Haitian Creole language
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Haitian Creole Kreyòl ayisyen |
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| Spoken in: | Haiti, Bahamas, Canada, Cayman Islands, Dominican Republic, France, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Turks and Caicos Islands, United States | |
| Total speakers: | 12 million | |
| Ranking: | 62 | |
| Language family: | French Creole Haitian Creole |
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| Official status | ||
| Official language of: | Haiti | |
| Regulated by: | no official regulation | |
| Language codes | ||
| ISO 639-1: | ht | |
| ISO 639-2: | hat | |
| ISO/FDIS 639-3: | hat | |
| Note: This page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. See IPA chart for English for an English-based pronunciation key. | ||
Haitian Creole (kreyòl ayisyen) is a creole language based on the French language. It is spoken in Haiti by about 8.5 million people (as of 2005), which is nearly the whole population. Via emigration, about 3.5 million speakers live in other countries, including Canada, the United States, and France, as well as many Caribbean nations, especially the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and the Bahamas.
There are linguistic influences from several West African languages, namely from Wolof, and some Gbe languages, notably Fon and Ewe/Anlo-Ewe. There are two dialects: Fablas and Plateau.
In part because of the efforts of Felix Morisseau-Leroy, since 1961 Haitian Creole has been recognized as an official language along with French, which had been the sole literary language of the country since its independence in 1804, and this status was upheld under the country's constitution of 1987. Its usage in literature is small but growing, with Morisseau being one of the first and most prolific examples. Many speakers are bilingual and speak both Haitian Creole and French. Many educators, writers and activists have emphasized pride and written literacy in Creole since the 1980s. There are newspapers, radio and television programs in this language.
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[edit] Usage outside of Haiti
Haitian Creole is used widely among Haitians who have relocated to other countries, particularly the United States and Canada. Some of the larger population centers include Montréal, Québec, where French is the official language, and parts of New York City, Boston and South Florida (Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Palm Beach). Various public service announcements, school-parent communications, and other materials are produced in this language by government agencies. Miami-Dade County in Florida sends out paper communications in Haitian Creole in addition to English and Spanish. Announcements are posted in the Boston subway system in this language. Miami-Dade County also sends out public announcements in Creole. HTN, a Miami-based television channel, is North America's only Creole-language television network. The Miami area also features over half a dozen Creole-language AM radio staitons. There is controversy as to whether or not Creole should be taught in Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Many argue Creole is a peasant language which is not important, while others argue it is important for children to know their native tongue.
The University of Kansas Lawrence has an Institute of Haitian studies, founded by Dr. Bryant Freeman where Haitian Creole, among other facets of Haiti are studied and researched. Dictionaries have been published, including a Haitian Creole-English dictionary more than 1,000 pages long.
[edit] Sounds and spellings
Haitian Creole has seven vowels as opposed to standard French's twelve. This is primarily due to the loss of front rounded vowels. In Creole, these French phonemes are usually merged with their unrounded counterpart. Hence, /y/ becomes /i/ and /ø/ becomes /e/.
French's uvular rhotic either becomes an alveolar trill (/r/), /w/, or is elided altogether, depending on the environment.
Being formed relatively recently, Haitian Creole orthography is mostly phonemic, and is similar to the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). The main differences are j = /ʒ/, y = /j/, è = /ɛ/, ou = /u/. Nasalization is indicated by a following n.
[edit] Lexicon
Most of the lexicon is derived from French, with simplified pronuciation. Often, the French definite article was retained as part of the noun.
[edit] Sample
(*) A banana which is short and fat, not a plantain and not a conventional banana; regionally called "hog banana" or "sugar banana" in English. |
[edit] Nouns derived from trade marks
Many trade marks have become common nouns in Haitian Creole (as happened in English with "aspirin" and "kleenex", for example).
