| Mauritian Creole | |
|---|---|
| kreol morisien,morisien | |
| Pronunciation | Mauritian Creole pronunciation:[kʁeolmoʁisjɛ̃,-moʁiʃɛ̃] |
| Native to | Mauritius |
| Ethnicity | Mauritian Creoles |
Native speakers | 1,090,000 (2012 UNSD)[1] 1,335,000 total speakers L2 speakers: 200,000 (2016) |
French Creole
| |
| Dialects | |
| Latin | |
| Official status | |
Official language in |  Mauritius |
| Regulated by | Akademi Kreol Morisien (Mauritian Creole Academy) |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | mfe |
| Glottolog | mori1278 |
| Linguasphere | (to 51-AAC-cee) 51-AAC-cec (to 51-AAC-cee) |
Roselyn Augustin, an 86-year-old Mauritian woman and harmonica player, speaks in Mauritian Creole about the fact that her grandchildren no longer play theharmonica and how she learned it from her father. | |
Mauritian Creole orMorisien (formerly spelledMorisyen; native name:kreol morisien[kʁeolmoʁisjɛ̃,-moʁiʃɛ̃]) is aFrench-based creole language spoken inMauritius.English words are included in the standardized version of the language. In addition, the enslaved people and indentured servants from cultures in Africa and Asia left a diverse legacy of language in the country. The words spoken by these groups are also incorporated into contemporary Morisien.
Mauritian Creole is thelingua franca of the Republic of Mauritius, which gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1968. Both English and French are used as alternatives to Mauritian Creole. English is spoken primarily for administration and educational purposes and French is used by the media and as a second language.
Mauritians tend to speak Mauritian Creole at home, French in the workplace and ancestral Asian languages at cultural and religious events. French and English are taught in schools where Mauritian Creole and ancestral Asian languages are proposed as options. Though Mauritians are of numerous ethnic origins (including Indian, African, European, and Chinese) Mauritian Creole has gradually replaced the ancestral languages of most of the population to become the primary home language of the country. Today, around 1.3 million people speak the language.
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Mauritian Creole is aFrench-based creole language that may be related to theSeychellois,Rodriguan, andChagossian Creoles. Linguists disagree over the relationship, if any, of Mauritian Creole to other creole language examples in other parts of the world.Robert Chaudenson andHenri Wittmann hypothesize that Mauritian Creole is closely related toRéunion Creole. However, Philip Baker andChris Corne have argued that Réunionnais influence on Mauritian was minimal and that the two languages are no more similar to each other than they are to other French-based creoles.
ThePortuguese were the firstEuropeans to visit Mauritius, but they did not settle there. Only a small portion of Mauritian vocabulary derives from the Portuguese element in European maritime jargon (e.g., theMediterranean Lingua Franca) or from enslaved Africans or Asians who came from areas in which Portuguese was used as a trade language (e.g.,Angola andMozambique). Similarly, theDutch had a colony on Mauritius from 1638 to 1710, but ultimately evacuated toRéunion. A few runaway slaves remained, leaving no discernible impact on the Mauritian language.
The French ultimately claimed Mauritius and first settled it from 1715 to 1721, building a plantation economy based on slave labour. People fromWest andSoutheast Africa came to form 85% of the population by 1777, which led to linguistic fragmentation.[2] The size of the native French settler population on the island remained small and the enslaved population lacked formal education. The common language that developed was based on French, but a dialect that differed greatly from the language spoken by the slave owners. Mechanistically, this was similar to the process ofcreolization in other parts of the world. Thepidgin language used for daily communication by people from varying linguistic backgrounds eventually became the native language of children born in these communities. Eventually, this evolved into a creole language, with the complexity and completeness required for young children to use it as their mother tongue. Historical documents from as early as 1773 note the "creole language" that the slaves spoke.
TheBritish took over Mauritius during theNapoleonic era, but few native English speakers ever settled there. Mauritian Creole had already been firmly entrenched and continued to be the language used after British occupation began.
The abolition of slavery in the 1830s made many Africans leave the plantations. Indentured workers from India were brought to replace the freed slaves. The widely variable linguistic background of these immigrants mirrored that of the African slaves before them; therefore, no native language was dominant enough to become the basis for a shared language. Though Indians soon became the majority population on the island, their own linguistic fragmentation, as well as their alienation from the English- and French-speaking plantation owners, led them to take up Mauritian Creole as theirlingua franca.
The native English and French population have long enjoyed greater social status, in addition to dominatinggovernment,business,education, and themedia; however, Mauritian Creole's popularity in most informal domains has persisted, with around 85% of the population speaking this language.
