English-based creole languages
Encyclopedia
An English-based creole language (often shortened to English creole) is a creole language
that was significantly influenced by the English language
. Most English creoles were formed in British colonies, following the great expansion of British naval military power and trade in the 17th,18th and 19th centuries.
Creole language
A creole language, or simply a creole, is a stable natural language developed from the mixing of parent languages; creoles differ from pidgins in that they have been nativized by children as their primary language, making them have features of natural languages that are normally missing from...
that was significantly influenced by the English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. Most English creoles were formed in British colonies, following the great expansion of British naval military power and trade in the 17th,18th and 19th centuries.
Notable examples
- Atlantic
- Western
- Jamaican Patois: Not to be confused with Jamaican Standard English, which is a dialect of English. Jamaican Patois (sometimes called Jamaican Creole) is an English-based creole language spoken in Jamaica. It represents a history of contact among many different types of speakers drawn from many ethnic, linguistic, and social backgrounds. Jamaican Patois is the dominant language in Jamaica and is gaining in prestige. Jamaican Creole was introduced to Central America with the migration of plantation workers and is related to dialects very similar to each other including Bocas del Toro CreoleBocas del Toro CreoleBocas del Toro Creole is a linguistic variety spoken in Bocas del Toro Province of Panama. Bocas del Toro Creole is no language of its own, but similar to varieties such as Limón Coastal Creole. The number of speakers of Bocas del Toro Creole is below 100,000...
in PanamaPanamaPanama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
and Limonese Creole & Colón CreoleColón CreoleColón Creole is a language spoken in Panama. Colón Creole is similar to varieties such as Limón Coastal Creole, Mískito Coastal Creole, and Belizean Creole . The number of speakers of Colón Creole is below 300,000 . Colón Creole does not have the status of an official language.-See also:*Bajan...
spoken in coastal Costa RicaCosta RicaCosta Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
and PanamaPanamaPanama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
, which Ethnologue considers as dialects of Jamaican Patois. http://www.ethnologue.org/show_language.asp?code=jam.- Rastafarian vocabularyRastafarian vocabularyIyaric, Livalect or Dread-talk is a created dialect of English in use among members of the Rastafari movement. African languages were lost among Africans when they were taken into captivity as part of the slave trade, and adherents of Rastafari teachings believe that English is an imposed colonial...
- Rastafarian vocabulary
- Jamaican Maroon Spirit Possession LanguageJamaican Maroon Spirit Possession LanguageJamaican Maroon spirit-possession language, or simply Maroon Spirit language, is a ritual language used by Jamaican Maroons while possessed by the spirits of ancestors during Kromanti ceremonies or when addressing those who are possessed...
- Belizean KriolBelizean Kriol languageBelizean Creole English, known as Kriol by its speakers, is an English-based creole language most closely related to Miskito Coastal Creole, Limón Coastal Creole, Colón Creole, San Andrés and Providencia Creole, Guyanese Creole, Jamaican Patois and English creoles of the Caribbean show similarity...
: Most speakers live in Belize City, but nearly everyone else in Belize is either a first- or second-language speaker of Kriol. It is the lingua francaLingua francaA lingua franca is a language systematically used to make communication possible between people not sharing a mother tongue, in particular when it is a third language, distinct from both mother tongues.-Characteristics:"Lingua franca" is a functionally defined term, independent of the linguistic...
in much of the country. Also spoken in USA. Reported to be very close to Mískito Coast, and Islander (San Andrés) creoles. Historically an extension of Mískito Coast Creole. Dahufra was a creole used in the 16th to 18th centuries. Jamaican Patois is different in orthography and grammar. Timber; agriculturalists; fishermen; industrial workers; construction industry; commerce; government, teachers http://www.ethnologue.org/show_language.asp?code=bzj. - Miskito Coastal CreoleMiskito Coastal CreoleMískito Coast Creole or Nicaragua Creole English is a language spoken in Nicaragua based on English. Its approximately 30,000 speakers are found along the Mosquito Coast of the Caribbean Sea. The language is nearly identical to Belizean Creole , and similar to all Central American Creoles...
in NicaraguaNicaraguaNicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
- Rama Cay CreoleRama Cay CreoleRama Cay Creole is a Creole language spoken by some 8-900 people on the island of Rama Cay in eastern Nicaragua. It is based on Miskito Coast Creole with additional elements of the Chibchan language Rama and purportedly some elements of English spoken with a German accent...
