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European Language Or Is a Language in and of Itself Is Examined Creoles

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European Language Or Is a Language in and of Itself Is Examined Creoles DOCUMENT RESUME ED 367 179 FL 021 906 AUTHOR Previllon, Jean TITLE What's In a Name: An Awakening of the Haitian Linguistic Consciousness (An Argument for Haitian as the Native Language of Haitians). PUB DATE Apr 93 NOTE 18p. PUB TYPE Reports Evaluative/Feasibility (142) Viewpoints (Opinion/Position Papers, Essays, etc.)(120) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC01 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Foreign Countries; *Haitian Creole; *Haitians; *Language Attitudes; *Language Classification; Language Research; *Language Role; Research Needs; *Stereotypes IDENTIFIERS Connotations ABSTRACT The use of the term "Creole" to refer to the Haitian language is discussed, and it is argued that "Haitian" is a more appropriate term. Psycholinguistic ane sociolinguistic functions of the term are examined, including its etymological and usage history and images associated with its application in a variety of locations and culturai contexts around the world. The debate over whether Creole is a non-standard dialect of another, usually dominant European language or is a language in and of itself is examined briefly, and further formal analysis of the non-European origins of Creoles is recommended. Haitian Creole is seen as belonging to a family of Afro-centric Creole languages deserving of further study, rather than as a "poor relative" of French. It is proposed that linguistically, the most consistent approach is to view the modern indigenous language of Haiti as Haitian, having a status as a language equal to that of common European languages. Official acceptance of this status and terminology, including an amendment to the constitution, and its incorporation into the educational system are urged. (MSE) ****************************.r****************************************** * Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made * * from the original document. * *********************************************************************** F What's ina Name An Awakening of the Haitian Linguistic Consciousness (Rn Argument for Haitianas the Native Language of Haitians) By "PERMISSION TO U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION REPRODUCE THIS MATERIAL HAS Office ol Educational Reeearch and Improvement BEE GRANTEDBY EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) 1;rfhis document has been reproducedas JEAN PHEW LLON til&t,r1 received I rom the person or orgarization originating a 0 Minor changes have been made to improve reproduchon quahty APRIL 1993 TO TH, EDUCATIONAL Points ot wew or opinions stated in this docu- RESOURCES ment do not nocessanly represent official INFORMATION OERI posmon or pohcy CENTER (ERIC) CREOLE LANGUAGES THE APPLE TREE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES 2 ILLUSTRA TED THE MANGO TREE cmantamuounsaY vaimjANBESTCOPY AVAILABLE NoN.EuRopEAN LANGuAGES Jean Previllon Language is considered an element so centralto the identity of aperson that it is indeed wise to explain, clarify, prefaceany activity that relatesto its modification. Therefore, I would like,at the outset, at leastto disclaim whatever I intuitively feel, may bemisinterpreted by thereader/listener; and, at the same breath, share whatunderlying purpose I havein mind when I accept this challenge. Accordingly, let it beknown that theunderlying purpose of this presentation is not to eliminate the word'Creole'; but ratherto recommend that we use it in its functionally logicalplaceso as to enthrone it.The sovereign authority investedin the word 'Creole'will, as a result, strengthen our linguistic identity. In other words, if itcan be contended thatwe Haitians speak Haitian, it will, either in thenear future or eventually, beboth psychologically and logically compelling to developall academicareasin Haitian as opposed to the current andlingering "no material"justifications often heard of educators and the public ingeneral. Also, if we speakHaitian, it will be both psychologically andlogically compellingto encouragethe maintenance of academic subjects at home inHaitian as opposed to requiring a sudden switch from Haitian to French at a certainacademic level.Logic dictates that if Italians speak Italian, Spanishspeak Spanish, Russiansspeak Russian, then Haitiansspeak Haitian. The naming ofanything may be usedas an act to designate something. As there may not be real synonyms, the new name is boundto represent new and distinct characteristics. This characterizationthen, by way of definition, becomes the references which impactson someone's imaginationas the name 3 Jean Previllon or reference is used. Whetheror not the name willgenerate a positive or negative image insomeone's mind will dependon the extent to which the person sympathizes or empathizes