Mískito Coast Creole or Nicaragua Creole English is an

English-based creole language An English-based creole language (often shortened to English creole) is a creole language for which English was the ''lexifier'', meaning that at the time of its formation the vocabulary of English served as the basis for the majority of the creo ...

spoken in coastal

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

n region of

Mosquito Coast The Mosquito Coast, also known as the Mosquitia or Mosquito Shore, historically included the area along the eastern coast of present-day Nicaragua and Honduras. It formed part of the Western Caribbean Zone. It was named after the local Miskit ...

on the

Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...

; its approximately 30,000 speakers are spread over a number of small villages. The region is today administratively separated into two autonomous regions: North Caribbean Coast and South Caribbean Coast. Mosquito is the nickname that is given to the region and earlier residents by early Europeans who visited and settled in the area. The term "''Miskito''" is now more commonly used to refer to both the people and the language. Miskito creole is nearly identical to, and hence

mutually intelligible In linguistics, mutual intelligibility is a relationship between languages or dialects in which speakers of different but related varieties can readily understand each other without prior familiarity or special effort. It is sometimes used as an ...

with,

Belizean Creole Belizean Creole (Belizean Creole: ''Belize Kriol'', ''Kriol'') is an English-based creole language spoken by the Belizean Creole people. It is closely related to Miskito Coastal Creole, San Andrés-Providencia Creole, and Jamaican Patois ( Lim ...

, and retains a high degree of intelligibility with all other

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

n English creoles. It is also sometimes classified as a dialect of

Jamaican Patois Jamaican Patois (; locally rendered Patwah and called Jamaican Creole by linguists) is an English-based creole language with West African influences, spoken primarily in Jamaica and among the Jamaican diaspora. A majority of the non-English wo ...

creole but this classification has been disputed. It does not have the status of an official language in Nicaragua but it is a recognized language in the autonomous regions where it is spoken.

Geographic distribution

Speakers of Miskito Coast Creole are primarily persons of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

Amerindian The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the Am ...

, and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an descent in the towns and on the offshore islands of the Miskito Coast. The main concentration of speakers is around

Bluefields Bluefields is the capital of the South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region, South Caribbean Autonomous Region in Nicaragua. It was also the capital of the former Mosquito Coast, Kingdom of Mosquitia, and later the Zelaya Department, which was divid ...

, capital of the

South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region The South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region is one of two autonomous regions in Nicaragua. It covers an area of and has a population of 420,935 (2021 estimate). The capital is Bluefields. Bordering the Caribbean Sea, it contains part of the reg ...

, although a majority of inhabitants of the city are now

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, Cana ...

-speaking immigrants. Most of the creole speakers are located along the banks of the large rivers and lagoons that surround the area. Communities are found in Bluefields, in

Pearl Lagoon Pearl Lagoon is a municipality that is often time called just Lagoon and was historically known as English Bank. It is located in the South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region of Nicaragua. It is the most important town of the largest coastal lagoon ...

Bilwi Puerto Cabezas (; en, Bragman's Bluff; miq, Bilwi) is a municipality and city in Nicaragua. It is the capital of Miskito nation in the North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region. The municipality and the entire region are native American lands. ...

, the offshore

Corn Islands The Corn Islands are two islands about east of the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua, constituting one of 12 municipalities of the South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region. The official name of the municipality is ''Corn Island'' (the English name is ...

Prinzapolka Prinzapolka () is a Miskito municipality in the North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region of Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the ...

(Puerto Isabel), and

San Juan del Norte San Juan de Nicaragua, formerly known as San Juan del Norte or Greytown, is a town and municipality in the Río San Juan Department of Nicaragua. History San Juan del Norte was founded by the Spanish and was a small fort and customs station. S ...

(Greytown). Inland, the language is spoken in

Siuna Siuna is a county-sized administrative municipality in Nicaragua, located approximately northeast of the capital city of Managua and west of the coastal city and regional capital Puerto Cabezas in the North Caribbean Autonomous Region (RAC ...

, Rosita, and

Bonanza ''Bonanza'' is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 13, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 432 episodes, ''Bonanza'' is NBC's longest-running western, the second-longest-running western series on U ...

on the

Prinzapolka River Prinzapolka () is a Miskito municipality in the North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region of Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the ...

. On the Pacific coast, there are small numbers of speakers in Corinto,

Puerto Sandino Puerto Sandino is a coastal town in western Nicaragua. Prior to the 1979 revolution it was known as Puerto Somoza. Due to its crude oil supply line, it is a major port, and also plays a large role in Nicaragua's fishing industry The fishing ind ...

, and the Nicaraguan capital of

Managua ) , settlement_type = Capital city , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Nicara ...

. A smaller portion of the population stays in large towns along the northern Caribbean coast of

and some also reside in

Managua ) , settlement_type = Capital city , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Nicara ...

as well as other Central American countries.

Rama Cay Creole Rama Cay Creole is a Creole language spoken by some 800 to 900 people on the island of Rama Cay in eastern Nicaragua. It is based on Miskito Coast Creole with additional elements of the Chibchan language Rama and purportedly some elements of Eng ...

is a variety of the language spoken by the

Rama people The Rama are an indigenous people living on the eastern coast of Nicaragua. Since the start of European colonization, the Rama population has declined as a result of disease, conflict, and loss of territory. In recent years, however, the Rama p ...

Rama Cay Rama Cay is an island in the Bluefields Lagoon on the eastern coast of Nicaragua. During the 17th or 18th century, the more powerful Miskito awarded the island to the Rama people in recognition of their assistance in fighting off the Terraba Indi ...

