Voltaria: JB Danquah’s vision that could have made every Ghanaian a Voltarian

Do you know that every Ghanaian would rather be called a Voltarian if the first wish of the late Joseph Boakye (JB) Danquah, one of the founding fathers of Ghana, were granted?

According to Barima Piesie Okyere-Darko, author of Echoes from the Doyen, JB Danquah to Ghana and Africa, JB first suggested that an independent Gold Coast should be called Voltaria.

The author indicated that JB Danquah, in a letter he is privy to, said he wanted the country to be called Voltaria after the mighty River Volta.

He added that the name Ghana was another suggestion of JB Danquah, which was eventually adopted after the country’s independence.

“He suggested the name Ghana… He officially did that in 1944. Do you know why? The bond of 1844 was 100?

“JB Danquah brought a lot of concepts about the names to be used for independence. According to Danquah, his first name was Voltaria, after the River Volta. JB Danquah dreamt that one day we all would be called Voltarians,” he said in an interview on Channel One TV.

He added, “These things are in his letters. That's why my book is called Echoes. These things are like, as I'm talking to you, somebody is recording and narrating it to people, so it is not a third-person research that I'm bringing.”

He also refuted assertions that JB Danquah and the other leaders of the UGCC opposed the move by Ghana’s first president, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, for the country to gain independence from the British within the shortest possible time.

How Ghana Got its Name: The history and meaning behind it

Watch the interview below:

Did you know? JB Danquah’s first name suggestion for Ghana was “Voltaria” — inspired by the Volta River!

Barima Piesie Okyere-Darko shares this fascinating insight.

Watch here: https://t.co/iciIF3pM0Z#PointofView #ChannelOneTV pic.twitter.com/heF21mOkB1

— CITI FM 97.3 (@Citi973) March 4, 2026

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