Antilles : practical info > creole lexicon : iles Guadeloupe, Sint Maarten, Martinique ...

French and English are spoken everywhere on the island, especially in hotels and tourist offices. Local population converses in a Creole composed of a certain number of Spanish and English expressions and a significant number of French words, though almost completely incomprehensible for a mainlander. The Creole is one of the most typical characteristics of West Indian culture. By analysing the language, we can get a better insight into the culture that formulated it. As an example, the expression “cassave” shows the addition of[...]

Dutch is the official language of Sint Maarten, and French that of Saint Martin. English, however, has been imposed on the island for a very long time regardless of the island’s French state, due to the presence of British colonists in the past, and the fact that English-speaking islands have welcomed Saint Martin’s workforce for a great number of years.

This linguistic and cultural peculiarity accounts for the fact that Saint Martin is the only French department where English is the inhabitants’ mother tongue. French comes a meagre[...]

French and English are spoken everywhere on the island, especially in hotels and tourist offices. Local population converses in a Creole composed of a certain number of Spanish and English expressions and a significant number of French words, though almost completely incomprehensible for a mainlander. The Creole is one of the most typical characteristics of West Indian culture. By analysing the language, we can get a better insight into the culture that formulated it. As an example, the expression “cassave” shows the addition of manioc to everyday necessities,[...]

Although the official language is French, English is also widely used. Certain locals of traditional descent sometimes converse in a local patois referred to as “vieux francois”, which originates from Breton and Norman dialects of the 18th century. As a matter of fact, two sorts of vieux francois are spoken on the island, depending on the area: Sous le Vent and Saline dialects differ slightly. Two varieties of Creole are also present on Saint Barth: one rather similar to French, widespread in the areas of “Vent de l’Ile”, and another, identical to Guadeloupean[...]