Caribbean English

{{Short description|English dialects native to the Caribbean}}

{{EngvarB|date=August 2022}}

{{Infobox language

| name = Caribbean English

| familycolor = indo-european

| altname =

| nativename =

| pronunciation =

| region = Commonwealth Caribbean

| speakers = 1,824,960

| date = 2001{{nbhyph}}21

| ref ={{sfn|Eberhard|Simons|Fennig|2022|loc=digest on English}}{{notetag|Including only seventeen countries and territories listed in {{harvnb|Allsopp|2003|pp=xii-xvi}}, ie Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos, British and US Virgin Islands.}}

| speakers2 = L2: 540,200 (2003{{nbhyph}}20){{sfn|Eberhard|Simons|Fennig|2022|loc=digest on English}}{{notetag|Including only seventeen countries and territories listed in {{harvnb|Allsopp|2003|pp=xii-xvi}}, ie Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos, British and US Virgin Islands. L2 data missing for some countries or territories in {{harvnb|Eberhard|Simons|Fennig|2022|loc=digest on English}}.}}

| fam2 = Germanic

| fam3 = West Germanic

| fam4 = North Sea Germanic

| fam5 = Anglo-Frisian

| fam6 = Anglic

| fam7 = English

| ancestor = Proto-Indo-European

| ancestor2 = Proto-Germanic

| ancestor3 = Old English

| ancestor4 = Middle English

| ancestor5 = 17th century Modern English

| dia1 = Antiguan and Barbudan English

| dia2 = Bahamian English

| dia3 = Barbadian English

| dia4 = Bay Islands English

| dia5 = Bermudian English

| dia6 = Belizean English

| dia7 = Bocas del Toro Creole

| dia8 = Cayman Islands English

| dia9 = Grenadian Creole English

| dia10 = Guyanese Creole

| dia11 = Jamaican English

| dia12 = Limonese Creole

| dia13 = Miskito Coast Creole

| dia14 = Montserrat Creole

| dia15 = Puerto Rican English

| dia16 = Rama Cay Creole

| dia17 = San Andrés–Providencia Creole

| dia18 = San Nicolaas English

| dia19 = Trinidadian and Tobagonian English

| dia20 = Turks and Caicos Creole

| dia21 = Vincentian Creole

Virgin Islands Creole

| stand1 = Caribbean Standard English{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|pp=liv-lvi}}

| script = Latin (English alphabet)

| nation = Commonwealth Caribbean{{sfn|Eberhard|Simons|Fennig|2022|loc=digest on English}}

| minority = Samana English Dominican Republic

| isoexception = dialect

| lc1 =

| ld1 =

| lc2 =

| ld2 =

| linglist =

| lingua =

| guthrie =

| ietf = en-029

| image =

| imagecaption =

| map =

| mapcaption =

| coordinates =

| notice = IPA

}}

{{English language}}

Caribbean English (CE,{{notetag|The CE abbreviation is used in {{harvnb|Allsopp|2003|p=lxx}}. Others may use it for Canadian English.}} CarE) is a set of dialects of the English language which are spoken in the Caribbean and most countries on the Caribbean coasts of Central America and South America. Caribbean English is influenced by, but is distinct to the English-based creole languages spoken in the region. Though dialects of Caribbean English vary structurally and phonetically across the region, all are primarily derived from British English, Indigenous languages and West African languages. In some countries with a plurality Indian population, such as Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana, Caribbean English has further been influenced by Hindustani and other South Asian languages.{{sfn|Mahabir|1999|p=???}}{{sfn|Holbrook|Holbrook|2001|p=???}}{{sfn|SC|nd|loc=???}}

Overview

{{More footnotes|section|date=August 2009}}

  • The daily-used English in the Caribbean has a different set of pronouns, typically me, meh or mi, you, yuh, he, she, it, we, wi or alawe, wunna or unu, and dem or day. Central Americans use I, mi, my, he, she, ih, it, we, wi or alawe, allayu or unu, and dem, den, deh.
  • Consonant changes like h-dropping or th-stopping are common.
  • Some might be "sing-songish"{{Clarify|date=January 2020}} in Trinidad and the Bahamas.
  • Rhotic: Bajan (Barbadian), Guyanese
  • Influenced by Irish English: Jamaican, Bajan
  • Influenced by any of the above, as well as Spanish and indigenous languages: Central American English dialects like the Belizean Creole (Kriol), or the Mískito Coastal Creole and Rama Cay Creole spoken in Nicaragua

However, the English that is used in the media, education, and business and in formal or semi-formal discourse approaches the internationally understood variety of Standard English (British English in all former and present British territories and American English in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands) but with an Afro-Caribbean cadence (Spanish cadence in Puerto Rico and the Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina).

