Resource and Learning site for those who are learning to speak Haitian Creole.
Bonjou! Learn to Speak Haitian Creole
Bonjou! ...Mèsi! ...E Orevwa! Search for English or Haitian Creole words translation. Also search the whole site for expressions, idioms and grammar rules. And ask questions about the language in the ASK QUESTIONS HERE section.
Most requested translations added here for your convenience: I love you →Mwen renmen w. I miss you →Mwen sonje w.My love! → Lanmou mwen!
Hi.
First of all, the word is joure (as a trans. verb). Joure or jouman can be used as nouns. Joure means to curse or insult someone as well as it means to nag or to have a nasty argument.
You may say, Se tout tan fanm sa a ap joure m pou m mete fatra yo deyò. - This woman has been nagging me about putting the garbage out for a long time.
Direktè a te fache. Li te kanpe devan klas la enpi l te joure elèv yo pou bagay malonèt ke yo te fè. -The principal was angry. He stood in front of the class and rebuked the students for the shameful things that they did.
“Bonjou Mandaly! I am working with some students in Haiti doing an ‘Artraiser.’ They have provided me some words in Haitian Creole, I have made their words into art prints. Here is more information https://www.etsy.com/listing/231183271/ if you know anyone who might be interested in this project, we’d appreciate it if you passed it along.”
Mandaly says:
The art looks really cool. Very nice! The Haiti Décor page has lots of lovely items too. Thanks Colette.
Hinghang in Haitian Creole means argument, discord, bickering
If you want to use the word batay in that sense, then I guess you could use it.
Other Haitian Creole words for hinghang can be zizanni, akwochay, dispit, kaboulaw, chire pit.
a man, his wife, an a donkey ....???
There are many jokes that go like that.
You might be talking about the man that gets frustrated with his two donkeys and mistreats them, then shows the same treatment toward his wife. NOT FUNNY!
few years and speak decent Creole. But recently my husband and I decided to get
a tutor to help us improve. He is an excellent teacher and knows how to teach
his own language. (You know, just because you are a native speaker of a
language, it doesn't mean you know how to teach it.) Anyway, he is a purist. He
doesn't want us to use any words that sound French at all. For example: use
souple instead of silvouple, padkwa instead of padekwa. Bondye instead of the
French pronunciation Bon Dieu. Jezi instead of the French Jesus. (Although we
hear Haitians in church mix in these with Creole constantly.)He claims that
Haitians do not want to hear Creole mixed with French especially from a
foreigner. He says that Creole purposely was formed in rebellion to the French
language and therefore words were changed in pronunciation and in spelling to
intentionally differentiate Creole from French.
Would you agree?
Particularly would you agree that Haitians prefer foreigners to speak very pure
Creole?
Thanks for helping all of us foreigners. We appreciate
you!"
Mandaly says:
I would have to disagree that “Haitians prefer foreigners to
speak pure Creole”.
Often there will be more than one way to say a word such as please (souple, silvouplè, tanpri). It
would be hard to ignore a term simply because it sounds too French, especially
when everyone is still using it to speak kreyòl.
First let’s just eliminate the term ‘pure Creole’ or ‘kreyòl
rèk’ or any other similar terms and just call it kreyòl.
The kreyòl language does have a standard orthography which
dictates how the language is written. So it sounds like your tutor is just teaching
you the standards.
It will take some time before the kreyòl orthography is
integrated in everyday living (communication, doing business, school, official
government affairs, etc…), so implementing these standards now will insure that
the next generation will speak and write kreyòl the way it should be.
“Bonjou Mandaly! I am working with some students in Haiti doing an ‘Artraiser.’
They have provided me some words in Haitian Creole, I have made their words
into art prints. Here is more information https://www.etsy.com/listing/231183271/
if you know anyone who might be interested in this project, we’d appreciate it
if you passed it along.”
Mandaly says:
The art looks really cool. Very nice! The Haiti Décor page
has lots of lovely items too. Thanks Colette.
