Antillean Creole (Antillean French Creole, Kreyol, Kwéyòl, Patois) is a
French-based creole
A French creole, or French-based creole language, is a creole for which French is the lexifier. Most often this lexifier is not modern French but rather a 17th- or 18th-century koiné of French from Paris, the French Atlantic harbors, and the ...
that is primarily spoken in the
Lesser Antilles
The Lesser Antilles ( es, link=no, Antillas Menores; french: link=no, Petites Antilles; pap, Antias Menor; nl, Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc bet ...
. Its grammar and vocabulary include elements of
Carib,
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
, and
African languages
The languages of Africa are divided into several major language families:
* Niger–Congo or perhaps Atlantic–Congo languages (includes Bantu and non-Bantu, and possibly Mande and others) are spoken in West, Central, Southeast and Souther ...
.
Antillean Creole is related to
Haitian Creole but has a number of distinctive features. Antillean Creole is spoken natively, to varying degrees, in
Dominica,
Grenada,
Guadeloupe,
Îles des Saintes
The Îles des Saintes (; "Islands of the Female Saints"), also known as Les Saintes, is a group of small islands in the archipelago of Guadeloupe, an overseas department of France. It is part of the Canton of Trois-Rivières and is divided in ...
,
Martinique
Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in ...
,
Saint-Barthélemy (St. Barts),
Saint Lucia,
French Guiana
French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic coast of South America in the Guianas. ...
,
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...
, and
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
(mainly in
Macuro
Macuro, a town in Venezuela, located a few miles from Bocas del Dragón, is a small fishing town overlooking a peaceful bay on the south-west side of the Paria peninsula, in Sucre state, Venezuela
A small mission-town was formally established ...
,
Güiria
Güiria is the capital city of Valdez Municipality in the Venezuelan state of Sucre. Güiria was the place where the military campaign for South American independence set out to Upper Peru and also a starting point of the 1901 Venezuelan Civil W ...
and
El Callao Municipality
The El Callao Municipality is one of the 11 municipalities ( municipios) that makes up the Venezuelan state of Bolívar and, according to the 2011 census by the National Institute of Statistics of Venezuela, the municipality has a population of ...
). It is also spoken in various Creole-speaking immigrant communities in the
United States Virgin Islands
The United States Virgin Islands,. Also called the ''American Virgin Islands'' and the ''U.S. Virgin Islands''. officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and an unincorporated and organized territory ...
,
British Virgin Islands
)
, anthem = "God Save the King"
, song_type = Territorial song
, song = " Oh, Beautiful Virgin Islands"
, image_map = File:British Virgin Islands on the globe (Americas centered).svg
, map_caption =
, mapsize = 290px
, image_map2 = Bri ...
, and the
Collectivity of Saint Martin
The Collectivity of Saint Martin (french: Collectivité de Saint-Martin), commonly known as simply Saint Martin (, ), is an overseas collectivity of France in the West Indies in the Caribbean, on – but not identical with – the island of S ...
. Antillean Creole has approximately 1 million speakers and is a means of communication for migrant populations traveling between neighbouring English- and French-speaking territories.
In a number of countries (including Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia, Trinidad, Brazil (
Lanc-Patuá) and Venezuela) the language is referred to as ''
patois
''Patois'' (, pl. same or ) is speech or language that is considered nonstandard, although the term is not formally defined in linguistics. As such, ''patois'' can refer to pidgins, creoles, dialects or vernaculars, but not commonly to jargon o ...
''. It has historically been spoken in nearly all of the
Lesser Antilles
The Lesser Antilles ( es, link=no, Antillas Menores; french: link=no, Petites Antilles; pap, Antias Menor; nl, Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc bet ...
, but its number of speakers has declined in
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...
and
Grenada. Conversely, it is widely used on the islands of
Dominica and
Saint Lucia; though they are officially English-speaking, there are efforts to preserve the use of Antillean Creole, as there are in Trinidad and Tobago and its neighbour,
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
. In recent decades, Creole has gone from being seen as a sign of lower socio-economic status, banned in school playgrounds, to a mark of national pride.
