Bahamians speak an English creole or a dialect of English, known in the Bahamas as Bahamian Dialect. An English-based creole language, or English creole for short, is a creole language that was significantly influenced by the English language. ... This is a list of varieties of the English language. ...

Bahamian creole is spoken by approximately 400,000 people in the Bahamas, the Turks and Caicos Islands and the State of Florida. (Although, the creole spoken in the Turks and Caicos Islands differs slightly from that spoken in the Bahamas). This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Most creole languages have a large degree of irregularity making it is difficult to establish clear rules. Bahamian Dialect is no exception.

Variations exists between the various islands, villages or communities on islands. Bahamian Dialect is spoken by both white and black Bahamians, although in slightly different forms. Bahamian Dialect also tends to be more pronounced (i) when spoken by people from the Family Islands, poorer people and people with limited education (ii) in situations of heightened emotion.

Like most creoles, Bahamian Dialect is constantly evolving. Youth slang, in the Bahamas, borrows heavily from Jamaican Creole and African-American "ebonics". Jamaican Creole, also known to foreigners as Patois/(Patwa) or simply Jamaican, is an English/African-based language --not to be confused with Jamaican English nor with the Rastafarian use of English-- used primarily on the island of Jamaica. ... An African American (also Afro-American or Black American) is a member of an ethnic group in the United States whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Africa. ... African American Vernacular English (AAVE), known colloquially as Ebonics, also called Black English, Black Vernacular or Black English Vernacular, is a dialect and ethnolect of American English. ...

Bahamian Dialect also shares similar features with other Caribbean English creoles, such as Jamaican Creole, Bajan, Trinidadian Creole and Virgin Islands Creole. There is also a very significant link between Bahamian Dialect and the Gullah language of South Carolina, as many Bahamians are descendants of slaves brought to the islands, from the Gullah region, after the American revolution. Caribbean English is a dialect of the English language spoken in the Caribbean. ... Jamaican Creole, also known to foreigners as Patois/(Patwa) or simply Jamaican, is an English/African-based language --not to be confused with Jamaican English nor with the Rastafarian use of English-- used primarily on the island of Jamaica. ... Bajan or as called by the industrialised world Barbadian Creole is an English-based creole language spoken by persons on the West Indian island of Barbados. ... Trinidad (Spanish, Trinity) most commonly refers to the larger island of the nation Trinidad and Tobago, the subject of this article. ... Virgin Islands Creole is a linguistic variety spoken in the Virgin Islands in the Caribbean. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Official language(s) English Capital Charleston(1670-1789) Columbia(1790-present) Largest city Columbia Largest metro area Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson Area  Ranked 40th  - Total 34,726 sq mi (82,965 km²)  - Width 200 miles (320 km)  - Length 260 miles (420 km)  - % water 6  - Latitude 32°430N to 35... John Trumbulls Declaration of Independence, showing the five-man committee in charge of drafting the Declaration in 1776 as it presents its work to the Second Continental Congress The American Revolution was a political movement during the last half of the 18th century that ended British control of the...

In the Bahamas, Bahamian Dialect is not referred to as "Creole." If it were this would probably cause confusion as the Bahamas has a large immigrant Haitian population, whose native tongue is Haitian Creole, a French creole. Some scholars have argued that Bahamian speech has undergone significant 'de-creolisation', as a result of exposure to American media and association of stronger dialect with lack of education as has been witnessed in some other caribbean islands and former colonial societies. Haitian Creole (Kreyòl ayisyen) is a creole language based on the French language. ...

As in many countries where a creole is spoken, educators are divided over whether the creole should be taught in schools. The Ministry of Education currently advises teachers to teach Standard English but encourage ‘enjoyment of and respect for Bahamian Dialect'. Standard English is a general term for a form of written and spoken English that is considered the model for educated people by native English speakers. ...

The ability to switch between from Bahamian Dialect and Standard English is common among many Bahamians, a skill artfullly used by many of the nation's politicians 'to connect with the people'.

Pronoun usage

Pronouns in Bahamian Dialect are generally the same as in Standard English.

However, the second person plural can take the forms

• yinna,
• y’all or
• all a ya

and the third person plural

• they is pronounced dey.

Possessive pronouns

Possessive pronouns in Bahmian Dialect often differ from Standard English with:

• your becoming you, ya, or yuh
  
• his or hers becoming he or she
  
• our becoming we; and
  
• their becoming dey.

For example:

• Das yuh book? (Is that your book?)
• No, das he book (No, that's his book)

• You see we tings? (Have you seen our things?)
• No, but das dey car over dere (No, but that's their car over there)

In addition, the possessive pronouns mine, yours (sing.), his, hers, ours, yours (plur) and theirs often become mine's, yorns, he own, she own, we own, yinna's and dey own or des.

For example: Who book dis is? (Whose book is this?)

