Examins historical and current views of pidgins and creoles. (KM)

In Black English (BE), in addition to the motion verb "come," there exists a modal-like "come" which expresses speaker indignation. This "come" is comparable to other modal-like forms, identical to motion verbs, which occur in Black and non-Black varieties of English, and which signal various degrees of disapproval.…

Special issue on Black Dialect: Historical and Descriptive Issues'' edited by William A. Stewart. (RS)

THE AUTHOR FEELS THAT THE STUDY OF THE CREOLIZATION OF LANGUAGE IN THE CARIBBEAN AREA IS IMPORTANT TO LINGUISTS, LANGUAGE TEACHERS, AND SOCIOLINGUISTS IN ALL PARTS OF THE WORLD. IN THIS PAPER, PRESENTED AT THE SECOND INSTITUTE OF THE INTER-AMERICAN PROGRAM IN LANGUAGES AND LINGUISTICS (MEXICO CITY, FEBRUARY 1968), HE FIRST REPORTS ON WORK DONE AT…

This paper is intended as an outline synthesis of what is presently known about the processes of pidginization and creolization. Section 1 deals with the linguistic processes of pidginization under the following headings: (1) the learned expectancies of how to behave in a contact situation, (2) necessity and heightened attention, (3) redundancy,…

It seems highly likely that many of the features of Black American English can be traced back to the Afro-Portuguese Creole dialects that sprang up in the fifteenth century in Portuguese slave camps along the West African coast, particularly in the Gulf of Guinea area, the area of greatest concentration of activity during the slave trade. This…

The marking of past temporal reference in Black English Vernacular (BEV) and Trinidadian English is compared. Similarities in the patterns of variation according to verb type and phonological conditioning suggest that past marking in contemporary BEV preserves traces of an earlier shift from a creole pattern to one approximating the Standard…

ALTHOUGH AMERICAN EDUCATORS ARE GRADUALLY REALIZING THAT SOME CHILDREN SHOULD BE TAUGHT STANDARD ENGLISH AS A SEPARATE, SECOND DIALECT, REMEDIAL ENGLISH PROGRAMS STILL DO NOT REFLECT STRUCTURAL OBSERVATIONS ON LANGUAGE VARIATION AMONG THE DISADVANTAGED. THERE IS A LACK OF COMMUNICATION BETWEEN LINGUISTS, TEACHERS, AND COMMUNITY LEADERS, AND THE…

Three linguistic theories (the creolist, the transformationalist, and the ethnolinguistic) of the origin and historical development of Ebonics in America are examined. (Author/MC)

Proposes the study of Gullah as a means of discovering the African roots of Black English. (AM)

This paper makes three arguments reaffirming the overwhelming complexities inherent in any real history of the language of blacks in North America. (1) Although the study of black English, however that term may be defined, is desirable in itself and was profitable for white linguists during the 1960s and early 1970s, it did not and never will do…

The 804 entries in this bibliography are divided into four major categories. The first category, regional dialects, is concerned with those varieties of English which are confined within specific areas of the continental United States. The second, social dialects, is concerned with varieties of English which have features that tend to be…

Essays on the history of African American Vernacular English (AAVE) include: an introduction to the evolution of AAVE within the African American diaspora (Shana Poplack); "Rephrasing the Copula: Contraction and Zero in Early African American English" (James A. Walker); "Reconstructing the Source of Early African American English…

The author takes up the problem of the origin of Negro dialects in the United States. On the basis of the very limited number of lexical items which can be traced directly to African languages, McDavid discounts the role of African influence on the patterns of current Negro English dialects. William Stewart suggests the possibility of extended…