Since the 1970s, there has been a literary revival of Creole in the French-speaking islands of the Lesser Antilles, with writers such as
Raphaël Confiant
Raphaël Confiant (born January 25, 1951) is a Martinican writer known for his literary commitment towards Creole literature.
Life and career
Raphaël Confiant was born in Le Lorrain, Martinique. He studied English and political science at the ...
and
Monchoachi employing the language.
Édouard Glissant
Édouard Glissant (21 September 1928 – 3 February 2011) was a French writer, poet, philosopher, and literary critic from Martinique. He is widely recognised as one of the most influential figures in Caribbean thought and cultural commentary a ...
has written theoretically and poetically about its significance and its history.
History
Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc
Pierre Belain, sieur d'Esnambuc (; 1585–1636) was a French trader and adventurer in the Caribbean, who established the first permanent French colony, Saint-Pierre, on the island of Martinique in 1635.
Biography Youth
Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc ...
was a French trader and adventurer in the
Caribbean who established the first permanent French colony,
Saint-Pierre, on the island of
Martinique
Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in ...
in 1635. Belain sailed to the Caribbean in 1625, hoping to establish a French settlement on the island of
St. Christopher
Saint Christopher ( el, Ἅγιος Χριστόφορος, ''Ágios Christóphoros'') is venerated by several Christian denominations as a martyr killed in the reign of the 3rd-century Roman emperor Decius (reigned 249–251) or alternatively u ...
(St. Kitts). In 1626, he returned to
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
, where he won the support of
Cardinal Richelieu to establish French colonies in the region. Richelieu became a shareholder in the
Compagnie de Saint-Christophe The Compagnie de Saint-Christophe was a company created and chartered by French adventurers to exploit the island of Saint-Christophe, the present-day Saint Kitts and Nevis. In 1625, a French adventurer, Pierre Bélain sieur d'Esnambuc, landed on S ...
, created to accomplish that with d'Esnambuc at its head. The company was not particularly successful, and Richelieu had it reorganised as the Compagnie des Îles de l'Amérique. In 1635, d'Esnambuc sailed to Martinique with 100 French settlers to clear land for
sugarcane plantation
A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...
s.
After six months on Martinique, d'Esnambuc returned to
St. Christopher
Saint Christopher ( el, Ἅγιος Χριστόφορος, ''Ágios Christóphoros'') is venerated by several Christian denominations as a martyr killed in the reign of the 3rd-century Roman emperor Decius (reigned 249–251) or alternatively u ...
, where he soon died prematurely in 1636, leaving the company and Martinique in the hands of his nephew,
Jacques Dyel du Parquet
Jacques Dyel du Parquet (1606 – 3 January 1658) was a French soldier who was one of the first governors of Martinique.
He was appointed governor of the island for the Compagnie des Îles de l'Amérique in 1636, a year after the first French se ...
, who inherited d'Esnambuc's authority over the French settlements in the Caribbean. Dyel du Parquet became governor of the island. He remained in Martinique and did not concern himself with the other islands.
The French permanently settled on Martinique and Guadeloupe after being driven off
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Kitts and Nevis (), officially the Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis, is an island country and microstate consisting of the two islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis, both located in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands chain ...
(french: Saint-Christophe) by the British.
Fort Royal
Fort-de-France (, , ; gcf, label= Martinican Creole, Fodfwans) is a commune and the capital city of Martinique, an overseas department and region of France located in the Caribbean. It is also one of the major cities in the Caribbean.
Histo ...
(now Fort-de-France) on Martinique was a major port for French battle ships in the region from which the French were able to explore the region. In 1638, Dyel du Parquet decided to have
Fort Saint Louis built to protect the city against enemy attacks. From Fort Royal, Martinique, Du Parquet proceeded south in search for new territories, established the first settlement in
Saint Lucia in 1643 and headed an expedition that established a French settlement in
Grenada in 1649.
