Creole Formation Research Articles

Stop contrast acquisition in child Kriol: Evidence of stable transmission of phonology post Creole formation.

Many Aboriginal Australian communities are undergoing language shift from traditional Indigenous languages to contact varieties such as Kriol, an English-lexified Creole. Kriol is reportedly characterised by lexical items with highly variable phonological specifications, and variable implementation of voicing and manner contrasts in obstruents (Sandefur, 1986). A language, such as Kriol, characterised by this unusual degree of variability presents Kriol-acquiring children with a potentially difficult language-learning task, and one which challenges the prevalent theories of acquisition. To examine stop consonant acquisition in this unusual language environment, we present a study of Kriol stop and affricate production, followed by a mispronunciation detection study, with Kriol-speaking children (ages 4-7) from a Northern Territory community where Kriol is the lingua franca. In contrast to previous claims, the results suggest that Kriol-speaking children acquire a stable phonology and lexemes with canonical phonemic specifications, and that English experience would not appear to induce this stability.

The lexicon and creole formation

Abstract There is disagreement as to the formation period of Chabacano, Philippine Creole Spanish. This article examines lexical items that have been claimed to stem from an early period of formation of Chabacano (Jacobs & Parkvall 2020). As a response to these claims, we show with ample dialectological and diachronic evidence that Chabacano items ansina ‘this way, like this,’ endenantes ‘a little while ago’, onde ‘where,’ and vos ‘2sg’ are compatible with any period of formation for the Creole. Consequently, the presence of these lexical items in the Chabacano varieties does not link their formation to a hypothetical proto-Creole created before 1640, nor does it lend proof to the hypothesis that the current varieties descend directly from it. In general, we argue that creoles require as rigorous diachronic and diatopic studies as their lexifiers to show the maturity of Creole Studies as a field of inquiry.

A Late-Insertion-Based Exoskeletal Approach to the Hybrid Nature of Functional Features in Creole Languages

The goal of this paper is to further our understanding of the nature of functional features in Creoles while focusing on how the functional exponent is morphologically realized, assuming a late-insertion-based exoskeletal model in the language mixing scholarly literature. In language mixing, it is observed that words are mixed within a certain syntactic domain (e.g., DP-NP, VoiceP/vP-TP, etc.). For example, in the nominal domain, a determiner D may be from one language, and N (or a stem, e.g., root + categorizer) may originate from another language. Grimstad and Riksem propose that the functional projection FP intervenes between D and N, and both D and F are from one language and N from another language. The phonological exponent of the functional features (e.g., D and F) are assumed to be language-specific (i.e., from one language), subject to the subset principle. Closer to the case that concerns us, Åfarli and Subbarao show that through long-term language contact, functional features can be reconstituted, and the functional exponent can be genuinely innovative. In our study, we propose that functional features can be themselves recombined and that Creole languages can provide evidence for feature recombination either by virtue of their hybrid grammar or through the congruent functional categories they display, using a late-insertion-based exoskeletal model. That is, functional features are not individually inherited from one language or another but can be recombined to form new functional features, allowing a novel functional exponent. To show this, we use synchronic empirical data focusing on the anterior marker -ba from Cabo Verdean Creole (CVC), Manjako (one of CVC Mande substrates), and Portuguese (CVC lexifier) to show how the recombination may operate, as CVC -ba recombines the features it inherited from its source languages while innovating. In sum, the purpose of this study is to show that feature recombination targeting the functional categories of Creole source languages can lead to innovation and that a late-insertion exoskeletal model can best account for the novel functional exponents that result from feature recombination in Creole formation.

Negation and its bearing on creole genesis

For the past 20 years, the question of a ˋˋcreole prototype'' has been at the center of heated debates. Among features that are claimed to be typical of creole formation is the placement of negation, which usually appears preceding tense, aspect and mood markers (e.g. McWhorter 2018). In this paper, I examine diachronic data, in particular, French compound tenses and show that the position of negation in at least French-related creoles is nothing but the result of regular grammaticalization given input. As such the expression of negation typically exemplifies coalescence of the already grammaticalized negator pas into an inflectional exponent in the creoles.