with the situationat hand. Again the name or reference may bringpleasure or displeasureto the person should he have the opportunityto experience the situationor to witness the reaction of authority figures towardthat situation. Accordingly, any designationwhich generates pleasurewithin a community is promoted while, in contrast,any designation which generates displeasure is discouraged. In fact, the natural tendencyis to gravitate toward the pleasure-hearing names very decisively asone wants to stay away from derisive names. For example, whilewords such as 'patriot','classic', 'religious', 'winner', bring pride and pleasureand draw a lot of fans,other words as 'alien', 'primitive', 'atheist', 'loser',bring humiliation anddispleasure and repel anyone to whom they are assigned. It is obvious that boththe feeling of pride and of humiliationare due to one's experience eitherin living or in witnessing the consequence or the treatment of thosewho were designated by such word, or names. Thus, inspired by thegreat 16th century English poet William Shakespeare,one may rhetorically ask, "What's ina name?" In 7iew of the above discussion, theanswer to his question certainlycannot be that of Samuel T. Coleridge,a 19h century English poet, whohad a unique definition for the word 'name'. So unique is his definition that itis used to open a chapter on personal and family names. 'What are names but air? he saidboldly(Pei 1984). Withoutany linguistically sophisticatedpretense, a lay person may 4 3 Jean Previllon simply perceiveor recall in a name the imageor the reference carried by the definition of thatname and the reactionor the treatment engendered by the definition assigned to thatname. Therefore one can surmise that theact of naming, at the outset,predetermines, purposelyor not, the eventually attitudes and/ortreatment. Further,one can easily realize how both the attitudes and thetreatment can be justified by thosewho decide to follow the expert providers of suchnames, definitions. As a matter of fact,since these designations and definitionscome from "expert" analysis, most laymen comply with them withoutseriously analyzing both thepsycholinguistic and the sociolinguistic impact madeby these names, definitions,images on their psyche. Undoubtedly, theact of naming carries with ita definition which is sometimes used imaginativelyif not creatively, by linguiststo influence the mind of the layman.As a result of thisexpert psychological influence, the layman finds himself/herselfblindly nurturing an attitudetoward the name and toward anyone whomay be associated with it. Thisprocess represents in part not the eventual fate, butrather the many episodes experiencedby the word 'creole' for thepast three centuries. What is 'creole'? Doesone write this word with a capitalor lower case V? Should the letter'e' in the first syllable takean accent? How many syllables does this wordhave? How doesone pronounce it? As was stated in the introduction of this positionpaper, the discussion about 'creole' will not be centered in complexareas of linguistics.Instead, comments will be concentrated on thevery first question that invitesus to determine what 4 Jean Previllon 'creole' is.These comments will relymostly on the sociolinguistic and the psycholinguistic functions of theword 'creole' as it relatesto the international world in general andto the Haitian psyche in particular. The word 'creole' has forthe past three centuries undergonemany sociological changes andas a result, has engenderedmany sociolinguistic attitudes. Its etymologysuggests that it carried two functions during the Sixteenth Century Portugal.Originated as 'crioulo' in Portuguese, theword on the one hand, connoted theverb 'criar' whichmeans to nurse, to breed, to nourish; on the other hand, theword 'crioulo' also meant whitepersons born in the Portuguese coloniesbrought to Europe for housework(Mahlaiisler 1986). It is obvious that whether theword 'crioulo' was usedas a verb or as a noun, both functions created a patronizingattitudes in the mind and in the actions of continental Europeans,while the same word at thesame instant generated a subservient demeanorin the psyche of the creoles. Thoughone has to keep in mind that thesubservient demeanorwas officially obliterated by the bravery ofsome indentured laborers of European descent andby African slaves who wereto eventually inherit thesame designation, the negative connotationsstilllinger. The Encyclopaedia Britannica,a sophisticated source of knowledge,provides detailed information regarding the sociological use of 'Creole'.So detailed is the information relatingto the images projected by the term 'creole' thatone becomes curious to know how this word changes meaningas it travels from Europe to various nations of the 5 Jean Previllon Western Hemisphere. Thefollowing chart represents thesynthesis of different images throughoutthe Western Hemisphere. Place Tmages Projected by the Word 'Creole'
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