Dialects

The first-order dialects deemed constituent of Caribbean English vary within scholarly literature.{{citation needed|date=November 2022}} For instance, the Oxford English Dictionary includes only 'the forms of English as spoken in Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, Guyana, Belize, the Bahamas and Barbados, as well as in some of the smaller Eastern Caribbean nations' in deriving its phonetic transcriptions.{{sfn|OED|2022|loc=key for CarE}} The Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage further includes the dialects of Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, the Virgin Islands, the Netherlands Antilles, Suriname, and the Turks and Caicos.{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|pp=xii-xvi}}

Caribbean English-based creole languages are commonly (in popular literature) or sometimes (in scholarly literature) considered dialects of Caribbean English.{{citation needed|date=November 2022}}{{notetag|For instance, the first sentence in {{harvnb|Robinson|2007}} describes the ensuing content as including information 'about the history of English in the Caribbean,' but then goes on to only cover the history of English-based creole languages. Further, {{harvnb|Allsopp|2003|pp=xxvi-xxvii}} include creole entries in their dictionary, noting the frequent inclusion of creole words, phrases, and dialogue in English literature of the region, and further stating that 'creole dialects are a pan-Caribbean reality which no professional lexicography, whatever be its mandate, can simply ignore.' Additionally, {{harvnb|OED|2022|loc=model for CarE}} included aspects of various creoles in its production of a pronunciation key and model for Caribbean English.}}

History

The development of Caribbean English is dated to the West Indian exploits of Elizabethan sea dogs, which are credited with introducing to England names for new-found flora and fauna via, for instance, Hakluyt's Principall Navigations of 1589 and Raleigh's Discoverie of the Empyre of Guiana of 1596.{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xl}} As English settlements followed shortly thereafter, Caribbean English has been deemed 'the oldest exportation of that language from its British homeland.'{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|pp=xl-xli}}

Two sorts of anglophone immigrants to the seventeenth-century West Indies have been described in literature – the first, consisting of indentured servants and settlers mainly from southwestern England, predominantly speaking non-standard vernaculars of English; the second, consisting of colonial administrators, missionaries, and educators, predominantly speaking more standard forms of the language.{{sfn|Seoane|Suárez-Gómez|2016|pp=86-88}} The former, along with African slaves, are credited with the development and spread of [non-standard-] English-derived creole languages, while the latter are noted as frequent sources of derision of such speech.{{sfn|Seoane|Suárez-Gómez|2016|pp=86-88}}

Features

Caribbean English accents and pronunciation are variable within and across sub-dialects. For instance, Barbadian English is fully rhotic, while Jamaican English is not.{{sfn|Wells|1982|p=570}} Further, within Jamaican English, h-dropping is common in some social classes, but uncommon in others.{{sfn|Wells|1982|pp=568-569}} Additionally, in territories with English-derived creole languages, the phonetic distinction between English and creole is thought to be continuous rather than discrete, with the creole acrolect differing 'only trivially' from English.{{sfn|Wells|1982|p=564}}{{notetag|The {{harvnb|OED|2022|loc=model for CarE}} recently noted – {{blockquote|Of all [sixteen] World English varieties currently addressed by the OED, delineating a ‘Caribbean English’ provides the greatest challenge [as t]here is vast phonetic and phonological diversity across this region[.]}}}}

Nevertheless, there is thought to be 'a general sense in which a "West Indian accent" is distinguishable as such anywhere in the world.'{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xliv}} Likely reasons for this have been described as 'the general quality of CE [Caribbean English] vowels, the sharp reduction in the number of diphthongal glides and, the most distinguishing feature of all, the phrasal intonation [and] separation of syllabic pitch and stress in CE.'{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xliv}} Broadly, the middle-register of Caribbean English is thought to contain eight fewer phonemes than Received Pronunciation.{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|pp=xlv-xlvi}}{{notetag|That is, ten, four, and twenty-one vowels, glides, and consonants, respectively, compared to eleven, eight, and twenty-four in Received Pronunciation as represented in {{harvnb|Gimson|1980}} {{harv|Allsopp|2003|p=xlvi}}.}}

The lexicon of Caribbean English varies, to an extent, across and within sub-dialects.{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|pp=li-lii}} '[T]he bulk of the vocabulary,' however, has been described as 'identical' across the region.{{sfn|Seoane|Suárez-Gómez|2016|p=92}} Additionally, in territories with English-derived creole languages, the lexical distinction between English and creole is thought to be continuous rather than discrete, such that 'structurally it is impossible to draw exact lines between them.'{{sfn|Seoane|Suárez-Gómez|2016|p=92}}

= Tables =

class="sortable"

|+ Sample of phonetic features distinctive of lower-to-upper-register Caribbean English as used in at least some territories.

