Trinidadian French Creole: Part 2 - The Flavour of a Fading Creole

This video documents Trinidadian French Creole, a dying language, as it is spoken by some of its last speakers, in the community of Paramin in North Trinidad. It shows these speakers and their culture, in particular the food which they grow and their styles of cooking. This video is part of the Caribbean Indigenous and Endgangered Languages website co-sponsored by the Jamaican Language Unit/Unit for Caribbean Language Research at the University of the West Indies, Mona, and UNESCO. http://www.caribbeanlanguages.org.jm

Category:

People & Blogs

Tags:

• Creole
• Trinidad
• French
• Trinidadian
• indigenous
• endangered
• language
• culture
• agriculture
• cuisine
• JLU
• 'Jamaican Language Unit'
• Paramin
• linguistics
• Caribbean
• UNESCO

[jamaicanlanguageunit]

Glad you found this interesting.

[santoure]

I am a native Speaker of Trinidad French Creole and I am 22 how can I help preserve our language? I can write the language also!

[jamaicanlanguageunit]

@santoure

Where did you learn the language and how? It is quite unusual for somebody as young as you to be a native speaker. You must be one of the youngest native speakers of the language. You can help by (i) making recordings of the language for posterity and (ii) trying to revive its use amongst young people.

[marj49]

wow i understand what theyre saying but damn it i wish i can speak that kryeol well i know because my greatgran mother used to instruct me to do things in kryoel haha but i speak spanishor english or jamaican patios back to her since i couldnt speak french properly

[jazzynote]

Yes i think it can be done ..i am a Psychology major and we are taught that a language is best learnt between the ages of 2 five the children develop an aptitude for it. I see the same things between latino children grown up in the usa...they toggle between both languages esily. 1 DOCUMENT IT 2 they youth in the surounding areas should be encouraged to use it so that it doesnt die, speak it around your children

[MrJiggybig]

@santoure TRINIDAD && TEACH THE YOUTHS IN OUR COUNTRY IT PLEASE, AM TRYING TO GET MY LUCIAN FRIENDS TO TEACH ME ,SPREAD IT

[dedeaux2]

French Creole isn't like the Cajun, it is quite different. Being a Creole boy, it is easy to understand folks who speak Creole/Kreyol no matter if they are from the Caribe or Americas. Cajun is very similiar to Acadian, it is mispronounce by the Southerns. Cajuns are Acadians. Francophones we should keep our culture alive here in the Americas. Mwen parle Kryeol et Francais. 

[manovrsb]

in jamaica my fathers family is haitian and they always pleaded me to learn the french creole language. its pretty easy compared to english creole language.i understand this clearly . yes this language must be preserved.

[Neeka693]

@santoure Oh my im jealous...i wish i knew how to speak it.....im only 19 tho..lol

[soukounian]

Unbelievable...I thought nobody could speak Kreyol in Trini but I think I was totally wrong. An se on boug Gwada ki ka rete London. An fie de ti lang an mwen. On big fos ba moun Trini!

[DTGRed]

If your French Creole you must be like the Cujan the French Creole peoples of New Orieans

[lotusboy24]

@jamaicanlanguageunit haitian/louisiana creole, they speak trinidadian creole, but we understand each other just fine, Oh and my younger cousins who speak this language are barely pre-teens. Dont wanna say that you were ignorant in the statement to made, but u couldnt have possibly thought santoure was the youngest one in world to speak this language..

[hebrewmatrix]

sounds just like haitian creole "wow"