Haitian Creole ↔ English Reference, Look up Haitian Creole and English Words
"Hi Mandaly, I love your blog. I have a question. I just had a baby and my Haitian mother-in-law tells me all the time "toufe piti la" and "se zye li ki pou deyo". My husband tells me that she wants me to keep the baby hidden. is there more to this?"
She is trying to tell you to wrap the child in layettes snugly (from head to toe) so that all one could see is the baby eyes and hopefully his nose too!
Some Haitians (in Haiti) keep their baby indoors for weeks to a couple of months after birth. If a fanm say (midwife) makes the well-child visit at home, that baby may not get to see the light of day for a couple of months.
A more moderate term you can use is pwostitiye. She sells her body ... Li te pwostitiye kò li.... Li te livre kò li a bagay malonèt ... Li te lage kò li nan pwostitisyon ...
Yon
nouvo zouti enpòtan ki kapab ede timoun Ayiti yo aprann
Se
Dory Piccard Dickson ki ekri atik sa a ann angle, enpi se Mandaly Louis-Charles
ki tradui li an kreyòl
“Imajinen yon nouvo Ayiti kote
tout moun, finalman, kapab li ak ekri lang natif natal yo.” (Michel DeGraff, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, Inisyativ MIT-Ayiti, Akademi Kreyòl Ayisyen)
Refleksyon
sou eksperyans yon elèv lekòl ann Ayiti:
Lè
Mandaly Louis-Charles t ap grandi ann Ayiti, pwofesè lekòl, jeneralman, te konn
fè tout klas yo an franse, yon lang ke pifò elèv pa janm abitye pale lakay yo.
Se nan bat pa kè elèv yo te konn aprann ti mòso nan lang franse a. Toudabò,
elèv yo memorize ABC lang franse a, lèfini elèv yo memorize mo yo, enpi fraz
yo. Apre sa, timoun yo aprann ki sa mo yo vle di. Nan epòk sa a, klas yo
pa t separe ak miray. Nan kèlkeswa nivo klas nou te ye a, nou te
toujou ap tande timoun ki t ap resite alfabè a. Pa te gen chape pou nou. Alfabè
franse a te nan wèl nou tout tan.
Nan lekòl
la menm, timoun pa t gen dwa pale kreyòl. Se nan memwa zo bwa tèt yo ke yo
te blije chache kèk grenn mo pou yo degaje yo pou pale franse, yon lang yo pa
pale ni lakay yo, ni ak ti zanmi yo lè y ap jwe, ni okenn lòt kote nan kominote
a. Pa mande Bondye yon pwofesè ta bare yon elèv ap pale kreyòl, lang natif
natal li; se ale nan pinisyon tou dwat. Pafwa, pinisyon an konn byen rèd.
Alèkile gen ti pwogrè ki fèt: ou kapab jwenn klas kreyòl nan pwogram lekòl yo.
Men, kwak sa, yo anseye kreyòl la kòm yon matyè ki separe ak tout lòt yo.
Akademi Kreyòl Ayisyen an, ki rive fonde an 2014, ap travay pou chanje sa. Y
ape travay pou kore itilizasyon kreyòl nan tout sektè lasosyete. Men, pou
kounye a, kominikasyon alekri gouvènman an ansanm ak lwa ak dekrè, se an franse
sèlman ke prèske tout dokiman sa yo pibliye .
Videyo
a:
Mandaly
Louis-Charles, yon fanm vanyan k ap milite pou lang kreyòl la, te kolabore
ansanm ak animatè Robert Capria, mizisyen Bémol Telfort, enpi pwofesè
lengwistik nan Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Michel DeGraff, pou
pwodui yon videyo edikasyonèl pou entwodui premye chante sou alfabè kreyòl la.