, an island in the Bluefields Lagoon. The environment is that of a

tropical rainforest Tropical rainforests are rainforests that occur in areas of tropical rainforest climate in which there is no dry season – all months have an average precipitation of at least 60 mm – and may also be referred to as ''lowland equatori ...

with an average rainfall of 448 centimeters and temperatures that range 26.4 °C ( 79 °F ) and up.

History

African slaves were shipwrecked on the Mosquito Coast as early as 1640, which started the interaction between them and the local

Miskito Miskito may refer to: * Miskito people, ethnic group in Honduras and Nicaragua ** Miskito Sambu, branch of Miskito people with African admixture ** Tawira Miskito, branch of Miskito people of largely indigenous origin * Miskito language, original ...

population.

17th to 19th centuries

The modern day Creoles' ancestors came as escapees from shipwrecked

slave ship Slave ships were large cargo ships specially built or converted from the 17th to the 19th century for transporting slaves. Such ships were also known as "Guineamen" because the trade involved human trafficking to and from the Guinea coast ...

s to the Nicaraguan Caribbean coast from

between the 17th and the late 18th centuries. The escapees went to the jungles and soon formed relations with the local Indigenous tribes and intermarried. The Coast was officially under British

protection Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although th ...

from 1740 to 1787 according to the

Treaty of Friendship and Alliance The Treaty of Senock Dawkra, also known as the Treaty Friendship and Alliance, was signed on 16th March, 1740, between King Edward I of the Mosquito Nation and the British. Based on the terms of the treaty, King Edward relinquished his kingdom to ...

with the Miskito Kingdom and remained under British influence until the late 19th century. While they were here, the African population renewed and transformed ita culture and traits by taking elements of its African culture and mixing it with

European culture The culture of Europe is rooted in its art, architecture, film, different types of music, economics, literature, and philosophy. European culture is largely rooted in what is often referred to as its "common cultural heritage". Definition ...

along with the local Indian tribes which created a new culture. In 1787, the British abandoned their claims in the

Mosquito coast The Mosquito Coast, also known as the Mosquitia or Mosquito Shore, historically included the area along the eastern coast of present-day Nicaragua and Honduras. It formed part of the Western Caribbean Zone. It was named after the local Miskit ...

in a treaty that was put forth. Slaves who ran away or who were abandoned had made their own African communities at Bluefields. Many escaped slaves from other islands had also come over to the area to settle down.

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

signed the Treaty of Managua which gave a portion of an area to the natives there and allowed it to be self-governed. That allowed for the African communities to grow and flourish. Their culture became solid after it had gained economic, political and social control over the Mosquito Coast. The people in the communities then began to start calling themselves Creoles. In the mid-19th century, more English- or Creole-speaking laborers, primarily from Jamaica, were brought to the Coast as laborers. However, following the 1894 formal annexation of the Miskito Kingdom by Nicaragua, an increasing number of Spanish-speakers migrated to the area.

20th and 21st centuries

The 1987

Constitution of Nicaragua The Constitution of Nicaragua was reformed due to a negotiation of the executive and legislative branches in 1995. The reform of the 1987 Sandinista Constitution gave extensive new powers and independence to the National Assembly of Nicaragua, Nati ...

granted autonomy to the

Zelaya Department Zelaya is a former department in Nicaragua. The department was located along the Mosquito Coast bordering the Caribbean Sea and was named after former President of Nicaragua José Santos Zelaya, who conquered the region for Nicaragua from the ...

as two

autonomous regions An autonomous administrative division (also referred to as an autonomous area, entity, unit, region, subdivision, or territory) is a subnational administrative division or internal territory of a sovereign state that has a degree of autonomy— ...

of the

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

and the South Caribbean Coast. The autonomous status has allowed for the promotion and the development of the languages of the Caribbean Coast and , there was an education in English and Spanish, as well as education in indigenous languages. By the late 20th century, the coast was becoming more integrated economically and socially. The Creole people have now become a minority in the areas in which they had previously predominated. Many Creoles now speak mostly

as well as creole and consider themselves to be only Nicaraguan. There are many Creoles who have now intermarried with

mestizos (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed European and Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also refer to people who are culturally European even though their ...

even though many of Creoles still protest on how they lost their political and economic power to the mestizos.

Culture and Identification

The Creoles of Nicaragua are said to be an Afro-Caribbean population that are mixed with Europeans, Africans and

Amerindians The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the Ame ...

. Their culture is influenced by West African and British roots along with

mestizo (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed Ethnic groups in Europe, European and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also r ...

s and miskito. Some food that is used in their cooking consists of

coconut oil frameless , right , alt = A cracked coconut and a bottle of coconut oil Coconut oil (or coconut butter) is an edible oil derived from the wick, meat, and milk of the coconut palm fruit. Coconut oil is a white solid fat; in warmer climates duri ...

taro root Taro () (''Colocasia esculenta)'' is a root vegetable. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, and Petiole (botany), petioles. Taro corms are a food ...

, manioc and other elements such as wheat flour and other processed foods. They have their own musical style which can be compared to West Indian calypso.

Language details

The Nicaraguan Creole English language is spoken as a primary first language by only 35,000 to 50,000 Creoles, Nicaraguan Garifuna, and some Miskitos. The language is being quickly replaced with Spanish with fewer and fewer people speaking it.

References

Bibliography

*Ken Decker and Andy Keener.
A Report on the English-Lexifier Creole of Nicaragua, also known as Miskito Coast Creole, with special reference to Bluefields and the Corn Islands
" Summer Institute of Linguistics. February 1998.