.
- Rama Cay Creole
- Bay Islands CreoleBay Islands CreoleBay Islands Creole is a linguistic entity of Honduras. It mainly is spoken on the Islas de la Bahia .At ISO 639-2 it is counted among the linguistic entities bearing the code cpe....
spoken in the Bay Islands Department off the coast of HondurasHondurasHonduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
. - San Andrés–Providencia Creole in the ColombiaColombiaColombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
-controlled archipelago off the coast of Nicaragua. - Cayman CreoleCayman CreoleCayman Creole is an English-based creole language spoken on Cayman Islands in the Caribbean. The number of speakers of Cayman Creole is below 100,000. Cayman Creole does not have the status of an official language.-See also:*Bajan Creole*Bermudian English...
spoken on the Cayman IslandsCayman IslandsThe Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union located in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman, located south of Cuba and northwest of Jamaica...
.
- Jamaican Patois: Not to be confused with Jamaican Standard English, which is a dialect of English. Jamaican Patois (sometimes called Jamaican Creole) is an English-based creole language spoken in Jamaica. It represents a history of contact among many different types of speakers drawn from many ethnic, linguistic, and social backgrounds. Jamaican Patois is the dominant language in Jamaica and is gaining in prestige. Jamaican Creole was introduced to Central America with the migration of plantation workers and is related to dialects very similar to each other including Bocas del Toro Creole
- Eastern
- Northern
- Afro-Seminole CreoleAfro-Seminole CreoleAfro-Seminole Creole is an English-based creole spoken by Black Seminoles in scattered communities in Oklahoma, Texas, and Northern Mexico.It was first identified as a language by Ian Hancock, a linguist at the University of Texas....
- Bahamian CreoleBahamian CreoleBahamian is an English-based creole language spoken by approximately 400,000 people in the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands.Bahamian is spoken by both white and black Bahamians, although in slightly different forms. Bahamian also tends to be more prevalent in certain areas of the Bahamas...
: is the vernacular language of the Bahamas - Turks and Caicos Creole is an English-based creole, widely spoken throughout in the Turks and Caicos IslandsTurks and Caicos IslandsThe Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union consisting of two groups of tropical islands in the Caribbean, the larger Caicos Islands and the smaller Turks Islands, known for tourism and as an offshore financial centre.The Turks and...
, with each island having a different variation. - GullahGullah languageGullah is a creole language spoken by the Gullah people , an African American population living on the Sea Islands and the coastal region of the U.S...
: Gullah is an English-based creole spoken in the Sea IslandsSea IslandsThe Sea Islands are a chain of tidal and barrier islands on the Atlantic Ocean coast of the United States. They number over 100, and are located between the mouths of the Santee and St. Johns Rivers along the coast of the U.S...
and the adjacent coastal regions of South CarolinaSouth CarolinaSouth Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, GeorgiaGeorgia (U.S. state)Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
and northern FloridaFloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. - Samaná EnglishSamaná EnglishSamaná English is a variety of the English language spoken by about 8,000 people in the Samaná Peninsula, Dominican Republic. The speakers of Samaná English are the descendants of African freed persons, who came from West Africa beginning in 1824 when they were forced to learn the forms of the...
is spoken by about 8,000 people in the Samaná PeninsulaSamaná PeninsulaThe Samaná Península is a peninsula in Dominican Republic situated in the province of Samaná. The Samaná Peninsula is connected to the rest of the state by the isthmus of Samaná. The Peninsula contains many beaches, especially in the city of Santa Bárbara de Samaná. It contains 3 rivers. The main...
, Dominican RepublicDominican RepublicThe Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
, a mostly Spanish-speaking country. The speakers of Samaná English are the descendants descendants of ex-USA slaves who settled there in 1824. It is reported that there was a settlement of African slaves here in the early 1500s. The language is variously described a creole language, a dialect of English, or a linguistic entity fitting neither category. Samaná English is related to that of the Bahamian Creole language.
