| Hawaii Creole English |
Article Index for Hawaii |
Website Links For Hawaiian Pidgin |
Information AboutHawaii Creole English |
Hawaii Pidgin English, '''Hawaii Creole English''', '''HCE''', or simply ''' language code for Hawaii Pidgin (Hawaii Creole English) is hwc. http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=hwcHISTORY Pidgin (or Hawaii Creole) originated as a form of communication used between native and non-native English speakers in Hawaii. It supplanted the Pidgin Hawaiian used on the plantations and elsewhere in Hawaii. It has been influenced by many languages, including Portuguese , Hawaiian, and Cantonese , one of the Chinese Language s. As people of other language backgrounds were brought in to work on the plantations, such as Japanese , Filipinos , and Koreans , Pidgin acquired words from these languages. Japanese Loanwords In Hawaii lists some of those words originally from Japanese. It has also been influenced to a lesser degree by Spanish spoken by Mexican and Puerto Rican settlers in Hawaii. Even today, Pidgin retains some influences from these languages. For example, the word "stay" in Pidgin has the same meaning as the Portuguese verb "ficar", meaning "to stay" when referring to a temporary state or location. Sometimes the structure of the language is like that of Portuguese grammar. For instance, "You like one knife?" means "Would you like a knife?". The reason the word "one" is used instead of "a" is because the word "um" in Portuguese has two meanings: "um" translates to "one" and "a" in English. The way people use the phrase "No can" is Portuguese grammar, as well. In Portuguese, the phrase "Você não pode fazer isto!" comes out in Pidgin as "You no can do dat!", and in English as "You cannot do that!". Portuguese nasal vowels are also seen in a few words of pidgin, in the words, "nevamine" and "kine" which is "never mind" and "kind". Pidgin words derived from Cantonese are also seen in other parts of America. For example, the word "Haa?" is also used by Chinese Americans outside of Hawaii. The meaning is "Excuse me?" or "What did you say?". Another word is " Chop Suey ", a popular dish throughout America. In Hawaii, it can also mean that someone is a variety of ethnicities. Another word in pidgin that was derived from the Chinese which is also seen in America is "lie dat", which means "like that" but in Hawaii it is pronounced "la'dat". In the 19th and 20th centuries, Pidgin started to be used outside the plantation between ethnic groups. Public school children learned Pidgin from their classmates, and eventually it became the primary language of most people in Hawaii, replacing the original languages. For this reason, Linguist s generally consider Hawaiian Pidgin to be a Creole Language . PERCEPTIONS Today, most people raised in Hawaii can speak and understand Pidgin to some extent. At the same time, many people who know Pidgin can Code-switch between standard American English and Pidgin depending on the situation. Knowledge of Pidgin is considered by many to be an important part of being considered "local", regardless of racial and socio-economic background. For example, the Hawaii-born CEO of one of the largest banks in the state said of the Mainland-born CEO of a competing bank, "Anytime he wants to Debate in Pidgin on 'local,' I'm available." http://starbulletin.com/2003/04/18/news/story2.html While most linguists agree that Hawaii Pidgin is a full-fledged language with its own grammar, pronunciation, intonation, and domains of use, it is viewed by some non-linguists to be "substandard", or as a "corrupted" form of English, or even as broken English. As a result, it is widely believed that use of "standard" English is a key to career and educational success, and that use of Pidgin is a sign of lower socio-economic status. Its role in the schools of Hawaii has been a subject of controversy due in part to the popular perceptions of the language described above and as a result of critics blaming the language's widespread use for poor results in standardized national tests in reading and writing. In 1987, the state Board of Education implemented a policy allowing only standard English (most particularly resulting from such a recognition and acceptance of Pidgin as an educational language when appropriate would ultimately help Pidgin speaking students master standard English reading and writing and create more successful educational experiences. PRONUNCIATION Pidgin has distinct pronunciation differences from standard American English (SAE). Some key differences include the following:
GRAMMATICAL FEATURES Pidgin also has distinct grammatical forms not found in SAE, but some of which are shared with other dialectal forms of English or may derive from other linguistic influences. Forms used for SAE "to be":
: ''Da baby cute.'' (or) ''Cute, da baby.'' : The baby is cute.
: ''Da book stay on top da table.'' : The book is on the table. : ''Da water stay cold.'' : The water is cold. For Tense -marking of Verb , Auxiliary Verb s are employed:
: ''Jesus wen cry.'' (DJB, John 11:35) : Jesus cried.
: ''God goin do plenny good kine stuff fo him.'' (DJB, Mark 11:9) : God is going to do a lot of good things for him.
: ''He neva like dat.'' : He didn't want that. (or) He never wanted that.
: ''I tryin fo tink.'' or : ''I try fo tink." : I'm trying to think.
A variety of phrases is present in the language of local Hawaiians, including: "Ho, cuz, I like sample" translates to "Could I have some?" "You like try dat?" = "Do you want to try it?" "No can" = "I can't" For more information on grammar, also see Sakoda & Siegel (References, below) and the Pidgin Coup paper (External links, below). LITERATURE AND PERFORMING ARTS In recent years, writers from Hawaii have written poems, short stories, and other works in Pidgin. This list included well-known Hawaii authors such as Lois-Ann Yamanaka and Lee Tonouchi . A Pidgin translation of the New Testament (called ''Da Jesus Book'') has also been created, as has an adaptation of William Shakespeare 's Twelfth Night, Or What You Will , titled in Pidgin "Twelf' Night, or Whateva." Several Theater companies in Hawaii produce plays written and performed in Pidgin. The most notable of these companies is Kumu Kahua Theater . MISCELLANEOUS Pidgin has its own Sign Language , called Hawaiian Pidgin Sign Language . Most users of Hawaiian Pidgin Sign Language are between the ages of 70 and 90. Ethnologue lists it as "nearly extinct," as most deaf people in Hawaii use American Sign Language with some local signs. http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=HPS SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS
REFERENCES
FURTHER READING NOTES |
|
|