Where did many of Ghana’s present-day peoples migrate from?

Most of the present-day peoples of Ghana are believed to have migrated into the region within the last 700 to 1,000 years. While traditions often describe these as movements of whole peoples, many instances involved smaller groups of invaders who established political and military control over existing populations.12

The origins of these migrations include:

• From the North: Many groups moved into the country from the north. This includes the Akan-speaking peoples, whose early states were founded by migrants arriving from the direction of Mande. Similarly, northern states like Dagomba and Mamprusi were established by invaders from the Hausa region.12
• From the East and Southeast: The Ewe and Ga-Adangme peoples, who settled in the southeastern corner of the country, arrived from the direction of present-day Nigeria via a more southerly route.12

It is important to note that there is no substantiated evidence linking the ancestry of modern Ghanaians to the ancient empire of Ghana, which was located hundreds of miles to the northwest.3