| Antiguan and Barbudan Creole | |
|---|---|
| Aanteegan an' Baabyuudan / Raabak | |
| Native to | Leeward Islands |
Native speakers | (150,000 cited 2001–2011)[1] |
English Creole
| |
| Dialects | |
| Latin | |
| Official status | |
| Regulated by | Antiguan and Barbudan Language Academy[2] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | aig |
| Glottolog | anti1245 |
| Linguasphere | 52-ABB-apf |
 The Antiguan and Barbudan Creole-speaking world: regions where Antiguan and Barbudan Creole is the language of the majority regions where Antiguan and Barbudan Creole is the language of a significant minority | |
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Antiguan and Barbudan Creole[a] is anEnglish-based creole language that emerged from contact between speakers of theKwa languages and speakers ofAntiguan and Barbudan English in theLeeward Islands. Today, it is natively spoken inAntigua and Barbuda,Saint Kitts and Nevis,Anguilla,Montserrat, and some villages inDominica. Antiguan and Barbudan Creole is the most spoken language in two independent countries, and is one of the most spoken languages in theeastern Caribbean. The language has approximately 150,000 native speakers.
Antiguan and Barbudan Creole is composed ofseveral distinct varieties, some of which are only semi-intelligible to each other. Due to increased contact between settlements in the Leeward Islands, the creole has many extinct village-specific varieties that have since merged into each other. The most spoken variety of the creole,North Antiguan, has been particularly affected bydecreolisation and influences from other English creoles.
The majority of the Antiguan and Barbudan Creole vocabulary is English in origin, and the language has a unique vowel system as well as distinct grammar. Antiguan and Barbudan Creole remains a language of informal communication, and thus, it is not taught in schools or used in formal academic communication.
In Antigua and Barbuda, theendonym of Antiguan and Barbudan Creole israabak ([ɹäːbäk]) orAanteegan an' Baabyuudan.[3] The termRaabak is usually used as an adjective ("to talk raw back"), although the term can also be used as a noun. The most common[4] exonym of the language among linguists is "Antiguan and Barbudan Creole", which may also be called "Antigua and Barbuda Creole English". These exonyms are used in theISO 639-3 standard, and the term "Leeward Caribbean Creole" or "Leeward Caribbean Creole English"[5][6] is less common.[4] Speakers usually identify with their dialect rather than with the entire language.[7]
The first confirmed English settlement in Antigua and Barbuda was in 1632, and a unique English dialect known asAntiguan and Barbudan English (ABE) eventually emerged.[8] In 1674, the Antigua's first sugar plantation was established, which resulted in a significant increase in the slave population and the island eventually becoming majorityAfrican by the 1680s.[9] Antiguan and Barbudan Creole emerged when speakers of ABE made contact with African slaves.[10][11][12] In 1685 slavery in Barbuda commenced, withBarbudans being nearly completely isolated from the white population and other islands, resulting in the emergence ofBarbudan Creole.[13] As most slaves that were brought to both Antigua and Barbuda spoke languages from theKwa cluster, these languages became Antiguan and Barbudan Creole's substrate.[10]
After emancipation, the language continued to be spoken by former slaves, and as new villages emerged the language began to split into various dialects. These village-specific creoles existed until the 1960s, when people began to commute into cities and island-wide dialects emerged.South Antiguan Creole was the least impacted by outside influence, and thus can only be partially understood by speakers of other dialects.[7][14]
Since the 1970s and 1980s, the language has been viewed more positively, and Antiguan and Barbudan Creole texts can now be seen in some newspapers and on television.[7]
Antiguan and Barbudan Creole is the primary language in four countries and territories. The language is also spoken by a minority of the population of Dominica, which primarily speaksDominican Creole French. In Dominica, Kokoy is spoken by a majority of the population in certain northeastern villages, a dialect that emerged in the late nineteenth century from Antiguan and Barbudan and Montserratian immigrants.[15]
In Antigua and Barbuda, there are three dialects–North Antiguan, South Antiguan, and Barbudan. South Antiguan Creole is primarily spoken inSaint Mary and the village ofSwetes, collectively known as "Round South". This part of Antigua is dominated by theShekerley Mountains, significantly isolating it from the island's centre of population where North Antiguan Creole is primarily spoken. Barbudan Creole is only spoken in Barbuda and by the Barbudans.[5]