- Afro-Seminole Creole
- Southern
- Virgin Islands CreoleVirgin Islands CreoleVirgin Islands Creole, or Virgin Islands Creole English, is an English-based creole spoken in the Virgin Islands and the nearby SSS islands of Saba, Sint Eustatius and Saint Martin, where it has been known as Netherlands Antilles Creole English....
: Spoken in the Virgin IslandsVirgin IslandsThe Virgin Islands are the western island group of the Leeward Islands, which are the northern part of the Lesser Antilles, which form the border between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean...
and ex–Netherlands Antilles.http://www.ethnologue.org/show_language.asp?code=vic- Crucian: Spoken on Saint Croix.
- Saint Martin Creole: Spoken in Saba, Saint Eustatius, Saint MartinSaint MartinSaint Martin is an island in the northeast Caribbean, approximately east of Puerto Rico. The 87 km2 island is divided roughly 60/40 between France and the Kingdom of the Netherlands ; however, the Dutch side has the larger population. It is one of the smallest sea islands divided between...
.
- Leeward Islands Creole: Spoken on the Commonwealth islands between Guadeloupe and the Virgin Islands.http://www.ethnologue.org/show_language.asp?code=aig
- Anguillan CreoleAnguillan CreoleAnguillan Creole is a dialect of Leeward Caribbean Creole English spoken in Anguilla, an island and British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. Although classified as a dialect of Leeward Caribbean Creole English spoken in Saint Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Montserrat, it is also similar to the...
: Spoken in AnguillaAnguillaAnguilla is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union in the Caribbean. It is one of the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles, lying east of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and directly north of Saint Martin...
, many similarities to British Virgin Islands and Saint Martin varieties of Virgin Islands Creole. - Antiguan CreoleAntiguan CreoleLeeward Caribbean Creole English, also known by the names of the various islands on which it is spoken is an English-based creole language spoken in the Leeward Islands of the Caribbean, namely the countries of Antigua and Barbuda, Montserrat and Saint Kitts and Nevis.There are subtle differences...
: Spoken in Antigua and BarbudaAntigua and BarbudaAntigua and Barbuda is a twin-island nation lying between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It consists of two major inhabited islands, Antigua and Barbuda, and a number of smaller islands... - Montserrat CreoleMontserrat CreoleMontserrat Creole is a dialect of Leeward Caribbean Creole English spoken in Montserrat.The number of speakers of Montserrat Creole is below 10,000. Montserrat Creole does not have the status of an official language.-See also:*Bajan Creole...
: Spoken in MontserratMontserratMontserrat is a British overseas territory located in the Leeward Islands, part of the chain of islands called the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies. This island measures approximately long and wide, giving of coastline... - Saint Kitts CreoleSaint Kitts CreoleSaint Kitts Creole is a dialect of Leeward Caribbean Creole English spoken in Saint Kitts and Nevis by around 40,000 people. Saint Kitts Creole does not have the status of an official language....
: Spoken in Saint Kitts and NevisSaint Kitts and NevisThe Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis , located in the Leeward Islands, is a federal two-island nation in the West Indies. It is the smallest sovereign state in the Americas, in both area and population....
.
- Anguillan Creole
- Bajan
- Vincentian CreoleVincentian CreoleVincentian Creole is an English-lexified creole language spoken in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The number of speakers of Vincentian Creole is about 100 000. Vincentian Creole does not have the status of an official language.-See also:*Antiguan Creole...
- Grenadian CreoleGrenadian CreoleGrenadian Creole, is a term that may refer to either Grenadian Creole English or Grenadian Creole French.Grenadian Creole English, is a Creole language spoken in Grenada...
- Guyanese Creole: Spoken throughout GuyanaGuyanaGuyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
. The creole varies across the regions within the country. - Tobagonian Creole: Spoken in TobagoTobagoTobago is the smaller of the two main islands that make up the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located in the southern Caribbean, northeast of the island of Trinidad and southeast of Grenada. The island lies outside the hurricane belt...