Mitochondrial DNA Variations in Colombian Creole Sheep Confirm an Iberian Origin and Shed Light on the Dynamics of Introduction Events of African Genotypes.

Simple SummaryCreole sheep were introduced in South America by Spanish colonizers by the end of the fifteenth century. However, the exact dynamics of their formation remains uncertain. There is no consensus on the arrival of hair sheep of African origin, which may have reached the Caribbean coasts at different periods, compared to wool sheep that arrived from the Iberian Peninsula. Although bovines are the most important species for animal-origin food production in South America, sheep represent a strategic genetic resource for populations living in marginal areas with scarce economic resources. This study sheds light on the genetic structure of Colombian Creole sheep on the basis of mitochondrial DNA analysis. The main results indicate a common genetic layer originating from the first sheep that arrived during the European colonization, followed by the introduction of sheep of African origin.The genetic origins and diversity of Creole sheep from five regions of Colombia were investigated based on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variations across 89 sequences from five breeds: one wool Creole sheep (CL) and four hair Creole sheep, including Ethiopian (OPCE), Sudan (OPCS), Pelibuey (OPCP) and Wayúu (OPCW). A global comparison was done using 62 haplotypes from Iberian, African, Indian, Caribbean, Mexican, Caucasian and European sheep based on sequences retrieved from GenBank. This study aimed to identify the maternal origin of Colombian Creole sheep and their genetic relationships at a global level. The results showed 31 different haplotypes from Colombian Creole sheep, which can be assigned to maternal lineage B, the most common lineage found in European sheep breeds and the only one found in several Iberian breed (e.g., Churra, Spanish Merino) that most likely participated in the Creole formation. Additional analyses showed that wool and hair sheep retained a broad genetic identity despite being geographically separated. The global-level phylogenetic analysis revealed that Colombian Creole sheep belong to a distinct and defined genetic lineage that is likely the result of a founder effect with ecotypes of Iberian descent and the subsequent introduction of foreign breeds. This is consistent with historical reports on the presence of sheep in South America and, particularly, Colombia.

The role of parallel constructions in imposition

Abstract Imposition, a general mechanism of contact-induced change that manifests itself in creole formation, second language acquisition, and even language attrition (Winford 2013), is a result of unequal dominance in a multilingual’s languages, whereby linguistic features from an individual’s more dominant language are transferred to a less dominant language (van Coetsem 1988). In order to flesh out how imposition operates in multilinguals, this study compares the differences between Singaporean Chinese and Malay speakers in their use of already in Colloquial Singapore English. Based on sociolinguistic interview data from twelve Chinese and eight Malay individuals, it is found that Chinese and Malay speakers differ primarily in two ways: (1) the preferred syntactic position for already; (2) the frequency of different contexts that already appears in. By integrating theories from cognitive linguistics and findings from psycholinguistic studies, this paper argues that ‘equivalent’ constructions across two grammatical systems within a multilingual’s mind is a key channel through which imposition operates. To support this argument, differences between the speech of Chinese and Malay speakers are shown to be motivated by the presence or absence of ‘equivalent’ or parallel constructions.

Por que a crioulização aconteceu no Caribe e não no Brasil? Condicionamentos sócio-históricos

Com base em dados socioeconômicos, este artigo busca explicar por que a crioulização aconteceu de forma ampla no Caribe e não aconteceu de forma representativa e duradoura no Brasil. A partir daí, o artigo procura fazer algumas generalizações acerca da formação histórica dos chamados crioulos do Atlântico e da própria concepção do que sejam as línguas crioulas. A posição que orienta essa análise é a de que, para que ocorra a crioulização, é preciso que haja uma ruptura na transmissão linguística, o que possibilita uma forte redução e a reestruturação profunda de uma variedade de segunda língua, um pidgin, que, ao se nativizar, dá origem à língua crioula. Para que a pidginização ocorra, é preciso que a comunidade de falantes que vai desenvolver o pidgin seja submetida a um violento processo de segregação e isolamento, como aconteceu no Caribe, e, ao que tudo indica, não aconteceu no Brasil, em função da maior complexidade e das mediações que se observam na estrutura social do Brasil Colônia. Ao final, o artigo faz uma breve descrição dos aspectos linguísticos que diferenciam a crioulização de processos mais leves de transmissão linguística irregular, como o que aconteceu no Brasil.

