Sociolinguistics - Lingua Franca, Pidgin, and Creole written by Irfan Suryana

              Lingua franca is is a language used between two interlocutors but is not the first language (or native tongue) of either of the interlocutors. Language used as a common means of communication among people whose native languages are mutually unintelligible. Many languages throughout history are served as lingua franca such as Chinese, French, Arabic, Turkish, and English.
Next, pidgin is a sociolinguistic phenomenon where two people whose first languages are different attempt to communicate using elements from both of their languages in mixed manners. In mixed manners mean to communicate between two groups which have different first language, they can use words from both language, mix morphology and syntax, and use the simplest sounds from both language. Pidgin is used as facilitation of trade. It is often found where multiple societies trade or where slave populations from multiple locations are brought into one area. Chinook Jargon states about a pidgin spoken by Native. He states that American, British, and French traders in Pacific Northwest in the nineteenth century. There are six characteristics of pidgins. First, pidgin has limited vocabulary. Second, it has simple grammatical rules. Third, it has small inventory of sounds. Fourth, it is spoken by small fraction of the community. Fifth, it is used for specific purposes such as trade and religion. Sixth, pidgin does not have native speakers. Examples of pidgin language are patois (Jamaican and English), basque-icelandic pidgin (Basque, Germanic, and Romance), Bearlaches (Gaelic Irish and English), Hawaiian  (Portuguese, Hawaiian, Cantonese, English, and Spanish, Nigerian (English and Nigeria Krio), Portunol (Spanish and Portuguese), Denglisch (Denglisch and English), and Siculish (Sicilian and English). The other examples are Baba Malay, once a diverse group of pidgins, is spoken in Malaysia but is now almost extinct. Sabah Malay is a pidginized variant of Brunei Malay. It is a local trade language. There are a few native speakers in  urban areas, mainly children who have a second native language. The last of example is Broome Pearling Ludger Pidgin is a pidgin used in the pearl industry in West Australia.

When a contact language is passed onto new generations in the same fashion a mother tongue is acquired by children, pidgin is called ‘creole’.  It rises in situation where the speakers in contact are in need  of a common, primary means of communication. Creoles have been nativized by children as their primary language. It is for a wide range of communication purposes, not just facilitation of trade and creoles have native speakers. Creolization is the process by which a pidgin becomes the first language of a group of speakers. It is the linguistic outcomes of the expansion of the pidgin into a wider range of social functions. Examples of creole are Betawi Malay, the Sri Lankan Creole Malay, and Malaccan Creole Malay.

-Based on many sources-

Post a Comment

Previous Post Next Post