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!

Ki sa "Gendwa"?

Gen dwa – to be able, to be entitled, to have the right to, to be allowed

1. Ou gen dwa manje nenpòt sa w vle. – You may eat whatever you want.

2. Nou pa gen dwa jije moun senpleman sou aparans yo. – You should not judge people solely on their appearance.

3. Ou pa gen dwa fè sa. – You should not do that.


4. Konstitisyon peyi a di tout moun se moun, yo gen dwa pou yo viv lib. – The country’s constitution says that everyone is human, they have the right to live free.

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I'm reading through the creole songs in Chants D'esperance which seem to use an older style spelling. I can still recognize most of the words but I'm stuck on gnou - such as in "Gnou jou avan kouche soley." Also, are the last two words reversed from their normal order?

Gnou, youn, or yon – indefinite article a, an

Gnou jouone day
To answer your question, no it’s not reversed. It’s the possessive being used here.
kouche  /solèy / la
setting / sun / the
the setting of the sun

gnou  / jou / avan / kouche / solèy
a / day / before / laying / sun
one day before the setting of the sun
one day before sunset



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What are words for "sprain" or "wramp" as a noun and as a verb?.................

sprain  - fouli, foulay, antòch
to sprain (to twist) – foule, dejwente
egzanp:
M foule pye m antan m t’ap monte mòn nan.
Oubyen

M te pran yon foulay antan m t’ap monte mòn nan.

for a shoulder strain you'll also use depole or dekloke

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what is wap ban bouden?

W’ap ban m bouden
You’re misleading me.


Bay bouden – to deceive, to double cross
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apparently and impact in kreyol, also what does fouti mean?

apparently - aparamman
impact – efè, enpresyon, chòk
fouti – to be able (used in negative sentences)
such as:
M pa fouti konprann sa misye ap di la.
I can’t understand what he’s saying.


M telman  fatige lò m fin travay, yon fwa m met tèt nan kabann m pa fouti leve jouk li maten. – I’m so tired after work that once I go to bed I can’t get up till it’s morning.

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how do you say: ......

I meant to come get you but I forgot. – M te fin pare pou m vin chache w, men m vin bliye.

This means a lot to me. – Sa konsekan pou mwen.
you can use the word konsekan or enpòtan

What do you mean? – Kisa ou vle di?
Basically - esansyèlman
 steering wheel - volan
seat belt – senti sekirite

bald - chòv

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labapen? and what's that saying, it goes something like gason se labapen.....

labapen - Artocarpus camansi fruits, look like chesnuts.

I thought it was women that were given the name labapen …once they’re ripe, they fall from the tree.

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How do you say "any of you" in Creole?

Any of you – nenpòt nan nou, nenpòt kilès nan nou, nenpòt moun nan nou
It can happen to any one of you. – Sa ka rive nenpòt kilès nan nou.

Any of you, anyone of youyoun nan nou
Does anyone of you know what time it is?
Eske gen youn nan nou k’ konnen ki lè li ye?

None of youokenn nan nou
They were all sitting at the church’s doorway, yet none of them noticed that the door was removed.

Yo tout te chita nan papòt legliz la, poutan ankenn nan yo pa’t remake ke yo te retire pòt la.
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How do you say "bear" in Haitian Creole? As in, "teddy bear?" Or the animal in general? I want to say, "My Haitian Bear," "My Island Bear," etc...as terms of endearment. Mesi.

Teddy bear – nounous, ti nounous
A teddy bear – yon nounous

A bear (animal) – lous


Terms of endearment: chouchou, cheri, toutou, koukout, cheri koukout, etc….

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what is the meaning of: sa je pa we, ke pa tounen?

Literally, what the eyes do not see cannot gross you out.
You cannot be repulsed by what you don’t see.


The fast food restaurant employee did not wash her hands after using the restroom.  Hey, if you do not know that you’ll trustingly eat the sandwich that she just prepared with her bare hands for you :)

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n’ava al bwè yon ti kafe ansanm. Can you please explain "n’ava al bwè" in detail ? kamsa hamnida

N’ava al bwè yon ti kafe ansanm
N’ava (future marker) or Nou va
Al (contraction for “ale”)
Nou va ale bwè yon ti kafe ansanm.
We will go drink some coffee together.


