Kriol – Inglish Dikshineri English – Kriol Dictionary
Compiled and edited by
Yvette Herrera
Myrna Manzanares
Silvana Woods Cynthia Crosbie
Ken Decker
Editor-in-Chief
Paul Crosbie
Belize Kriol Project
Cover design: Adapted from Yasser Musa
Cover photo: Courtesy Robert Spain at 2008 Crooked Tree Cashew Fest
Illustrations in the Introduction are from The Art of Reading, SIL International Literacy Department
SIL International provided linguistic
consultancy to this publication of the Belize
Kriol Project. The Belize Kriol Project is the language development arm of The National Kriol Council.
The National Kriol Council House of Culture, Regent Street P.O. Box 2447 Belize City Belize www.kriol.org.bz
Belize Kriol Project P.O. Box 2120 Office: 33 Central American Blvd. Belize City, Belize
The first printing of this dictionary was in 2007 and was funded by
The Ministry of Education and The National Institute of Culture and History
House of Culture, Regent Street Belize City, Belize
First Edition
Copyright © 2007 Belize Kriol Project
Second Printing 2009
ISBN # 978-976-95165-1-9
Printed by Print Belize
Belmopan, Belize
CONTENTS
List of Abbreviations.......................................... iv Foreword by Sir Colville Young.............................v Preface ..................................................................... ix Acknowledgements.............................................. xi Introduction.............................................................1
Guide to Using the Dictionary...........................3 The Kriol Writing System........................... 10
Grammar Notes....................................................16 KRIOL tu INGLISH .........................................19
ENGLISH to KRIOL ..................................... 381
References.............................................................465
List of Abbreviations
adj. adv. Afr. Am. art. adjective adverb
obj. phr. pl. Port. poss. prep. pro. object phrase plural Portuguese possessive preposition pronoun
African American article
- BK
- Belize Kriol
conj. conjunction Eng. English
pro.adj. pronominal adjective
foc. Fr. focus marker French
ref. sal. sg. sp. Sp. subj. v. reference salutation singular specific Spanish subject verb
ono. int. n. onomatopoeia interjection noun
- neg.
- negative
NKC National
Kriol Council
Misk. Miskito num. number
var: <variant originating from
(etymological reference)
iv
Foreword
By Sir Colville Young GCMG, Ph.D
A language, like a people, can be marginalized — by which I mean, it can be treated as insignificant or even unworthy of being called a language, or of scholarly interest. The creole and pidgin languages of the world have especially suffered in this regard. As the noted creolist Dell Hymes1 put it in 1971, “The languages called pidgins and creoles have long been a stepchild, so far as serious attention, either public or scientific, is concerned.” He added, significantly, “The stepchild may prove to be a Cinderella.”
Most people now accept that it is most unreasonable to ignore or denigrate the daily speech (and in many cases the only speech) of millions of people.
One reason for the slow acceptance of pidgins and creoles as “real” languages was the fact that they “lacked a dictionary or grammar.” Of course, all languages at one time lacked dictionaries, or formal, codified exposition of their grammatical systems.
As far as Belize Kriol grammar is concerned, a scholarly grammar has long been made available in my doctoral thesis “Belize Creole: a study of the Creolized English spoken in (Belize).”2 All that was needed to silence the nay-sayers completely was a dictionary, and with this publication that need is met at last.
I believe Belize Kriol to be the most widely used of all the many languages spoken in Belize. If for no other reason, it deserves a published list of its words, with their meanings and variety of usages as well as (if space permits) etymologies
1
Preface to Pidginization and Creolization of Languages, ed. Dell Hymes. Cambridge 1971. 2 Unpublished York University thesis, 1973.
v
where these can be determined, and examples of the words correctly used in sentences.
Professor Richard Allsopp describes a dictionary as “a reliable inventory of one’s environment, small or large.”3
The words which form that inventory of our Kriol are from a variety of sources, reflecting the language’s long existence and development, and exposure to a variety of influences.
