Ghana, officially called the Republic of Ghana, is an independent state. It is situated on the Atlantic Ocean towards the west side of Africa. Ghana consists of ten defensive regions, including many islands. Its western border is delineated by the Ivory Coast, while to its north lies Burkina Faso. East of Ghana lies Togo, while the south is bordered by the Atlantic and the Gulf of Guinea. The literal meaning of the word Ghana is Warrior King. Geographically speaking, Ghana is the country which is closer than any other country to the center of our planet Earth.
More than 98% of Ghanans are Black Africans, although the country is very multiethnic. The Ashanti people are the largest ethnic group in Ghana. Until the 10th century BC, most of Ghana was uninhabited by humans. By the 10th century AD, the Ashantis had established a settlement in the area and were later joined by others in the 16th century.
Out of the 26,652,767 people in Ghana, around 50.9% is the male population, while the female population is around 49.1%. With a population growth rate of 2.2%, the total number of births this year (2014) will be approximately 586,361. The population growth rate is fairly high in Ghana.
Most people in Ghana are citizens of Ashanti territories or Ashantiland: 4.7 million in Ashanti, 2.3 million in Brong-Ahafo, 2.2 million living in Central, 2.6 million in Eastern, 2.3 million living in Western, and 4 million in Greater Accra.
Major ethnic groups in Ghana include: Akan (47.5%), Dagbani (17%), Ewe (14%), Ga-Adangbe (7%), Gurma (6%), Guan (4%), Gurunsi (2.5%), and Bissa (1%).
Common languages in Ghana include: Asante 16%, Ewe 14%, Fante 11.6%, Boron (Brong) 4.9%, Dagomba 4.4%, Dangme 4.2%, Dagarte (Dagaba) 3.9%, Kokomba 3.5%, Akyem 3.2%, Ga 3.1%, and other at 31.2%. The English language does function as an official language here as well.
There are about 375,000 registered legal permanent residents in Ghana as well as foreign workers and students.
Ghana Religion, Economy and Politics
In terms of religions among the population of Ghana, 71% of Ghanans are Christian and 17% are Muslim, but the country is accepting of any and all faiths.
Savannas filled with flora and fauna dominate Ghana's northern regions, while rich industrial minerals and fuels are a feature of western Ghana. Its fossil fuel wealth is particularly rich in natural gas and petroleum. The southern regions of Ghana are mostly filled with grasslands and shrublands, along with forests. The forests extend from the southwest Ghana coast to the north until they meet the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean. These forests extend to the east for 270 km. South Ghana has become an important location for extracting industrial minerals.
Ghana's climate can be described overall as tropical. Ghana's seasons can be divided into two different categories. The cold or the wet season and the hot or the dry season. The rainy season begins in the north part of Ghana in around March and prevails until the end of the month of November. The southern part of Ghana experiences the wet season from the start of the month of April until the middle of the month of November. For Ghana's latitude, its tropical climate can be considered fairly mild. From the month of December through the month of March, dry wind blows in northeastern Ghana, which pretty much lessens the humidity in the climate, as well as making the days hot and the nights cool in the northern part of Ghana. From about 21C to 28C (70 to 82F) is the average range of temperatures that dominate the weather of Ghana, while the humidity levels vary from about 77 to 78 percent.
The cuisine of Ghana has a very huge variety of foods which are mainly based on different types of stews and soups and include many different types of seafoods. Vegetables, poultry, meat or fish are some major ingredients of Ghanaian soups. Dishes like smoked fish, whitebait (essentially juvenile fish), and crayfish are major dishes. Fish is the most dominant and important part of Ghanaian cuisine.
One of the very popular and main dishes of Ghana is called banku. It is a starchy dish that is made from maize and staples that are based on cornmeal. The dish is usually served and eaten either with grilled tilapia or with fried fish. This dish is also often accompanied by an extremely spicy sauce that is prepared from fresh raw chilies.
Ghana Population History
Ghana was formed by the British Colony of Gold Coast in 1957 and has been a democracy since 1992. They have experienced an ongoing border dispute with Cote d'Ivoire over their vast supply of offshore oil, gold, cocoa, and diamonds.