5 Caribbean mother tongues that developed from West African languages

Elizabeth Ofosuah Johnson February 21, 2019

Haitian Creole

Furthermore, Described as the most spoken Creole language in the world, Haitian Creole is spoken by about 10 million people worldwide.

The language developed around the 17th century.

when enslaved Africans got into contact with French and Spanish people.

The language is also referred to as Kreyol and is a blend of both Western and African Languages.

Haitian Creole or Kreyol blends 17th century French with a bit of Spanish and Portuguese with the African languages Fon from Dahomey, now Benin, Ewe from Ghana, Yoruba and Igbo from present-day Nigeria.

Also, The Kwa languages traced from parts of Ivory Coast and Ghana.

It is believed to be Akan.

The language was developed by enslaved Africans through attempts to communicate with the masters in addition to the loss of their mother languages from Africa as the years went by.

By 1987, Haitian Creole had become the country’s official language.

It had more than 7 million speakers and another 2.5 to 3 million speakers outside the country.

Last Edited by:Victor Ativie Updated: March 20, 2020

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