Louis-Charles
ak DeGraff te kolabore ansanm pou yo ekri pawòl yo. Louis-Charles te kreye
melodi a, enpi li chante chante a ansanm ak amoni yo. Telfort te jwe tanbou e
bat kata tou pou akonpaniman mizik la te konplè.
Sa se
premye chante ak videyo ki fèt sou alfabè kreyòl ayisyen an. Pou entèpretasyon
règ òtograf kreyòl la, ekip la te chwazi imaj avèk pawòl ke tout Aysisyen,
granmoun kon timoun, konnen byen. Yo te marye bèl rit tanbou ak melodi a, bèl
rit ki chita byen fon nan kilti nasyon Ayisyen an depi nan nesans li.
Michel DeGraff
di kon sa:
“Chante
sa a gen rasin ki antre fon nan bèl tradisyon ki nan nannan kilti nou. Li va
bay timoun yo yon grap plezi, e li va ba yo anpil angouman pou yo aprann li, ak
kè kontan, nan lang natif natal yo.”
Tit chante a se Alfabè kreyòl nimewo 1. Nenpòt moun
kapab telechaje li pou granmesi nan adrès YouTube sa a:
E si yo ta enterese chante chante
a tou, yo va jwenn pati mizik la ansanm ak akonpaniman san vwa nan CD Baby,
iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, ak Gracenote MusicID. Si gen kèk mizisyen ki
enterese nan sòlfèj mizik la, yo va jwenn li nan sit sa a: sweetcoconuts.blogspot.comnan mwa k ap vini yo, pandan ete 2015 lan.
Ekip la pa te sèlman kreye yon sèl
videyo. Yo te kreye yon dezyèm chante ki entèprete prensip fondamantal òtograf
kreyòl la. Dezyèm chante sa a rele Alfabè
kreyòl nimewo 2. Ou kapab wè yon ti apèsi chante sa a nan YouTube, nan
adrès sa a:
“Mwen espere tout moun va gen anpil plezi pou
aprann sistèm òtograf kreyòl la pandan y ap chante.”
Ki sa
ki fè videyo sa a san parèy:
Animasyon
nan videyo a byen fèt e li atiran. Akonpaniman enstriman yo pa anvayi pawòl
chante a. Lè w ap koute chante alfabè a, ou kapab tande pawòl yo byen klè
pandan tanbou an ap bat anba anba.
DeGraff prevwa:
“Mwen kwè
vwa Mandaly ak akonpaniman tanbou an va fè chante sa a popilè nèt ann Ayiti!”
Konsènan
pwodiksyon videyo a, Mandaly te di “Se te yon privilèj pou mwen te travay ak
Bémol Telfort sou akonpaniman mizik la. Li se yon mizisyen ki gen anpil talan e
se te yon gran plezi pou nou te travay sou pwojè a ansanm. Tout bagay te
tonbe nan plas yo lè Robert Capria nan ActualityFilms.Com
te dakò pou kolabore nan pwojè a tou. Capria, yon Ameriken, te pase yon ti tan
Ayiti e se kon sa li te vin fè eksperyans avèk lavi ann Ayiti. Eksperyans sa a vin parèt nan animasyon li
yo.”
Kòm nou
te di, ekip la te travay sou yon dezyèm chante tou. Nan dezyèm chante sa a,
Louis-Charles ak DeGraff te espesyalman kontan dèske yo te gen opòtinite pou yo
entegre prensip fondamantal òtograf kreyòl la nan chante a:
Chak lèt rete nan wòl yo. Chak son ekri menm jan. Nan pwen
lèt ki bèbè. Chak lèt gen yon sèl son.
Entwodiksyon
premye chante sou alfabè kreyòl la nan ane 2015, se yon bagay ki ekstraòdinè lè nou konsidere ke anrejistreman
dwa otè pou alfabè lang angle a te fèt depi nan ane 1835. Chante
tradisyonèl alfabè angle a, ki pa chante selon fonèm ki koresponn ak lèt yo,
gen menm melodi ak “Twinkle Twinkle
Little Star.” Sa ki fè pwojè alfabè kreyòl la diferan, se jan melodi ke Louis-Charles
kreye a pa te egziste anvan. Se yon melodi ki orijinal nèt.