Thephonology of Mauritian Creole is very similar to that ofStandard French. However, French/ʃ/ and/ʒ/ have respectively depalatalised to/s/ and/z/ in Mauritian, and the front vowels/y/ and/ø/ have respectively been unrounded to/i/ and/e/.[3]
The consonant /t/ and /d/ undergoes palatalisation when it occurs before the vowel /i/. This process causes the /t/ and /d/ to sound more like /tɕ/ and /dʑ/. The wordtifi (meaning girl) would be more pronounced astɕifi, rather thantifi.
| Labial | Alveolar | Post-alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Uvular | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plosive | Voiceless | p | t | t̠ʲ | k | ||
| Voiced | b | d | d̠ʲ | ɡ | |||
| Affricate | Voiceless | (tʃ) | |||||
| Voiced | (dʒ) | ||||||
| Nasal | Voiced | m | n | ɲ | ŋ | ||
| Fricative | Voiceless | f | s | (ʃ) | |||
| Voiced | v | z | (ʒ) | ʁ | |||
| Approximant | w | l | j | ||||
| Front | Back | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | Unrounded | i | |
| Rounded | (y) | u | |
| Close-mid | Unrounded | e | |
| Rounded | (ø) | o/oː | |
| Open-mid | Unrounded | ɛ | |
| Open | Rounded | a | ɑ |
| Front | Back | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Close-mid | Rounded | õ | |
| Open-mid | Unrounded | ɛ̃ | |
| Open | Rounded | ɑ̃ | |
| IPA | Example |
|---|---|
| i | minn (noodles) |
| e | net (completely) |
| ɛ | enn (one) |
| a | lakaz (house) |
| ɑ | narnier (nothing) |
| o | kot (where) |
| oː | lord (tidiness) |
| u | tou (all) |
| ɑ̃ | sante (song) |
| ɛ̃ | linz (clothes) |
| õ | koton (cotton) |
The language has several publisheddictionaries, both monolingual and bilingual, written by authors such as Philip Baker (1987) and Arnaud Carpooran (2005, 2009, 2011). The number of publications is increasing steadily, however, theorthographies used in them are significantly different.
The Mauritian government began supporting an orthographic reform in 2011, with a system that generally follows French but eliminatessilent letters and reduces the number of different ways in which the same sound can be written. It was codified in theLortograf Kreol Morisien (2011) and used in theGramer Kreol Morisien (2012) as well. The language became standard upon the publication of the second edition of theDiksioner Morisien.[5]
Examples shown are in Mauritian Creole and French only.
| Number | Mauritian Creole | French | Number | Mauritian Creole | French |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Zero | Zéro | 20 | Vin | Vingt |
| 1 | Enn | Un/Une | 21 | Vint-e-enn | Vingt et un |
| 2 | De | Deux | 22 | Vennde | Vingt-deux |
| 3 | Trwa | Trois | 23 | Venntrwa | Vingt-trois |
| 4 | Kat | Quatre | 24 | Vennkat | Vingt-quatre |
| 5 | Sink | Cinq | 25 | Vennsink | Vingt-cinq |
| 6 | Sis | Six | 26 | Vennsis | Vingt-six |
| 7 | Set | Sept | 27 | Vennset | Vingt-sept |
| 8 | Wit | Huit | 28 | Vintwit | Vingt-huit |
| 9 | Nef | Neuf | 29 | Vintnef | Vingt-neuf |
| 10 | Dis | Dix | 30 | Trant | Trente |
| 11 | Onz | Onze | 40 | Karant | Quarante |
| 12 | Douz | Douze | 50 | Sinkant | Cinquante |
| 13 | Trez | Treize | 60 | Swasant | Soixante |
| 14 | Katorz | Quatorze | 70 | Swasann-dis/Septant | Soixante-dix/Septante |
| 15 | Kinz | Quinze | 80 | Katrovin/Oktant | Quatre-vingts/Octante |
| 16 | Sez | Seize | 90 | Katrovin-dis/Nonant | Quatre-vingt-dix/Nonante |
| 17 | Diset | Dix-sept | 100 | San | Cent |
| 18 | Dizwit | Dix-huit | 1000 | Mil | Mille |
| 19 | Diznef | Dix-neuf | 1000000 | Enn milion | Un million |
Examples shown are in English, Mauritian Creole and French.