Despite the long history of British rule, Grenada's French heritage is still evident by the number of French
loanwords in
Grenadian Creole and the French-style buildings, cuisine and placenames (
Petit Martinique
Petite Martinique is one of the islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique, which is a dependency of Grenada.
It is 4 km (2½ miles) away from Carriacou. With its and population of 900, it is smaller than Carriacou. Petite Martinique compr ...
,
Martinique Channel
The Martinique Channel is a strait in the Caribbean Sea that separates Saint Vincent and the Grenadines from Grenada.
, etc.)
In 1642, the
Compagnie des Îles de l'Amérique The Company of the American Islands (french: Compagnie des Îles de l'Amérique) was a French chartered company that in 1635 took over the administration of the French portion of ''Saint-Christophe island'' (Saint Kitts) from the Compagnie de Saint ...
received a 20-year extension of its charter. The king would name the governor general of the company, and the company would name the governors of the various islands. However, by the late 1640s,
Cardinal Mazarin
Cardinal Jules Mazarin (, also , , ; 14 July 1602 – 9 March 1661), born Giulio Raimondo Mazzarino () or Mazarini, was an Italian cardinal, diplomat and politician who served as the chief minister to the Kings of France Louis XIII and Louis X ...
had little interest in colonial affairs, and the company languished. In 1651, it dissolved itself, selling its exploitation rights to various parties. The Du Paquet family bought Martinique, Grenada and Saint Lucia for 60,000 livres. The sieur d'
Houël bought
Guadeloupe,
Marie-Galante
Marie-Galante ( gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Mawigalant) is one of the islands that form Guadeloupe, an overseas department of France. Marie-Galante has a land area of . It had 11,528 inhabitants at the start of 2013, but by the start of 2018 ...
,
La Desirade
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States.
La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* La (musical note), or A, the sixth note
* "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...
and the
Saintes. The
Knights of Malta bought
Saint Barthélemy
Saint Barthélemy (french: Saint-Barthélemy, ), officially the Collectivité territoriale de Saint-Barthélemy, is an overseas collectivity of France in the Caribbean. It is often abbreviated to St. Barth in French, and St. Barts in English ...
and
Saint Martin and then sold them in 1665 to the
Compagnie des Indes occidentales
The French West India Company (french: Compagnie française des Indes occidentales) was a French trading company founded on 28 May 1664, some three months before the foundation of the corresponding eastern company, by Jean-Baptiste Colbert and di ...
, formed one year earlier.
Dominica is a former French and British colony in the
Eastern Caribbean, about halfway between the French islands of Guadeloupe (to the north) and Martinique (to the south).
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus
* lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo
* es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón
* pt, Cristóvão Colombo
* ca, Cristòfor (or )
* la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...
named the island after the day of the week on which he spotted it, a Sunday ( la, dies Dominica, links=no), on 3 November 1493. In the 100 years after Columbus's landing, Dominica remained isolated. At the time, it was inhabited by the
Island Caribs, or Kalinago people. Over time, more settled there after they had been driven from surrounding islands, as European powers entered the region.
In 1690, French woodcutters from Martinique and Guadeloupe begin to set up timber camps to supply the French islands with wood and gradually become permanent settlers. France had a colony for several years and imported slaves from
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, M ...
, Martinique and Guadeloupe to work on its plantations. The Antillean Creole language developed.
France formally ceded possession of Dominica to Great Britain in 1763. The latter established a small colony on the island in 1805. As a result, Dominica uses
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
as an official language, but Antillean Creole is still spoken as a secondary language because of Dominica's location between the French-speaking departments of Guadeloupe and Martinique.
In
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...
, the Spanish possessed the island but contributed little towards advancements, with
El Dorado being their focus. Trinidad was perfect for its geographical location. Because Trinidad was considered underpopulated, Roume de St. Laurent, a Frenchman living in Grenada, was able to obtain a Cédula de Población from
King Charles III of Spain
it, Carlo Sebastiano di Borbone e Farnese
, house = Bourbon-Anjou
, father = Philip V of Spain
, mother = Elisabeth Farnese
, birth_date = 20 January 1716
, birth_place = Royal Alcazar of Madrid, Spain
, death_da ...
on 4 November 1783.