. - Trinidadian Creole: Spoken in TrinidadTrinidadTrinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
.
- Virgin Islands Creole
- Northern
- Suriname
- Sranan TongoSranan TongoSranan is a creole language spoken as a lingua franca by approximately 300,000 people in Suriname...
: the vernacular language of the majority of SurinameSurinameSuriname , officially the Republic of Suriname , is a country in northern South America. It borders French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and on the north by the Atlantic Ocean. Suriname was a former colony of the British and of the Dutch, and was previously known as...
. - AlukuAlukuThe Aluku or Boni is the name of a Maroon ethnic group living mainly on the riverbank in Maripasoula, southwest French Guiana, and the eponymous term for their language, which has more than 5,000 speakers. They are mostly descended from former slaves from Suriname Paramaribo, who escaped and...
- Ndyuka
- Paramaccan
- Kwinti
- Matawai
- Sranan Tongo
- Krio
- Krio: Spoken in Sierra LeoneSierra LeoneSierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
.It is spoken all over sierra leone and bears similarity to Nigerian Pidgin. It is mutually intelligible with Nigerian Pidgin and Jamaican patois. - Nigerian PidginNigerian PidginNigerian Pidgin is an English-based pidgin and a creole language spoken as a lingua franca across Nigeria. The language is commonly referred to as "Pidgin" or "Brokin". It is often not considered a creole language since most speakers are not native speakers, although many children do learn it early...
: While rudimentally spoken all over Nigeria, English is the accepted language of transaction and communication. The Nigerian Pidgin dates back to the colonial era, where locals were hired to work with the British colonials and ended up developing it to the Creole language it is today. - Aku
- Cameroonian Pidgin EnglishCameroonian Pidgin EnglishCameroonian Pidgin English, or Cameroonian Creole, is a language variety of Cameroon. It is also known as Kamtok . Five varieties are currently recognised:...
, Kamtok, or Cameroonian Creole: is a linguistic entity of CameroonCameroonCameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...
. It is also known as Kamtok. Two varieties are Limbe-Krio and Grafi. Cameroonian Pidgin English is an English-based creole language. About 5% of Cameroonians are native speakers of the language. - KreyolLiberian Kreyol languageKreyol is an English-based creole language spoken in Liberia. It is spoken by 1,500,000 people as a second language . It is historically and linguistically related to Merico, another creole spoken in Liberia, but is grammatically distinct from it...
: is spoken in LiberiaLiberiaLiberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
, and has EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and French as superstrate languages, with several West African languages as substrate. - Fernando Poo Creole: Initially spoken in Fernando PoBiokoBioko is an island 32 km off the west coast of Africa, specifically Cameroon, in the Gulf of Guinea. It is the northernmost part of Equatorial Guinea with a population of 124,000 and an area of . It is volcanic with its highest peak the Pico Basile at .-Geography:Bioko has a total area of...
, Spanish GuineaSpanish GuineaSpanish Guinea was an African colony of Spain that became the independent nation of Equatorial Guinea.-History:The Portuguese explorer, Fernão do Pó, seeking a route to India, is credited with having discovered the island of Bioko in 1472. He called it Formosa , but it quickly took on the name of...
(modernly known as Bioko Island, Equatorial GuineaEquatorial GuineaEquatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea where the capital Malabo is situated.Annobón is the southernmost island of Equatorial Guinea and is situated just south of the equator. Bioko island is the northernmost point of Equatorial Guinea. Between the two islands and to the...
) by Krio Fernandinos who descended from Sierra Leone Krio people and was used for trade communications. - PichinglisPichinglisPichinglis, commonly referred to by its speakers as Pichi and Fernando Poo Creole, is an Atlantic English-lexicon Creole language spoken on the island of Bioko, Equatorial Guinea Pichinglis, commonly referred to by its speakers as Pichi and Fernando Poo Creole, is an Atlantic English-lexicon Creole...
: This dialect was initially spoken by, and introduced to Fernando PoBiokoBioko is an island 32 km off the west coast of Africa, specifically Cameroon, in the Gulf of Guinea. It is the northernmost part of Equatorial Guinea with a population of 124,000 and an area of . It is volcanic with its highest peak the Pico Basile at .-Geography:Bioko has a total area of...