• mine's (my own)
• yorns (yours)
• he own (his)
• we own (ours)
• yinnas (yours)
• dey own (theirs)
• des (theirs)

Bahamians have a separate pronoun form for describing actions done alone or by a single group or party:

• only me one sing (I'm the only one who sang)
• only you one was dere (You were the only one there)
• only him one went (He was the only one who went)
• only we one gone (We were the only ones who went)
• dey the only ones dat come (They were the only ones who came)

This can also be applied when the proper noun is used:

• Only Mary one gone to Nassau (Mary was the only one who went to Nassau)

Verb usage

Verb usage in the Bahamian Dialect differs significantly from that of Standard English.

Often a number of different alternatives exist for the same Standard English verb.

Irregular Verbs

To go

The verb "to go" is expressed in a number of different ways in Bahamian Dialect. There are no apparent rules but note the following examples:

1) I'm going to Freeport: Freeport is a city and free trade zone on the island of Grand Bahama, located approximately 100 mi (160 km) east-northeast of Fort Lauderdale, South Florida and gives its name to a district of the Bahamas. ...

• I goin ta Freepo(r)t
• I gern ta Freepo(r)t
• I gun go to Freepo(r)t

2) I am going to cook (some food)

• I ga cook
• I gon cook
• I goin cook
• I gern cook

To do

The verb "to do" has numerous variations depending on tense and context.

For example:

• I does do dat (I do that)
• I does eat conch erry day (I eat conch everyday)
• Wot you does do? (What kind of work do you do?)

In these previous example, the verb "to be" can be substituted for the verb "to do", in that the word "does" can be replaced with the word "is". For example: I is do dat"

The verbs "to do" and "to be" can be combined for effect, as in She is don’t like dat (She doesn’t like that)

To be

In the present tense, the verb "to be" is usually conjugated "is" regardless of the grammatical person: Grammatical person, in linguistics, is deictic reference to the participant role of a referent, such as the speaker, the addressee, and others. ...

• I am – I is
• You are – you is
• We are – we is
• They are – dey is

In addition, note:

• I is can be pronounced I's (sounds like: "eyes")
• We is - We's

The negative of the verb "to be" usually takes the form ain" (short for ain't") I ain' going (I am not goin)

To like to

When the verb "to like" is combined with an infinitive, the "to" in the infinitive is usually dropped.

• He like sing" (He likes to sing)
• She like tell lies (She likes lies/She lies a lot)

Past Tense

Generally, the past tense, of a verb, in Bahamian Dialect is formed by combining the present tense, of the verb, in Standard English with a word or words that indicate that the action happened in the past.

For example:

• I drink plenny rum las night (I drank a lot of rum last night)
• I eat peas an rice today (I ate peas 'n' rice today)

To Do

The past tense in Bahamian English can also be formed by combining:

• "did" with the present tense of the relevant Standard English verb:
  • I did eat peas an rice yes'dee (I ate peas 'n' rice yesterday)
  • 'We did see dem at the t'ea-et-er (We saw them at the theater)
  • She did tell him already (She already told him)
• "done" with the past tense of the Standard English verb:
  • I done told you

In this instance, "done" usefully indicates "already" but "done" may also be used in conjunction with the word "already" as in

• I done did dat already

However, it is also possible to combine "done" with the present tense of a Standard English verb to form the past tense in Bahamian Dialect:

• I done give him back he book

To Go

In addition, the word "gone" with the present tense or past tense of the relevant verb to form the past tense.

• He gone tell her she was fat (He told her she was fat)
• Why you gone done dat? (Why did you do that?)

To Be

Similarly, the word "been" can be combined with the present tense or past tense of the relevant verb to form the past tense.

• He gone tell her she was fat (He told her she was fat)
• Why you gone done dat? (Why did you do that?)
• Why you been do dat? (Why did you do that?)
• I been Eleuthera last week (I was in Eleuthera last week)

New Providence Island and Eleuthera Island from space, April 1997 Eleuthera is an island in the Bahamas, lying 50 miles (80 km) east of Nassau. ...

Pronunciation differences

th

The sound "th" is usually pronounced "d" or "t" as in

• dis (this)
• dat (that)
• T'ursdee (Thursday)
• t'irty (thirty)
• t'ink (think)
• t'ree (three)

oi

The sound "oi" often becomes "er" "ur"

• oil – url or erl
• boil – burl
• going – gern

v's and w's

The pronunciation of v's and w's is often inverted.