Trinidad's population jumped to over 15,000 by the end of 1789, from just under 1,400 in 1777. In 1797, Trinidad became a British crown colony, despite its French-speaking population.
Origin of creole
Lesser Antillean Creole began as the pidgin "baragouin" in 1635.
It was spoken by French settlers, the Africans they enslaved, and Aboriginal peoples that resided on the islands.
It originated in the Guadeloupe and Martinique areas of the Lesser Antilles.
It was not until 1700, when there was an increase in African influences, that this pidgin transitioned into the creole that it is today.
The formation of this creole was influenced by many different dialects and languages. These include dialects of French, other European languages, Carib (both Karina and Arawakan), and African languages.
Due to the influences from its origins, this creole has some interesting linguistic features. The linguistics features of French included in Lesser Antillean Creole are their infinitives, the use of only the masculine form of the word, oblique pronouns, and their subject to verb word order.
The features from African languages include their verbal marking system as well as providing a West-African substrate.
Other features of this creole also include doubling to emphasize a sentence, the word "point" to inflect the negative, and the non-distinguished adverbs and adjectives.
In the slavery era, Africans were enslaved on plantations in the
French Antilles
The French West Indies or French Antilles (french: Antilles françaises, ; gcf, label= Antillean Creole, Antiy fwansez) are the parts of France located in the Antilles islands of the Caribbean:
* The two overseas departments of:
** Guadeloup ...
. Due to differing native tongues, it was difficult for French settlers to communicate with the enslaved people and vice versa, and even enslaved Africans speaking different languages to communicate between each other. As a result, they were forced to develop a new form of communication by relying on what they heard from their colonial enslavers and other enslaved Africans. According to Jesuit missionary Pierre Pelleprat, French settlers would change their way of speaking to a simpler form to be more accommodating to the enslaved people.
For example, to say "I have not eaten" settlers would say "moi point manger" even though the proper French translation is "Je n'ai pas mangé".
This simpler form of French, along with linguistic influences from other languages, eventually evolved into Antillean creole.
Phonology
Consonants
: This sound occurs on islands where the official language is English in certain loanwords e.g .
: The uvular r // only occurs on islands wherein French is an official language. Otherwise, where the uvular r would occur where other dialects use //. Furthermore, this sound is usually pronounced as a
velar fricative
A velar fricative is a fricative consonant produced at the velar place of articulation. It is possible to distinguish the following kinds of velar fricatives:
*Voiced velar fricative, a consonant sound written as in the International Phonetic Alph ...
and is much softer than the European French .
Vowels
Orthography
There is some variation in orthography between the islands. In St. Lucia, Dominica and Martinique 'dj' and 'tj' are used whereas in Guadeloupe 'gy' and 'ky' are used. These represent differences in pronunciations. Several words may be pronounced in various ways depending on the region:
: 'heart'
: kè /
k ɛ/
: kyè /
c ɛ/
: tjè /
t͡ʃ
The voiceless palato-alveolar sibilant affricate or voiceless domed postalveolar sibilant affricate is a type of consonantal sound used in some spoken languages. The sound is transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet with , (formerly ...
ɛ/
The letter 'r' in St. Lucia and Dominica represents the English /
ɹ/ whereas in Guadeloupe and Martinique it represents the more French-like sound /
ɣ/.
Grammar
![Sign Kontan wé zot (welcome in Martinique creole)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/Sign_Kontan_w%C3%A9_zot_%28welcome_in_Martinique_creole%29.jpg)
#Man is used in Dominica and Martinique. An is used in Guadeloupe and St. Lucia, but less so in the latter.
