Grenadian Creole French

Grenadian Creole is a variety of Antillean Creole.[2] In Grenada and among Grenadians, it is referred to as Patois.

Grenadian Creole
Patwa LaGwinad
Native toGrenada
Native speakers
2,300 (2004)[1]
Official status
Official language in
 Grenada
Language codes
ISO 639-3–

History

The first successful settlement by a western colonial power in Grenada was in 1650, when the French from Martinique established friendly contact with the native Caribs. The French had no ruling power or influence on the island or the population, as it was the British Empire who took control of the island in the 17th century. In 1921, a census of Grenada reported that the language was "slowly dying out" and was "only spoken among a small number of the adult population of the rural districts".[3] Today most of the population speaks Grenadian Creole English.

Sample Words and Expressions
  • bebé [French 'bébé']: A foolish person. Literally, 'baby'.[4]
  • bondjé [French 'bon Dieu']: 'Good God!'[4]
  • disabill [French 'dishabile']: Sloppy or run-down.[5]
  • dou-dou [French 'doux']: Darling or Sweetheart. A term of endearment.[4]
  • djoukoutou [French 'jusqu'à vous']: "Even someone as unimportant as you," used derisively. e.g., "Djoukoutou Freddy and all going to that party."[4]
  • flambo [French 'flambeau']: A blazing torch made with wood, fabric, and kerosene.[4]
  • fet [French 'fête']: A party[4]
  • galé [French 'galeux']: Pejorative description of someone with a scabby rash or itchy skin disease. e.g. "Look at his arms--they galé!"[4]
  • ladjabless [French 'La Diablesse']: A devil woman from Caribbean folklore.[6]
  • lougarou [French 'loup-garou']: A werewolf.
  • shado beni [French 'chardon béni']: Eryngium foetidum, an herb used for cooking. Also known as recao or Mexican coriander.
  • soungoo [French 'sans goût']: a description of a person who is dispirited or lacking energy, e.g. "Why Jenny so soungoo? [4]
  • takté [French 'tacheté']: Spotted or speckled skin, referring to either people or fruit.[4]
  • tébé [French 'débat']: Strife and conflict between persons, spawned by gossiping.[4]
  • too-tool-bay [French 'totalement bête']: the state of being dazed and confused, as when "head over heels" in love, e.g. "Mary turned Desmond too-tool-bay." [6]
  • toot bagay [French 'tout bagage']: any and everything, e.g. "He pack up his house, toot bagay, and move to Sautiers."[4]
  • zagada [French 'lézard']: Ameiva ameiva, a ground lizard found in Grenada, South America, and other Caribbean islands.[7]
  • Anmwé! Kay mwen pwi difé! - Help! My house on fire!
  • Ba boulé La Gwouyav. - Don't burn down Gouyave.
  • Ba di mwen sa. - Don't tell me that.
  • Ba li yon koul pyé! - Give him a kick!
  • Bagay la sé sla'w. - The thing is yours.
  • Ban mwen piti tak dlo pou mon bwè. - Give me a little bit of water for me to drink.
  • Bondjé senyè! - God lord!
  • Chantwèl sala sòti Gran Pouvwa. - This singer is from Victoria.
  • Denmen sé Vandwèdi. - Tomorrow is Friday.
  • Di yé mon wivé. - Tell them I arrive.
  • Dimanch pwochenn nou ké alé légliz. - Next Sunday we will go to church.
  • Éti ou ka alé? - Where you going?
  • Fanm la ka hélé. - The woman screaming.
  • Fi-a yé malévé kon manman yé. - The girl them rude as their mother.
  • Gadé mizè mwen. - Look at my misery.
  • Gwan fwè mwen té ka lwé yon lakay nan Labé avan I alé L'anglité. - My elder brother was renting a house in Grenville before he went to England.
  • I ba konn palé patwa. - He cannot speak patois.
  • I b'oko wivé. - She has not arrived as yet.
  • I ka fè cho. - It making hot.
  • Ich mwen apwann anglé nan lékòl. - My child learnt English in school.
  • Jenn fi-a yé pwan kouwi. - The young girl them start to run.
