Cayman Islands English
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Cayman Islands English, also called Caymanian English, is an English variety spoken in the
Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory, and the largest by population. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located so ...
. Its early development was influenced by
Early Modern English Early Modern English (sometimes abbreviated EModEFor example, or EMnE) or Early New English (ENE) is the stage of the English language from the beginning of the Tudor period to the English Interregnum and Restoration, or from the transit ...
, Guinea Coast Creole English, and the Igbo and Twi languages of West Africa. More recent influences include
Standard English In an English-speaking country, Standard English (SE) is the variety of English that has undergone codification to the point of being socially perceived as the standard language, associated with formal schooling, language assessment, and off ...
,
Jamaican Patois Jamaican Patois (; locally rendered Patwah and called Jamaican Creole by linguists) is an English-based creole language with influences from West African, Arawak, Spanish and other languages, spoken primarily in Jamaica and among the Jamaican ...
and
African-American Vernacular English African-American Vernacular English (AAVE) is the variety of English natively spoken, particularly in urban communities, by most working- and middle-class African Americans and some Black Canadians. Having its own unique grammatical, voc ...
. It has been described as both a non-creole and a semi-creole, due to its differences from and similarity to Caribbean Creole languages. About 90% of Caymanians speak English, as the official language of the islands, but Cayman Islands English encompasses a broad range of dialects. Bay Island English is a related English variant which developed from Cayman Islands English.


Origins

Cayman Island English has its roots in the language used by the earliest settlers on the islands, including turtle fishers, pirates, enslaved Africans, and deserters from Cromwell's Jamaican army.Hamilton, Patricia. "National Identification and Selected Aspects of the Cayman Islands Culture." (1976). p. 17–21. It was influenced by English, Spanish, and West African languages, such as Twi. An early creole or
pidgin A pidgin , or pidgin language, is a grammatically simplified form of contact language that develops between two or more groups of people that do not have a language in common: typically, its vocabulary and grammar are limited and often drawn f ...
contact language, Guinea Coast Creole English, was likely a direct influence, as with the Caribbean Creole languages. Because of the Cayman Islands' remoteness, Caymanian English also retains elements of Elizabethan English speech, including elements from Elizabethan Cockney, Cornish, Scottish and Yorkshire dialects.
African-American Vernacular English African-American Vernacular English (AAVE) is the variety of English natively spoken, particularly in urban communities, by most working- and middle-class African Americans and some Black Canadians. Having its own unique grammatical, voc ...
and
Jamaican Patois Jamaican Patois (; locally rendered Patwah and called Jamaican Creole by linguists) is an English-based creole language with influences from West African, Arawak, Spanish and other languages, spoken primarily in Jamaica and among the Jamaican ...
have also influenced the way younger
Caymanian Caymanians are the status holders or born citizens of the Cayman Islands. As a British Overseas Territory, citizens of the Cayman Islands will hold British Overseas Territories Citizenship. There is no record of a native people to the Cayman ...
s speak, while Bay Island English in turn derives from Cayman Island English. While not much has been written on Cayman Islands English, according to linguist John A. Holm, it "seems to have borrowed English-based creole features similar to
Jamaican Patois Jamaican Patois (; locally rendered Patwah and called Jamaican Creole by linguists) is an English-based creole language with influences from West African, Arawak, Spanish and other languages, spoken primarily in Jamaica and among the Jamaican ...
, Bay Islands English and San Andrés and Providencia Creole without having undergone creolization". Others, such as Hubert Devonish, dispute this and point to features in Caymanian English that are common to Caribbean Creole languages. Devonish says that phrases such as ''im now to swim'' ("he knows owto swim") indicate more creolisation in the language than was realised by scholars such as Kohlman and Holm. Ross Graham says that Caymanian English's creole elements could be inherited from an earlier creole language spoken by the Black Caymanians, similar to Jamaican Creole, which gradually became decreolised due to contact with British Caymanians.


Phonology

Intonation in Cayman Islands English often falls on the last syllable of polysyllabic words. The use of for such as ''ven'' instead of ''when'', is a feature of Cayman Islands English, noted by Aarona Booker Kohlman and John A. Holm. Ross Graham says this is likely influenced by the Twi language. Hubert Devonish says this is common to many Western Caribbean creole languages, although Kohlman and Holm suggest this might have a connection to Elizabethan Cockney English. The use of broad English ¦as in ''bangle'' is retained while in words like ''turn'' and ''sermon'' is often unvoiced. Possessive pronouns such as ''his'' and ''hers'' are often replaced with their subjective form, such as ''he'' and ''she''. Noun determiners and prepositions are also often excluded, as in ''When I get Spotts, little rain come down'' (or "When I got to Spotts, a little rain came down"). Devonish suggests this more pronounced than in Caribbean Creoles. It's also common for some Caymanians to insert -''en'' before -''ing''; Patricia Hamilton notes such as examples as ''fishening'' or ''groanening''.


Glossary

* ''Bobo'' (a pet name for a close friend, beloved or partner) * ''Boy look yah, who you fuh?'' ("Boy, look at you! Who are your parents/who raised you?") * ''Cool out'' ("chill out") * ''Cow knows where weak fence is'' (bullies can tell who's easy to pick on) * ''Donkey doon belong in horse race'' ("A donkey doesn't belong in a horse race"; i.e., this is no concern of yours/mind your own business) * ''Every crab from the bush'' ("everybody", in reference to the swarms of crabs that emerge from the bush in certain seasons) * ''Every pot knows its own bottom'' ( now when totake responsibility for your actions) * ''Find yoh backside home right now'' ("Get your backside home right now r you're in trouble) * ''From time hatchet wah hamma'' ("From the time when the hatchet was a hammer"; i.e., from a long time ago) * ''Greedy choke puppy'' ("Greed chokes the puppy"; i.e., greed carries consequences) * ''Horse laugh'' (uncontrollable laughter) * ''I n’ errybody'' ("me and everybody"/"everybody and I") * ''If you can’t get Harry, you take his jacket'' (i.e., if you don't get what you want, at least settle for the next best thing) * ''I heard it on the marl road'' ("I heard it on the grapevine"/"I heard a rumour") * ''John is running Mary'' ("they are dating") * ''Stoopidness'' ("Stupidness" or foolishness) * ''Ya so?'' ("So what?") * ''You'll be satisfied when you get a mouthful of sand'' ("you'll nlybe satisfied when you're buried/dead") * Daddey (Meaning: Daddy, Father, etc) * Mummah (Mum-ah) (Meaning: Mommy, Mom, Mother, etc) * Take a fresh (Taking a shower)


See also

* Bay Islands Creole English * Bermudian Creole English *
Jamaican Patois Jamaican Patois (; locally rendered Patwah and called Jamaican Creole by linguists) is an English-based creole language with influences from West African, Arawak, Spanish and other languages, spoken primarily in Jamaica and among the Jamaican ...
* San Andrés–Providencia Creole * Turks and Caicos Creole


Further reading

* * *


References

*


External links

* {{English dialects by continent Languages of the Cayman Islands Culture of the Cayman Islands Caribbean English English-based pidgins and creoles Creoles of the Caribbean Jamaican Patois Languages of Jamaica Languages of the United Kingdom Languages of the African diaspora