There are words from African languages that date from the days of slavery, for example juk, nyam and guzu. The first, juk, is so widely used that foreign nurses and doctors have to include “nail- juk” (not “nail-puncture”) in their vocabulary when they come to work in Belize. Nyam (“eat”) is for most urban Belizeans rather archaic if not obsolete — but is alive and well in most rural communities, especially the villages of the Belize River valley. Guzu (“bad luck; something that brings bad luck”) is least heard of the three examples I have given of African survivals.
An African survival I find fascinating is Krofi, which is actually a mispronunciation of Kofi, an African day-name. (The correct original form of the name is seen in Kofi Anan, the former U. N. Secretary-General.)
Then there are words of Spanish origin, three being goma
(“hangover”), tableta (“a coconut confection”) and the quite ubiquitous bali/balidor (“friend”) from Mexican –Spanish valedor of similar meaning.
Faced with the flora and fauna of a new environment, the early settlers (whether British or African) often used a word familiar from their home usage. A good example is the berry Cocoloba uvifera called “grape” in Belize because its colour, size and shape resemble the grape the early settlers knew from Britain.
3 Allsopp: Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage, Oxford University Press 1996.
vi
Then there are the numerous Miskito words borrowed from the speech of the Miskito “Indians” who worked in the timber industry in slavery and post-slavery days.
Whatever the origins, the words which make up the vocabulary of our Kriol have at last been adequately recognized and I am sure I speak for all Belize in congratulating the editors of the dictionary and the Kriol Council whose hard work has now borne fruit.
As the Summer Institute of Linguistics puts it, “Groups which have lived on the fringes of more dominant cultures are now finding more of a place for their own unique identity and a viability of their own language in the wider culture.”4
Even as we are grateful to have as our official language
English, the most widely spoken (and therefore most useful) language on our planet, we are proud to keep alive our national cultures, and the languages through which those cultures find their fullest expression – and that must include the Kriol language.
BELIZE HOUSE
BELIZE, C.A.
4
A Service to People in a Changing World: The Summer Institute of Linguistics (undated) Dallas, TX.
- vii
- viii
Preface
The compilers of this dictionary subscribe to the words of the following creed: “As the most uniquely human characteristic a person has, a person’s language is associated with his self-image. Interest in and appreciation of a person’s language is tantamount to interest in and appreciation of the person himself. All languages are worthy of preservation in written form by means of grammars, dictionaries, and written texts. This should be done as part of the heritage of the human race.”5
Therefore, the purpose of this dictionary is to provide an authoritative, affordable reference guide to Kriol – the language spoken by the majority of Belizeans. It is a bilingual dictionary, with the second part in English – the official language of Belize.
Myrna Manzanares and Silvana Woods played key roles in the development of this dictionary. Because of a deep love and respect for the Belizean culture and language, they have been long-time advocates of the preservation and development of Kriol. They are among the founding members of the Belize Kriol Project, the language arm of the National Kriol Council. Ms. Manzanares is currently the president of the NKC. She is a writer and educator, and is at present working with the Belize Family Life Association. Silvana Woods, popularly known as Kriol Gyal, serves as secretary and public relations officer for the NKC. She is a lecturer at the University of Belize and is currently working on her doctorate, researching the use of Kriol in education.
Yvette Herrera wrote many of the definitions and sample sentences, and helped with the final editing. She is the head translator for the Belize Kriol Project, and has participated in cooperative efforts with other Kriol projects in the Caribbean region.
Paul and Cynthia Crosbie, linguists from SIL International, have been working with the Belize Kriol Project since 2001. Paul Crosbie did the major work of compiling, researching and editing each of the entries in the dictionary. Cynthia helped with editing and did the computer lay-out in preparation for publication. The Crosbies were
5 The Linguistic Creed (authored by Dr. Benjamin Elson) was taken from the SIL web site: www.sil.org.
ix
members of the language project which completed a translation of the New Testament and a bilingual dictionary in the French Creole of St. Lucia. In Belize they continue the work begun by Ken and Sandy Decker, also of SIL. The Deckers came to Belize in 1993 in response to a request from Dr. Colville Young and a number of other Belizeans who shared a desire for Kriol language development. SIL International is a non-profit organization whose purpose is to facilitate language-based development through linguistic research, Scripture translation and literacy.