# m, ng, and n are contracted forms of mwen which occur before certain verb particles: Mwen pa → m'a, mwen ka → ng'a or n'a mwen kay → ng'ay or n'ay
# w and y occur after a vowel: Nonm-lan wè i → Nonm-lan wè'y, Koumonon ou? → Koumonon'w?
# li occurs after consonants: Ou konnèt i? → Ou konnèt li?
Personal pronouns in Antillean Creole are invariable so they do not inflect for case as in European languages such as French or English. This means that mwen, for example, can mean I, me or my; yo can mean they, them, their etc.
Possessive adjectives are placed after the noun; kay mwen 'my house', manman'w 'your mother'
'ou' and 'li' are used after nouns ending in a consonant and 'w' and 'y' after nouns ending in a vowel. All other possessive adjectives are invariable.
Kaz ou - Your house, Kouto'w - Your knife
Madanm li - His wife, Sésé'y - Her sister
Indefinite article
The indefinite article is placed before the noun and can be pronounced as ''on, an, yon, yan''. The word ''yonn'' means "one".
On chapo, Yon wavèt
An moun, Yan tòti
Definite article
![Creole inscription](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Creole_inscription.jpg)
In Creole, there are five definite articles (la, lan, a, an, nan) which are placed ''after'' the nouns they modify, in contrast to French. The final syllable of the preceding word determines which is used with which nouns.
If the last sound is an
oral consonant
An oral consonant is a consonant sound in speech that is made by allowing air to escape from the mouth, as opposed to the nose, as in a nasal consonant. To create an intended oral consonant sound, the entire mouth plays a role in modifying the air ...
and is preceded by an
oral vowel
A nasal vowel is a vowel that is produced with a lowering of the soft palate (or velum) so that the air flow escapes through the nose and the mouth simultaneously, as in the French vowel or Amoy []. By contrast, oral vowels are produced witho ...
, it becomes ''la'':
If the last sound is an
oral consonant
An oral consonant is a consonant sound in speech that is made by allowing air to escape from the mouth, as opposed to the nose, as in a nasal consonant. To create an intended oral consonant sound, the entire mouth plays a role in modifying the air ...
and is preceded by a
nasal vowel, it becomes ''lan'':
If the last sound is an
oral vowel
A nasal vowel is a vowel that is produced with a lowering of the soft palate (or velum) so that the air flow escapes through the nose and the mouth simultaneously, as in the French vowel or Amoy []. By contrast, oral vowels are produced witho ...
and is preceded by an
oral consonant
An oral consonant is a consonant sound in speech that is made by allowing air to escape from the mouth, as opposed to the nose, as in a nasal consonant. To create an intended oral consonant sound, the entire mouth plays a role in modifying the air ...
, it becomes ''a'':
If a word ends in a
nasal vowel, it becomes ''an'':
If the last sound is a
nasal consonant
In phonetics, a nasal, also called a nasal occlusive or nasal stop in contrast with an oral stop or nasalized consonant, is an occlusive consonant produced with a lowered velum, allowing air to escape freely through the nose. The vast major ...
, it becomes ''nan'', but this form is rare and is usually replaced by ''lan'':
Note that in Guadeloupean Creole there is no agreement of sounds between the noun and definite article and ''la'' is used for all nouns
Demonstrative article
Like the definite article this is placed after the noun. It varies widely by region.
Verbs in Creole are invariable and unlike French or English have no inflection to distinguish tenses. A series of particles placed before the verb indicate tense and aspect. There is no Subjunctive mood.
Vocabulary
The vocabulary of Antillean Creole is based mostly on French, with many contributions from West African languages, Spanish, English and Amerindian languages.
Varieties
Dominican Creole French
The
Dominican Creole French
Dominican Creole French is a French-based creole, which is a widely spoken language in Dominica. It can be considered a distinct dialect of Antillean Creole.
History
It is a sub-variety of Antillean Creole, which is spoken in other islands of t ...
is a
creole French, which is the generally-spoken language in
Dominica.
It is a sub-variety of Antillean Creole, which is spoken in other islands of the
Lesser Antilles
The Lesser Antilles ( es, link=no, Antillas Menores; french: link=no, Petites Antilles; pap, Antias Menor; nl, Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc bet ...
and is very closely related to the varieties spoken in
Martinique
Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in ...