FeatureGlossNotes
th-stopping/θ/ pronounced as /t/ (e.g. /tiŋk/ (think) or /tri/ (three)); /ð/ pronounced as /d/ (e.g. in /dɪs/ (this) or /dæt/ (that))varies by class; cf{{sfn|Robinson|2007|loc=sec. 'Caribbean English phonology'}}{{sfn|Wells|1982|pp=565-566}}{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|pp=xlv-xlvi}}{{sfn|OED|2022|loc=key to CarE}}
h-droppingInitial /h/ deleted (e.g. /æpi/ (happy) or /aʊs/ (house))varies by class; may vary within CarE; cf{{sfn|Robinson|2007|loc=sec. 'Caribbean English phonology'}}{{sfn|Wells|1982|pp=568-569}}{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xlvii}}
consonant cluster reductionConsonant clusters are simplified, namely in the coda (e.g. /bɛst/ > /bɛs/ (best), /ɹɪ.spɛkt/ > /ɹɪ.spɛk/ (respect), or /lænd/ > /læn/ (land))varies by class; cf{{sfn|Robinson|2007|loc=sec. 'Caribbean English phonology'}}{{sfn|Wells|1982|pp=566-567}}{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|pp=xlvi-xlvii}}
rhoticity is pronounced using /ɹ/ (e.g. /ɑɹd/ (hard) or /kɔɹn/ (corn))varies within CarE; cf{{sfn|Robinson|2007|loc=sec. 'Caribbean English phonology'}}{{sfn|Wells|1982|pp=570-572}}{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xlvi}}{{sfn|OED|2022|loc=key for CarE}}
unreduced vowel in weak syllablesvowels in unstressed syllables not reduced e.g. /a/ in about or bacon, or e.g. /of/ in lot of work or /a/ in in a few daysmay vary by class; cf{{sfn|Robinson|2007|loc=sec. 'Caribbean English phonology'}}{{sfn|Wells|1982|pp=570-571}}{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xlv}}
FACE vowelidiosyncratic phoneme e.g. in game, tray, plain, greatvaries by class; cf{{sfn|Robinson|2007|loc=sec. 'Caribbean English phonology'}}{{sfn|Wells|1982|p=571}}
GOAT vowelidiosyncratic phoneme e.g. in home, show, boat, toevaries by class; cf{{sfn|Robinson|2007|loc=sec. 'Caribbean English phonology'}}{{sfn|Wells|1982|p=571}}
L consonantidiosyncratic /l/ phoneme e.g. in milkcf{{sfn|Wells|1982|pp=569-570}}
W consonantidiosyncratic /w/ phoneme e.g. in week or wetcf{{sfn|Wells|1982|pp=569-570}}
glide cluster reduction/h/ in /wh/ not pronounced e.g. in whinemay vary by class; cf{{sfn|Wells|1982|p=570}}{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xlvi}}
stress shiftidiosyncratic prosody of words e.g. in rea-LISE, ce-le-BRATE, a-gri-CUL-turecf{{sfn|Wells|1982|pp=572-573}}{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|pp=xliv-xlv}}
frontingidiosyncratic prosody of phrases e.g. in is BORROW she borrow itcf{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xlix}}

class="sortable"

|+ Sample of grammatical features distinctive of lower-to-upper-register Caribbean English as used in at least some territories.

FeatureGlossNotes
zero indefinite articleindefinite articles [occasionally] omitted e.g. in in _ couple of dayscf{{sfn|Robinson|2007|loc=sec. 'Caribbean English grammar'}}
zero past tense markerverbs left unmarked for tense e.g. in I work_ a few monthscf{{sfn|Robinson|2007|loc=sec. 'Caribbean English grammar'}}{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|pp=xlvii-xlix}}
zero plural markernouns left unmarked for plurality e.g. in my relative_ werecf{{sfn|Robinson|2007|loc=sec. 'Caribbean English grammar'}}
functional shiftpart-of-speech and sense of words shifted e.g. noun to verb shift of rice in to rice somebodycf{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|pp=xlvii-xlviii}}
zero subject–verb inversionsubject-verb order not inverted in questions e.g. in You going back?cf{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xlix}}
reduplicationemphatic repetition of words or phrases e.g. in fool-fool, big big bigcf{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xlix}}

class="sortable"

|+ Lexical sets of upper-register Caribbean English as used in select territories.{{sfn|OED|2022|loc=models for CarE, BrE, AmE}}{{notetag|Note BrE, AmE stand for British English, American English. Phonemes with CarE–BrE or CarE–AmE differences are recorded in {{color|red|red}}. In columns BrE, AmE, en dashes (–) stand for phoneme is the same as that in CarE. In the Notes column, en dashes represent missing or null values. CarE dialects sampled for these data were those of the Bahamas, Guyana, Jamaica {{harv|OED|2022|loc=model for CarE}}. Additionally, English creoles of Barbados, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago were sampled {{harv|OED|2022|loc=model for CarE}}. CarE dialects or English creoles of Barbados, Belize, and the Lesser Antilles may have been, to a lesser extent, sampled {{harv|OED|2022|loc=model for CarE}}.}}

