In the previous blog post we learnt about Twi vowels and the sounds they make. Today, we shall build on that and learn about Asante Twi digraphs. Let’s get started.
ASANTE TWI ALPHABET OVERVIEW
A digraph is a combination of two letters representing one sound, as in ph to form f in English. There are 9 digraphs in Asante Twi. Below are the Twi digraphs.
dw pronounced jw with rounded lips.
dwene to think
gy sounds like the j in jug.
gye to receive
hw is like the initial sound made by the word whew!
ɛhwene nose
hy pronounced sh as in shirt.
hye to burn
kw is like the initial sound made by the word quick.
ɛkwan road
ky pronounced ch as in chat.
ɛkyɛ hat
ny is the same as the ñ in the pronunciation of España.
nyansa wisdom
nw pronounced nyw. This is ny with rounded lips.
nwunu cold
tw pronounced chw. This is ch with rounded lips.
twa to cut
This is about all for now. Go over the digraphs and their associated words as many times as you can so that you can remember them. I hope you found this useful. We shall learn about Twi numbers in our next blog post. Stay tuned.
If you have an iPhone or an iPad and you want to learn Asante Twi grammar and vocabulary, you should download Twi Primer from the Apple App Store.