OS JUDEUS SEFARDITAS EM CURAÇAO E SEU PAPEL NA FORMAÇÃO DO PAPIAMENTU

RESUMO Este estudo tem como objetivo analisar a participação dos judeus sefarditas na configuração linguística do papiamentu, considerando que esse papel tem sido negligenciado nos estudos sobre essa língua. No contexto linguístico, preces e epitáfios em português confirmam que esta era a língua usada por vários judeus sefarditas em Curaçao. Por outro lado, a análise de documentos do século XVIII revela que o papiamentu sefardita influenciou a variedade geral. Henriquez (1988, 1991) descreveu o vocabulário característico do papiamentu falado pelos judeus sefarditas. Adicionalmente, Martinus (1996) e Jacobs (2012) apresentam registros que podem apontar uma relação tripartide entre a Senegâmbia/Alta Guiné, Amsterdam e Curaçao através do comércio de escravos conduzido pelos judeus. Desse modo, este estudo pretende mostrar que os judeus tiveram um papel importante na sociedade curaçauense e contribuíram para a configuração do papiamentu. Aqui seguimos uma abordagem similar àquela defendida por Faraclas et al. (2014): uma convergência de elementos deve ser considerada ao estudar a formação dos crioulos atlânticos, sobretudo a atuação de falantes de diferentes línguas.

Motivation in pidgin and creole genesis

Abstract Almost all creolists see creole formation as a case of (failed) second language acquisition. I argue that there are good reasons to distinguish between second language acquisition and pidginisation/creolisation, and that little is gained by equating the two. While learners have an extant language as their target, pidginisers typically aim to communicate (in any which way) rather than to acquire a specific language. In this sense, pidginisation represents, if not “conscious language change”, at least “conscious language creation”.

Língua de Preto, the language of the African slave community in Portugal (16th–19th centuries)

AbstractLíngua de Preto‘language of the Blacks’ (LdP) is the conventional name for the basic variety of Portuguese spoken by the West African slaves deported to Portugal from the end of the 15th century onwards, who formed an important and visible minority within the Portuguese population until the end of the 19th century. The restructured Portuguese they used with the white Portuguese and among themselves is partially known to us through theatre and folk literature. Although its heyday was the 16th century, it apparently continued in use until the 18th century. The present article tries to account for its emergence and continuance and to assess its possible contribution to the formation of West African Portuguese Creoles. What LdP implies for the Portuguese attitude toward language issues is also examined.

What causes languages to be transparent?

There is a long tradition in linguistic research (Antilla, 1972; Dressler, 2005) arguing that one-to-one correspondences between form and meaning are somehow more ‘natural’, ‘optimal’ or at least simpler than structures lacking such transparent correspondences. Also recently, it has been argued (e.g. Leufkens, 2013) that in general creole-languages adhere more to such a principle than non-creole languages.In this paper I argue that transparency when found anywhere in languages must be considered from the perspective of learning strategies rather than from the perspective of the computational system. I first argue that transparency is not a principle of grammar. On the contrary, the mapping between the (morpho-)syntax and the phonology in natural languages is characterized by mismatches between structure and form. Consequently, the idea that a transparent mapping is somehow ‘optimal’ is, at least from the perspective of the grammar, misguided. This raises the question why it seems to be the case that transparency is a tendency that may be observed in contact-languages. I answer this question by invoking the Mutual Exclusivity Principle (Merriman and Bowman, 1989) known from word-learning by children, which roughly entails that forms that have been assigned a meaning by the language learner, will not be used in different meanings. Vice versa references that have a particular form will not be expressed by another form. This principle is perfectly in line with transparency. Recently, it has been shown that the Mutual Exclusivity Principle is also operative in other mammals, so we can safely assume that it belongs to more general rather than task-specific cognitive mechanisms. Furthermore, I claim that the Mutual Exclusivity Principle works on stored items only. Since second language acquisition plays a central role in the formation of creoles (Lefebvre et al., 2006; Veenstra, 2009; Muysken, 2013) and since, generally speaking, second language learners rely more on declarative knowledge (‘storage’) than on procedural knowledge (‘computation’) (see e.g. Blom et al., 2008), I argue that the effect of the Mutual Exclusivity Principle will be greater in second language acquisition than in first language acquisition. As a result we may see a tendency towards transparency in contact languages.

