The Charlene Sato Center for Pidgin, Creole and Dialect Studies was established in January 2002. The Center’s aim is to conduct research on pidgin and creole languages as well as stigmatized dialects, with a focus on research that can benefit speakers of such varieties.  The Sato Center welcomes local students, faculty, community members, and visiting researchers to use the resources that we have available at the Center. Previously at TP 101 (behind the Center for Korean Studies) we are now located at Moore 496.

The Sato Center was established in memory of Charlene Junko Sato, a Hawai’i-born scholar whose research on Pidgin provided much of the knowledge base about this language.

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SLS 130 will be offered in Spring 2023

Introduction to Pidgin in Hawai‘i (SLS 130)

Course Description:

This course introduces students to Pidgin, the creole language of Hawai‘i, through examining an intersection of issues and perspectives related to language rights. Students will learn about the social, political, educational, and economic issues related to Pidgin, and they will engage with perspectives on Pidgin from Native Hawaiians, local people in Hawai‘i, and newcomers to Hawai‘i.

This course is labeled as DS: Diversification courses in Social Sciences, which satisfies 3 of 6 Diversification Requirement credits for a Bachelor’s degree at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.