Pidgins and Creoles Flashcards
Why are pidgins and Creoles important?
Linguistically?
- essential to everyday living, markers of identity
- Language origin and change, No need to wait hundreds of years for change pidgins and creoles change fast
Lingua Francas
A language which is used habitually by people whose mother tongues are different in order to facilitate communication between them
Are Lingua Francas homogenous?
No there is individual and regional variation
Pidgin:
A language with no native speaker, Simplification of grammar and vocabulary, phonological variation, multiple lexcial borrowings.
What Causes a Pidgin?
Need to communicate, usually 2 or 3 languages
Imbalance of power, speakers of the less powerful languages must communicate with all groups
Do people still use pidgins today?
Yes several Million people
Attitudes towards pidgin speakers:
Seen as deficient, unable to speak a normal language, baby talk. ex. Nigerian Pidgin English is called ‘Bad’ English
Creole:
A pidgin that has become the L1 of a new generation, always starts with a pidgin
- expanded vocabulary and grammar, wider range of functions, a normal language
No clear cut difference between pidgin and creole
What is the relationship between Creoles and their Standard Language
- A complicated relationship
- Perceived inferiority of creoles
Pidginization:
- Reduction in morphologyt and syntax
- Phonological variation
- Reduction in functions
- Extensive lexical borrowing from local languages
- complex*
Creolization:
- Expansion of the morphology and Syntax
- Regularization of phonology
- Increase in number of functions
- Increasing vocabulary
- May be formed in just 2 generations
- Result of second language acquisition
Historical Origins of Pidgins:
5 of them
1) Slavery
2) Trade
3) European Settlement
4) War
5) Labour Migration
Factor 1 - Slavery:
Triangular system: Europe – Africa – New World
- Pidgins created in slave factories in Africa and on the way to North America
Factor 2 - Trade
Pidgins may develop in certain types of trading activites where several linguistic groups are involved and interpreters are unavailable ex. Naga Piidgin in India
Factor 3- European Settlement
ex. Papua New Guinea, China, India, Fanakalo in South africa between english and zulu speakers, used in mines today no sign of creolization
Factor 4- War
American Wars in Asia. Japan, Korea,Vietnam, Thailand
ex. Resulted in Bamboo English
Factor 5- Labour Migration
Accelerated contact through employment, need for quick communication
ex. Tok Pisin in Papua New Guinea
Name 3 English Based Pidgins:
Hawaiian Creole
Jamaican Creole
Former Chinese Pidgin
How many total creoles are there in the world?
127
The sound system of pidgins:
Phonology
Phonology
- fewer less complicated sounds, more variation
ex. Tok Pisin [p] and [f] have same meaning
The sound system of pidgins:
Morphology
Morphology
- Lack of inflection nouns
- No case markings
- some suffixes and tense markers
The sound system of pidgins:
syntax
Uncomplicated clausal structure:
- No relative clauses
- simple negative particles
- preverbal particles
Are all pidgins similar?
Yes despite being based on different languages all pidgins have striking similarities
Pidgin Vocabulary:
1) Polysemy
2) Multifunctionality
3) Circumlocution
4) Compounding
5) Reduplication
Polysemy:
Same word expressing several meanings
Multifunctionality:
Same word fulfills a variety of functions
ex. Noun or adjective
Circumlocution:
Paraphrase for word
ex, gras bilong fes = beard
gras bilong hed = hair
Compounding:
Used to indicated abstractions and gender
big maus = conceited
hos meri/ man = mare/ stallion
Reduplication:
To add meaning of intensity, plurality, duration and frequency
Wardhaugh theories of the origin of Pidgins in 3 categories?
1) Theories of independent parallel development
a) polygenesis, b) Simplification Strategies
2) Monogenetic theories
3) Linguistic Universals
Theories of Parallel Development:
a) polygenesis
- Similar circumstances, started in many places
- Similarity of dominant and substratum languages
b) Simplification Strategies
- Baby/ foreigner- talk theory
- European superiority, spoke down to slaves, prevented access to suprastrate
Monogenetic Theories
a) Drew on a European language derived from pidgin Portugese (Sabir origin) formed structural basis for all pidgins. Relexification
b) Relexification:
i) learned portugese pidgin in the africa coast and on journey to new world. Adopted to particular plantation.
ii) The portugese sailors had the pidgin once they came to a fort in africa they adopted words which slaves then learned.
SUPPORT: Nautical Terminology
Linguistic Universals:
Bickerton’s Language Bioprogram hypothesis
The inherent linguistic skills of all humans, Universal principles of L1 acquisition, Similarities between P and C and childrens languages.
Children learn rules to limit english, creoles are less artificial
How can you tell creoles from full languages?
Only from their history no structural criteria
Decreolization:
Creole becomes merged with the standard language.
Intermediate varieties develop
Acrolect
Standard language
Mesolect
Creoles more like standard language
Basilect
Basic language, creole like
What is a requirement of Bickertons Decreolization?
Creole and standard must be based on the same language.
What can happen to a creole? (Bell)
1) Stable relationship with the superstrate ex. Haiti
2) May be absorbed by the standard ex. Sea Islands
3) A creole may become a standard ex Swahili
4 A creole continuum ex. jamaica and Guyana
Recreolization
An increase in basilect creole constructions
ex. Norm of British born adolescents of Caribbean origin in many parts of london, white youth may also speak the creole fluently
