Twi Translation of “hello”
hello exclamation
- agoo (used to draw people’s attention, generally; e.g. ask for way to be made, knock on someone’s door, call for attention in a gathering)
- huu (primarily used in the farm/bush/forest to seek for a partner’s location)
- hɛloo (borrowed)
Actual Usage: Starting a Conversation
Instead of a “hello”, Twi speakers will often begin their conversation with an actual greeting, e.g. “ɛte sɛn? (how is it?)”, “wo ho te sɛn? (how are you?)”, “mekyea wo oo (I greet you)”, “maakye oo (good morning)”, “maaha oo (good afternoon)”, “maadwo oo (good evening)”, “biribiara bɔkɔɔ? (everything’s calm/okay (with you)?)”
Actual Usage: Starting a Phone Conversation
Twi speakers, and Ghanaians in general, typically begin their phone conversation with a “hello”, or the borrowed form “hɛloo” irrespective of whether they will be speaking Twi or English.
hello noun
- nkyea (a greeting)