Our hope is that the Belizean public will use this dictionary as they learn to read and write and appreciate Kriol. We trust that it will help teachers as they educate our children, and that it will also benefit foreigners who want to learn Kriol. And we are glad to be able to add to the study of Creoles throughout the Caribbean region. Everyone on the dictionary team has enjoyed working with our beautiful Kriol language, and we believe that each of you will enjoy reading and using this publication.
A final note: This first edition of the Kriol dictionary is a work in progress. We did not attempt to create an exhaustive dictionary, but instead prepared our current data for publication to fill the immediate need for a reference tool such as this. There are many more Kriol words, senses of meanings, scientific names, and etymological information that could and should be added. We are relying on the public to give us feedback for future editions. The final page of this dictionary provides a place where you can record your revision notes.
Comments, corrections, and additions can be sent to Belize
Kriol Project, P.O. Box 2120, Belize City, Belize, or to one of the
following e-mail addresses: [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected].
x
Acknowledgements
It takes a whole community to make a dictionary such as this, and we are indebted to the many people who helped to make it possible.
We want to thank His Excellency Sir Colville Young,
Governor-General of Belize, noted educator, musician, and pre-
eminent Creole linguist. Wi tank ahn tu di nohmoh nohmoh! He has
supported the Belize Kriol Project from its inception, and willingly shared his own research with us. We studied his books, articles and lectures to glean information about the etymologies of Kriol words.
We are indebted to Ken and Sandy Decker, linguists from SIL
International, whose research of Belize Kriol spanned 11 years. They
helped to compile the popular Belize Kriol Glossary and Spelling
Guide, and we used their data-base to develop this dictionary. In addition, we benefited from the descriptive grammar of Belize Kriol written by Ken Decker (see References at the end of this volume). We are also thankful for SIL literacy specialist, Naomi Glock, who held writers’ workshops in Belize from 2001-2005 to help develop a body of Kriol literature. The results of her work added greatly to our knowledge. Paul Townsend, linguistic and dictionary consultant for SIL, did a final check of the whole dictionary to give SIL’s authorization for its publication.
Although the definitions and sample sentences are from our own research, we checked many other sources to verify and refine our findings, especially regarding the origins of some words. We are indebted to the research of those who came before us, particularly the late George McKesey, for The Belizean Lingo, and Richard
Allsopp, for his Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage. For
information regarding English usage, we relied heavily on Webster’s
Dictionary and the Concise Oxford English Dictionary.
Other knowledgeable Belizeans volunteered their help to edit and write sample sentences for sections of this dictionary, including National Kriol Council members, Joey Belisle and Rev. Lynda Moguel; University of Belize librarians, Josephine Mendoza and Merlene Henkis; Delanni Romero. Several University of Belize classes did some of the research and editing as part of their class work: Dr. Vilma Joseph’s Intro. to Linguistics class (Oct.-Dec. ‘03)
xi
researched the C and D sections of the dictionary; two of Silvana Woods’ English classes (Fall semester ‘06) assisted in checking the U through Z sections.
We must thank the hundreds of Belizean teachers who have been instilling pride in the Kriol language through their Kriol cultural appreciation exercises. We are particularly indebted to the Ministry of Education and Culture and the National Insitutute of Culture and History (NICH) for the publication of this dictionary, and for their ongoing efforts at incorporating the benefits of mothertongue literacy in curricula.
Of course, the popularization of the spelling system would not have been possible without the frequent calls from organizations and businesses who want the standard Kriol spelling for banners and logos, and from the media, who have given broad coverage to publications of the Belize Kriol Project. In particular, we acknowledge Amandala columnist Colin Hyde, journalist Ann-Marie Williams, talk-show host Rosalie T. Staines of Oapn Paki, and Harry Lawrence, publisher of The Reporter newspaper which hosts the
weekly Kriol column Weh Wi Ga Fi Seh.