,
Saint Lucia,
Guadeloupe,
Grenada and
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...
. The intelligibility rate with speakers of other varieties of Antillean Creole is almost 100%. Its syntactic, grammatical and lexical features are virtually identical to that of Martinican Creole, but like its Saint Lucian counterpart, it has more English loanwords than the Martinican variety. People who speak
Haitian Creole can also understand Dominican Creole French. Even though there are a number of distinctive features, they are mutually intelligible.
Like the other
Caribbean Creoles, Dominican French Creole combines a syntax of African and Carib origin with a vocabulary primarily derived from French.
Saint Lucian Creole French
The
Saint Lucian Creole French is a
French-based creole
A French creole, or French-based creole language, is a creole for which French is the lexifier. Most often this lexifier is not modern French but rather a 17th- or 18th-century koiné of French from Paris, the French Atlantic harbors, and the ...
that is the generally-spoken language in
Saint Lucia.
It is a sub-variety of Antillean Creole, which is spoken in other islands of the
Lesser Antilles
The Lesser Antilles ( es, link=no, Antillas Menores; french: link=no, Petites Antilles; pap, Antias Menor; nl, Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc bet ...
and is very closely related to the varieties spoken in
Martinique
Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in ...
,
Dominica,
Guadeloupe,
Grenada and
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...
. Its syntactic, grammatical and lexical features are virtually identical to that of Martinican Creole.
Like the other
Caribbean creoles, Saint Lucian French Creole combines a syntax of African and Carib origin with a vocabulary primarily derived from the French. In addition, many expressions reflect a
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
influence in the language.
The language can be considered to be mutually intelligible with French creoles of the Lesser Antilles and is related to
Haitian Creole, which has nonetheless a number of distinctive features.
It is still widely spoken in Saint Lucia. In the mid-19th century, migrants took the language with them to Panama, where it is now moribund.
Grenadian Creole French
Historically, French, or French Creole, was the language of the large majority of the inhabitants, enslaved Africans and estate owners. Though the new British administrators spoke English, French was still predominant.
The
Grenadian Creole French
Grenadian Creole is a variety of Antillean Creole. In Grenada and among Grenadians, it is referred to as Patois.
History
The first successful settlement by a western colonial power in Grenada was in 1650, when the French from Martinique establis ...
is a variety of Antillean Creole French. In Grenada and among Grenadians, it is referred to as ''Patois'' or ''
French Patois
''Patois'' (, pl. same or ) is speech or language that is considered nonstandard, although the term is not formally defined in linguistics. As such, ''patois'' can refer to pidgins, creoles, dialects or vernaculars, but not commonly to jargon o ...
''. It was once the
lingua franca in Grenada and was commonly heard as recently as 1930 when children in some rural areas could speak it. In the 21st century, it can be heard only among elderly speakers in a few small pockets of the country. They are becoming fewer and fewer because unlike
St. Lucia
Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerin ...
and
Dominica, which lie close to the French islands of
Martinique
Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in ...
and
Guadeloupe, Grenada does not have French-speaking neighbours to keep the language alive.
Trinidadian French Creole
Trinidadian French Creole is a French Creole (
Patois
''Patois'' (, pl. same or ) is speech or language that is considered nonstandard, although the term is not formally defined in linguistics. As such, ''patois'' can refer to pidgins, creoles, dialects or vernaculars, but not commonly to jargon o ...
) of Trinidad spoken by descendants of the French Creole migrants from the
French Antilles
The French West Indies or French Antilles (french: Antilles françaises, ; gcf, label= Antillean Creole, Antiy fwansez) are the parts of France located in the Antilles islands of the Caribbean:
* The two overseas departments of:
** Guadeloup ...
.
The
Cedula of Population of 1783 laid the foundation and growth of the population of
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...
. French planters and the Africans they enslaved, free coloureds and mulattos, from the French Antilles of Martinique, Grenada, Guadeloupe and Dominica, migrated to Trinidad during the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...
