Post-creole speech continuum
Encyclopedia
The Post-creole continuum or simply creole continuum refers to a situation wherein a creole language
consists of a spectrum of varieties
between those most and least similar to the superstrate language (that is, a closely related language whose speakers assert dominance of some sort). Due to social, political, and economic factors, a creole language can decreolize
towards one of the languages from which it is descended, aligning its morphology
, phonology
, and syntax
to the local standard of the dominant language but to different degrees depending on a speaker's status.
popularized these terms (as well as mesolect for intermediate points in the continuum) to refer to the phenomenon of code-switching
used by some users of creole languages who also have some fluency in the standard language
upon which the contact language is based. University of Chicago
linguist Salikoko Mufwene
explains the phenomenon of creole languages as "basilectalization" away from a standard, often European, language among a mixed European and non-European population. In certain speech communities, a continuum exists between speakers of a creole language and a related standard language. There are no discrete boundaries between the different varieties and the situation in which such a continuum exists involves considerable social stratification.
The following table (from ) shows the 18 different ways of rendering the phrase I gave him one in Guyanese English
:
The continuum shown has the acrolect form as [aɪ ɡeɪv hɪm wʌn] (which is nearly identical with Standard English
) while the basilect form is [mɪ ɡiː æm wan]. Due to code-switching, most speakers have a command of a range in the continuum and, depending on social position, occupation, etc. can implement the different levels with various levels of skill.
If a society is so stratified as to have little to no contact between groups who speak the creole and those who speak the superstrate (dominant) language, a situation of diglossia
occurs, rather than a continuum. Assigning separate and distinct functions for the two varieties will have the same effect. This is the case in Haiti
with Haitian Creole and French
.
Use of the terms acrolect, mesolect and basilect attempts to avoid the value judgement inherent in earlier terminology, by which the language spoken by the ruling classes in a capital city was defined as the "correct" or "pure" form while that spoken by the lower classes and inhabitants of outlying provinces was "a dialect" characterised as "incorrect", "impure" or "debased".
is a decreolized form of a slave creole. Once blacks acquired recognition of equality under the law, opportunities for interaction created a strong influence of standard (American) English onto the speech of blacks so that a continuum exists today with Standard English as the acrolect and varieties closest to the original creole as the basilect.
In Jamaica
, a continuum exists between Jamaican English
and Jamaican Patois.
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...
consists of a spectrum of varieties
Variety (linguistics)
In sociolinguistics a variety, also called a lect, is a specific form of a language or language cluster. This may include languages, dialects, accents, registers, styles or other sociolinguistic variation, as well as the standard variety itself...
between those most and least similar to the superstrate language (that is, a closely related language whose speakers assert dominance of some sort). Due to social, political, and economic factors, a creole language can decreolize
Decreolization
Decreolization is a hypothetical phenomenon whereby over time a creole language reconverges with one of the standard languages from which it originally derived...
towards one of the languages from which it is descended, aligning its morphology
Morphology (linguistics)
In linguistics, morphology is the identification, analysis and description, in a language, of the structure of morphemes and other linguistic units, such as words, affixes, parts of speech, intonation/stress, or implied context...
, phonology
Phonology
Phonology is, broadly speaking, the subdiscipline of linguistics concerned with the sounds of language. That is, it is the systematic use of sound to encode meaning in any spoken human language, or the field of linguistics studying this use...
, and syntax
Syntax
In linguistics, syntax is the study of the principles and rules for constructing phrases and sentences in natural languages....
to the local standard of the dominant language but to different degrees depending on a speaker's status.