SetCarEBrEAmENotes
{{smallcaps|kit}}{{angbr IPA|ɪ}}
{{smallcaps|dress}}{{angbr IPA|ɛ}}
{{smallcaps|trap}}{{angbr IPA|a}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|bath}}}}{{angbr IPA|aː}}{{angbr IPA|ɑː}} + {{angbr IPA|a}}{{angbr IPA|æ}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|lot}}}}{{angbr IPA|ɑ}}{{angbr IPA|ɒ}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|cloth}}}}{{angbr IPA|ɔː}}{{angbr IPA|ɒ}}{{angbr IPA|ɔ}} + {{angbr IPA|ɑ}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|strut}}}}{{angbr IPA|ʌ}}{{angbr IPA|ə}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|foot}}}}{{angbr IPA|ʊ}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|fleece}}}}{{angbr IPA|iː}}{{angbr IPA|i}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|goose}}}}{{angbr IPA|uː}}{{angbr IPA|u}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|palm}}}}{{angbr IPA|aː}}{{angbr IPA|ɑː}}{{angbr IPA|ɑ}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|start}}}}{{angbr IPA|aː}} / {{angbr IPA|aːr}}{{angbr IPA|ɑː}}{{angbr IPA|ɑr}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|nurse}}}}{{angbr IPA|ɜː}} / {{angbr IPA|ɜːr}}{{angbr IPA|əː}}{{angbr IPA|ər}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|north}}}}{{angbr IPA|oː}} / {{angbr IPA|oːr}}{{angbr IPA|ɔː}}{{angbr IPA|ɔr}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|force}}}}{{angbr IPA|oː}} / {{angbr IPA|oːr}}{{angbr IPA|ɔː}}{{angbr IPA|ɔr}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|thought}}}}{{angbr IPA|ɔː}} + {{angbr IPA|aː}}{{angbr IPA|ɔː}}{{angbr IPA|ɔ}} + {{angbr IPA|ɑ}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|near}}}}{{angbr IPA|eː}} / {{angbr IPA|eː r}}{{angbr IPA|ɪə}}{{angbr IPA|ɪr}} / {{angbr IPA|ɪər}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|square}}}}{{angbr IPA|eː}} / {{angbr IPA|eː r}}{{angbr IPA|ɛː}}{{angbr IPA|ɛr}} / {{angbr IPA|ɛər}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|cure}}}}{{angbr IPA|oː}} / {{angbr IPA|oːr}}{{angbr IPA|ʊə}} + {{angbr IPA|ɔː}}{{angbr IPA|ʊr}} / {{angbr IPA|ʊər}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|face}}}}{{angbr IPA|eː}}{{angbr IPA|eɪ}}{{angbr IPA|eɪ}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|pride}}}}{{angbr IPA|ai}}{{angbr IPA|ʌɪ}}{{angbr IPA|aɪ}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|voice}}}}{{angbr IPA|ɔi}} + {{angbr IPA|ai}}{{angbr IPA|ɔɪ}}{{angbr IPA|ɔɪ}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|mouth}}}}{{angbr IPA|aʊ}} + {{angbr IPA|ɔʊ}}{{angbr IPA|aʊ}}{{angbr IPA|aʊ}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|goat}}}}{{angbr IPA|oː}}{{angbr IPA|əʊ}}{{angbr IPA|oʊ}}
{{smallcaps|happy}}{{angbr IPA|i}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|letter}}}}{{angbr IPA|a}}{{angbr IPA|ə}}{{angbr IPA|ər}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|rabbit}}}}{{angbr IPA|ɪ}}{{angbr IPA|ᵻ}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|added}}}}{{angbr IPA|ɪ}}{{angbr IPA|ᵻ}}{{angbr IPA|ə}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|beautiful}}}}{{angbr IPA|ʊ}}{{angbr IPA|ə}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|piano}}}}{{angbr IPA|i}}{{angbr IPA|ɪ}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|ago}}}}{{angbr IPA|a}}{{angbr IPA|ə}}{{angbr IPA|ə}}
{{color|red|{{smallcaps|because}}}}{{angbr IPA|i}}{{angbr IPA|ᵻ}}{{angbr IPA|ə}} + {{angbr IPA|i}}

class="sortable"

|+ Consonant phonemes of upper-register Caribbean English as used in select territories.{{sfn|OED|2022|loc=keys for CarE, BrE, AmE}}{{notetag|Note BrE, AmE stand for British English, American English. Phonemes with CarE–BrE or CarE–AmE differences are recorded in {{color|red|red}}. In columns CarE, BrE, AmE, multiplication signs (×) stand for phoneme is present while en dashes (–) stand for phoneme is absent. In the Notes column, en dashes represent missing or null values. CarE dialects sampled for these data were those of the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and some of the Lesser Antilles {{harv|OED|2022|loc=key for CarE}}.}}

