Patois should therefore be the preferred language in schools. Also, it has been argued that Patois represents the region’s hybrid culture and is therefore the authentic expression of their identity. In Jamaica, there has been serious deliberation about introducing Jamaican Patois (Creole) in schools, as it is believed that it is best for children to learn in their first language. In some countries, however, there is a movement away from this practice. However, most Caribbean countries still use their respective colonial power’s language for official purposes, be it French, Spanish, Dutch, or English. It soon became immensely popular among its audience, and many believe that this service will actually help West African Pidgin develop into a more formalised language – a creole language.īy the time a pidgin language becomes a creole language, the language has developed enough of its own characteristics to have a distinct grammar of its own, and this is what has happened in the Caribbean, where the pidgin languages that once existed have become creole languages.
Gradually, they have tried to standardise the language into a form that most pidgin speakers in the region can accept. The key challenge for the BBC was that West African Pidgin is largely a spoken language and does not have a commonly agreed upon spelling or written format.
This did not stop the BBC from launching a pidgin digital service for its West African audience in 2016. However, it is not recognised as an official language. In fact, up to 75 million people in Nigeria alone – close to half the population – use Nigerian Pidgin as a second language.
Today, you will find a concentration of English-based pidgin in Western Africa, where it is one of the most widely-spoken languages across the region. It goes from being a pidgin language to becoming a creole language. The language is then formalised and standardised, and the makeshift communication bridge is fortified into a more robust structure with a fully developed grammar and syntax.
Sometimes, pidgin languages are passed down to a second generation of speakers who adopt it as their native language. They are primarily spoken languages, there is no standardised form, and many local varieties exist. In other words, a pidgin language is not a native language it is the first-generation version of a language that forms between native speakers of different languages – a makeshift communication bridge, if you will. The languages' function was to facilitate trading and bartering between European tradesmen and the native population. Pidgins are improvised languages, stripped of grammar and with a limited vocabulary. These languages are called pidgin languages.
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