a people of Ghana and the E Côte d'Ivoire

2. the language of this people, having two chief dialects, Fanti and Twi, and belonging to the Kwa branch of the Niger-Congo family

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Akan
  plural
• Akans
  plural

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Akan Akans

Ghana has had regular power shortages for years - popularly known as "dumsor", meaning "on and off" in the Akan language - but the situation has been improving.

From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026

The description says it is a metaphorical symbol used by the Akan people of Ghana to express “the importance of reaching back to knowledge gained in the past and bringing it into the present.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 6, 2026

Large marimo are now thought to be exclusively found in Lake Akan, and as seen from the data, even there they have become threatened.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2023

“Since you were born on a Tuesday, I’m sure you would not mind the Ghanaian name Abena, the Akan name for all Tuesday born females, to your name,” he said.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 2, 2023

The volume commences with an account of the Akan tribes and their existence in two main branches--Fanti and Ashanti.

From The Journal of Negro History, Volume 1, January 1916 by Various

But some matrilocal communities exist today or in the recent past, including the Akans in Ghana, West Africa and Cherokee in North America.

From BBC ● Jan. 15, 2025

The Akans, among whom Busia is a royal prince, are four times as nu merous in Ghana as the Ewe tribe, to which his adversary Gbedemah belongs.

From Time Magazine Archive

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