UnitCarEBrEAmENotes
{{angbr IPA|b}}×××
{{angbr IPA|d}}×××
{{angbr IPA|dʒ}}×××
{{color|red|{{angbr IPA|ð}}}}××
{{angbr IPA|f}}×××
{{angbr IPA|g}}×××
{{angbr IPA|h}}×××
{{angbr IPA|j}}×××
{{angbr IPA|k}}×××
{{angbr IPA|l}}×××
{{angbr IPA|m}}×××
{{angbr IPA|n}}×××
{{angbr IPA|ŋ}}×××
{{angbr IPA|p}}×××
{{angbr IPA|r}}×××
{{angbr IPA|s}}×××
{{angbr IPA|ʃ}}×××
{{angbr IPA|t}}×××
{{angbr IPA|tʃ}}×××
{{color|red|{{angbr IPA|θ}}}}××
{{angbr IPA|v}}×××
{{angbr IPA|w}}×××
{{angbr IPA|z}}×××
{{angbr IPA|ʒ}}×××
{{color|red|{{angbr IPA|x}}}}××
{{color|red|{{angbr IPA|ɬ}}}}×

Standardisation

The standardisation of Caribbean English is thought to have begun upon the advent of government-funded public education in the West Indies in 1833.{{sfn|Seoane|Suárez-Gómez|2016|p=88}} Notably, the earliest public teachers, credited with first developing Standard Caribbean English, had been 'imported direct from Britain, or recruited from among the "coloured" class on the islands who had benefited from their mixed parentage by receiving the rudiments of education.'{{sfn|Seoane|Suárez-Gómez|2016|p=88}} Linguistically, however, the growth of public education in said standard register resulted in 'a practical bilingualism' that has been described as a typical example of diglossia.{{sfn|Seoane|Suárez-Gómez|2016|p=89}} By the late twentieth century, as most territories transitioned to sovereignty and adopted English as their official language, 'efforts were made to define norms for Caribbean English usage in public, formal domains, and more specifically examination settings.'{{sfn|Seoane|Suárez-Gómez|2016|p=90}} These are thought to have culminated in the 1996 publication of the Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage, commonly deemed the authority on Standard Caribbean English, with the former defining the latter as 'the total body of regional lexicon and usage bound to a common core of syntax and morphology shared with [non-Caribbean forms of standardised English], but aurally distinguished as a discrete type by certain phonological features.'{{sfn|Seoane|Suárez-Gómez|2016|pp=90-91}}{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=lvi}}{{notetag|Though {{harvnb|Allsopp|2003|p=lv}} first glosses Caribbean Standard English as the 'conglomerate of [the] several Standard Englishes [of] the nations and states of the former British West Indian colonies.'}}

Study

The earliest scholarly dictionary of Caribbean English is thought to have been the 1967 Dictionary of Jamaican English.{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xx}} During Easter of that same year, the Caribbean Association of Headmasters and Headmistresses resolved – {{blockquote|Be it resolved that this Association request the appropriate department of the University of the West Indies to compile a list of lexical items in each territory and to circulate these to schools for the guidance of teachers.|Resolution 6 of the CAHH Conference of Easter 1967.{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|pp=xx-xxi}}}}

Said resolution was promptly forwarded to Richard Allsopp, who by mid-1967 'already had some ten shoe-boxes each of about 1,000 6 × 4 cards and many loose unfiled cuttings, notes and other material [from Guyana, the Lesser Antilles, Belize, Jamaica, and Trinidad].'{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xxi}} In 1971, Allsopp introduced the Caribbean Lexicography Project as 'a survey of [English] usage in the intermediate and upper ranges of the West Indian speech continuum.'{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|p=xxi}}{{sfn|Ammon|Dittmar|Mattheier|Trudgill|2006|p=2088}} This set the stage for the seminal Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage, first published 1996.{{sfn|Allsopp|2003|pp=catalogue page, xxii}}{{notetag|{{harvnb|Allsopp|2003|p=xxxi}} likens the publication to that of Webster's in 1828, the Dictionary of Canadian English in 1967, and the Australian National Dictionary in 1988.}}