In Saint Kitts and Nevis, their single dialect is spoken throughout the country, and is heavily spoken in the region of Capesterre. The Anguillan dialect is significantly influenced by other English creoles due to its geographic isolation, and Montserrat Creole is among the closest dialects to North Antiguan.[7]
Antiguan and Barbudan Creole has twenty-two consonants, ten vowels, two semi-vowels, and fourdiphthongs. Unique to the language are the diphthongs (gliding vowels) /ia/ (alternates with /ie/), /ua/ (alternates with /ua/), /ai/, and /ou/. Semi-vowels are phonetically vowels, but phonologically consonants. /w/ and /j/ are the two semi-vowels. Below is a table of the consonants in Antiguan and Barbudan Creole:[7]
| Labial | Alveolar | Post- | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ŋ | ||||
| Plosive/ | voiceless | p | t | t͡ʃ | c | k | |
| voiced | b | d | d͡ʒ | ɟ | ɡ | ||
| Fricative | voiceless | f | s | ʃ | h | ||
| voiced | v | z | ʒ | ||||
| Approximant | l | ɹ | j | w | |||
Below is a table of vowels:[7]
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i iː | uː | |
| Near-close | ɪ | ʊ | |
| Mid | ɛ | ə | o ɔ ɔː |
| Open | ä äː |
A distinct feature of the creole is the alternation of certain sounds, such as /v/ alternating with /b/ in the wordbex. English /tɹ/ and /dɹ/ alternate with the creole [t͡ʃ] and [d͡ʒ] in basilectal varieties. For example, "true" becomes [t͡ʃuː] (chuu) and "drink" becomes [d͡ʒɪŋk] (jingk). /h/ dropping is also common in the language, making the /h/ in words like "hair" or "head" silent. /h/ insertion, the opposite process, is exclusive to South Antiguan Creole. An example of this is in the word [häks] (hax), the South Antiguan word for "ask".[7][16]
The palatalization of /k/ and /g/ and the insertion of /j/ glides is also common. This first developed before consonants that preceded /a/ in Antiguan and Barbudan English.[17] Examples include:[7][16]
Optional nasalization is sometimes present in all vowels but /ə/. Examples include:[7][18]
The language has traditionally been written using various respellings from standard English. At the Axarplex Institute, there is an Antiguan and Barbudan Language Academy with the aim to standardise the language, which developed the following orthography:[2]
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Vocabulary is widely based on British vocabulary, due to centuries of association withGreat Britain.[20] Examples:
However, in other cases the American form prevails over the British one, due to the islands' close proximity to the United States:[21][22]
Because of the influx of other Caribbean nationals to Antigua, due to natural migration and to theCSME, Antigua's everyday vocabulary is being influenced byJamaican Creole,Bajan Creole,Guyanese Creole andTrinidadian Creole. This is even more common among the youth. Examples:
| Creole | English | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| aata | after | [äːtə] |
| a die ee die | there it is | [ä deɪ iː deɪ] |
| a wa duu | how are you? | [ä wä duː] |
| a na | it's not | [ä nä] |
| a chuu | it's true | [ä tʃuː] |
| baakl | bottle | [bäːkl] |
| bakra | white person, slave master | [bäːkɹə] |
| bex | to be upset | [bɛks] |
| bie | beach | [beɪ] |
| biesaid | seaside or beach | [beɪsaɪd] |
| kyaakl/caakl | cattle | [cäːkl] |
| Dadli | Antigua | [dädli] |
| ee bang gud | it tastes good | [iː bäŋ gʊd] |
| ebriting | everything | [ɛbɹitɪŋ] |
| fig | banana | [fɪg] |
| konchi | country | [kɔntʃiː] |
| korukl | stuff, paraphernalia, apparatus | [kɔɹʊkl] |
| kranana | nothing | [kɹänänä] |
| kurant | electricity | [kʊɹənt] |
| kuu | look | [kuː] |
| meegou | Arab | [miːgoʊ] |
| naiga | person, people | [neɪgə] |
| nutin | nothing | [nʊtɪn] |
| nyam | to eat | [njäm] |
| pikinaiga | children | [pɪkɪneɪgə] |
| pikni | child | [pɪkni] |
| Raabak | Antiguan and Barbudan Creole | [ɹäːbäk] |
| sweet ail | cooking oil | [swiːt aɪl] |
| valeez | a small suitcase | [vəliːz] |
| vilij | village | [vɪlɪdʒ] |
| yaad | ones house or home | [yäːd] |
The following text was published inAntigua and the Antiguans in 1844 in the Saint Kitts dialect:[24]
| Old creole text | Modern creole | English |
|---|---|---|