, Spanish GuineaSpanish GuineaSpanish Guinea was an African colony of Spain that became the independent nation of Equatorial Guinea.-History:The Portuguese explorer, Fernão do Pó, seeking a route to India, is credited with having discovered the island of Bioko in 1472. He called it Formosa , but it quickly took on the name of...
(modernly known as Bioko Island, Equatorial GuineaEquatorial GuineaEquatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea where the capital Malabo is situated.Annobón is the southernmost island of Equatorial Guinea and is situated just south of the equator. Bioko island is the northernmost point of Equatorial Guinea. Between the two islands and to the...
) by IgboIgbo peopleIgbo people, also referred to as the Ibo, Ebo, Eboans or Heebo are an ethnic group living chiefly in southeastern Nigeria. They speak Igbo, which includes various Igboid languages and dialects; today, a majority of them speak English alongside Igbo as a result of British colonialism...
and IbibioIbibio peopleThe Ibibio are a people of southeastern Nigeria. They are related to the Anaang and the Efik peoples. During colonial period in Nigeria, the Ibibio Union asked for recognition by the British as a sovereign nation . The Annang, Efik, Ekid, Oron and Ibeno share personal names, culture, and traditions...
immigrants from NigeriaNigeriaNigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. The language became prominent among other inhabitants, and was used as a trade language. It's likely that PichinglisPichinglisPichinglis, commonly referred to by its speakers as Pichi and Fernando Poo Creole, is an Atlantic English-lexicon Creole language spoken on the island of Bioko, Equatorial Guinea Pichinglis, commonly referred to by its speakers as Pichi and Fernando Poo Creole, is an Atlantic English-lexicon Creole...
and Fernando Poo Creole merged to form the English-based Creole dialects spoken on Bioko Island today.
- Krio: Spoken in Sierra Leone
- Western
- Pacific
- Australian KriolAustralian Kriol languageKriol is an Australian creole language that developed initially in the region of Sydney and Newcastle in New South Wales in the early days of White colonisation, and then moved west and north with White and Black stockmen and others...
: Also known as Roper River Creole, has become the major non-English language among Aboriginal Australians with over 10,000 first language speakers. - Related English-based creoles Bislama, spoken in VanuatuVanuatuVanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
; PijinPijin languagePijin is also referred to as Kanaka and is a language spoken in the Solomon Islands. It is closely related to Tok Pisin of Papua New Guinea; Bislama of Vanuatu; and Torres Strait Creole of the Torres Strait, Queensland, Australia and is written in the Latin alphabet.As of 1999 there were 306,984...
, in the Solomon IslandsSolomon IslandsSolomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
; Torres Strait CreoleTorres Strait CreoleTorres Strait Creole is an English-based creole language spoken on several Torres Strait Islands , Northern Cape York and South-Western Coastal Papua...
, spoken by Torres Straits Islanders. Tok Pisin, spoken throughout Papua New GuineaPapua New GuineaPapua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
, has English as its superstrate language and various Papuan languages providing grammatical and lexical input. - Hawaiian PidginHawaiian PidginHawaii Pidgin English, Hawaii Creole English, HCE, or simply Pidgin, is a creole language based in part on English used by many "local" residents of Hawaii. Although English and Hawaiian are the co-official languages of the state of Hawaii, Pidgin is used by many Hawaii residents in everyday...
: Hawaiian Pidgin began as a pidgin used in the early European colonization of the Hawaiian IslandsHawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. English served as the superstrate language, with ChineseChinese languageThe Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, JapaneseJapanese languageis a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, FilipinoFilipino languageThis move has drawn much criticism from other regional groups.In 1987, a new constitution introduced many provisions for the language.Article XIV, Section 6, omits any mention of Tagalog as the basis for Filipino, and states that:...