  • Jida yé ba vlé wè mwen. - Hypocrite them don't want to see me.
  • Jézi mò l'asou lakwa pou péché nou. - Jesus die on the cross for our sins.
  • Ki moun sa? - Who is that?
  • Kouman ou yé? - How are you?
  • Konpè Lapen épi Konpè Zayen sé bon kanmawad. Compere Rabbit and Compere Spider (Anansi) are good friends.
  • Kon sa mon touvé'y, kon sa mon ba'w. - Like that I found it, like that I give you.
  • La Gwinad mon lévé. - Grenada I grow up.
  • Lapli ka vini! - Rain coming!
  • Lè mon té on piti gason. Mon té ka jwé jwèt nan lawi-a. - When I was a little boy. I used to play games in the street.
  • Lougarou épi Soukouyan ka volé nan nwit. - Lougaroo and Soucouyan flying in the night.
  • Mama Maladi sé on denmou. - Mama Maladi is a demon.
  • Mété sèl ladan'y. - Put salt inside it.
  • Mété enpé sik adidan'y ban mwen. - Put a little bit of sugar in it for me.
  • Mon konn palé enpé Panyòl. - I can speak a little bit of Spanish.
  • Mon ka wété Lapèl. - I'm residing in Pearls.
  • Mouché Pierre épi fanm li dégouté fanmi mwen. - Mister Pierre and his woman dislike my family.
  • Moun Pawadi pè'y pas I sé on moro. - Paradise (village) people fear him because he is a "badman".
  • Nonk mwen alé Twinité lanné pasé - My uncle went to Trinidad last year.
  • Nonm sa yé sòti Babad. - This man them come from Barbados.
  • Nou ba sa tann ou! - We can't hear you!
  • Nennenn mwen di mwen sa. - My Godmother told me that.
  • Ou vòlò pasé mwen. - You thief more than me.
  • Ou sé on Salòpri. - You're a filthy bastard.
  • Parenn mon ja mouri. - My Godfather is already dead.
  • Papa li sété on béké épi manman li sété on nègess. - Her father was a white man and her mother was a negro.
  • Patwa sé lanng nou. - Patois is our language (tongue).
  • Pouki I vlé mayé salopri sala? - Why she want to marry this crook.
  • Sa ba vwé. - That not true.
  • Sa ki fè'w? - What do you?
  • Sa ki non'w? - What's your name?
  • Sa ki tann palé lòt. - He who hear tell the other.
  • Sa sa yé? - What that is?
  • Sé menm bagay. - Is the same thing.
  • Sla'w sé sla'w! - Yours is yours!
  • Tonnè ka woulé. Thunder rolling.
  • Toulé jou..nou ni pou alé nan la'ivyè pou benyen. -Everyday we have to go the river to bathe.
  • Tout moun konnen sa. - Everybody know that.
  • Wen mwen ka fè mwen mal. - My waist is hurting me.
  • Vini isi-a. - Come here.
  • Yé vini wè mwen. - They come to see me.
  • Yé vlé tchouyé mwen. - They want to kill me.
  • Yé kiyé'w piten pas ou ka pran nonm mayé. - They call you a whore because you are sleeping with married men.

References
  1. Saint Lucian Creole (Grenada) at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. Ethnologue report for language code:acf
  3. Holm, John A. (1988). Pidgins and Creoles: Volume 2, Reference Survey. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 376. ISBN 0521359406.
  4. La Grenade-Lashley, Marise (April 15, 2016). Mwen Ka Alé: The French-lexicon Creole of Grenada: History, Language and Culture. Aventine Press. p. 154. ISBN 978-1593309039. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  5. "A (Very) Private Resident's View of The Grenadian by Rex vs. Government of Grenada". nowgrenada.com. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  6. Hughes, Alister. "The Influences of French Creole on the Grenadian "Language"". Montray Kréyol. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  7. Crask, Paul (March 17, 2009). Grenada, Carriacou & Petite Martinique (First ed.). Bradt Travel Guides. p. 27. ISBN 978-1841622743. Retrieved 23 August 2021.

Further reading
  • Marguerite-Joan Joseph, Lingering Effects of an Ancient Afro-Romance Language on Common Speech in the Caribbean Island of Grenada (2012)
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