Pou ki sa
se 180 lane apre chante sou alfabè angle a ke nou jwenn chante sou alfabè
kreyòl la? Se ka paske se trè raman ke
yo te rive kouche lang kreyòl la sou papye anvan ane 1960 yo. Enpi lè sa te rive fèt, se ak òtograf franse
a ke yo te sèvi. Se te jouk nan ane 1980
ke kreyòl la te vin gen pwòp sistèm òtograf ofisyèl pa li. Se òtograf sa a ki sèvi jounen jodi
a. E se òtograf ofisyèl sa a ke
chante alfabè kreyòl la entèprete.
Enpòtans
istorik:
Paske
Ayiti te yon koloni franse, se franse ki te toujou lang lekòl menm si gen, pou
pi piti, 90% Ayisyen ki pa pale franse. Ayiti te anba pouvwa Lafrans depi 1625
rive 1804. Apre yon revolisyon esklav ki te reyisi, Ayiti te vin endepandan.
Apre endepandans lan, sepandan, zafè leta ak edikasyon nan lekòl te kontinye
sèvi avèk lang franse a.
Materyèl
eskolè ak lòt resous pou edikasyon, se sa Ayiti toujou manke. Pa gen ase lekòl
piblik. Pa gen ase pwofesè ki byen kalifye.
Pifò pwofesè yo pa pale franse alèz.
E poutan se yo ki anchaj pou yo anseye an franse. Enpi se an franse tou pou yo anseye timoun yo
lekti ak ekriti. Limitasyon sa a
andikape timoun yo depi nan premye ane lekòl: lè yon timoun aprann li nan yon
lang ke li pa konn pale, sa difisil anpil pou timoun sa a vin bon lektè. E si yon timoun pa ka li byen, li pa fouti
vin maton nan okenn matyè, nan okenn lang.
Enpi tou,
gen pwoblèm lajan. Pifò paran pa gen
mwayen voye pitit yo nan bon lekòl.
Genyen ki pa menm kapab peye inifòm obligatwa lekòl la, oswa yo pa gen
lajan pou peye ata twal pou fè inifòm nan. Anpil timoun, se nan lekòl bòlèt y ale. Alòske moun nan klas privilejye yo pale
franse lakay yo. Ki fè timoun sa yo
aprann franse depi yo ti katkat. Fanmi sa yo gen mwayen pou peye bonjan lekòl
prive pou pitit yo, pou prepare yo pou bèl metye ak lòt pozisyon lelit. Sa ba yo mwayen pou transmèt pouvwa sosyal ak
pouvwa ekonomik bay pitit yo. Enpi, se kon sa fanmi sa yo ka asire yo ke pitit
yo, pitit pitit yo, elatriye, ap kontinye viv konfòtab.
Men sa
DeGraff esplike:
“N ap
pran yon ti souf tou piti pou le moman gras a nouvo pwogram gouvènman an k ap
bay lekòl ki gratis e ki obligatwa: Universal,
Free and Obligatory School Program (“PSUGO”). Men, nou toujou manke resous
pou tout popilasyon an.”
“Sa fè
apeprè 50 lane depi militan lang kreyòl yo ap goumen pou bay tout moun aksè
egal ego nan edikasyon. Sa se youn pami lòt
benefis ke tout Ayisyen ta dwe jwenn kòm sitwayen peyi a—benefis ke pèp la pa
ka jwenn lè lang franse a sèvi kòm sèl lang ekri nan biwo leta, lekòl,
inivèsite, ak lòt kote k ap kreye e k ap transmèt konesans ak pouvwa.”