- kòlgat (Colgate) — "toothpaste"
- jilèt (Gillette) — "razor"
- pampèz (Pampers) — "nappy" or (Am) "diaper"
- kodak (Kodak) — "camera"
- frejidaire (Frigidaire) - "refrigerator"
[edit] The word nèg
The term nèg strictly means a dark-skinned man, as in gen yon neg e gen yon blan ("there is a black man and a white man"). However, it is also generally used for any man, regardless of skin color (i.e. like "guy" or "dude" in American English).
Etymologically, the word is derived from the French "nègre" and is cognate with the Spanish negro ("black", both the color and the people), and cognate with the English "negro". In Haitian Creole, however, nèg does not have pejorative connotations.
There are many other Haitian Creole terms for specific tones of skin, such as grimo, brin, ròz, mawon, etc. However, such labels are considered offensive by some Haïtians, because of their association with color discrimination and the Haitian class system.
[edit] Grammar
Haitian Creole grammar differs greatly from French and inflects much more simply: for example, verbs are not inflected for tense or person, and there is no grammatical gender — meaning that adjectives and articles are not inflected according to the noun. The same primary word order (SVO) is the same as French, but the variations on the verbs and adjectives are minuscule compared to the complex rules employed by French.
Many grammatical features, particularly pluralization of nouns and indication of possession, are indicated by appending certain suffixes (postpositions) like yo to the main word. There has been a debate going on for some years as what should be used to connect the suffixes to the word: the most popular alternatives are a dash, an apostrophe, or a space. It makes matters more complicated when the "suffix" itself is shortened, perhaps making only one letter (such as m or w).
[edit] Pronouns
There are six pronouns, one pronoun for each person/number combination. There is no difference between direct and indirect. Some are obviously of French origin, others are not.
(*)sometimes ou is written as w- in the sample phrases, the w indicates ou. |
[edit] Plural of nouns
Nouns are pluralized by adding yo at the end.
- liv yo or liv-yo - "books"
- machin yo or machin-yo - "cars"
[edit] Possession
Possession is indicated by placing the possessor after the item possessed. This is similar to the French construction of chez moi or chez lui which are "my place" and "his place" respectively.
- lajan li - "his" (or "her") "money"
- fanmi mwen or fanmi'm - "my family"
- kay yo - "their house" or "houses"
- papa ou or papa'w - "your father"
- chat Pierre - "Pierre's cat"
- chèz Marie - "Marie's chair"
- zanmi papa Jean - "Jean's father's friend"
- papa vwazen zanmi nou - "our friend's neighbor's father"
[edit] Indefinite article
The language has an indefinite article yon, roughly corresponding to English "a"/"an" and French un/une. It is placed before the noun:
- yon kouto - "a knife"
- yon kravat - "a necktie"
[edit] Definite article
There is also a definite article, roughly corresponding to English "the" and French le/la. It is placed after the noun, and the sound varies by the last sound of the noun itself. If the last sound is a non-nasal consanant, it becomes la:
- kravat la - "the tie"
If the last sound is a vowel, it becomes an a:
- kouto a - "the knife"
- mango a - "the mango"
If the last sound is a nasal (usually an "n" sound) it becomes nan:
- machin nan - "the car"
- telefòn nan - "the telephone"
If the last sound is an 'i', it becomes an:
- fanmi an - "the family"
[edit] "This" and "that"
There is a single word sa that corresponds to French ce/ceci or ça, and English "this" and "that". As in English, it may be used as a demonstrative, except that it is placed after the noun it qualifies:
- jardin sa bèl (or jaden-sa bèl)- "This garden is beautiful
As in English, it may also be used as a pronoun, replacing a noun:
- sa se zanmi mwen - "this is my friend"
- sa se chyen frè mwen - "this is my brother's dog"
[edit] Verbs
Many verbs in Haitian Creole are the same spoken words as the French infinitive, but they are spelled phonetically. As indicated above there is no conjugation in the language - the verbs have one form only, and changes in tense are indicated by the use of tense markers.
- Li ale travay le maten - "He goes to work in the morning".
- Li dòmi le swa - "He sleeps in the evening".
- Li li Bib la - "She reads the Bible".
- Mwen fè manje - "I make food".
- Nou toujou etidye - "We study all the time".
