Pidgins Creoles And Mixed Languages

This lucid and theory-neutral introduction to the study of pidgins, creoles and mixed languages covers both theoretical and empirical issues pertinent to the field of contact linguistics. Part I presents the theoretical background, with chapters devoted to the definition of terms, the sociohistorical settings, theories on the genesis of pidgins and creoles, as well as discussions on language variation and the sociology of language. Part II empirically tests assumptions made about the linguistic characteristics of pidgins and creoles by systematically comparing them with other natural languages in all linguistic domains. This is the first introduction that consistently applies the findings of the Atlas of Pidgin and Creole Language Structures and systematically includes extended pidgins and mixed languages in the discussion of each linguistic feature. The book is designed for students of courses with a focus on pidgins, creoles and mixed languages, as well as typologically oriented courses on contact linguistics.

This introduction to the linguistic study of pidgin and creole languages is clearly designed as an introductory course book. It does not demand a high level of previous linguistic knowledge. Part I: General Aspects and Part II: Theories of Genesis constitute the core for presentation and discussion in the classroom, while Part III: Sketches of Individual Languages (such as Eskimo Pidgin, Haitian, Saramaccan, Shaba Swahili, Fa d'Ambu, Papiamentu, Sranan, Berbice Dutch) and Part IV: Grammatical Features (such as TMA particles and auxiliaries, noun phrases, reflexives, serial verbs, fronting) can form the basis for further exploration. A concluding chapter draws together the different strands of argumentation, and the annotated list provides the background information on several hundred pidgins, creoles and mixed languages. Diversity rather than unity is taken to be the central theme, and for the first time in an introduction to pidgins and creoles, the Atlantic creoles receive the attention they deserve. Pidgins are not treated as necessarily an intermediate step on the way to creoles, but as linguistic entities in their own right with their own characteristics. In addition to pidgins, mixed languages are treated in a separate chapter. Research on pidgin and creole languages during the past decade has yielded an abundance of uncovered material and new insights. This introduction, written jointly by the creolists of the University of Amsterdam, could not have been written without recourse to this new material.

This book defines and describes the linguistic features of these languages and considers the dynamic developments that bring them into being and lead to changes in their structure.

The focus of this study is upon those pidgins and creoles which are English based and which have arisen since the fifteenth century. The book examines the widespread nature of the pidgin/creole phenomenon and evaluates the current definitions of the terms and the theories which have been advanced to account for their existence. The author considers the potential of pidgins and creoles as literary media and as vehicles for education. She looks at the sociological and psychological implications of using pidgins and creoles in the classroom and examines the position of American `Black English' and `London Jamaican' in the pidgin/creole continuum.

This first volume of Holm's major survey of pidgins and creoles provides a readable introduction to a field of study that has become established only in the past few decades. Written for both students and general readers with a basic knowledge of linguistics, the book's original perspective will also attract specialists in the field seeking a broad overview of the linguistic and sociolinguistic relationships between these languages. Restructured versions of English, French, Spanish, Dutch, Portuguese, and other languages arose during European colonial expansion, resulting in such creoles as Jamaican, Haitian, Papiamentu, and some one hundred others, as well as such semi-creoles as Afrikaans, non-standard Brazilian Portuguese, and American Black English. Scholars have tended to work on particular language varieties in relative isolation rather than undertaking comparative research into the genesis, development, and structure of creoles. In this book, however, Holm draws on studies of a broad range of languages to make clear the extent of creoles' differences and similarities. The core of this volume is a comparative study of creoles based on European languages in Africa and the Caribbean in terms of their lexical semantics, phonology, and syntax. Volume 2 presents an overview of the socio-historical development of each of some one hundred pidgins, creoles and semi-creoles, providing texts and highlighting the salient linguistic features of each.

An overview of the socio-historical development of some one hundred different pidgins and creoles.

Destined to become a landmark work, this book is devoted principally to a reassessment of the content, categories, boundaries, and basic assumptions of pidgin and creole studies. It includes revised and elaborated papers from meetings of the Society for Pidgin and Creole Linguistics in addition to commissioned papers from leading scholars in the field. As a group, the papers undertake this reassessment through a reevaluation of pidgin/creole terminology and contact language typology (Section One); a requestioning of process and evolution in pidginization, creolization, and other language contact phenomena (Section Two); a reinterpretation of the sources and genesis of grammatical aspects of Saramaccan and Atlantic creoles in general (Section Three); a reconsideration of the status of languages defying received definitions of pidgins and creoles (Section Four); and analyses of aspects of grammar that shed light on the issue of what a possible creole grammar is (Section Five).

The Routledge Handbook of Pidgin and Creole Languages offers a state-of-the-art collection of original contributions in the area of Pidgin and Creole studies. Providing unique and equal coverage of nearly all parts of the world where such languages are found, as well as situating each area within a rich socio-historical context, this book presents fresh and diverse interdisciplinary perspectives from leading voices in the field. Divided into three sections, its analysis covers: Space and place – areal perspective on pidgin and creole languages Usage, function and power – sociolinguistic and artistic perspectives on pidgins and creoles, creoles as sociocultural phenomena Framing of the study of pidgin and creole languages – history of the field, interdisciplinary connections Demonstrating how fundamentally human and natural these communication systems are, how rich in expressive power and sophisticated in their complexity, The Routledge Handbook of Pidgin and Creole Languages is an essential reference for anyone with an interest in this area.