Languages of Guyana

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Languages of Guyana
Downtown Georgetown (23357530030).jpg
Signs in Georgetown with text in English
Official English
Indigenous Akawaio, Arawak, Atorada, Carib, Macushi, Mapidian, Patamona, Pemon, Waiwai, Wapishana, Warao
Vernacular Guyanese Creole, Caribbean English
Minority Guyanese Hindustani
Foreign Spanish, Portuguese, French, Dutch
Signed Guyanese Sign Language, South Rupununi Sign Language
Keyboard layout

English is the official language of Guyana, which is the only South American country with English as the official language. [1] [2]

The Umana Yana in Georgetown; the name means "Meeting place of the people" in Waiwai. UmanaYana-Georgetown.jpg
The Umana Yana in Georgetown; the name means "Meeting place of the people" in Waiwai.

Guyanese Creole (an English-based creole with African, Indian, and Amerindian syntax) is widely spoken in Guyana. [1]

Guyanese Hindustani is retained and spoken by some Indo-Guyanese for cultural and religious reasons. Guyanese Bhojpuri may be used by older generations, folk songs, or in a limited way at home, while standard Hindi is used in religious service, writing, and passively through the consumption of Hindi film exports from India. [3] Tamil is also retained in Madras identifying communities.

A number of Amerindian languages are also spoken by a minority of the population. These include Cariban languages such as Macushi, Akawaio and Wai-Wai; and Arawakan languages such as Arawak (or Lokono) and Wapishana. [1] [2]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bhojpuri language</span> Indo-Aryan language native to India and Nepal

Bhojpuri is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Bhojpur-Purvanchal region of India and the Terai region of Nepal and it is chiefly spoken in eastern Uttar Pradesh, western Bihar, and northwestern Jharkhand in India, as well as western Madhesh, eastern Lumbini, southeastern Gandaki, and southwestern Bagmati in Nepal. Bhojpuri is also widely spoken by the diaspora of Indians descended from those who left as indentured laborers during the colonial era. It is an eastern Indo Aryan language and as of 2000 it is spoken by about 5% of India's population. Bhojpuri is a descendant of Magadhi Prakrit and is related to Maithili, Magahi, Bangla, Odia, Assamese, and other eastern Indo-Aryan languages.

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Berbice Creole Dutch is a now extinct Dutch creole language, once spoken in Berbice, a region along the Berbice River in Guyana. It had a lexicon largely based on Dutch and Eastern Ijo varieties from southern Nigeria. In contrast to the widely known Negerhollands Dutch creole spoken in the Virgin Islands, Berbice Creole Dutch and its relative Skepi Creole Dutch were more or less unknown to the outside world until Ian Robertson first reported on the two languages in 1975. The Dutch linguist Silvia Kouwenberg subsequently investigated the creole language, publishing its grammar in 1994, and numerous other works examining its formation and uses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wapishana</span> Indigenous people of Brazil

The Wapishana or Wapichan are an indigenous group found in the Roraima area of northern Brazil and southern Guyana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guyanese pepperpot</span> Dish of stewed meat and spices

Pepperpot is an Amerindian-derived dish popular in Guyana. It is traditionally served at Christmas and other special events. Along with chicken curry, and cook-up rice, pepperpot is one of Guyana's national dishes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caribbean Hindustani</span> Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Caribbean

Caribbean Hindustani is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by Indo-Caribbean people and the Indo-Caribbean diaspora. It is a koiné language mainly based on the Bhojpuri and Awadhi dialects. These Hindustani dialects were the most spoken dialects by the Indians who came as immigrants to the Caribbean from Colonial India as indentured laborers. It is closely related to Fiji Hindi and the Bhojpuri-Hindustani spoken in Mauritius and South Africa.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">French Guianese Creole</span> French-based creole of French Guiana

French Guianese Creole is a French-based creole language spoken in French Guiana, and to a lesser degree, in Suriname and Brazil. It resembles Antillean Creole, but there are some lexical and grammatical differences between them. Antilleans can generally understand French Guianese Creole, though there may be some instances of confusion. The differences consist of more French and Brazilian Portuguese influences. There are also words of Amerindian and African origin. There are French Guianese communities in Suriname and Brazil who continue to speak the language.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guyana</span> Caribbean country in South America

Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic mainland British West Indies. Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the country's largest city. Guyana is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north, Brazil to the south and southwest, Venezuela to the west, and Suriname to the east. With a land area of 214,969 km2 (83,000 sq mi), Guyana is the third-smallest sovereign state by area in mainland South America after Uruguay and Suriname, and is the second-least populous sovereign state in South America after Suriname; it is also one of the least densely populated countries on Earth. The official language of the country is English, although a large part of the population is bilingual in English and the indigenous languages. It has a wide variety of natural habitats and very high biodiversity. The country also hosts a part of the Amazon rainforest, the largest tropical rainforest in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guyanese people</span> South American ethnic group

The people of Guyana, or Guyanese, come from a wide array of backgrounds and cultures including aboriginal natives, African and Indian origins, as well as a minority of Chinese and European descendant peoples. Demographics as of 2012 are Indo-Guyanese 39.8%, Afro-Guyanese 30.1%, mixed race 19.9%, Amerindian 10.5%, other 1.5%. As a result, Guyanese do not equate their nationality with race and ethnicity, but with citizenship. Although citizens make up the majority of Guyanese, there is a substantial number of Guyanese expatriates, dual citizens and descendants living worldwide, chiefly elsewhere in the Anglosphere.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Languages of the Caribbean</span> Languages of the region

The languages of the Caribbean reflect the region's diverse history and culture. There are six official languages spoken in the Caribbean:

Nowadays, no one could still claim his pure race status. Ethnic, social and linguistic differences become each day more and more present and marked all over the world. Time, history and continuous population intermingling across boundaries led to create cosmopolitan beings, that is to say world citizens who, in spite of their singularity, manage to bring themselves together in order to create a unique and single nation. Among the nations most affected by this cross-fertilization is notably found Mauritius. The social and linguistic diversity of this country makes it unique and contribute to its wealth. It arouses curiosity, urges us to deepen our knowledge on the subject and is, to this extent, worth being studied.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indigenous peoples in Guyana</span> Earliest inhabitants of Guyana

Indigenous peoples in Guyana, Native Guyanese or Amerindian Guyanese are Guyanese people who are of indigenous ancestry. They comprise approximately 9.16% of Guyana's population. Amerindians are credited with the invention of the canoe, as well as Cassava-based dishes and Guyanese pepperpot, the national dish of Guyana. Amerindian languages have also been incorporated in the lexicon of Guyanese Creole.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Smock, Kirk (2008). Guyana: The Bradt Travel Guide. Bradt. pp.  19. ISBN   978 1 84162 223 1.
  2. 1 2 Ali, Arif (2008). Guyana. London: Hansib. ISBN   978-1-906190-10-1.
  3. Gambhir, Surendra K. (1983). "Diglossia in Dying Languages: A Case Study of Guyanese Bhojpuri and Standard Hindi". Anthropological Linguistics. 25 (1): 28–38. ISSN   0003-5483.