PIDGIN AND CREOLE LANGUAGES

Ling/Anth/Eng 347

 

SUZANNE ROMAINE

Office Hours:  EKH 269   Mon & Wed 2-3, or by appointment

Telephone: 974-7479 

e-mail: romaine@hawaii.edu

 

Course Requirements:

Required Reading:

Romaine, S. 1989. Pidgin and Creole Languages. London: Longman.   [plus a set of xeroxed articles which will be made available as    a reading packet]

 

Attendance and participation in class, a mid‑term quiz and two fieldwork assignments. The dates for these are given in the outline below. You will receive further written and oral instructions in class closer to the time these assignments are due. The first fieldwork assignment requires more work and a longer write-up (roughly 5-8 pages) than the second (roughly 3-4 pages). Each fieldwork assignment counts 35 points for a total of 70, and the midterm counts 30 points.

 

Policy Matters

   I expect students to attend each class. This is a VERY intensive class which moves at a quick pace, so every absence will be reflected in your understanding of the material, and thus in your grade. Missing more than one or two classes may lower your grade by one letter. In the past students who have been consistently absent have received a D or an F. If you have to miss a class for circumstances beyond your control (e.g. illness or emergency), you need to speak to me (preferably beforehand). You will need to get class notes from another student, but you can get any handouts, etc. for that class from me. If at any time there are things you don't understand, please ask me, either in class, or after class, or make an appointment to see me at some other time, or e-mail (romaine@hawaii.edu). I am always happy to explain things and help if I can.

   No makeup midterms are allowed. Please make sure you are there.

It is also important that you hand in required assignments on time, especially since we will be coordinating the results of fieldwork assignments for the whole class. Handing in late assignments is not allowed. Please speak to me beforehand if you are having difficulty with an assignment.

 

                         COURSE OUTLINE

Week 1: Introduction

11 June: Kamehameha Day

12 June: Introduction and overview

13 June: Basic concepts and issues defined

14 June: Brief survey of pidgins and creoles of the world

15 June: Brief survey of pidgins and creole of the Pacific

**********FIRST FIELDWORK ASSIGNMENT TO BE GIVEN OUT*********

Reading:Romaine, Chapter 1 and Holm, Pacific Pidgins and creoles

 

Week 2: Pre‑contact language and society in the Pacific with focus on Hawai`i

18 June: Pre‑contact language and society in the Pacific

19 June: Pre/post contact language and society in Hawai`i: Innocence Betrayed                                                  

20 June: The origins of pidgin languages

21 June: The origins of pidgin languages

22 June: First Contact in Papua New Guinea: a comparative

perspective

*********HAND IN RESULTS OF FIRST FIELDWORK ASSIGNMENT*********

Reading: Romaine:Chapters 3 and 4

 

Week 3: Origins of Hawai`i Pidgin English

25 June: Plantation society

26 June: Discussion of results of fieldwork

27 June: Plantation society

28 June: Early samples of Hawai`i Pidgin English

29 June: Oral narratives of plantation life

*********HAND IN WRITE-UP FOR FIRST FIELDWORK ASSIGNMENT**********

Reading: Reinecke: Chapters 3 and 4, Hanahana narratives

 

Week 4: Description of Hawai`i Pidgin and Creole English

2  July: Oral narratives of plantation life

July: Mid term

July: HOLIDAY

July: Creolization

6  July: Creolization

Reading:Romaine, Chapter 5

***********SECOND FIELDWORK EXERCISE TO BE GIVEN OUT********

 

Week 5: Decreolization and creole in Hawai`i today

9  July: Decreolization and the post creole continuum

10 July: Decreolization and the post creole continuum

11 July: Hawai`i Creole in Education

12 July: Hawai`i Creole in Education

**************HAND IN RESULTS FOR SECOND FIELDWORK ASSIGNMENT

13 July: Overview of Pacific region: pidgins and creoles in

         education

Reading: Sato: "Linguistic inequality in Hawai`i:the post‑creole dilemma" and "Language attitudes and sociolinguistic variation in Hawai`i".

 

Week 6: Social and political dimensions of pidgins and creoles

16 July: Discussion of second fieldwork assignment

17 July: Overview of Pacific region: pidgins and creoles in

         education

18 July: Creole in the creative arts and public life

************HAND IN WRITE-UP OF SECOND FIELDWORK ASSIGNMENT******

19 July: Creole in the creative arts and public life

20 July: PAU

Readings from the reading packet:

Milton Murayama (1959). All I asking for is my body. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.

Lois‑Ann Yamanaka (1990). "Sista:Boss of the food". Bamboo Ridge 47:67‑8.

Lum:"Pass on, No Pass Back" In Chock, E. and Lum, D. H. Y. eds. The Best of Bamboo Ridge. Honolulu: Bamboo Ridge Press.