[edit] Copulas
The concept expressed in English by the verb "to be" is expressed in Haitian Creole by two words, se and ye.
The verb se (pronounced as the English word "say") has roughly the same meaning as "to be" (and its inflections "am", "are", "is") in English. It is used like any verb, namely between the subject and the predicate:
- Li se frè mwen - "he is my brother"
- Mwen se doktè - "I am a doctor"
- Sa se yon pyebwa mango - "That is a mango tree"
- Nou se zanmi - "we are friends"
The subject sa or li can sometimes be omitted with se:
- Se yon bon ide - "That is a good idea"
- Se nouvo chemiz mwen - "This is my new shirt"
For the future tense, such as "I want to be" usually devenir is used instead of se.
"Ye" has a similar meaning, but it is placed at the end of the sentence, after the predicate and the subject (in that order):
- Ayisyen mwen ye = Mwen se Ayisyen - "I am Haitian"
- Ki moun sa? - "Who is that?"
- Kouman ou ye? - "How are you?"
[edit] To have
The verb "to have" is genyen, often shortened to gen.
- Mwen genyen lajan nan banc lan - "I have money in the bank".
[edit] There Is
The verb genyen (or gen) also means "There is" (or "There are")
- Genyen anpil ayisyen nan Florid - "There are many Haitians in Florida".
- Gen yon moun la - "There is someone here".
- Pa gen moun la - "There is nobody here".
[edit] To know
There are two verbs which are often translated as "to know", but they mean different things. Konn or konnen means just about what "to know" means in English.
- Èske ou konnen non li? - "Do you know his name?"
- M pa konnen kote li ye - "I don't know where he is." (note pa = negative)
The other word is konn. It is not easy to translate as a single word, but it most approximately means "to know how", "to have experience", or "to know how to do something". This is similar to the "know" is used in the English phrase "know how to ride a bike": it denotes not only a knowledge of the actions, but also some experience with it.
- Mwen konn fe manje - "I know how to cook" (lit. "I know how to make food")
- Èske ou konn ale Ayiti? - "Have you been to Haïti?" (lit. "Do you know to go to Haiti?")
- Li pa konn li fransè - "He can't read French" (lit. "He doesn't know how to read French.")
Another verb worth mentioning is fè. It comes from the French faire and is often translated as "do" or "make". It has a broad range of meanings.
- Kouman ou fè pale kreyòl? - "How did you learn to speak Haitian Creole?"
- Marie konn fè mayi moulen. - "Marie knows how to make cornmeal"
[edit] To be able to
The verb kapab or shortened to ka means "able to (do something)". It means both "capability" and "availability", very similar to the English "can"
- Mwen ka ale demen - "I can go tomorrow"
- Petèt m ka fè sa demen - "Maybe I can do that tomorrow"
[edit] Tense markers
There is no conjugation in Haitian Creole. In the present, non-progressive tense, one just uses the basic verb form:
- Mwen pale kreyòl - "I speak Haitian Creole"
Present tense example with "manje" (to eat):
- mwen manje - "I eat"
- ou manje - "you eat"
- li manje - "he/she eats"
- nou manje - "we eat"
- yo manje - "they eat"
(Note that manje means both "food" and "to eat" -- m'ap manje bon manje" means "I am eating good food").
For other tenses, special "tense marker" words are placed before the verb. The basic ones are:
- te - simple past
- tap (or t'ap) - past progressive (a combination of te and ap, "was doing")
- ap - present progressive (With ap and a the pronouns nearly always take the short form (m'ap, l'ap, n'ap, y'ap, etc.))