“Ogmante
itilizasyon kreyòl nan edikasyon ak nan zafè leta, sa mande kokennchenn volonte
politik. Sa gen twò lontan depi yo inyore pwopozisyon pou refòm edikasyon nan
peyi a—pa egzanp, pwopozisyon refòm Bernard a ki te pran nesans an 1980. Youn
nan rezon refòm Bernard a pa te janm reyalize se akoz mank zouti ak mank resous
pou edikasyon an kreyòl. E poutan, tout
rechèch ki fèt montre jan lang matènèl timoun yo enpòtan nan edikasyon timoun
yo. Lang natif natal la se bon zouti pou
elèv yo aprann yon dezyèm lang tou. Pa
egzanp, se lang kreyòl la ki ta dwe ede pifò Ayisyen aprann franse.”
“Kounye
a, finalman, avèk inogirasyon Akademi Kreyòl Ayisyen an ansanm ak gwo jefò ke
Ministè Nasyonal Edikasyon ap fè sou lang kreyòl la, nou kapab espere ke nou va
itilize lang nasyonal nou an kòm yon lang ofisyèl tout bon vre e kòm yon zouti
djanm pou ansèyman kòmsadwa. Se sa lalwa
ak pwogram ofisyèl yo mande. Pa kapab
genyen devlopman ki dirab ann Ayiti si nou pa sèvi tout kote ak sèl lang sa a
ke tout Ayisyen pale—sèl lang sa a ki simante tout Ayisyen ansanm.”
Inisyativ
MIT-Ayiti a te fonde nan ane 2010 avèk objektif pou devlope, evalye enpi
distribiye resous teknolojik pou anseye matyè lasyans, teknoloji, jeni enpi
matematik (“STEM”) an kreyòl. Kreyòl la
se yon engredyan ki nesesè pou bon kalite ansanm ak aksè pou edikasyon ann
Ayiti. Resous sa yo va sèvi kòm zouti
pou pote chanjman ki va amelyore sistèm edikasyon Ayiti a.(1) Inisyativ
MIT-Ayiti a devlope metòd ak materyèl (videyo ladan tou) ki demontre avantaj ki
genyen lè lang kreyòl la sèvi pou pedagoji ki aktif. Avèk kolaborasyon Ministè
Nasyonal Edikasyon, Inisyativ la pwojte pou entegre aprantisaj aktif nan
ansèyman STEM toupatou nan peyi a. Se
kon sa n ap kapab kreye yon bon baz pou devlòpman ki dirab.
Lè nou
sèvi ak kreyòl alekri kòm aloral depi nan
premye ane lekòl, kontinye nan tout nivo akademik, rive jouk nan
inivèsite, sa va ede elèv yo aprann pi byen e sa va asire siksè elèv yo tou.
Chante alfabè kreyòl la se yon zouti ki enpòtan pou nou ranfòse sistèm
edikasyon peyi a e pou nou kreye Ayiti nou vle a.
(1)
DeGraff, Michel, July 2013
“MIT-Haiti Initiative Uses Haitian Creole to Make Learning Truly Active,
Constructive, and Interactive”
Nou pa ka
pale sou kòm kwa san nou pa mansyonen
kòm kwa dire oubyen menm kòm ki dire.
Twa (3) ekpresyon sa yo
vle di, nan lang angle a, seemingly, in
other words, that is to say, apparently, allegedly
Mo sa a
kapab sèvi kòm konjonksyon oubyen advèb.
Ou
itilize l lè w’ap bay plis esplikasyon onswa klarifijasyon
Men kèk
egzanp:
1. Mouche
gen yon manyè ki dwòl kòm kwa dire li ta yon fanm konsa. – The
man has got some weird mannerism as if he were a woman.
2. Ameriken
yo akize prezidan an kòm kwa se li men ki lakòz resesyon an. – Americans
have accused the president, seemingly blaming him for the recession.
3. Olye
pou misye ban m lajan li dwe m nan, li tonbe plenyen ban mwen kòm ki dire pou m ta kite lajan an ba li. –
Instead of giving me the money he owes me, he started complaining to me.