Samples

{{More footnotes|section|date=August 2009}}

Standard English: 'Where is that boy?' {{IPAc-en|hw|ɛər|_|ɪ|z|_|ð|æ|t|_|b|ɔɪ}}

  • Barbados: 'Wherr dah boi?' {{IPA|[hwer ɪz dæt bɔɪ]}} (spoken very quickly, rhotic with glottal stops).
  • San Andrés and Providencia: 'Weh dah boi deh?' {{IPA|[hwe dæt bɔɪ deh]}}
  • Jamaica: 'Weh dah bwoy deh?' {{IPA|[weh da bwoj de]}} (sporadic rhoticity from Irish and Scottish influence); or 'Wey iz dat boi?' {{IPA|[weɪ ɪz dæt bɔɪ]}} (non-rhotic and similar to the accents of southwestern England and Wales).
  • Belize: 'Weh iz dat bwoy deh?' {{IPA|[weh ɪz dɑt bɔɪ deɪ]}} (British and North American influence but deeper in tone).
  • Trinidad: 'Wey dat boy deh?' {{IPA|[weɪ dæt bɔɪ de]}}
  • Bahamas: 'Wey dat boy iz?' {{IPA|[weɪ dæt bɔɪ ɪz]}} (some would more likely say "bey" [beɪ] instead of "boy").
  • Guyana and Tobago: 'Weyr iz daht boy/bai?' {{IPA|[weɪɹ ɪz dɑt boɪ/baɪ]}} often in urban regions, or 'Wey dat boy dey?' {{IPA|[weɪɹ dæt bɔɪ deɪ]}} in rural regions (many variations depending on region or descent of speaker, and competency in standard English; sporadic rhoticity).
  • Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: 'Wey dah boy deh deh?' {{IPA|[weɪ dɑ bɔɪ deɪ deɪ]}} (non-rhotic).
  • Belize, Bluefields, Pearl Lagoon, Corn Islands, Bay Islands Department, Limón, Bocas del Toro Province, Puerto Rico, Cayman Islands and the Virgin Islands: 'Wehr iz daht booy?' {{IPA|[weɹ ɪz dɑt buɪ]}} (distinct, sporadic rhoticity, pronunciation becomes quite different from Creole pronunciation).
  • Dominica: 'Weh dat boy (be) nuh?' {{IPA|[we dæt bɔɪ (bi) nʌ]}} (spoken harshly and with a deep tone).

The written form of the English language in the former and current British-controlled Caribbean countries conforms to the spelling and the grammar styles of Britain and in Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands conforms to the spelling and the grammar styles of United States.

See also

Notes and references

= Explanatory footnotes =

{{notefoot}}

= Short citations =

{{reflist}}

= Full citations =

{{refbegin|30em}}

  1. {{Cite web | url=http://www.studycountry.com/guide/GY-language.htm |work=StudyCountry.com | title=The Languages spoken in Guyana|ref={{harvid|SC|nd}}|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319204520/https://www.studycountry.com/guide/GY-language.htm|archive-date=19 March 2022|publisher=StudyCountry|place=Madrid}}
  2. {{cite web

|ref={{harvid|OED|2022}}

|url=https://public-oed-com.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/how-to-use-the-oed/key-to-pronunciation/pronunciations-for-world-englishes/

|title=Pronunciations for World Englishes

|work=OED Online

|publisher=Oxford University Press

|place=Oxford

}}

  1. {{cite journal

|last=Allsopp

|first=Jeannette

|date=2022

|title=Report on the Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage: School Edition

|journal=Dictionaries: Journal of the Dictionary Society of North America

|volume=43

|issue=1

|pages=215–227

|url=https://muse-jhu-edu.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/article/863579

|doi=10.1353/dic.2022.0011

|s2cid=252203375

|url-access=subscription

}}

  1. {{cite journal

|last1=Allsopp

|first1=Jeannette

|last2= Furiassi

|first2=Cristiano

|date=2020

|title= Caribbean English Phraseology in the Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage: Reflections of an African Worldview

|journal=TEXTUS: English Studies in Italy

|series=

|volume=XXXIII

|issue=1

|issn=

|url=

|pages=107–125

|hdl=2318/1742260

}}

  1. {{cite journal

|last1=Allsopp

|first1=Jeannette

|last2= Siegel

|first2=Jason F.

|date=November 2016

|title= The work of the Caribbean Lexicographic Center: Past, present and future

|journal=

|series=

|volume=40

|issue=suppl. 1

|issn=

|url=https://www.scielo.sa.cr/scielo.php?pid=S2215-26362016000300015

|pages=15–22

|doi=10.15517/rk.v40i3.28590

|s2cid=164845876

|doi-access=free

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Allsopp

|editor-first1=Richard

|date=2003

|edition=

|title=Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage

|series=

|place=Kingston

|publisher= University of the West Indies Press

|isbn=9789766401450

|id={{ProQuest|2352573179}}

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Allsopp

|editor-first1=Richard

|date=2010

|edition=

|title=New register of Caribbean English usage

|series=

|place=Kingston

|publisher= University of the West Indies Press

|url=

|isbn=9789766402280

|oclc=535494345

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Ammon

|editor-first1=Ulrich

|editor-last2=Dittmar

|editor-first2=Norbert

|editor-last3=Mattheier

|editor-first3=Klaus J.

|editor-last4=Trudgill

|editor-first4=Peter

|date=2006

|edition=2nd completely revised and extended

|title=Sociolinguistics : An International Handbook of the Science of Language and Society

|series=Handbooks of Linguistics and Communication Sciences ; 3.3

|volume=3

|place=Berlin; New York

|publisher= Walter de Gruyter

|url=https://public.ebookcentral.proquest.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=280182

|isbn=9783110199871

|oclc=174262379

|doi=10.1515/9783110184181.3

}}

  1. {{cite book

|last=Blench

|first=Roger

|date=15 March 2013

|title=A Dictionary of Belize English

|series=Draft circulated for comment

|url=http://www.rogerblench.info/Language/English/English.htm

|url-status=live

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220129051054/http://www.rogerblench.info/Language/English/English.htm

|archive-date=29 January 2022

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Brunn

|editor-first1=Stanley D.