• wash - vash
• what - vat
• Wednesday - vensdee or "wensdee"

Selected words and phrases

asue or asue draw

• noun: a form of savings where a group of people pay an agreed sum of money on a periodic basic (usually monthly) and each period one member of the group takes all the money that has been paid in (i.e. "draws" their share)

benny

• noun: sesame seeds - as in Benny Cake, a popular snack. Origin: presumably West African.

bey

• pronoun: boy (e.g. Bey wa ya say?)

biggety

• adjective: bossy

boonghee

• noun: a person's ass/arse

brought-upcy

• noun: the state of being well mannered. From "brought up well".

also no broughtupcy meaning: ill-mannered, or not "well raised"

broke up or bruck up

• adjective: broken

wheh you goin wit dese bruck up tings? (where are you going with those broken things?)

bubby

• noun: a woman's breast (but note also conch bubby being a part of a conch)

to buck up

• verb: to crash into something

to check

• verb: to care, (e.g. I ain' checking for them)

chile or chil'

• noun: child

chil'en chi'ren or chirrens

• noun: children

cock-eye

• adjective: cross-eyed

Conchy Joe (pronounced kunk-y joe)

• noun: white Bahamian (sometimes derogatory, originally used to refer to the poorest whites)

crabby

• noun: vagina

cut hip, cut skin, cut ass

• noun: a beating or whipping

to cut [someone's] hip/ass

• verb: to give someone a spanking, beating or whipping

doggy

• noun: penis

grabbalicious/ gravillicious

• adjective: greedy. Origin: from the verb "to grab"

hip

• noun: a person's ass/arse

jam up

• crowded (similar to jam packed)

(e.g. adjective: it was all jam up in there)

(e.g. verb: he try to jam the car up in dat small spot)

jitney

• noun: a public transport bus. Origin: Standard English

to jook

• verb: to stab or to poke
• verb: (sexual, obscene) to penetrate

lowness

• noun: a low blow

a person who makes the low blow is said to throw lowness

a person who accepts the low blow is said to take lowness, alternatively a person can not take lowness or, in general, take no lowness

mussy

• must be (e.g. he mussy smart - he must be smart)

nanny

• noun: feces/faeces
• verb: to defecate (origin : From Ashanti Twi word of the same meaning)

nigga

• noun: man

(While it certainly can be, this word is generally not used, in the Bahamas, as a racial slur)

nay

• negation: no (to not have) (e.g I ain gat nay fridge)

potcake

• noun:

1. a mutt or mongrel dog (i.e. a dog of no discernible breed)

2. (less commonly) rice that hardens at the bottom of a pot

quarm

• verb: to walk proudly

sip sip or to sip sip

• noun: gossip
• verb: to be gossiping (e.g. dey was sip sipping about you)

to spry or to be sprying

• verb: to rain lightly (i.e. spitting, sprinkling)

to study

• verb: to care or be concerned (e.g. I don't have you to study)

toonkie

• noun: vagina

yinna

• pronoun: you (plural). Origin: from the Yoruba word ‘yin’

to yuck Yoruba (native name ede Yorùbá, the Yoruba language) is a dialect continuum of West Africa with over 22 million speakers. ...

• verb: to pull (e.g. he yuck dat door open)

Expressions

ain't for that

• to disagree with something, usually a course of action (similar to I'm not up for that)

chile please!

• an expression of shock, amazment or displeasure.

(e.g. Betty pregnant? well chile please!)

d'ain true

• that ain't or isn't true

head ain't good!

• not too smart or a little crazy, as in "not right in the head"

(e.g. don't pay too much attention to him, his head ain't good)

(e.g. you better not mess with her, her head ain't too good)

kill me

• used when some thing is funny or shocking

(e.g. Gal you is kill me when you do dat)

likes ta die

• similar to kill me

(e.g. bey i likes ta die when da clown sta't tellin' he jokes.)

right chere/cha

• right here (e.g. da car was right chere)

well muddo or well mudda sick

• an exclamation of surprise, shock or amazement (used similarly to "oh my god" or "wow")

to yuck up [someone's] vexation (n.b. square brackets are editorial and used to indicate missing/replaceable material) Various brackets in Arial // In writing Brackets are punctuation marks, used in pairs to set apart or interject text within other text. ...

• to make someone angry

Further reading

• Holm, John A. and Alison Watt Shilling Dictionary of Bahamian English (Lexik House: Cold Spring, New York: 1982) ISBN: 0936368039

See also

List of dialects of the English language
Caribbean English
Gullah
Virgin Islands Creole
Jamaican Creole
Antiguan Creole
Saint Kitts Creole
This is a list of varieties of the English language. ... Caribbean English is a dialect of the English language spoken in the Caribbean. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Virgin Islands Creole is a linguistic variety spoken in the Virgin Islands in the Caribbean. ... Jamaican Creole, also known to foreigners as Patois/(Patwa) or simply Jamaican, is an English/African-based language --not to be confused with Jamaican English nor with the Rastafarian use of English-- used primarily on the island of Jamaica. ... Antiguan Creole is a linguistic variety spoken in Antigua and Barbuda. ... Saint Kitts Creole is a linguistic variety spoken in Saint Kitts and Nevis. ...