Apparently he wanted me to leave the money to him.
4. Pou
ki sa w ap akize m konsa, kòm kwa dire se mwen menm ki lakòz malchans ou? – Why
are you blaming me as if I was the cause of your misfortune?
Oh I see, we're reminiscing about the times of the makout :)
Ti zwazo kote ou prale
Mwen prale kay Fiyèt Lalo
Fiyèt Lalo konn manje ti moun
Si w ale l a manje ou tou
Brit kolobrit, brit kolobrit
Wosiyòl manje kowosòl
Woule woule woule
Mwen soti lavi Okay
tout bèt nan bwa
Zandolit… tonbe nan bwa
Tout bèt …. tonbe nan bwa
Eks… Thanks Debbie for posting the music score which you can find here: https://www.facebook.com/audubonhaiti/photos/pb.1403779986506760.-2207520000.1434893939./1469256159959142/?type=3&theater
You mean latcha as in dengonn?
It depends....
If you're on the pulpit, all heated up, jumping up and down, resurrected Holy Ghost blood pumping through your veins and the congregation is egging you on .... preche pastè! preche! then you might get away with it.
So it's on a case by case basis.
mèsi pou leson sa yo. M'te komanse aprann Kreyol denye Out e w'ap ede'm anpil.
Mwen pa jamn te panse m'ta aprann Kreyol, men menage'm se yon famn Ayisiyen e
m'vle pale avè fanmi'l!
Antouka, m'gen yon kesyon ke okenn moun ka reponn.
Kile mwen ta dwe itilize "bon", e kile mwen ta dwe itilize "byen"? Pou yon
egzanp: "Sa bon" oswa "mache byen". Eske gen yon règ ke m'ka aprann pou mo sa
yo?
Mèsi anpil! Bondye beni'w."
Mandaly says:
Dakò zanmi. Mèsi.
bon is an adjective and is used to describe something that
fits, that is excellent, fine, correct, pleasurable, acceptable, tasty, or
someone that’s got skills, etc…
Example:
1. Li bon. – It’s good /pleasurable/ enjoyable/acceptable.
2. Manje a te bon. – The food was tasty.
3. Misye bon nan kreyòl
la. – He’s good at speaking Creole.
4. Van an bon la a. – The breeze is excellent here.
5. Pwofesè a te di ke
devwa li a pa bon, li dwe refè l. –
The teacher said that his homework was unacceptable, he must redo it.
You’ll also see bon in expressions such as:
bon mache - cheap
tout bon - true, real
bon kouraj - be brave, brave
Se bon pou... - se bon pou yo -They got what they asked for (they deserve what's coming to them)
Se bon pou ou - You deserve what's coming to you
Byen can be an
adjective or adverb and translate fine,
well; being in a happy, fortunate, flourishing state, etc…
Example:
6. Nou byen. – We are fine, we are doing well
7. Li byen lakay mwen
an. – He’s well / doing great at my house
byen is also used
to translate very, so, quite
8. M byen kontan ou pa te
ale. – I’m very happy that you didn’t
go.
9. An nou viv byen youn
ak lòt. – Let’s live well together.
10. Ou byen konnen m pa
renmen sa, malgre sa ou te fè li kanmenm.
– You know very well that I don’t like it, still you did it anyway.
11. M pran yon bèl so
devan tout moun. M te byen wont. – I took
a hard tumble in front of everyone. I was quite embarrassed.
byen also
translates to be friends, to be on good
terms
12. An nou byen. – Let’s be friends
13. M pa byen avèw. – I’m not your friend.
14. Demoun
sa yo pa janm byen. Yo toujou ap goumen.
– These two people are never on good terms. They’re always fighting.
byen also
translates abundance, possessions, wealth
15. Ti moun sa yo rich
kounye a. Papa yo mouri kite anpil byen pou yo.
These kids are rich
now. Their father died and left them a lot of wealth.
