This week, Randi Burlein, a social work professor from VCU, came to talk to our group about cultural norms and expectations in Ghana. Randi has been going to Ghana for many many years. Among other projects, she was instrumental in the building of Grace International School (http://www.sgmghana.org/#!grace-home-international-school), one of the facilities we will be visiting during our trip.
Randi provided us with lots of interesting tidbits about Ghanian culture. For example, the typical naming convention in Ghana is that first name will be an important/respected family name (e.g. grandma's name), and the middle name will be a name derived from the day of the week you were born. For example, we know that Kofi Annan (former UN Secretary General) was born on a Friday because Kofi is the male name for Friday birthdays. She explained that the day of the week you were born is very important to Ghanians and that people will ask us about it so we should know our day before we go. It turns out, I was born on a Monday, thus my Ghanian name would be Adwoa.
We also learned about the Ghanian handshake. When shaking hands in Ghana, you end with a snap of the fingers! Even in formal business, this is how it's done. Randi assured us that the kids we meet will be happy to teach us how to do it. I can't wait to try it out. Here is a video I found showing the Ghanian handshake:
Some of the cultural norms Randi told us about were already familiar to me as other countries I've visited have similar customs. For example, it is considered offensive to use your left hand for anything (eating, handing change to sometime). Since it is the "toilet" hand, it is seen as unclean. Turkey had the same right-hand preference custom. Fortunately I am right-handed so it was never an issue for me. We have a couple left-handers going on the trip so they were advised to start practicing using their right hand more!
Randi provided us with lots of interesting tidbits about Ghanian culture. For example, the typical naming convention in Ghana is that first name will be an important/respected family name (e.g. grandma's name), and the middle name will be a name derived from the day of the week you were born. For example, we know that Kofi Annan (former UN Secretary General) was born on a Friday because Kofi is the male name for Friday birthdays. She explained that the day of the week you were born is very important to Ghanians and that people will ask us about it so we should know our day before we go. It turns out, I was born on a Monday, thus my Ghanian name would be Adwoa.
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| What is your Ghanian name? |
We also learned about the Ghanian handshake. When shaking hands in Ghana, you end with a snap of the fingers! Even in formal business, this is how it's done. Randi assured us that the kids we meet will be happy to teach us how to do it. I can't wait to try it out. Here is a video I found showing the Ghanian handshake:
Some of the cultural norms Randi told us about were already familiar to me as other countries I've visited have similar customs. For example, it is considered offensive to use your left hand for anything (eating, handing change to sometime). Since it is the "toilet" hand, it is seen as unclean. Turkey had the same right-hand preference custom. Fortunately I am right-handed so it was never an issue for me. We have a couple left-handers going on the trip so they were advised to start practicing using their right hand more!
Wastefulness is also frowned upon. Everything gets reused: plastic bags, pieces of paper, etc. It's funny, I think back twenty years ago and it seems that the U.S. went through a "green" phase when everyone was very conscious of using only reusable and recyclable things. But now a-days we seem to have drifted back to a culture of waste: single use K-Cups for coffee, all the packaging that goes into single-serving snacks, page after page of copy paper that gets thrown away in offices every day, etc. I am as guilty as everyone else so I hope that my time in Ghana will raise my awareness of waste and help me be more conscious of my own habits when I return.
The custom that may be the hardest for me to adjust to is the lack of meaning of "time." In Ghana a 10am meeting may not start until 11:30. In our punctual American society, we are taught that being ten minutes early is on-time, and being on-time is late! I think this trip will provide a good opportunity for me to work on my patience...Maybe I should start practicing now? I wonder if I can start going to class late and just tell my professors that I'm prepping for the Ghana trip? Sounds like a valid excuse to me :)
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