The number of ethnic groups in West Africa is mind boggling. Guinea Bissau, a country of less than one million people, has 23 major ethnic groups. Almost alll of the other countries have a similar ethnic diversity. Each group has its own special characteristics. The Dogon in Mali are mostly farmers who are famous for their cliff dwellings and their intensive agriculture.
Some ethnic groups are more well known than others.
The Bambara have probably the most widely used languages in West Africa. Here are just a few of the main people that make up the diverse population of West Africa. They speak languages of the Twi branch of the Kwa subfamily. The Ashanti and the Fanti, both of Akan stock, developed powerful confederacies and kingdoms in the 17th and 18th cent. Ashanti Living in the heart of the Gold Coast in Ghana and once wealthy from gold, the Ashanti developed one of West Africa's richest cultures.