| English | Mauritian Creole | French |
|---|---|---|
| I, My | Mo | Je, Mon/Ma/Mes |
| You, Your (informal) | To | Tu, Ton/Ta/Tes |
| He/She/It, His/Her/Its | Li, So | Il/Elle, Son/Sa/Ses |
| We, Our | Nou | Nous, Nôtre/Nos |
| You, Your (pl) | Zot (autres) | Vous, Vôtre/Vos |
| You, Your (formal) | Ou | Vous, Vôtre/Vos |
| They, Their | Zot (autres) Bann-la | Ils/Elles, Son/Sa/Ses/Leur |
| Me (obj) | Mwa | Moi |
| You (obj) | Twa | Toi |
| Him/Her/It (obj) | Li | Le/La/Lui |
| Us (obj) | Nou | Nous |
| You (pl, obj) | Zot (autres) | Vous |
| You (formal, obj) | Ou | Vous |
| Them (obj) | Zot (autres) Bann-la | Eux |
| English | Mauritian Creole | French |
|---|---|---|
| Who | Kisann-la | Qui |
| What | Kwa/Ki | Quoi |
| When | Kan | Quand |
| Where | Kot/Kote/Ki kote | Où |
| Why | Kifer | Pourquoi |
| Which | Ki/Lekel (which one) | Quelle |
| English | Mauritian Creole | French |
|---|---|---|
| In front (of) | Devan, Drwat | Devant |
| Before | Avan | Avant |
| Behind | Deryer | Derrière |
| Over there | Laba | Là-bas |
| Right | Drwat | Droite |
| Left | Gos | Gauche |
| (To the) right | Adrwat | À droite |
| (To the) left | Agos | À gauche |
| Above | Lao | Sur (là-haut) |
| Below | Anba | Sous (en-bas) |
| Next to | Akote | À côté |
| Outside | Deor | Dehors |
| Inside | Andan | Dedans |
| Creole | Tamil | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Kali | கள்ளி kaḷḷi | Cactus |
| Notchi | நொச்சி Nocci | Vitex |
| Mourkou | முறுக்கு Muṟukku | A type of snack |
| Vetiver | வெட்டிவேர் Veṭṭivēr | Chrysopogon zizanioides |
| At | அட்டா Aṭṭā | Annona reticulata (custard apple) |
| Pipangay | பீர்க்கங்காய் Pīrkkaṅkāy | Luffa |
| Mouroum | முருங்கை Muruṅkai | Moringa |
| Patol | புடோல் Puṭōl | Trichosanthes cucumerina |
| Avrayka | அவரைக்காய் Avaraikkāy | Lablab purpureus |
| Kotaranga | கொத்தவரங்காய் Kottavaraṅkāy | Guar |
| Kotomili | கொத்தமல்லி Kottamalli | Coriander |
| Kari-poule | கருவேப்பிலை Karuvēppilai | Murraya koenigii |
| Betel | வெற்றிலை Veṟṟilai | Betel |
| Pak | பாக்கு Pākku | Areca nut |
| Poutou | புட்டு Puṭṭu | a rice dish called puṭṭu |
| Ounde | உருண்டை Urundai | A sphere-shaped confection |
| Ayo! | ஐயோ Ayyo! | Alas! (exclamation) |
| Kaandi | கரண்டி Karandi | A kind of spoon or ladle |
| Mang | மாம்பழம் Maam Palam | Mango |
Most of the words in French are also in Mauritian Creole. However, some of the words have changed their meaning slightly.
| English | Mauritian Creole | Original French Word | French |
|---|---|---|---|
| To use | Servi | Servir (to serve) | Utiliser |
| To get/have | Gagne | Gagner (to win) | Obtenir/Avoir |
| To like/love | Kontan | Content (happy) | Aimer |
| To be able to | Kapav/Ka/Kav | Capabilité (capability) | Pouvoir |
Most words come from French but are not always used in the same way.[6] For example, the French articlele, la, les is often fused with the noun in Mauritian:[7] Frenchrat is Mauritianlera and Frenchtemps is Mauritianletan. The same is true for someadjectives andprepositions: Frenchfemme ("woman") andriz ("rice") arebonnfam (frombonne femme) anddiri (fromdu riz) in Mauritian. Some words have changed their meanings: Mauritiangagn ("to get, obtain") is derived from Frenchgagner ("to win, earn").
Other words come from eitherPortuguese orSpanish.[8] The wordziromon meaning pumpkin is from Portuguesejerimum, originally fromTupijirumun. The wordlakaz meaning house is originally from Portuguesecasa.