Creole formation and L2 acquisition

Creole formation and L2 acquisition

A socio-historical account of the formation of the creole language of Antigua

The present paper constructs a socio-historically oriented account of Antiguan Creole (hereafter AC) formation based on the chronology, demographics, economy, and origin and distribution of the population groups of colonial Antigua. During the first decades after the establishment of the colony in the mid seventeenth century until the end of that century, Antigua based its economy on small holdings not dependent on slave labor, where contact among different linguistic groups was so close and direct as to create a second language variety (hereafter L2). By the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, the demographic make-up changed radically as sugar became the dominant crop, enslaved peoples were massively imported, and a plantation economy dominated the island’s affairs. It is during this period that segregation increased, creating a gap between groups of European and African origin, which resulted in a process of restructuring that created a more divergent form of the earlier L2. Thus I argue that AC formation involved both the pre-plantation and the plantation phases, so the creolization process was not completed until the importation of slaves stopped and the balance between the locally-born and the foreign-born population shifted in favor of the former. Furthermore, I survey the language groups that may have been available during both phases and argue that AC formation was modeled on its lexifier during the first decades of its existence but its formation continued afterwards adopting more substrate traits. Therefore, moderate superstrate and substrate positions account for AC formation.

An Inclusive ‘Black Atlantic’: Revisiting Historical Creole Formations

Creolization accounts are richly diverse as they are multifaceted. During the era of the Slave Trade, they were ever more unique. However, its mutually reinforcing nature and complexity across the Atlantic World have remained relatively unexplored until recently. Creole formation was nevertheless ubiquitously taking place as much in the New World as in Africa prior to the enslaved forced migration. Informed by historical debates on such cases, this article revisits constructions of cultural structures and their alterations throughout the Transatlantic Diaspora that lead to a better understanding of identity claims to an ‘African heritage.’ This article builds on the contact with certain synchronisms, but through new views of creole formations, I underscore the importance of African studies and African American studies working conjointly to foster a better understanding of Atlantic World History.

Modeling the emergence of contact languages.

Contact languages are born out of the non-trivial interaction of two (or more) parent languages. Nowadays, the enhanced possibility of mobility and communication allows for a strong mixing of languages and cultures, thus raising the issue of whether there are any pure languages or cultures that are unaffected by contact with others. As with bacteria or viruses in biological evolution, the evolution of languages is marked by horizontal transmission; but to date no reliable quantitative tools to investigate these phenomena have been available. An interesting and well documented example of contact language is the emergence of creole languages, which originated in the contacts of European colonists and slaves during the 17th and 18th centuries in exogenous plantation colonies of especially the Atlantic and Indian Ocean. Here, we focus on the emergence of creole languages to demonstrate a dynamical process that mimics the process of creole formation in American and Caribbean plantation ecologies. Inspired by the Naming Game (NG), our modeling scheme incorporates demographic information about the colonial population in the framework of a non-trivial interaction network including three populations: Europeans, Mulattos/Creoles, and Bozal slaves. We show how this sole information makes it possible to discriminate territories that produced modern creoles from those that did not, with a surprising accuracy. The generality of our approach provides valuable insights for further studies on the emergence of languages in contact ecologies as well as to test specific hypotheses about the peopling and the population structures of the relevant territories. We submit that these tools could be relevant to addressing problems related to contact phenomena in many cultural domains: e.g., emergence of dialects, language competition and hybridization, globalization phenomena.

