''Patois'' (, same or ) is speech or language that is considered nonstandard, although the term is not formally defined in

linguistics Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...

. As such, ''patois'' can refer to

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 ...

s, creoles,

dialect A dialect is a Variety (linguistics), variety of language spoken by a particular group of people. This may include dominant and standard language, standardized varieties as well as Vernacular language, vernacular, unwritten, or non-standardize ...

s or

vernacular Vernacular is the ordinary, informal, spoken language, spoken form of language, particularly when perceptual dialectology, perceived as having lower social status or less Prestige (sociolinguistics), prestige than standard language, which is mor ...

s, but not commonly to

jargon Jargon, or technical language, is the specialized terminology associated with a particular field or area of activity. Jargon is normally employed in a particular Context (language use), communicative context and may not be well understood outside ...

slang A slang is a vocabulary (words, phrases, and linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in everyday conversation but avoided in formal writing and speech. It also often refers to the language exclusively used by the members of pa ...

, which are vocabulary-based forms of cant. In colloquial usage of the term, especially in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, class distinctions are implied by the very meaning of the term, since in French, ''patois'' refers to any sociolect associated with uneducated rural classes, in contrast with the dominant prestige language ( Standard French) spoken by the middle and high classes of cities or as used in literature and formal settings (the " acrolect"). Sociolinguistics is the discipline that studies the relationship between these language varieties, how they relate to the dominant culture and, in the case of France, to national language policy.

Etymology

The term ''patois'' comes from

Old French Old French (, , ; ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France approximately between the late 8th (originally meaning ), possibly from the verb , from , from Old Dutch">Old Low Franconian , plus the suffix .

Examples

and other Francophone countries, ''patois'' has been used to describe non-standard French language, French and regional languages such as Picard language, Picard, Occitan language, Occitan and Franco-Provençal language, Franco-Provençal since 1643, and Catalan language, Catalan after 1700 when the king

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

banned its use. The word assumes the view of such languages being backward, countrified and unlettered; thus the term ''patois'' is potentially considered offensive when used by outsiders. As Jean Jaurès once said, "One names ''patois'' the language of a defeated nation." In France and Switzerland, however, the term ''patois'' no longer holds any offensive connotation, and has become a celebrated and distinguished variant of the numerous local tongues. The

form of English spoken in

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

is also referred to as ''patois'' or ''patwa''. It is noted especially in reference to Jamaican Patois from 1934.

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 ...

language consists of words from the native languages spoken by many Caribbean ethnic and cultural groups including Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Amerindian, English and several African languages. Additionally, some islands have Creole dialects influenced by French, Spanish, Arabic, Hebrew, German, Dutch, Italian, Chinese, Vietnamese and others. Jamaican Patois is also spoken in

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

and French Creole is spoken in Caribbean countries such as

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

and

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

in South America. Often, these patois are popularly considered " broken English" or slang, but cases such as Jamaican Patois are classified more correctly as a

Creole language A creole language, or simply creole, is a stable form of contact language that develops from the process of different languages simplifying and mixing into a new form (often a pidgin), and then that form expanding and elaborating into a full-fl ...

. Notably, in the Francophone Caribbean, the analogous term for local basilectal languages is ''créole'' (see also

Jamaican English Jamaican English, including Jamaican Standard English, is the variety of English native to Jamaica and is the official language of the country. A distinction exists between Jamaican English and Jamaican Patois (a creole language), though ...

and Jamaican Creole).

Antillean Creole Antillean French Creole (also known as Lesser Antillean Creole, Kreyol, or Patois) is a French-based creole languages, French-based creole language that is primarily spoken in the Lesser Antilles caribbean. Its grammar and vocabulary include ele ...

, in addition to French, is spoken in

Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles is a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea, forming part of the West Indies in Caribbean, Caribbean region of the Americas. They are distinguished from the larger islands of the Greater Antilles to the west. They form an arc w ...

and includes vocabulary and grammar of African and Carib origin. Its dialects often contain folk-etymological derivatives of French words. For example, ' ("river, stream"), a syncopated variant of the standard French phrase ("the river"), has been associated by

folk etymology Folk etymology – also known as (generative) popular etymology, analogical reformation, (morphological) reanalysis and etymological reinterpretation – is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a mo ...

with ("to wash"). Therefore, ' is interpreted to mean "a place to wash" since such streams are often used for washing laundry. Other examples of ''patois'' include Trasianka, Sheng and Tsotsitaal. In

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

, ''patois'' has been spoken by citizens in the south of Uruguay, many who hail from France and

Piedmont Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...

region of Italy.

Synonyms

Dominican, Grenadian, St. Lucian, Trinidadian and Venezuelan speakers of

call the language ''patois''. It is also named in the Paria Peninsula of

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

and spoken since the eighteenth century by self-colonization of French people (from

Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...

) and Caribbean people (from

Martinique Martinique ( ; or ; Kalinago language, Kalinago: or ) is an island in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. It was previously known as Iguanacaera which translates to iguana island in Carib language, Kariʼn ...

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre Island, Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Guadeloupe, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galant ...

, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic) who moved for cacao production. Macanese Patois is also known as ''Patuá'' and was originally spoken by the Macanese community of the former Portuguese colony of Macau.

References

{{Reflist Sociolinguistics Language varieties and styles Linguistics terminology