Sranan Tongo
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| Sranan Sranan Tongo |
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|---|---|---|
| Spoken in: | Suriname | |
| Total speakers: | 300,000 | |
| Language family: | English Creole Sranan |
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| Language codes | ||
| ISO 639-1: | none | |
| ISO 639-2: | — | |
| ISO 639-3: | srn | |
| Note: This page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. See IPA chart for English for an English-based pronunciation key. | ||
Sranan (also Sranan Tongo "Surinamean tongue", Surinaams, Surinamese, Suriname Creole English) is a creole language spoken as a native language by approximately 120,000 people in Suriname. [1] Sranan was previously referred to as the less politically correct nengre or negerengels (Dutch, "negro-English").
Since this language is shared between the English-, Dutch-, Javanese- and Hindustani-speaking communities, many Surinamese speak it as a second language.
Outside of Suriname the language is sometimes incorrectly referred to as Taki Taki.
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[edit] Origins
The Sranan Tongo words for 'to know' and 'small children' are sabi and pikin which is due to the Portuguese having been the first explorers of the West African coast, where they developed a pidgin language from which a few words became common coin in interactions with Africans by explorers who came afterward, including the English. However, research has established that Sranan is fundamentally an English-based language, with an overlay of words from Dutch, due to the Dutch takeover of Surinam in 1667.
Sranan Tongo's lexicon is thus a fusion of English, Dutch, Portuguese and Central and West African languages. It began as a pidgin spoken primarily by African slaves in Suriname who often did not have a common African language. As other ethnic groups were brought to Suriname as contract workers, Sranan became a lingua franca.
Although formal Dutch-based educational system repressed its use, Sranan become more accepted by the establishment over time, especially during the 1980s when it was popularized by Suriname's then dictator Desi Bouterse who often delivered national speeches in Sranan.
Sranan remains widely used in Suriname, especially in casual conversation where it is often mixed in freely with Dutch. People often greet each other using Sranan, saying for example "fa waka" (how goes it) instead of the more formal Dutch "hoe gaat het" (how goes it).
Sranan as a written language has existed since the late 19th century, and was given an official spelling by the government of Suriname on July 15, 1986 (resolution 4501). A small number of writers have used Sranan in their work, most notably the poet Henri Frans de Ziel ("Trefossa"), who also wrote Suriname's national anthem (the second verse is sung in Sranan Tongo).
[edit] Further reading
- Jan Voorhoeve and Ursy M. Lichtveld: Creole Drum. An Anthology of Creole Literature in Suriname. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1975.
- C.F.A. Bruijning and J. Voorhoeve (editors): Encyclopedie van Suriname. Amsterdam and Brussel: Uitgeverij Elsevier, 1977, pp. 573-574.
- Eithne B. Carlin and Jacques Arends (editors): Atlas of the Languages of Suriname. Leiden: KITLV Press, 2002.
- Michael Ietswaart and Vinije Haabo: Sranantongo. Surinaams voor reizigers en thuisblijvers. Amsterdam: Mets & Schilt, 2002.
- J.C.M. Blanker and J. Dubbeldam: "Prisma Woordenboek Sranantongo". Utrecht: Uitgeverij Het Spectrum B.V., 2005, ISBN 90-274-1478-5, www.prismawoordenboeken.nl - A Sranantongo to Dutch and Dutch to Sranantongo dictionary.
[edit] See also
- Swadesh list of Sranan words