|editor-last2=Kehrein

|editor-first2=Roland

|date=2020

|edition=

|title=Handbook of the Changing World Language Map

|volume=

|series=

|place=Cham

|publisher= Springer

|url=

|isbn=9783030024383

|doi=10.1007/978-3-030-02438-3

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Burchfield

|editor-first1=Robert

|date=1994

|edition=

|title=English in Britain and Overseas: Origins and Development

|series=The Cambridge History of the English Language

|volume=5

|place=Cambridge

|publisher= Cambridge University Press

|url=https://doi-org.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/10.1017/CHOL9780521264785

|isbn=9781139055543

|doi=10.1017/CHOL9780521264785

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Collins

|editor-first1=Peter

|date=2015

|edition=

|title=Grammatical change in English world-wide

|series=Studies in Corpus Linguistics; v. 67

|volume=67

|place=Amsterdam; Philadelphia

|publisher= John Benjamins Publishing Co

|url=

|isbn=9789027268907

|doi=10.1075/scl.67

}}

  1. {{cite journal

|last1=Deuber

|first1=Dagmar

|last2=Hackert

|first2= Stephanie

|last3=Hänsel

|first3=Eva Canan

|last4=Laube

|first4=Alexander

|last5=Hejrani

|first5=Mahyar

|last6=Laliberté

|first6=Catherine

|date=1 August 2022

|title= The Norm Orientation of English in the Caribbean: A Study of Newspaper Writing from Ten Countries

|journal=American Speech

|series=

|volume=97

|issue=3

|issn=

|url=https://doi-org.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/10.1215/00031283-8791736

|pages=265–310

|doi=10.1215/00031283-8791736

|s2cid=233704226

|url-access=subscription

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Eberhard

|editor-first1=David M.

|editor-last2=Simons

|editor-first2=Gary F.

|editor-last3=Fennig

|editor-first3=Charles D.

|date=2022

|edition=25th

|title=Ethnologue : Languages of the World

|series=

|place=Dallas, TX

|publisher= SIL International

|url=https://www-ethnologue-com.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/country/BZ

|isbn=

|doi=

}}

  1. {{cite news|last=Freed|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-05-11-wr-34102-story.html|title=Caribbeanspeak : The area's languages range from Creole to Patois, from English to French|first=Kenneth|date=11 May 1993|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=22 August 2009|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20190401004332/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-05-11-wr-34102-story.html|archive-date=1 April 2019}}
  2. {{cite book

|last1=Gimson

|first1=A. C.

|date=1980

|edition=3rd

|title=An introduction to the pronunciation of English

|series=

|place=London

|publisher= Edward Arnold

|url=

|isbn=9780713162882

|oclc=7003606

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Gorlach

|editor-first1=Manfred

|editor-last2=Holm

|editor-first2=John A.

|date=1986

|edition=

|title=Focus on the Caribbean

|series=Varieties of English around the world; General series; v. 8

|volume=

|place=Berlin; New York

|publisher= John Benjamins Publishing Co.

|url=

|isbn=9027248664

|oclc=14588593

|doi=

}}

  1. {{cite journal

|last1=Hänsel

|first1=Eva Canan

|last2= Deuber

|first2=Dagmar

|date=2019

|title= The interplay of the national, regional, and global in standards of English

|journal=English World-Wide

|series=

|volume=40

|issue=3

|issn=

|url=https://doi-org.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/10.1075/eww.00031.han

|pages=241–268

|doi=10.1075/eww.00031.han

|s2cid=204392797

|url-access=subscription

}}

  1. {{cite report |url=http://www-01.sil.org/silesr/2002/011/SILESR2002-011.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180709011520/http://www-01.sil.org/silesr/2002/011/SILESR2002-011.pdf |archive-date=9 July 2018 |date=November 2001 |title=Guyanese Creole Survey Report |first1=David J. |last1=Holbrook |first2=Holly A. |last2=Holbrook |publisher=SIL International |access-date=23 July 2018 |url-status=dead }}
  2. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Holm

|editor-first1=John

|date=1983

|edition=

|title=Central American English

|series=Varieties of English around the world : Text ser. ; 2

|place=Heidelberg

|publisher= Julius Groos

|url=

|isbn=3872762958

|oclc=9818255

}}

  1. {{cite journal

|last1=Kozlova

|first1=Tetyana

|last2=Bespala

|first2= Liliia

|last3=Klymenko

|first3=Olga

|date=5 December 2021

|title= Lexical Variation in Caribbean English: Allonymy from Cognitive-Onomasiological and Ecolinguistic Perspectives

