View source for Haitian Creole

'''Haitian Creole''' (''Kréyol'') is a language based on [[French]] and spoken in the [[Caribbean]] nation of [[Haiti]].  Most of the lexicon is derived from French; however, many of the words can be traced to West [[Africa]].  The language developed in Haiti in the 17th and 18th Centuries.

==History==
During Haiti's colonial rule by France, West African slaves were imported in large numbers.  Like much of the Caribbean, Africans became the majority of the population.  The languages of West Africa are numerous and the only language most newly arrived slaves had in common was French.  French is taught in Haitian schools and is understood well by most Haitians, but Creole is the language of conversation.

==Linguistics==
Haitian Creole often corresponds to French.  The Creole phrase ''Komoun ou ye''? (how are you?) is congruent to the (non-existent, grammatically incorrect) French phrase ''Comment tu est''?  Likewise, the Creole phrase ''Sakpasé''? (what is happening?) is congruent to ''Ça que passe''? in French.
===Verb Conjugation===
Haitian Creole has no verb conjugation.  For example, a Creole verb chart for ''traval'' (to work) is as follows:<ref name="verb">[http://www.travelinghaiti.com/haitian_kreyol.asp Creole words and phrases]</ref>
{| class="wikitable" align="left"
|-
|
Mwen traval
|
I work
|-
|
Ou traval
|You work
|-
|Li traval
|He/she works
|-
|Nou traval
|We work
|-
|Yo traval
|They work
|}



Haitian Creole uses markers for tense such as ''te'', ''ap'' and ''pral'', as shown:
{| class="wikitable" align="left"
|-
|Mwen te traval
|I worked
|-
|M'ap traval
|I am working
|-
|Mwen pral traval
|I am going to work
|}



''Mwen'' for I correlates to the French ''moi''.  ''Traval'' correlates to the French ''travailler''.  In Caribbean and French fashion, Creole words are easily abbreviated or pushed together; in the above example ''m'ap'' is a contraction of ''mwen ap''.

==Similar Languages==
Similar French Creole languages are spoken on several other Caribbean Islands. Also, variations of [[English]] and [[Spanish]] languages also exist in the Caribbean.  These extended dialects also feature simplified verb conjugation and optional contraction, abbreviation and words of West African origin and etymology.

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Languages]]