A more beautiful way to say Truth conquers all in Creole is also an expression: De je kontre manti kaba.
I like your second question :)
Images that immediately come to mind when I think of Creole.... Congas, tropical coconut gardens, fried plantains and pikliz, large smiles and konpa mizik :)
Sometimes you may get 'vague'answers because there might be different uses for the expression you're looking to translate.
Trying not to be 'vague', I can tell you that this expression BASICALLY means let's sit and talk/debate on/reflect on ....
Disclaimer: The author of this article works with Mandaly
Louis-Charles, in a volunteer capacity, on projects benefiting Haitians in the
diaspora. Dickson, a retired educator, is the Director of Haitian Migrant
Worker Outreach.
“ Imagine a newHaitiwhere everyone, at long last, can read
and write their native language.” Michel DeGraff, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT)-HaitiInitiative
Recalling a school-girl's experience inHaiti:
When Mandaly Louis-Charles was growing up inHaiti,
instruction there was primarily in French, a language largely unfamiliar to
most students. Children memorized their ABC's and words and phrases in French,
then learnedtheir meanings.
“Back then,” remembers Mandaly, “we couldn't escape the monotonous chants of
children reciting their lessons by heart, in a school with few dividing walls.”
At school, children were forbidden to speak
their native Haitian Creole (“Kreyòl”), so they had to memorize, without
understanding, texts in a language they barely spoke. If caught speaking
Kreyòl, they would be punished, sometimes severely. There has been progress
since: Kreyòl is now included in the school curricula, though it is taught as a
separate subject, and not integrated into the rest of the curriculum.The recently createdHaitian Creole Academyworks to promote the use of Haitian
Creole in all sectors of society. However, most government communications,
including laws and decrees, are still published in French only.
The Video:
Recognized Kreyòl advocate, Mandaly
Louis-Charles, has collaborated with animator Robert Capria, musician Bémol
Telfort, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Linguistics Professor,
Michel DeGraff, to produce an educational video introducing the first Kreyòl
Alphabet Song.
Louis-Charles and DeGraff collaborated on the
lyrics. Louis-Charles created the melody, and provided the vocal, including
harmonies. Instrumental accompaniment was provided by Telfort playing conga and kata.
This is the first Kreyòl Alphabet Song and
Video. The pictures and words selected for teaching the Kreyòl spelling rules
will be familiar to Haitian children and adults alike. The sound of the congas
is a common background to life inHaiti.
DeGraff stated, “This is a specifically Haitian song, well anchored in Haitian
culture, and will resonate particularly well with Haitian children, and enhance
their reading skills.”
This video is available for free download athttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6F6yK1HOhWI.
The instrumental soundtrack, for singing along, is available in Audio CD Baby,
iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, and Gracenote MusicID. The music score will be
available on sweetcoconuts.blogspot.comin the summer of 2015. There is also a
follow-up video with a song illustrating the basic principles of the Kreyòl
orthography athttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dW5LaUJ337U.
The complete second video can be downloaded from Vimeo On Demand athttps://vimeo.com/ondemand/thecreolealphabet.
“I hope everyone has lots of fun playing, and singing
while they learn the Kreyòl spelling system,” said Louis-Charles.
What sets this video apart:
The video animation is polished and appealing.
The percussion accompaniment doesn't overpower the lyrics or Louis-Charles'
exquisite voice. The listener hears each letter sound and word clearly, while
the beat of the congas sings under the words. DeGraff recently predicted, “I
believe Mandaly's voice, with the drumming accompaniment, will become a big hit
inHaiti!”
About production of the video, Mandaly states,
“I'm glad to have worked with Bémol Telfort on the instrumental accompaniment.
He's a gifted musician and we both had a lot of fun working on this project.
Everything came together beautifully when Robert Capria of ActualityFilms.Com came
on board. Capria has spent time inHaiti and his familiarity with the scenery shows in his work."
