Ngbanya is the Gonja people's own name for themselves; their language is Ngbanyito, a North Guang language. The name also denotes the ruling estate descended from the Jakpa conquerors, which has held the Yagbonwura paramountcy since the kingdom's founding and is distinguished from the Muslim estate (karamo) and the commoners (nyamase).
The Gonja call themselves Ngbanya and their language Ngbanyito.