Sisaala (''Sissala'') is a Gur language cluster spoken in northern

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

near the town of TumuEdited by M.E.Kropp Dakubu, ''The Languages of Ghana'', Kegan Paul International, 1988. and in the neighbouring republic of

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. It covers an area of 274,223 km2 (105,87 ...

. Western Sisaala is intermediate between Sisaali and Tumulung Sisaala. Paasaal is similar and also called (Southern) Sisaala.

Distribution

Sisaala is spoken by the Sissala. The Sisaala in Ghana live in the Northern Region, in the

Upper East Region The Upper East Region is located in the northern part of Ghana and it is the third smallest of the 16 administrative regions in Ghana. It occupies a total land surface of 8,842 square kilometers, or 2.7% of the total land area of Ghana. The reg ...

and in the

Upper West Region The Upper West Region of Ghana is located in the north-western corner of Ghana and is bordered by Upper East Region to the east, Northern Region (Ghana), Northern Region to the south, and Burkina Faso to the west and north. The Upper West regional ...

. Burkina Faso’s

Sissili Province Sissili is one of the 45 provinces of Burkina Faso, located in its Centre-Ouest Region. In 2006 the population was 212,628 and in 2011 the population was 240,830, an increase of 13.3%. Its capital is Léo. Education In 2011 the province had 194 p ...

is named after the Sissala people.

Dialects

Tumulung Sisaala, which is also known as Eastern Sisaala, is spoken East of Tumu in the Upper West region and

Builsa Builsa is a town in the Builsa District of the Upper East Region of Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borde ...

in the Upper East Region. Its name derives from the city of Tumu, which is the traditional capital of the Sisaala people. Western Sisaala, which is also known as Lambishi Sisaala, is spoken in Tumu in the upper west Region and

Gonja Gonja may refer to: *The Gonja kingdom * The Gonja people who live there *Gonja language *Ranjan Ramanayake See also * Central Gonja District * East Gonja Municipal District * North East Gonja District * North Gonja (district) * West Gonja Munici ...

in the Northern Region. Paasaal, which is also known as Pasaale/Southern Sisaala, is spoken between

Lambussie Lambussie is a small town and is the capital of Lambussie Karni district, a district in the Upper West Region of north Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and ...

and Tumu in the Upper West Region. Burkina Sisaala, which is also known as Sisaali or Northern Sisaala, is spoken in the Burkinabe Provinces of

Sissili Sissili is one of the 45 provinces of Burkina Faso, located in its Centre-Ouest Region. In 2006 the population was 212,628 and in 2011 the population was 240,830, an increase of 13.3%. Its capital is Léo. Education In 2011 the province had 194 p ...

and

Ioba Ioba is one of the 45 provinces of Burkina Faso, located in its Sud-Ouest Region. In 2019 the population was 265,876. The capital of Ioba is Dano. Departments Ioba is divided into 8 departments: * Dano * Dissin * Guéguéré *Koper * Niégo * ...

References

* ''Sisaala–English English–Sisaala Dictionary'' (1975). Ghana Institute of Linguistics, 231 pp. . estern Sisaala

External links

A grammatical sketch of Isaalo (Western Sisaala)
Languages of Ghana Gurunsi languages {{gur-lang-stub