The production team also created a follow-up
video with a second song. In her second song, Louis-Charles is especially happy
to have found a way to incorporate the principles of the Kreyòl spelling
system: There is one letter or letter combination for each sound of the
language; each letter or letter combination always matches the same sound; and
there are no silent letters.
The introduction of the first Kreyòl Alphabet
Song in the year 2015 is remarkable when one considers the 1835 copyright date
of the traditional English language alphabet song. The traditional English
alphabet song, which does not include the letter sounds, is sung to the tune of
"Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.” Louis-Charles' melody, in contrast, is both
new and original.
The delay of 180 years in developing a Haitian
Creole alphabet song may be attributed at least in part to the fact that
Haitian Creole was seldom used in written form before the 1960's (with French
spellings) or the 1980's with the official spelling system in use today—the one
illustrated in the Kreyòl Alphabet Song.
Historical Significance: WithHaiti having been a French Colony, school instruction historically has been limited to the French language, a language which is not spoken in Haitian homes and communities and which is not familiar to over ninety percent of Haitians. Haiti was under French rule from 1625 to 1804. After a successful slave rebellion, Haiti became independent. Following independence, however, government business and education continued to be carried out using the French language.
Adequate resources for education, throughout
this impoverished country, have always been lacking. There are not enough
public schools, and public school teachers, who often do not have sufficient
education themselves, and who often do not speak French fluently, are tasked
with teaching younger generations to read, write and speak French.
Even those who live near a public school may
not be able to send their children, if they cannot afford the cost of the mandatory
school uniform, or even the cost of the fabric to make the uniform. By
contrast, members of the ruling class have been able to afford private school
tuition for their children, preparing them for government posts, and other
elite positions, providing comfortable livelihoods.
DeGraff reports, “There has been some welcome
progress with the Government’s new Universal, Free Obligatory School Program
(“PSUGO”) but adequate educational resources for the general population are
still lacking.
“For half a century now, advocates of Haitian
Creole have fought to give everyone equal access to education and to other
benefits of citizenship, benefits to which access has been barred by the almost
exclusive use of French as the formal written language in government offices,
in schools and in universities. The move to increase the use of Haitian Creole
in education and government affairs requires political will. For much too long,
proposals for education reform, going back to the Bernard Reform of the 1980s
to promote Haitian Creole, have not been implemented. These proposals are often
undercut by a lack of educational tools and resources in Haitian Creole.
Yet all research in education keeps pointing out the central importance of the
maternal language as the language of instruction. Now at last, with the recent inauguration of the Haitian Creole
Academy and with recent efforts by the Ministry of National Education, we can
hope that our national language, Kreyòl, will be put to use, as the official
language and as the language of instruction, as it should be and as prescribed by
law.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology
(MIT)-Haiti Initiative was founded in 2010 with the goal of developing,
evaluating and disseminating technology-enhanced resources for teaching
Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM subjects) in Haitian Creole—a
necessary ingredient for quality and access in Haiti. These resources will
serve as tools to change and improve the education system in Haiti.(1) The
MIT-Haiti Initiative has developed teaching materials and methods, and produced
videos that demonstrate the advantages of lessons taught through active
learning techniques and in the students' native tongue, Haitian Creole.
In collaboration with the Ministry of National Education, the Initiative aims
at incorporating these Kreyòl-based active-learning resources into the teaching
of STEM throughout the country, in order to eventually create a strong basis
for sustainable development through innovation.
Promoting the use of Kreyòl in classroom
instruction, beginning with the very first years of schooling and continuing
through all academic levels up to university, will enhance students' learning, and will impact their future academic success. The Haitian Creole Alphabet Song is an important tool in the
arsenal for this continued battle to improve the lot of Haitians and the
economic future of their country, by building up and strengthening their
education system.
(1) DeGraff, Michel, April 28, 2013
“Many Hands Make the Load Lighter”: Haitian
Creole and Technology-Enhanced Active Learning Toward Quality Education for All
inHaiti
