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San Andrés–Providencia Creole is an English-based creole language spoken in the San Andrés and Providencia Department of Colombia by the native Raizals. It is very similar to Belizean Creole and Miskito Coast Creole. Its vocabulary originates in English, its lexifier, but San Andrés–Providencia creole has its own phonetics and many expressions from Spanish and African languages, particularly Kwa languages (especially Twi and Ewe) and Igbo languages. The language is also known as "San Andrés Creole", "Bende" and "Islander Creole English".[1][2][3] Its two main strands are San Andres Creole English (or Saintandrewan) and Providence Creole English.[1]
| San Andrés and Providencia Creole | |
|---|---|
| Bende, Islander Creole English[1] | |
| Native to | Colombia (San Andrés and Providencia islands) |
Native speakers | 20,000–30,000[1] |
English Creole
| |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | icr |
| Glottolog | sana1297 |
| Linguasphere | 52-ABB-ah |
History
editThe population of the Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina uses three languages: Creole, English and Spanish.[4][5] San Andrés–Providencia Creole is an official language in its territory of influence, according to the Colombian Constitution of 1991 which guarantees the rights and protections of languages in the country.[4] Approximately 20,000–30,000 people speak San Andrés–Providencia Creole.[3]
San Andrés–Providencia Creole has been influenced by social and family ties with the Mosquito Coast, and has in turn influenced the Central American English Creoles from the early 19th century onward.[3] It retains a number of African words and phrases in common with the Nicaraguan, Belizean, and Limón creoles, and with Jamaican Patwah.[6] It is closest to Belize Kriol.[7] While many scholars often suggest a common West African pidgin as the source of most Caribbean creole languages, San Andrés Creole, in particular, may partially derive from the Jamaican Patwah of the latter half of the 18th century.[8][3] In contrast, Providence Islander Creole is less popular among the Native Islanders, who feel a stronger affinity for English.[9]
Between 1902 and 1926, a process of forced Hispanization deprecated use of English and Creole. In 1946 and 1956, English was banned in public and private schools (respectively). Large scale immigration from continental Colombia, where most people spoke Spanish, resulted in the creole people of San Andrés becoming marginalised.[3] English remained in use for liturgical purposes in Baptist churches, but the coming of satellite television and growth of foreign tourism has revived the use of English on the islands. The standard English taught in schools is British English and rarely San Andrés Creole.[1][4]
The presence of migrants from continental Colombia and the travel of young islanders to cities like Barranquilla, Cartagena de Indias and Bogotá for higher education has contributed to the presence of Spanish. However, the interest in preserving the Creole has become very important for locals and Colombians in general.[4][5][10] According to Carlos Augusto Arias, "Creole plays a symbolic role in the cohesion and identity of raizals, as the vehicle and an important piece of the cultural heritage, as well as the phenomenology of group identity."[5]
Characteristics
edit- It marks the time. The auxiliar wen (~ben~men) marks a past simple. Future tense is marked with wi and wuda. Progressive tense is marked by de.
- The auxiliars beg and mek before the sentence is a polite way to ask permission or asking something.
- Other auxiliary words before the verb mark probability like maita, mos, mosi, kyan, and kuda; willingness with niid and waan; and obligation with fi, hafi and shuda
- There is no grammatical distinction for gender.
- Plural is marked with dem after the noun.
See also
editFurther reading
edit- Bartens, Angela (2013). San Andres Creole English. In The survey of pidgin and creole languages. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-1996914-0-1.
- Washabaugh, William (1983). The Off-shore Island Creoles: Providencia, San Andres and the Caymans". In Central American English. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company. ISBN 3-87276-295-8.
References
edit- ^ a b c d e "APiCS Online - Survey chapter: San Andres Creole English". apics-online.info. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
- ^ "Ethnologue report for language code: icr". SIL International. Retrieved 2023-12-21.
- ^ a b c d e Bartens, Angela (2013-01-21), "San Andres-Providence Creole English", San Andres-Providence Creole English, De Gruyter Mouton, pp. 237–254, doi:10.1515/9783110280128.237, ISBN 978-3-11-028012-8, retrieved 2024-10-08
- ^ a b c d Morren, Ronald. 2010. "Trilingual education: On the Islands of San Andres, Providence, and Santa Catalina". In Bettina Migge, Isabelle Léglise and Angela Bartens (eds.), Creoles in Education: An appraisal of current programs and projects, pp. 297–322. John Benjamins Publishing.
- ^ a b c Arias, Carlos Augusto. "Agency in the Reconstruction of Language Identity: A Narrative Case Study from the Island of San Andrés." In Gist Education and Learning Research Journal. No. 9 (July–December 2014). ISSN 1692-5777. pp. 103-123. (106)
- ^ Bartens, Angela. "Creole languages." Contact languages. A comprehensive guide. Language Contact and Bilingualism 6 (2013): 65-158 (133).
- ^ Decker, Ken, and Andy Keener. "A report on the English-based creole of San Andrés and Providence islands, Colombia." SIL International (2001). p. 8.
- ^ Edwards, J., 1974. African influences on the English of San Andrés island, Colombia. Pidgins and Creoles: Current trends and prospects, pp.1-26.
- ^ Bartens, Angela (2009). "A Comparison of the English-based Creoles of Nicaragua and San Andrés and Old Providence". Neuphilologische Mitteilungen. 110 (3): 299–318 (302). ISSN 0028-3754.
- ^ Decker, Ken, and Andy Keener. "A report on the English-based creole of San Andrés and Providence islands, Colombia." SIL International (2001). p. 12.
