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Dominica

Languages

Description

English is the official language of Dominica and is universally spoken and understood.

In addition, Dominican Creole, an Antillean Creole based on French, is widely spoken. This is due to French migration to the island starting in 1690. A majority French Creole speaking population reside on the island.

Along with Creole, a dialect known as Kokoy (or Cockoy) is spoken. It is a type of pidgin English which is a mix of Leeward Island English Creole and Dominican Creole, and is mainly spoken in the north-eastern villages of Marigot and Wesley.

Kwéyòl , known locally as Patwa, is a sub-variety of Antillean Creole, and like other varieties spoken in the Caribbean, it combines the syntax of African language origins and a vocabulary primarily derived from French.

Word List(s)

• Kweyol Language - words and phrases
• Kweyol Language - flashcards
• Dominican Creole Simple Phrases (Dominica Weekly)

Alphabet and Pronunciation

Alphabet

Créole	IPA Transcription	Standard pronunciation
g	g	hard G like in Garage
h	h	use like in Ham
i	i	Pronounced like "ee" as in see
j	ʒ	Pronounced as french J.
k	k	Replaces hard "C", "Qu". K as in Kick
w	w	W replaces R in some words derived from French, but in Creole, they are two different letters.
s	s	Replaces the soft "C" and pronounced like "S" in Soft
y	j	pronounced like "Yuh" as in Yuck
z	z	Replaces "S" when used between vowels, and pronounced as in Zebra
an	ɑ̃	nasalized sound used in French. Does not exist in English
àn	an	Pronounced as a not nasalized sound with an emphasis on the "N" "ane" in English
ann	ɑ̃n	an nasalised French "an" with long "n" sound "Pronounced like "anne".
anm	ɑ̃m	an nasalised French "an" with long "m" sound "Pronounced like "ahmm".
ay	aj	Pronounced as "eye" in English
in	in	Never nasalised.
en	ɛ̃	Always nasalised
enn		Pronounced as in Garden
on	ɔ̃	Sound does not exist in English. It is a nasal on as used in French.
onm	ɔ̃m	Nasal sound + M.
onn	ɔ̃n	Nasal sound + N.
ch	ʃ	Pronounced as "Sh" in English
a		pronounced as a short a as in Cat
b		Pronounced as B en English
f		Pronounced as F in English
d		Pronounced as D in English Like Dog
m		Pronounced as M in English Like Man.
n		Pronounced as N in English Like Never
Ò		Pronounced as "Or" as in More
R		Often replaced by W in beginnings of words, but pronounced as Racquet
P		Pronounced as in Pea
T		Pronounced as in Tea
V		Pronounced as in Volcano
W		Pronounced as in Water

Numbers

0 Nòt/Zéwo 1 yon 2 dé 3 twa 4 kat 5 senk 6 Sis 7 sèt 8 wit 9 nèf	10 dis 11 wonz 12 douz 13 twèz 14 katòz 15 Kinz\tjenz 16 Sèz 17 disèt 18 dizwit 19 diznèf	20 ven 21 ventéyon 22 venndé 23 venntwa 24 vennkat 25 vennsenk 26 vennsis 27 vennsèt 28 venntwit 29 ventnèf
30 twant 31 twantéyon 32 twantdé 33 twantwa 34 twantkat 35 twantsenk 36 twantsis 37 twantsèt 38 twantwit 39 twantnèf	40 kawant 41 kawantéyon 42 kawantdé 43 kawantwa 44 kawantkat 45 kawantsenk 46 kawantsis 47 kawantsèt 48 kawantwit 49 kawantnèf	50 senkant 51 senkantéyon 52 senkantdé 53 senkantwa 54 senkantkat 55 senkantsenk 56 senkantsis 57 senkantsèt 58 senkantwit 59 senkantnèf
60 swasant 61 swasantéyon 62 swasantdé 63 swasantwa 64 swasantkat 65 swasantsenk 66 swasantsis 67 swasantsèt 68 swasantwit 69 swasantnèf	70 swasantdis 71 swasantwonz 72 swasantdouz 73 swasanttwèz 74 swasantkatòz 75 swasantkenz 76 swasantsèz 77 Swasantdisèt 78 swasantdizwit 79 swasantdiznèf	80 katwèven 81 katwèventéyon 82 katwèvendé 83 katwèventwa 84 katwèvenkat 85 katwèvensenk 86 katwèvensis 87 katwèvensèt 88 katwèvenwit 89 katwèvennèf
90 katwèvendis 91 katwèvenwonz 92 katwèvendouz 93 katwèventwèz 94 katwèvenkatòz 95 katwèvenkenz 96 katwèvensèz 97 katwèvendisèt 98 katwèvendizwit 99 katwèvendiznèf	100 san 200 dé san 300 twa san 400 kat san 500 senk san 600 sis san 700 sèt san 800 wit san 900 nèf san 1 000 mil	2 000 dé mil 3 000 twa mil 4 000 kat mil 5 000 senk mil 6 000 sis mil 7 000 sèt mil 8 000 sit mil 9 000 nèf mil 10 000 di mil 100 000 san mil
200 000 dé san mil 300 000 twa san mil 400 000 kat san mil 500 000 senk san mil 600 000 sis san mil 700 000 sèt san mil 800 00 wit san mil 900 000 nèf san mil	1 000 000 = yon milyon	1 000 000 000 = yon milya

1 234 = yon mil + dé san + twantkat

30 153 = twant mil + san + senkantwa

412 489 = (kat san douz) mil + kat san + katwèvennèf

12 356 734 = (douz) milyon + (twa san+senkantsis) mil + sèt san+twantkat

Ordinal

1st = pwémyè

2nd = dézyènm

3rd = twazyènm

4th = katriyènm

5th = senkyènm

6th = sizyènm (Notice the second "s" in "sis" is pronounced as a "z")

7th = sètyènm

8th = wityènm

9th = nèvyènm (Notice the "f" in "nèf" is pronounced as a "v")

All the other numbers are formed like this: Number + [yènm]

Language Aids and Dictionaries

Language Aids

• Kweyol Language - A look at typical Kweyol words and phrases used in Dominica (avirtualdominica.com)
• The Kwéyòl Writing System

Dictionaries

• Crosbie, Paul and David Frank. Kweýol̀ dictionary. Castries, Saint Lucia: Ministry of Education, Government of Saint Lucia, 2001. Available at: WorldCat.
• Fontaine, Marcel. Dominica's diksyonnè : Kwéyòl-Annglé = Dominica's English-Creole dictionary. Cave Hill, Barbados: The Folk Research Institute, 1991. Available at: WorldCat.

Online Dictionaries

• Kwéyòl Dictionary (Webonary)
• Kweýol̀ dictionary (SIL)

Additional Resources

• Amastae, Jon Edward. Dominican creole phonology. Ann Arbor, Mich: Xerox University Microfilms, 1975. Available at: WorldCat.
• Paugh, Amy Lynn and Bambi B Schieffelin. Creole day is every day": Language socialization, shift, and ideologies. n.p.: New York University, 2001. Available at: WorldCat.
• Amastae, Jon Edward. Dominican creole phonology. Ann Arbor, Mich: Xerox University Microfilms, 1975. Available at: WorldCat.