Stratification
William Stewart, in 1965, proposed that the terms acrolect and basilect be the sociolinguistic labels for the upper and lower boundaries respectively of a post-creole speech continuum. In the early 1970s Derek BickertonDerek Bickerton
Derek Bickerton is a linguist and Professor Emeritus at the University of Hawaii, Manoa. Based on his work in creole languages in Guyana and Hawaii, he has proposed that the features of creole languages provide powerful insights into the development of language both by individuals and as a...
popularized these terms (as well as mesolect for intermediate points in the continuum) to refer to the phenomenon of code-switching
Code-switching
In linguistics, code-switching is the concurrent use of more than one language, or language variety, in conversation. Multilinguals—people who speak more than one language—sometimes use elements of multiple languages in conversing with each other...
used by some users of creole languages who also have some fluency in the standard language
Standard language
A standard language is a language variety used by a group of people in their public discourse. Alternatively, varieties become standard by undergoing a process of standardization, during which it is organized for description in grammars and dictionaries and encoded in such reference works...
upon which the contact language is based. University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
linguist Salikoko Mufwene
Salikoko Mufwene
Salikoko Mufwene is a linguist born in Mbaya-Lareme in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He is the Frank J. McLoraine Distinguished Service Professor of linguistics at the University of Chicago. He has worked extensively on the development of creole languages, as well as on African American...
explains the phenomenon of creole languages as "basilectalization" away from a standard, often European, language among a mixed European and non-European population. In certain speech communities, a continuum exists between speakers of a creole language and a related standard language. There are no discrete boundaries between the different varieties and the situation in which such a continuum exists involves considerable social stratification.
The following table (from ) shows the 18 different ways of rendering the phrase I gave him one in Guyanese English
Guyanese Creole language
Guyanese Creole is an English-based creole language spoken by people in Guyana....
:
| 1 | aɪ | ɡeɪv | hɪm | wʌn | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | wan | ||||
| 3 | a | ɪm | |||
| 4 | iː | ||||
| 5 | ɡɪv | hɪm | |||
| 6 | ɪm | ||||
| 7 | iː | ||||
| 8 | dɪd | ɡɪv | |||
| 9 | dɪ | ɡɪ | |||
| 10 | dɪd | ||||
| 11 | dɪ | ɡiː | |||
| 12 | ɡɪ | hiː | |||
| 13 | mɪ | ||||
| 14 | iː | ||||
| 15 | bɪn | ||||
| 16 | ɡiː | ||||
| 17 | æm | ||||
| 18 | |||||
The continuum shown has the acrolect form as [aɪ ɡeɪv hɪm wʌn] (which is nearly identical with Standard English
Standard English
Standard English refers to whatever form of the English language is accepted as a national norm in an Anglophone country...
) while the basilect form is [mɪ ɡiː æm wan]. Due to code-switching, most speakers have a command of a range in the continuum and, depending on social position, occupation, etc. can implement the different levels with various levels of skill.
If a society is so stratified as to have little to no contact between groups who speak the creole and those who speak the superstrate (dominant) language, a situation of diglossia
Diglossia
In linguistics, diglossia refers to a situation in which two dialects or languages are used by a single language community. In addition to the community's everyday or vernacular language variety , a second, highly codified variety is used in certain situations such as literature, formal...
occurs, rather than a continuum. Assigning separate and distinct functions for the two varieties will have the same effect. This is the case in Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
with Haitian Creole and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
.
Use of the terms acrolect, mesolect and basilect attempts to avoid the value judgement inherent in earlier terminology, by which the language spoken by the ruling classes in a capital city was defined as the "correct" or "pure" form while that spoken by the lower classes and inhabitants of outlying provinces was "a dialect" characterised as "incorrect", "impure" or "debased".
Other examples
It has been suggested that African American Vernacular EnglishAfrican American Vernacular English
African American Vernacular English —also called African American English; less precisely Black English, Black Vernacular, Black English Vernacular , or Black Vernacular English —is an African American variety of American English...
is a decreolized form of a slave creole. Once blacks acquired recognition of equality under the law, opportunities for interaction created a strong influence of standard (American) English onto the speech of blacks so that a continuum exists today with Standard English as the acrolect and varieties closest to the original creole as the basilect.
In Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, a continuum exists between Jamaican English
Jamaican English
Jamaican English or Jamaican Standard English is a dialect of English spoken in Jamaica. It melds parts of both American English and British English dialects, along with many aspects of Irish intonation...
and Jamaican Patois.