Pitkern

Pitkern

language
name=Pitkern
familycolor=Creole
states=Pitcairn Islands, New Zealand and Norfolk Island
region=Pacific
speakers=<100
fam1=Creole language
fam2=English Creole
fam3=Pacific
iso1=
iso2=
iso3=pih

Pitkern (also Pitcairnese) is a creole language based on an 18th century dialect of English and Tahitian. It is a primary language of Pitcairn Island with fewer than 100 speakers worldwide. However, the closely related Norfuk language has a few thousand native speakers. Pitkern and Norfuk are unusual in that, although their home islands are located in the Pacific Ocean, they have been described as Atlantic creoles.

History

Following the Mutiny on the Bounty, the British mutineers stopped at Tahiti and took 19 Polynesian people, mostly women, to the remote island of Pitcairn and settled there with them. Initially, the Tahitians spoke little English and the "Bounty" crewmen knew even less Tahitian. Isolated from the rest of the world, they had to communicate with each other. Over time, they formed a unique new language which blended a simplified English with Tahitian words and speech patterns.

Pitkern was influenced by the diverse English dialects and accents of the crew. Geographically, the mutineers were drawn from as far as the West Indies, with one mutineer being described as speaking a forerunner of a Caribbean patois. One was a Scot. At least one, the leader Fletcher Christian, was a well-educated man, which at the time made a major difference in speech. Both Geordie and West Country have obvious links to some phrases and words, such as "whettles", meaning food, from "victuals".

Many expressions no longer current in English carry on in Pitkern. It includes words from British maritime culture in the age of sailing ships, for example. The influence of Seventh-day Adventist Church missionaries and the King James Version of the Bible are also notable.

In the mid 19th century, the people of Pitcairn resettled on Norfolk Island. Later some moved back. Most speakers of Pitkern today are the descendants of those who went back. Many stayed on Norfolk as well, where the closely related language Norfuk is still spoken. Pitkern and Norfuk are mutually intelligible, and are sometimes considered the same language.

Common phrases

"Note: Pitkern spelling is not standardised".

Poetry in Pitkern

Some poetry exists in Pitkern. The poems of Meralda Warren are of particular note.

ee also

* Norfuk

* Pitkern poetry of Meralda Warren [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meralda_Warren#Poetry_in_Pitkern_and_in_English]

External links

* [http://www.lareau.org/pitlang.html Pitkern Language]

References

*Ross, Alan Strode Campbell and A.W. Moverly. "The Pitcairnese Language" (1964). London: Oxford University Press.
*"South Pacific phrasebook" (1999). Hawthorn, Australia: Lonely Planet Publications.
* [http://webpros.co.nz/bounty/phrases.htm Some Phrases in Norfolk/Pitcairn Language]
*cite journal |title=Pitkern and Norfolk revisited: Is Pitkern-Norfolk an Atlantic creole spoken in the Pacific? |last=Avram |first=Andrei A. |journal=English Today |year=2003 |month=July |volume=19 |issue=3 |pages=44–49 |doi=10.1017/S0266078403003092


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Pitkern — Das Pitcairn Englisch („Pitkern“) ist eine auf der Insel Pitcairn existente Kreolsprache, die auf einem Dialekt des Englischen des 18. Jahrhunderts und dem Tahitianischen dieser Epoche basiert. Die (nahezu) gleiche Sprache wird auch von den 1856… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Pitkern — noun The language Pitcairnese. Syn: Pitcairnese …   Wiktionary

  • whata way ye? — Pitkern language How are you? …   English dialects glossary

  • about ye gwen? — Pitkern language Where are you going? …   English dialects glossary

  • you gwen whihi up suppa? — Pitkern language Are you going to cook supper? …   English dialects glossary

  • I nor believe. — Pitkern language I don t think so …   English dialects glossary

  • ye like-a sum whettles? — Pitkern language Would you like some food? …   English dialects glossary

  • do' mine. — Pitkern language It doesn t matter …   English dialects glossary

  • wa sing yourley doing? — Pitkern language What are you doing? What are you up to? …   English dialects glossary

  • I se gwen ah big shep. — Pitkern language I m going to the ship …   English dialects glossary

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