| Skepi Dutch Creole | |
|---|---|
| Spoken in | Guyana |
| Extinct | by 1998 |
| Language family |
Dutch Creole
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | skw |
Skepi is an extinct Dutch-based creole language of Guyana, spoken in the region of Essequibo. It was not mutually intelligible with Berbice Creole Dutch, also spoken in Guyana. This language has been classified as extinct since 1998.[1]
Since the language was already extinct when Ian Robertson first investigated the Dutch creoles in Guyana in 1975, much of Skepi is only known through the memory the descendents of the native have of the language their forefathers spoke. The following three sample sentences appeared in a Zeelandic newspaper in 1997.[2]
"Ek we stekkie brot."
Translation: I want a slice of bread.
"War ek sa lek em?"
Translation: Where shall I put it?
"'Em ne ben joe, 'em ben ander domnie."
Translation: "It was not you, it was that other minister (clergyman)."