- a - future (some limitations on use)
- pral - future (translates to "going to")
Simple past:
- mwen te manje - "I ate"
- ou te manje - "you ate"
- li te manje - "he/she ate"
- nou te manje - "we ate"
- yo te manje - "they ate"
Past progressive:
- mwen t'ap manje - "I was eating"
- ou t'ap manje - "you were eating"
- li t'ap manje - "he/she was eating"
- nou t'ap manje - "we were eating"
- yo t'ap manje - "they were eating"
Present progressive:
- m'ap manje - "I am eating"
- w'ap manje - "you are eating"
- l'ap manje - "he/she is eating"
- n'ap manje - "we are eating"
- y'ap manje - "they are eating"
Note: For the present progressive (I am eating now) it is customary, though not necessary, to add "right now":
- M'ap manje kounye a - "I am eating right now"
Future:
- mwen pral manje - "I will eat"
- ou pral manje - "you will eat"
- li pral manje - "he/she will eat"
- nou pral manje - "we will eat"
- yo pral manje - "they will eat"
Other examples:
- Mwen te wè zanmi ou yè - "I saw your friend yesterday"
- Nou te pale lontan - "We spoke for a long time"
- Lè li te gen yit an... - "When he was eight years old..."
- M'a travay - "I will work"
- M pral travay - "I'm going to work"
- N'a li'l demen - "We'll read it tomorrow"
- Nou pral li'l demen - "We are going to read it tomorrow"
- Mwen t'ap mache e m'wè yon chyen - "I was walking and I saw a dog"
Additional time-related markers:
- fèk - recent past ("just")
- sot - similar to fek
They are often used together:
- Mwen fèk sot antre kay la - "I just entered the house"
A verb mood marker is ta, meaning "would":
- yo ta renmen jwe - "They would like to play"
- Mwen ta vini si mwen te gen yon machin - "I would come if I had a car"
- Li ta bliye'w si ou pa't la - "He(she) would forget you if you weren't here"
[edit] Negating the verb
The word pa comes before a verb to negate it:
- Rose pa vle ale - "Rose doesn't want to go"
[edit] List of Haitian Creole words
- annakaonna - ? (from Arawak, anacaona)
- annanna - a pineapple (from Arawak, anana and now used in France ananas)
- aprann - to learn
- bat - to hit
- batay - to fight
- bebe - a baby
- bonjou - good day / good morning
- bonswa - good evening (bonswa is typically said vice bonjou after 12 noon)
- boukousou - a type of bean
- boul - a ball
- chante - to sing
- cheri - darling
- cho - to be hot
- dou-dou - sweetheart
- dlo - water
- fanmi - family
- fè - to make / to do
- fèt - a party / a birthday
- fig - banana
- fou - to be crazy
- gade - to look (at)
- gato - a cake
- kaka - n. feces
- kijan - how
- kisa - what
- kite M - leave me / leave me alone
- kochon - a pig
- konprann/kimprann - to understand
- kouman ou rele? - what is your name?
- kounye-a - now ex: vini kounye-a (come here now)
- kreyon - a pencil
- kwafè - a barber
- la - here / the
- lougawou - werewolf
- machin - a car
- makak - monkey
- manje - to eat / food (both noun and verb)
- mèg - to be skinny
- mèsi - thank you
- moun - a person / people
- move - to be bad
- pale - to talk / to speak
- panye - a basket
- pitit - a child
- pwa - beans / weights / weight
- sa bon pou ou - that's good for you / that's what you get
- sache - a bag
- sa ka fèt / sa k'ap fèt - how's it going?
- sak pase - what's up?
- sirèt - candy
- timoun - a child ("little person")
- tonbe - to fall
- toutouni - to be naked
- vole - a thief
- vólé - to jump or fly
- zobogit - to be skinny
- zonbi - a ghost (from Africa, zombi)
[edit] See also
- Copula: Haitian
- Swadesh list of Haitian Creole words
[edit] External links
- Haitian Creole dictionary
- UN Declaration of Human Rights in Haitian Creole
- RFI — Kréyòl Palé Kréyòl Konprann (radio program)
- Common Creole Words and Phrases
- Haitian Creole online test
- Haitian Kréyòl grammar
- Haitian Creole English Dictionary from Webster's Online Dictionary - the Rosetta Edition
| Languages derived from French see also French-based creole languages |
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In the Americas: Haitian Creole (kreyòl ayisyen) • Michif • Lanc-Patuá |