Some of our older citizens made themselves available to answer questions about the meanings of words. These include Nella Woods, Meg Craig, Cashan Aspinall, Norma Flowers, Lorraine Williams and Harold Zuniga. Dozens of other Belizean friends and neighbours and passers-by on the street patiently answered questions and participated in impromptu polls regarding word meanings and pronunciations. Hundreds more took time to give feedback when they visited booths hosted by the National Kriol Council at fairs and other public events in both urban and rural communities over the past decade. To each we say, “Tenk yu!”
xii
Introduction
History and purpose of the Dictionary Project
Much has been written about the history of the Kriol language of Belize (see: Young 2002; Decker 2005), and analysis of Creole languages has become a popular topic among linguists and educators.1 Suffice it here to say that for many years Kriol was not considered a true language, much less a language worthy of being written. But in the post-colonial decades, Belizeans and Creolespeakers throughout the Caribbean area have come to have a growing pride in their culture and language. As more people attempted to write down their thoughts, stories and poems in Kriol, and to read what others had written, it became increasingly evident that the English writing system alone did not serve the purpose, and a more standardized system of writing Kriol was needed.
In 1994 a workshop was held in Belize City to develop an orthography (writing system) for Kriol. Participants were people who had been actively writing in Kriol, as well as representatives from community organizations and church and educational institutions. The result of this effort was a set of spelling rules based partially on the English system of writing and partially on phonemics.
In 1995 the National Kriol Council was formed. It is a nonprofit organization whose members believe that appreciation of and literacy in one’s mother-tongue is essential for self-enrichment and expression of identity. The NKC is committed to producing literature and training in the Kriol language so that everyone whose first language is Kriol, and anyone else who is interested in Kriol, has the opportunity to read and write in this rich language. The Council is also committed to the preservation of Kriol culture. The Belize Kriol Project was formed as the language-development arm of the Council.
In 1997 the Kriol Project produced the Bileez Kriol Glassary an
Spellin Gide. But after several years of testing, Kriol-speakers complained that it was difficult to remember all the rules; and the
1
The editors of this dictionary use the spelling ‘Kriol’, which has been popularized in Belize over the last decade, to refer specifically to the Belizean language and people, while the spelling ‘Creole’ refers to this group of languages in the general, world-wide sense.
1
system required a person to be already proficient in English, a language which has one of the most complicated spelling systems in the world.
In 2002 the Kriol Project called together a committee to revise the system to a completely phonological orthography, similar to those used by many other languages. This writing system is based on
sound rather than rules. Each sound is represented by only one
symbol. Once a person learns the symbol for each sound, he or she will more easily know how to read and write any word in Kriol. The
goal of the committee was not to dictate how Belizeans should speak Kriol, but to help us all find a standardized method in which to write down what we say so that we can share it more
easily with each other. Important advantages of this system are that knowledge of English spelling rules is not required in order to write Belize Kriol, and variants in regional and generational speech can be represented. Those already literate in English will need to remember that English and Kriol are two separate languages, and they will need to make an effort to learn the symbols associated with the Kriol writing system.
As literature has been produced to test the new orthography and people are learning to use it, there has been an urgent call for a dictionary to use as an authoritative reference, so work on it has been going on in earnest. This dictionary represents the current spelling decisions, although some refinements may come about as more people use the orthography.
Development of this edition
Many Belizean educators find that their students do not understand key concepts if they are presented only in English. Rather than denigrating Kriol, some teachers are using it as a stepping-stone to better education. They are finding that by explaining the contrast between English and Kriol, students gain a better understanding of both languages. Reference tools and literature in both languages are needed. To help in this task, the dictionary committee decided to make a bilingual dictionary that includes sample sentences in both Kriol and English.
Deciding which words to include was a most difficult task, and in the end, our decisions were somewhat arbitrary. While we strove to preserve the older Kriol forms of words for historical purposes, our focus was to reflect contemporary Kriol – the way in which Kriol is spoken today. Belize is blessed with a rich blend of cultures and
2
languages, all of which are important. But in this dictionary we tried to focus on words and expressions that are associated with Kriol culture. Therefore, words from the Mestizo, Mayan or Garifuna cultures have been represented only when they have been welladopted into the Kriol language and culture.
