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  NEW DIRECTIONS IN THE FIELD OF 

PIDGIN AND CREOLE STUDIES

AUTHOR-MARLYSE BAPTISTA

SOURCE-ANNUAL REVIEW OF ANTHROPOLOGY (VOLUME-34)

(2005) PP-33-42

PUBLISHED BY-ANNUAL REVIEWS

STABLE URL-

http://www.jstor.org 

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 ABSTRACT OF THE PAPER 

•The first part of the paper shows how newmethodologies have changed towards a more multilayered approach for a better understanding of howindividual Creole languages emerge and functions.

•The second section discusses particularly aboutcognitive processes involved in Creole formation.

•The last section of the paper critically evaluates thecurrent state of affairs and points out potential obstaclesand Promising Multidisciplinary Trend.

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New methodologies - The first attempt to combine the theory of Creole

Genesis with observable Creole features were madeby Bickerton (1981)in his theory of „BioprogramHypothesis‟ in his book „ROOTS OF LANGUAGE‟.Heproposed that the Human beings have an ability to

generate a full fledged linguistic system based onminimal input.

Another attempt was made by McWhorter (1998) hereorganized the typology of Creoles based onperceived common features such as lack of Inflectional Morphology, Derivational Morphologyand lack of tone.

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NEGATIVE EFFECTS

Exploration of actual diversity of Languagesare restricted.

Creolists were typecasted as Superstratistsor Substratists.

Lack of Historical data makes it often

impossible to evaluate such claims.

Negative effects

•Exploration of actual diversity of languages is restricted.

•Creolists were typecasted intoSuperstratists and Substratists.

•Lack of historical data has made itimpossible to evaluate claims.

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COGNITIVE PROCESSES INVOLVED IN

CREOLE FORMATION

-

Restructuring is a process which describeslanguage change through the

reorganization of linguistic structures likemorphosyntactic structures due to contactof two languages also known as „systemreorganisation‟ (Mufwene). 

The process of Restructuring is also foundin Non-Creole languages. For example-Danish, Swedish, Occitan etc.

RESTRUCTURING -

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RESTRUCTURING

EXTERNAL FACTOR INTERNAL FACTOR 

DEMOGRAPHY SALIENCE

IMPORTANT factors

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RELEXIFICATION & REANALYSIS

Relexification is aprocess in whichlanguage replacesmuch of its Lexiconwith that of anotherlanguage without anydrastic change to itsGrammmar.

Example- “Ego Credo utvita pauperum estsimpliciter atrox,simpliciterSanguinarius atrox, inLiverpolio.”(A Portraitof the Artist as a YoungMan)-James Joyce

Reanalysis is a mentalprocess in which aparticular form whichsignals a lexical entrybecomes the signal of 

another lexical entry.

Example-Yoruba verbalexpression „sa ere‟(runrace) has beenreanalysed as anadverb „sere‟(quickly).

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DIALECT LEVELLING

ENGLISH (L1)

D1 D3 D4

D2

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CODE SWITCHING

Myer‟s Scotton (1997)views Code-switching as a process whichexplains why Creoles typicallyborrow the Lexicon of theSuperstrate language andMorphosyntactic traits of the

Substrate language.

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INVESTIGATION OF CREOLE GENESIS

The investigation of Creole genesisinvolved antagonistic viewsconfronting theories of Monogenesis

(one language at the source of allcreoles), Polygenesis (severallanguages at the source),Universalism( the acquisition of 

creoles involved a genetic blueprinttriggered by poverty of Linguisticinput.

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  OBSTACLES  Creole formation is not a homogeneous process

and involves a complex set of mechanism.

Accurate dialectal data from the white settlersare difficult to obtain as some regional varietieswere themselves oral with no reliable writtenrecord of them. For instance-Reunionnais

Creole.

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UNIVERSAL GRAMMAR

UNIVERSAL GRAMMAR

STANDARD LANGUAGE

GESTUAL LANGUAGEORAL LANGUAGE

CREOLE LANGUAGE

A multitargeted Synchronic approach unveilsconstraints regulating both Creole as well asOral and Gestual languages.

PROMISING MULTIDISCIPLINARY TREND

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CONCLUSION

Thus the field of Pidgin and Creole studiesis heading in the right direction because itis no longer confined to the realm of 

language contact but is also buildingbridges with other sub fields of linguisticsas Historical Linguistics, languageprocessing, language creation, and also in

first and second language acquisition.

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THANK

YOU

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