| You no I tould you how it wood be, but you all ways were a wild nagur, and wood neber hear reeson, and lubbed to follow your hedstrong ways. But now you are suffering for it, an I hope you’ll repent, as good Massa Parson says. You nuo you had no right to run away and leabe you yong pic’nees here to starbe. It was a most wicked act, but I ’spose the Capen who took you away will be made to support ’em as he ought. | Yu nuo mi tel yu au ee wud bi, bot yu aalweiz min wan wail naiga, an wud neba eer reezin, an min lub fu falou fuyu edtraang wie. Bot nau yu a sufa fu um, an mi uop yu repen, az gud Maasa Paasan sie. Yu nuo yu ab no rait fu go agwasa an leeb fuyu yong pikinaiga ya fu taab. Um min wan wikidwikid ting fu duu, bot mi tink de kyaapm hu tek yu awie wi hafu elp um az ee tink. | You know, I told you how it would be, but you always were a wild person, and you would never hear reason, and you loved to follow your self-centred ways. But now it causes you suffering, and I hope you'll repent, as the good Master Pastor says. You know you had no right to run away and leave your young children here to starve. It was a very wicked act, but I suppose the Captain who took you away will be forced to support him as he ought to. |
The grammar of Antiguan and Barbudan Creole is primarily based on the substrates, the Kwa languages. The language has two articles:wan (indefinite article; "a", "an") andde/di (definite article), both derived etymologically from English. The demonstrative pronouns aredis ("this"),dat ("that"), anddem ("them"). These pronouns can also combine with other morphemes, making alternatesdisya (lit. "this here"),datdey/datdie (lit. "that there"),demya (lit. "them here"), anddemdey/demdie (lit. "them there"). Mass nouns cannot take a plural marker or an indefinite article. Pronouns may be preceded by a definite article to emphasize. Most adjectives are placed before the noun they modify. The adjectivesman ("man") anduuman ("woman") can be used to gender a noun, including animals– for example,uumandaag (lit. "woman dog"). There is no gender agreement in the language however. In basilect, possession can be indicated by either placing the possessor before the possessed or usinga ("of"), for examplenaiga a Jaan ("John's people"; lit. "people of John").[7]
The language has a complex tense and aspect system. Past tense is marked bymin, for example:mi min nyam ("I ate"). Future tense is marked by eithergo,a go,wi, orwil. For example,mi go nyam ("I will eat"). Present tense is unmarked, for example:shi aapi ("she is happy"). Aspect is primarily distinguished between perfective and imperfective. Perfective is not marked, while imperfective is marked bya. An example of perfective ismi nyam ("I have eaten"). There are two categories within imperfective, habitual actions and progressive actions. Habitual is usually unmarked, for example:hi lib wid mi ("he lives with me"), while progressive is marked witha:mi a nyam ("I am eating"). There is also completive aspect, marked bydun/don:mi dun nyam ("I have eaten"; lit. "I done eat"). Negation is marked byno ("no"), in a distinct manner from English.[7]
The pronominal system of Standard English has a four-way distinction of person, singular/plural, gender and nominative/objective. Some varieties of Antiguan Creole do not have the gender or nominative/objective distinction, though most do. Unlike English, the language distinguishes between the second person singular and plural (you).[7]
To form the possessive form of the pronoun add "fu-" to the above.
Example:
Antiguan Creole is used in almost every aspect of life in Antigua. In all schools, during class hours, it is required of students to speak Standard English. This policy is especially exercised in private owned schools. Most media and mainstream communication is written and spoken in Standard English, although Antiguan Creole is sometimes used humorously or as a way of identifying with the local public.
Use of Antiguan Creole varies depending on socio-economic class. In general, the higher and middle classes use it amongst friends and family but switch to Standard English in the public sphere. The lower class tend to use Antiguan Creole in almost every sector of life. Part of this discrepancy dates back to the Creole's inception. Ever since Antiguan Creole first came into existence it was used as a means to identify with a given group. For example, as more slaves entered the island, indentured servants and slaves had less contact with white plantation owners as the economy moved to a larger-scale. While these two groups interacted and a Creole emerged as the two groups had to communicate and interact, indentured servants tried to speak the 'Standard English' with increased frequency in order to associate with people at the top of the hierarchy for whom 'Standard English' was the norm.[12] Conversely, for slaves, speaking the Creole was a symbol of identity.[12]