Competences in contact

This article examines phonological changes brought about by creole-lexifier contact, with secondary focus on the distinction of these changes from those occurring in creole formation. It is argued that lexifier-targeted change involves declarative competence: knowledge of what is and isn’t part of a phonological inventory. It is further argued that such changes do not undo the past, but involve historically innovative modifications to grammatical competence, which subsequently inform productive and perceptual knowledge. A formal account of Guadeloupian vowel data is proposed, which also addresses differential outcomes such as instances of apparent hypercorrection.

Irish in the West Indies: Irish Influence on the Formation of English-Based Creoles

This article deals with the problem of the early stages of creole formation. The significant structural and material similarities between the aspectual systems of the verb in Hiberno-English and in the West Indies English-based creoles are demonstrated. Suggestions are made about the possible impact of the Irish language on the formation of the English-based creoles in the early stages of creolisation. The historical evidence which proves the possibility of language contact between Irish, English and West African languages in the Caribbean in the past is provided.

Língua de Preto, the Basic Variety at the root of West African Portuguese Creoles

Língua de Preto falar Guiné In the first part of the study (sections 1–4), we substantiate our claim that such literary representations are indeed reliable renditions of the linguistic medium African slaves in Portugal actually used in their interactions with the white population and among themselves. We propose a historical scenario to account for the ‘return’ of LdP to Africa, i.e. Senegambia, where it soon became the lingua franca of trade between Portuguese expatriates and the local populations. From this lingua franca, creoles subsequently arose. In the second part (sections 5–11), we propose an extensive outline of LdP grammar such as we are able to retrieve from the corpus. Comparisons with present-day WAPCs are attempted. We conclude (sections 12–13) that the availability of such historical testimonies indeed gives us the exceptional opportunity of gaining some first-hand knowledge of the transitional medium that necessarily separates a lexifier language from ‘its’ creole(s). The fact that this transitional medium, we think, looks much more like a BV than a destructured jargon lends support to the assumption that untutored L2 acquisition by adults played a crucial role in creole formation.

On the structure and development of Saxon-type genitives in Mauritian Creole and the processes of creole formation

This paper revisits the discussion of Saxon-type genitives in French-based Mauritian Creole. These genitives also occur in Seychelles Creole, Louisiana Creole, Karipuna Creole, and Guyanese Creole, but, interestingly, not in any of the other French creoles (e.g. Haitian Creole). How did they develop, and why do they only occur in a handful of these creoles? Several attempts have been made to explain their development and distribution. Focusing mainly on their occurrence in Mauritian Creole, Corne (1986) argues that they have their root in the Indo-Aryan languages spoken in Mauritius. Syea (1994, 1995) and Heine and Kuteva (2001), on the other hand, both reject this explanation and suggest, instead, that their presence is a consequence of internal developments. This paper offers a new solution which, while maintaining the internal development approach of Syea (1994, 1995), extends its empirical base with data from other French creoles and suggests that Saxon-type genitives in Mauritian Creole and the other French creoles originated in French doubling possessives such as sa maison à lui/Marie (lit. his/her house to him/Marie ‘his/Mary's house’). It argues that this development was made possible by a downgrading of the possessive pronoun from clitic in French to agreement marker in French creoles. The discussion is couched in the framework of Principles and Parameters (Chomsky 1981) and Minimalism (Chomsky 1995, 2000).

Cape Verdean Kriolu as an Epistemology of Contact

Kriolu as language and sentiment represents a “contact perspective”, an outlook on life and medium of identification historically structured by the encounter. Cape Verde was born out of an early creole formation and movement is an essential part of Cape Verdean practices of language and identity. Most recently, the Portuguese state and third-party real estate developers have provided another scenario in the long series of (dis)emplacement dramas for Cape Verdeans as Lisbon administrations have pushed to demolish “improvised” housing and regroup people into “social” neighborhoods. I argue that neighborhoods such as Casal da Boba are not simply “contact zones” where differences are made manifest and subaltern agency is potentially given a stage. In the case of Cape Verdean Kriolu in Lisbon, the concept of “contact” is an epistemological one. This essay connects the empirical realities of Lisbon neighborhoods to the historically structured experiences of contact vis-a-vis colonialism, migration and language.