, PortuguesePortuguese languagePortuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
, and HawaiianHawaiian languageThe Hawaiian language is a Polynesian language that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language of the state of Hawaii...
elements incorporated. Children started using it as a lingua francaLingua francaA lingua franca is a language systematically used to make communication possible between people not sharing a mother tongue, in particular when it is a third language, distinct from both mother tongues.-Characteristics:"Lingua franca" is a functionally defined term, independent of the linguistic...
, and by the 1920s it had creolized and become a language of Hawaii, as it still is today. - Not a creole but a pair of dialects that developed out of a CantCant (language)A Cant is the jargon or argot of a group, often implying its use to exclude or mislead people outside the group.-Derivation in Celtic linguistics:...
, Pitkern and NorfukNorfuk languageNorfuk is the language spoken on Norfolk Island by the local residents. It is a blend of English of the 18th century and Tahitian originally introduced by settlers from the Pitcairn Islands who spoke Pitkern. It is the co-official language of Norfolk Island.As travel to and from Norfolk Island...
, spoken by the inhabitants of the Pitcairn IslandsPitcairn IslandsThe Pitcairn Islands , officially named the Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands, form a group of four volcanic islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. The islands are a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union in the Pacific...
and Pitcairnese migrants in Norfolk IslandNorfolk IslandNorfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, but it enjoys a large degree of self-governance...
, formed from an 18th century dialect of EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
with 5% of its vocabulary taken from the TahitiTahitiTahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
an language to form the Mixed languageMixed languageA mixed language is a language that arises through the fusion of two source languages, normally in situations of thorough bilingualism, so that it is not possible to classify the resulting language as belonging to either of the language families that were its source...
known as Pitkern, or Norfuk in Norfolk Island.
- Australian Kriol
- Saramaccan
- Saramaccaans, or SaamákaSaramaccan languageSaramaccan is a creole language spoken by about 24,000 people near the Saramacca and upper Suriname Rivers in Suriname , and 2,000 in French Guiana...
- Saramaccaans, or Saamáka
- South-east Asia
- Coño EnglishEnglogEnglog, sometimes Enggalog, is an informal sociolect in the Philippines. The term is a portmanteau of the words ‘English’ and ‘Tagalog’. It is formed by infusing Tagalog words and structures into English, an example of which is called Konyo English...
: a mixed language in the Philippines based on American EnglishAmerican EnglishAmerican English is a set of dialects of the English language used mostly in the United States. Approximately two-thirds of the world's native speakers of English live in the United States....
, and is used among Filipinos of partial or whole European ancestry. It is primarily English as it is spoken in the United States with a few insertions of SpanishSpanish languageSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, TagalogTagalog languageTagalog is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a third of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by most of the rest. It is the first language of the Philippine region IV and of Metro Manila...
, and Hokkien ChineseMin NanThe Southern Min languages, or Min Nan , are a family of Chinese languages spoken in southern Fujian, eastern Guangdong, Hainan, Taiwan, and southern Zhejiang provinces of China, and by descendants of emigrants from these areas in diaspora....
. Initially classified as codeswitching, Coño English has achieved acceptance among Eurasians and Amerasians in the Philippines as an everyday form of communication. - SinglishSinglishColloquial Singaporean English, also known as Singlish, is an English-based creole language spoken in Singapore.Singlish is commonly regarded with low prestige in Singapore. The Singaporean government and many Singaporeans alike heavily discourage the use of Singlish in favour of Standard English...
/ManglishManglishManglish is an English based creole spoken in Malaysia.The vocabulary of Manglish consists of words originating from English, Malay, Hokkien, Mandarin, Cantonese, Tamil, and to a lesser extent various other European languages, while Manglish syntax resembles southern varieties of Chinese...
: a creole spoken in Singapore and Malaysia by many Singaporeans and Malaysians. Although most Singaporeans/Malaysians are educated in formal English, Singlish/Manglish is widely used especially in an informal context. It is heavily influenced by Chinese dialects such as Hokkien ChineseMin NanThe Southern Min languages, or Min Nan , are a family of Chinese languages spoken in southern Fujian, eastern Guangdong, Hainan, Taiwan, and southern Zhejiang provinces of China, and by descendants of emigrants from these areas in diaspora....
as well as Malay and Tamil.
- Coño English