There are also severalloanwords from the languages of the AfricanMalagasy slaves, who contributed such words as Mauritianlapang fromMalagasyampango (rice stuck to the bottom of a pot), Mauritianlafus from Malagasyhafotsa (a kind of tree), and Mauritianzahtak from Malagasyantaka (a kind of plant). In some cases, as with some of the nouns from French, the Mauritian word has fused with the French articlele/la/les.[9]
Words of East African origin include Mauritianmakutu fromMakuamakhwatta (running sore), Mauritianmatak fromSwahili, andMakondematako (buttock).
Recent loanwords tend to come from English, such asmap instead ofplan orcarte in French (plan orkart in Mauritian Creole). English words used in Mauritian Creole retain their English spelling but should normally be written withinverted commas.
Only two common Mauritian Creole words derive from Chinese:minn (fromYue Chinese:麵,romanized: mihn), meaning "noodle", andmalang, meaning "dirty" or "poor".
Nouns do not change in accordance withgrammatical number. Whether a noun is singular or plural can usually be determined only by context. However, the particlebann (frombande) is often placed before a word to indicate that it is plural. Frenchun/une corresponds to Mauritianenn but its use has slightly different rules. Mauritian has an article (la), but it is placed after the noun. Compare Frenchun rat,ce rat,le rat,les rats, and Mauritianenn lera,lera-la andbann lera.[10]
In Mauritian, there is only one form for each pluralpronoun and the third-person singular pronoun, regardless ofcase orgender;li can thus be translated as "he, she, it, him, his, her, hers" depending on the context.[11]
Verbs do not change their form according totense orperson. Instead, the accompanying noun or pronoun determines who is engaging in the action, and several preverbal particles are used alone or in combination to indicate the tense:ti (from Frenchétais) markspast tense,pe, short for the now-rareape (from "après", asQuébec French) still uses to mark theprogressive aspect,(f)inn (from Frenchfini) marks the completive orperfect, andpou or sometimesva orava (from Frenchva, rarely used however) marks thefuture tense.
For example,li finn gagn ("he/she/it got/had") can also be shortened toli'nn gagn and pronounced as one word. The Réunion version isli té fine gagne for past,li té i gagne for past progressive, andli sava gagne for present progressive ornear future.
Verbs do change their form if there is an object in the sentence.Verbs that end in "e" drop the "e" when there is an object.
For example, the baseverb "to eat" in Mauritian Creole, ismanze. To say, "I am eating", you saymo pe manze, but when an object is added, the "e" is lost. For example, to say "I am eating bread", you saymo pemanz dipin.
Even if it is an indirect object, the "e" is lost. For example, to say "I am going to a shop", (the baseverb isale) you saymo peal enn magazin.
To negate a sentence, the marker "pa" (which comes from the word "pas" in french) is used, like in the sentenceli pa manz dipin (he/she/it doesn't eat bread).
| Creole Markers | Tense/Aspect | Example sentence | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| pe (après) | Present progressive | Dasa pe manze | Dasa is eating |
| ti (était) | Past simple | Dasa ti manze | Dasa ate |
| finn/fini/inn/'nn (finir) | Present perfect | Dasa finn/inn manze | Dasa has eaten |
| (finn/'nn) fek | Past recent | Dasa finn/inn fek manze | Dasa has just eaten |
| pou (pour) | Future simple | Dasa pou manze | Dasa will eat |
| pou finn/fini | Future perfect | Das pou finn/fini manze | Dasa will have eaten |
| ava (va) | Indefinite future | Dasa ava manze | Dasa will eat |
| ti pe/ape | Past progressive | Dasa ti pe/ape manze | Dasa was eating |
| ti pou | Past future/Conditional | Dasa ti pou manze | Dasa was going to/would eat |
| ti finn/fini | Past perfect | Dasa ti finn/fini manze | Dasa had eaten |
| ti pou finn/fini | Conditional past | Dasa ti pou finn/fini manze | Dasa would have eaten |
Thecausativevoice is marked by the wordfer (do) whilst thereflexive voice is marked with either the express lack of a marking; or the wordsli, andlimem.
For example, the sentence "the bread is eaten by him", you say,dipin-la finn manze par li (which, when translated literally, isthe bread eaten by him).
Here is theLord's Prayer in Mauritian Creole, French and English:
| Mauritian Creole | Gallicized orthography | French | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nou Papa ki dan lesiel Fer rekonet ki to nom sain, | Nous Papa qui dans le-ciel, Faire reconnaitte que to nom saint, | Notre Père, qui est aux cieux, Que ton Nom soit sanctifié, | Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. |
. Papen, Robert A. The French-based Creoles of the Indian Ocean: An Analysis and Comparison. Unpublished PhD thesis. University of California, San Diego. 1978.
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