|journal=Linguistics and Culture Review

|series=

|volume=6

|issue=S2

|issn=

|url=https://lingcure.org/index.php/journal/article/view/1941

|pages=82–101

|doi=10.21744/lingcure.v6nS2.1941

|s2cid=244950515

|doi-access=free

}}

  1. {{cite journal |last1=Mahabir |first1=Kumar |journal=Caribbean Quarterly |volume= 45 |issue= 4|pages=13–34 |title= The Impact of Hindi on Trinidad English|jstor=40654099 |date=1999 |doi=10.1080/00086495.1999.11671866}}
  2. {{cite book

|editor-last1=McArthur

|editor-first1=Tim

|editor-last2=Lam-McArthur

|editor-first2=Jacqueline

|editor-last3=Fontaine

|editor-first3=Lisa

|date=2018

|edition=2nd

|title=The Oxford Companion to the English Language

|series=

|place=Oxford

|publisher= Oxford University Press

|url=https://www-oxfordreference-com.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/view/10.1093/acref/9780199661282.001.0001/acref-9780199661282

|isbn=9780191744389

|doi=10.1093/acref/9780199661282.001.0001

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Nero

|editor-first1=Shondel J.

|date=2006

|edition=

|title=Dialects, Englishes, Creoles, and Education

|series=ESL & Applied Linguistics Professional Series

|place=Mahwah, NJ; London

|publisher= Lawrence Erlbaum Associates

|url=

|isbn=9780203928660

|doi=10.4324/9780203928660

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Ogilvie

|editor-first1=Sarah

|date=2020

|edition=

|title=The Cambridge companion to English dictionaries

|series=Cambridge companions to literature

|place=Cambridge

|publisher= Cambridge University Press

|url=https://www-cambridge-org.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/core/books/cambridge-companion-to-english-dictionaries/dictionaries-of-caribbean-english-agents-of-standardisation/1A9478B8E1E2010217856D4FE2B8B3F2

|isbn=9781108553780

|doi=10.1017/9781108553780

|s2cid=243603808

}}

  1. {{Cite web

|last=Robinson

|first=Jonnie

|date=1 April 2007

|url=https://www.bl.uk/british-accents-and-dialects/articles/caribbean-english

|title=Caribbean English

|url-status=live

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220719154441/https://www.bl.uk/british-accents-and-dialects/articles/caribbean-english

|archive-date=19 July 2022

|publisher=British Library

|place=London

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Rodríguez González

|editor-first1=Félix

|date=1996

|title=Spanish loanwords in the English language : a tendency towards hegemony reversal

|series=Topics in English Linguistics : 18

|place=Berlin; New York

|publisher= Mouton de Gruyter

|isbn=3110148455

|oclc=34029435

}}

  1. {{cite journal

|last=Schneider

|first=Britta

|date=Spring 2017

|title= 'It's Kriol they're speaking!' – Constructing Language Boundaries in Multilingual and Ethnically Complex Communities

|journal=Bulletin VALS-ASLA

|series=No. spécial t. 1

|issn=1023-2044

|url=https://doc.rero.ch/record/288550

|pages=63–73

|id=oai:doc.rero.ch:20170502121737-NX

}}

  1. {{cite journal

|last=Schneider

|first=Britta

|date=March 2021

|title= Creole prestige beyond modernism and methodological nationalism : Multiplex patterns, simultaneity and non-closure in the sociolinguistic economy of a Belizean village

|journal=Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages

|volume=36

|issue=1

|url=https://doi-org.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/10.1075/jpcl.00068.sch

|pages=12–45

|doi=10.1075/jpcl.00068.sch

|s2cid=230576173

|url-access=subscription

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Schneider

|editor-first1=Edgar W.

|editor-last2=Kortmann

|editor-first2=Bernd

|date=2004

|title=A Handbook of Varieties of English : A Multimedia Reference Tool

|series=

|place=Berlin; New York

|publisher= Mouton de Gruyter

|isbn=3110175320

|oclc=56880203

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Seoane

|editor-first1=Elena

|editor-last2=Suárez-Gómez

|editor-first2=Cristina

|date=2016

|edition=

|title=World Englishes : new theoretical and methodological considerations

|series=New theoretical and methodological considerations; v. 57

|place=Amsterdam; Philadelphia

|publisher= John Benjamins Publishing Co

|url=

|isbn=9789027249173

|oclc=938357719

}}

  1. {{cite journal

|last=Siegel

|first=Jason F.

|date=2019

|title=Creating Regional Norms : A Mission for Caribbean Lexicography

|journal=Dictionaries: Journal of the Dictionary Society of North America

|volume=40

|issue=2

|pages=171–200

|url=https://muse-jhu-edu.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/article/742879

|doi=10.1353/dic.2019.0019

|s2cid=214287254

|url-access=subscription

}}

  1. {{cite book

|editor-last1=Wells

|editor-first1=John C.

|date=1982

|edition=

|title=Beyond the British Isles

|series=Accents of English

|volume=3

|place=Berlin; New York

|publisher= Cambridge University Press

|url=

|isbn=0521242258

|oclc=7578097

|doi=

}}

{{refend}}