Another short note on creoles in contact with non-lexifier prestige languages

Abstract

In two "Short Notes" published in numbers 15:1 and 15:2 of the JPCL, Peter Snow examines Caribbean creole languages in contact with prestige languages other than their lexifiers. I will comment on two points made by Snow: One, quoting Aceto (1996: 46), Snow (2000b: 340) considers both decreolization and the continuum model as inadequate for accounting for such creole/non-lexifier contact situations. Two, diglossia implies a stable relationship while bilingualism is a manifestation of language shift. The creole/nonlexifier contact situations of Bastimentos EC and Sranan are characterized by diglossia, the Nicaraguan EC communities by bilingualism and language shift (Snow, 2000b: 341-342).My aim is to contribute to this discussion (rather than criticize) with observations about three other creole/non-lexifier contact situations (all Creole English and Spanish as in the case of the Bastimentos community studied by Snow). 1 I have first hand experience of the speech communities of San Andrés and Old Providence and St. Catherine, Colombia. Later on, I will make a comparison with the speech community of Puerto Limón, Costa Rica. I will not comment on the question about why English-based Caribbean creoles are more likely to form continua reaching from the basilect to the lexifier than French-based creoles. Nevertheless, I suggest the reasons for this (apparent) difference be sought in the typological differences between the mentioned lexifier languages.

Neutralization of the Tap/Trill Contrast in the Bilingual Creole-Spanish Community of the Archipelago of San Andres, Colombia

“…In fact, speakers of Islander Creole in Old Providence have far fewer daily interactions with Spanish speakers, due to more rigid protective measures against new immigrants, the insistence of the locals for their English legacy (Bartens, 2013), and the value of English as the international language of tourism (Flórez, 2006). As a result, Islander is still prevalent in most aspects of the lives of Raizal communities (Moya, 2014;Bartens, 2013;Flórez, 2006;Bartens, 2002;Morren, 2001) and has helped to maintain the prestige of this Islander variety. However, fluency in Spanish is seen as a ticket to being educated in the Colombian tertiary education system thus becoming business-oriented and economically successful.…”

Converging Paths of Variation: Bilingual Rhotics and Language Change in the Archipelago of San Andres, Colombia

“…In fact, speakers of Island Creole have far fewer daily interactions with Spanish speakers, due to more rigid protective measures against new immigrants, the insistence of the locals for their English legacy (Bartens, 2013), and the value of English as the international language of tourism (Flórez, 2006). As a result, Islander is still prevalent in most aspects of the lives of Raizales (Moya-Chaves, 2014;Bartens, 2013;Flórez, 2006;Bartens, 2002;Morren, 2001), and has helped to maintain the prestige on this Islander variety.…”

Tourism and small-language persistence in a Panamanian Creole village

“…Holm examines the situation in Nicara- Augelli 1962) gua and points out that Miskito Coast Creole-speakers have ''become resigned to being part of Spanish-speaking Central America rather than the English-speaking Caribbean'' (Holm 1989: 474). Bartens (2002) describes the situation on the Colombian island of San Andrés (o¤ the coast of Nicaragua) as yet another case of language shift from Creole English to Spanish. The reasons for shift in this region are many and varied but certainly one important factor is the relative economic values of the language varieties in contact.…”