Ewe

Ewe, African people, numbering over 3 million, who live in SE Ghana, S Togo, and S Benin. When German Togoland was partitioned after World War I, the Ewe in that colony were divided between France and Britain. The question of reunion was constantly before the United Nations after World War II, but no satisfactory terms of reunification could be found. Part of the Ewe passed (1957) with British Togoland to Ghana by referendum. The Ewe are the largest political group in Togo.

Peoples of southeastern Ghana, southern Benin, and southern Togo. They speak dialects of Gbe, a Kwa language of the Niger-Congo family. The Ewe never formed a single centralized state, remaining a collection of independent communities that made temporary alliances in time of war. Most Ewe are farmers; some coastal Ewe fish. Spinning, weaving, pottery making, and blacksmithing are important crafts. They number more than 3.5 million.

Learn more about Ewe with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Ewe may refer to:

• Ewe people, an ethnic group in Ghana, Benin and Togo
• Ewe music, music of the Ewe people
• Ewe language, the language of the Ewe people
• a female sheep
• EWE, the station code for Ewell East railway station in Ewell, Surrey.
• Edwin Washington Edwards, former Governor of Louisiana, commonly referred to by his initials, EWE.
• Isle of Ewe, an island off the west coast of Scotland