Jamaican English and Jamaican Creole. Language or Languages? (PDF)

Academic Paper from the year 2019 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics, University of Rostock (Anglistik/Amerikanistik), course: British and American Transcultural Studies, language: English, abstract: This term paper gives an idea of linguistic diversity in Jamaica and thus discuss whether standard Jamaican English and creole, such as Jamaican Creole, are different languages, and show how these varieties coexist.

Over the past centuries, English has spread throughout the world, primarily thanks to the colonial policies of its homeland: Great Britain. Especially in the Caribbean, in the past there were many colonies in the British Empire - one of them, actually the largest, was Jamaica. Being one of many English-speaking countries in the world, it is worth studying, especially from a linguistic point of view, because it is one of the few countries in the Caribbean in which standard English and Creole English have been used almost since its colonization. To get an accurate picture of what English in Jamaica looks like, you need to look at the history of Jamaican languages as well as the current situation. As the standard variety and creole coexist in Jamaica, you need to look at both of them in isolation and how they affect each other. Thus, it will be interesting not only to study the function and some linguistic features of Jamaican English and Jamaican Creole, but also the post-Creole continuum.

First of all, a look at the history will show how the English language developed in Jamaica. The following chapters will discuss, in particular, standard Jamaican English and Jamaican Creole, and will introduce the main linguistic features and, therefore, reasons to consider these two languages different or identical. And finally, the study of the post-Creole continuum will clarify the consequences of the mutual influence of these two languages.

In the modern world, English is becoming a universal language. 500 million people in 12 countries speak this language. On this occasion, objections may arise, since about 900 million people speak the Mandarin Chinese language. However, do not forget that approximately 600 million more people use English as a second language. Another important addition is the fact that several hundred million people all over the world have a certain knowledge of the English language, since in 62 countries this language has the status of an official language.