Haitian Creole

language spoken in Haiti

Haitian Creole is a type of Creole language spoken by about 13 million people, mostly Haitians and the Haitian diaspora. Most of its vocabulary is derived from French. This language is called Kreyòl Ayisien by those who speak it.[3]

Haitian Creole
kreyòl ayisyen
Pronunciation[kɣejɔl]
Native toHaiti
EthnicityHaitians
Native speakers
Over 10 million[1]
French Creole
  • Haitian Creole
Latin (Haitian Creole alphabet)
Official status
Official language in
 Haiti
Regulated byAkademi Kreyòl Ayisyen (Haitian Creole Academy)[2]
Language codes
ISO 639-1ht
ISO 639-2hat
ISO 639-3hat
Glottologhait1244  Haitian
Linguasphere51-AAC-cb
IETFht
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Origins

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The language started in Haiti by contact between the white colonizers, who spoke French, and the black people they enslaved, who spoke African languages. The African influences in Haitian Creole can be noticed in the sound, syntax, and vocabulary.[4]

In Haiti, the upper classes have often disrespected Haitian Creole even though they speak it, but the language has recently started to become more accepted. There are more books in Haitian Creole, and it was finally acknowledged in Haiti's constitution in 1987.[5]

References

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  1. https://languages.ufl.edu/academics/llc-languages/haitian-creole-studies/
  2. "Cérémonie de lancement d'un partenariat entre le Ministère de l'Education Nationale et de la Formation Professionnelle et l'Académie Créole" (in French and Haitian Creole). Port‑au‑Prince, Haiti: Government of the Republic of Haiti. 8 July 2015. Archived from the original on 28 July 2015. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
  3. "Haitian Creole language, alphabet and pronunciation". www.omniglot.com. Retrieved 2018-08-25.
  4. Lefebvre (1985). A recent research project of the Leiden-based Research School CNWS on the topic concerns the relation between Gbe and Surinamese creole languages: A trans-Atlantic Sprachbund? The structural relationship between the Gbe-languages of West Africa and the Surinamese creole languages.
  5. DeGraff, Michel; Ruggles, Molly (2014-08-02). "Opinion | A Creole Solution for Haiti's Woes (Published 2014)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-11-10.