. The immigrants establishing local communities of
Blanchisseuse
Blanchisseuse (pronounced, in the local English dialect, "blan-chee-shears") is a village in Trinidad and Tobago. It is located about midway along the north coast of Trinidad on the northern slope of the Northern Range, about 24 km north ...
, Champs Fleurs,
Paramin
Paramin is a village located on one of the highest points of western area of the Northern Range in Trinidad, Trinidad and Tobago, which forms part of the Maraval area. It is a sprawling, steep and mountainous village whose residents have traditio ...
, Cascade,
Carenage
Carenage is a town in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located in northwestern Trinidad, and is administered by the Diego Martin Regional Corporation. Located close to Chaguaramas, it is more of a residential area than a commercial or i ...
,
Laventille
Laventille is a ward of Trinidad and Tobago.
Etymology
The name ''Laventille'' hearkens back to colonial times, especially when the French dominated the cultural traditions of the island. One etymological derivation of the name is because the no ...
, etc. Trinidad's population, which numbered less than 1,400 in 1777, soared to over 15,000 by the end of 1789.
In 1797, Trinidad became a British crown colony, with a French-speaking and Patois-speaking population. Today, Trinidadian French Creole can be found in regional pockets among the elders, particularly in the villages of
Paramin
Paramin is a village located on one of the highest points of western area of the Northern Range in Trinidad, Trinidad and Tobago, which forms part of the Maraval area. It is a sprawling, steep and mountainous village whose residents have traditio ...
and
Lopinot
Lopinot is a village in Trinidad and Tobago.
It is located in the foothills of the Northern Range, just north of Arouca. It is governed by the Tunapuna–Piarco Regional Corporation. Lopinot, the area which was named after (1738–1819) is loc ...
.
Example vocabulary
![Guadeloupe creole 2010-03-30](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7a/Guadeloupe_creole_2010-03-30.JPG)
*Hello – ''bonjou'' (from "bonjour").
*Please – ''souplé'' (from "s'il vous plaît").
*Thank you – ''mèsi'' (from "merci").
*Excuse me – ''eskizé mwen'' (from "excusez-moi").
*Rain is falling – ''lapli ka tonbé'' / ''lapli ap tonbe'' (Haitian) / (from "la pluie tombe").
*Today is a nice/beautiful day – ''jodi-a sé an bel jounin / yon bel jou'' jodi-a bel (from "aujourd'hui c'est une belle journée").
*How are you/how are you keeping – ''ka ou fè?'' (Guadeloupe) / ''sa ou fè?'' (Martinique) ''sa k ap fèt?'' (Haitian).
*Anne is my sister/mother/wife – ''Ann sé sè/manman/madanm (an) mwen''
*Andy is my brother/father/husband – ''Andy sé fwè/papa/mari (an) mwen''
*He is going to the beach – ''i ka alé bodlanmè-a/laplaj'' (from "il va aller au bord de la mer/à la plage")
Sample texts
Below are samples of St. Lucian Creole French taken from a folktale.
[''Konpè Lapen mandé on favè = Konpè Lapen asks a favor: a Saint Lucian folk tale.'' 1985. Vieux-Fort, Saint Lucia: SIL. 10 p.]
An English translation from the same source:
First to pass was Konpè Kochon (''Mister Pig''). He said, "Konpè Lapen (''Mister Rabbit''), what are you doing there?"
Konpè Lapen told him, "I am digging a few holes to plant yams to feed my children."
Konpè Kochon said, "But, Konpè, you're too foolish! You mean to tell me you can grow yams there?"
References
External links
Antillean Creole Swadesh list of basic vocabulary words(from Wiktionary'
Swadesh list appendix
{{authority control
French-based pidgins and creoles
Languages of the Caribbean
Languages of Dominica
Languages of France
Languages of Guadeloupe
Languages of Îles des Saintes
Languages of Martinique
Languages of Saint Lucia
Languages of Trinidad and Tobago
Subject–verb–object languages
French language in the Americas