Ndyuka , also called Aukan, ''Okanisi, Ndyuka tongo'', Aukaans, ''Businenge Tongo'' (considered by some to be pejorative), Eastern Maroon Creole, or ''Nenge'' is a creole language of

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...

and French Guiana, spoken by the

Ndyuka people The Ndyuka people (also spelled 'Djuka') or Aukan people (''Okanisi''), are one of six Maroon peoples (formerly called "Bush Negroes", which also has pejorative tinges) in the Republic of Suriname and one of the Maroon peoples in French Guia ...

. The speakers are one of six Maroon peoples (formerly called "Bush Negroes") in the Republic of

and one of the Maroon peoples in French Guiana. Most of the 25 to 30 thousand speakers live in the interior of the country, which is a part of the country covered with tropical rainforests.

Ethnologue ''Ethnologue: Languages of the World'' (stylized as ''Ethnoloɠue'') is an annual reference publication in print and online that provides statistics and other information on the living languages of the world. It is the world's most comprehensiv ...

list
two related languages
under the name ''Ndyuka'', the other being a dialect of Lutos.

Phonology

Ndyuka is based on English vocabulary, with influence from African languages in its grammar and sounds. For example, the difference between ''na'' ("is") and ''ná'' ("isn't") is tone; words can start with consonants such as ''mb'' and ''ng'', and some speakers use the consonants '' kp'' and '' gb''. (For other Ndyuka speakers, these are pronounced ''kw'' and ''gw'', respectively. For example, the word "to leave" is ''gwé'' or ''gbé'', from English "go away".) A distinguishing characteristic of the language is the elimination of the letter ''r'' which is frequently used in Sranan Tongo. There are also influences from other languages. According to ''Creolization and Contact'' (2002), 46% of the words were from English, 16% from Dutch, 35% from Portuguese, and 3% from African languages.

Orthography

Modern orthography differs from an older Dutch-based orthography in substituting ''u'' for ''oe'' and ''y'' for ''j''. The digraphs ''ty'' and ''dy'' are pronounced somewhat like the English '' ch'' and '' j'', respectively. Tone is infrequently written, but it is required for words such as ''ná'' ("isn't"). The syllabic Afaka script was devised for Ndyuka in 1908.

Latin alphabet

* A - * B - * D - * E - * F - * G - * H - * I - * K - * L - * M - * N - * O - * P - * S - * T - * U - * W - * Y - * Z -

Other letters

* dy - ͡ʒ* ny - �* sy - �* ty - ͡ʃ Long vowels are written with double vowels (e.g. aa ː ee ː An acute accent is sometimes used for a high tone. (e.g. á)

Dialects

The Ndyuka language has three dialects: proper Ndyuka (or ''Okanisi''),

Aluku The Aluku are a Bushinengue ethnic group living mainly on the riverbank in Maripasoula in southwest French Guiana. The group are sometimes called Boni, referring to the 18th-century leader, Bokilifu Boni. History The Aluku are an ethnic gro ...

, and

Paramaccan The Paramaccan or Paramaka (French: Pamak) are a Maroon tribe living in the forested interior of Suriname, mainly in the Paramacca resort, and the western border area of French Guiana. The Paramaccan signed a peace treaty in 1872 granting the tri ...

, which are ethnically distinct.. Kwinti is distinct enough linguistically to be considered a separate language, but it is sometimes included as well under the name ''Ndyuka''. Ndyuka was also a basis of the

Ndyuka-Tiriyó Pidgin Ndyuka-Tiriyó Pidgin (Ndyuka-Trio) was a trade language used until the 1960s between speakers of Ndyuka, an English-based creole, and Tiriyó and Wayana The Wayana (alternate names: Ajana, Uaiana, Alucuyana, Guaque, Ojana, Oyana, Orcocoyana ...

Example

Here is an example of Ndyuka text, and its translation into English (showing the similitarities as well as the lexical evolution), adapted from ''Languages of the Guianas (SIL Publications)'': The language bears some similarity to Twi and other Akan languages spoken by the

Akan people The Akan () people live primarily in present-day Ghana and Ivory Coast in West Africa. The Akan language (also known as ''Twi/Fante'') are a group of dialects within the Central Tano branch of the Potou–Tano subfamily of the Niger–Congo ...

of Ghana.

Encoding

The IETF language tags have registered: * as "Eastern Maroon Creole", "Businenge Tongo", "Nenge" ** for the

Aluku language The Aluku are a Bushinengue ethnic group living mainly on the riverbank in Maripasoula in southwest French Guiana. The group are sometimes called Boni, referring to the 18th-century leader, Bokilifu Boni. History The Aluku are an ethnic gro ...

** for the Ndyuka language ** for the

Paramaccan language Ndyuka , also called Aukan, ''Okanisi, Ndyuka tongo'', Aukaans, ''Businenge Tongo'' (considered by some to be pejorative), Eastern Maroon Creole, or ''Nenge'' is a creole language of Suriname and French Guiana, spoken by the Ndyuka people. The sp ...

Phonology

Orthography

Latin alphabet

Other letters

Dialects

Example

Encoding

See also

Notes

References

Further reading

External links