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Hello, First of all I'd like to say Thank you for everything you do. I am in CA and you can't find ANY creole courses. My husband is from Haiti and we have a 7 month old son. My husband works a lot so he doesn't have the time to sit and teach me phrases. So Can you teach me a few things to say to my son? "come here baby", "mommy loves you" and some others maybe you can think of.

Thank you.
The few phrases that I can give you might be useful for a limited amount of time as your interaction with your son expands.
If you are looking for HC phrases that you’ll use with your son eventually the list can get quite long. If you want to go that route then get a big notebook, make note of those phrases as they come to mind, when your husband comes home from work he should be able to help you with some of them at least – and he can be there to help you with articulation.  You can email some of the sentences in your list and I’ll help you as I can. 
If you do a few phrases every day, you’ll filled many notebooks within a month time.  There are also some Haitian Creole materials you can obtain online from Amazon, Educavision, Barnes and Nobles, etc… that might be helpful with speech and pronunciation.

Come to me – Vin jwenn mwen
Come here! – Vin isit!
Come to mommy – Vin jwenn manmi

Mommy loves you – Manman w renmen w.

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How do you say, "In tracing my bloodline origins, I've found that I have SO MANY FLAGS to wave!"?

Do you mean “flag waving” as in being patriotic?

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What does frè mean when describing a person? I was told cool or interesting?

As an adjective, yes, it would mean cool or fresh-faced

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Bonjou! I wanted to ask about the North Haitian Creole dialect and the way it is spoken differently than in Pòtòprens. What are a variety of words or spellings of words that are used and written that are different from the standard Haitian Creole dialect that is written and spoken in Pòtòprens, the capital? I heard that instead of "Li pral wè w avèk mamit la", the northerners would write or say "i pray vwa w ake kanistè a"? What are some words to say or write in the North Haitian Creole dialect?

 First and foremost they have a different accent.

Yes, they do say vwa instead of , ake instead of avèk, avè or ak, kanistè instead of manmit, and “i” instead of “li”, and pray instead of pral
Other different terms they use (that I can tnk of):. 
They might say kòk instead of kokoye
They say kawo, we say fè (fèarepase);
They say kinan for possessive
they say twade we say wayal
They say kwoke when talking about sexual intercourse
They say dite we say te
They usually say fèrenk instead of  fèk
They will say “y” when using the contracted third person object pronoun  “l”.
They might also say chapitè when talking about yon oungan



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I just read your interpretation of a proverb. Since you’re on the subject how would interpret this Haitian proverb? Kout machet nan dlo pa gen mak.

“Kou manchèt nan dlo pa kite mak?”, it means  “when a man sleeps with a woman, he leaves no trace”

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Mandaly. I have 2 questions pertaining to the same subject. Nan fraz yo: "Ou ka achte yon jilet aswe a." ak "Ou pa ka achte jilet aswe a." Is it right that in negative statements you do not use "yon"; if so, is it all the time in this manner for correct Kreyol? My other question is: "M pa ka." ak "Ou pa ka."; I thought you could not use a contracted form at the end of a sentence. Or, is this an exception to the rule in proper Kreyol? I realize that there are grammatical exceptions (if this is the case), but I do not want to sound like a hillbilly speaking Kreyol. Mesi anpil.

:)

Answer to the first question:
No.  Using “yon” or not will have to depend on whether you’re talking about non-specific nouns and how many of these “non-specific” nouns you’re referring to or are you using a general term for them.

You can actually say  “M pa’t ka menm achte yon grenn  jilèt aswè a“.I could not even buy one single blade tonight.
Other examples:
M pa gen yon dola sou mwen. – I don’t have a dollar on me.
Pa gen yon kretyen vivan nan lari a aswè a. – There’s not a single soul in the street tonight.
M konnen se yon papiyon ou wè lè w gade imaj la. Mwen menm m pa wè yon papiyon, se yon fèy mwen wè. – I know you see a butterfly when you look at the image. As for me I don’t see a butterfly, I see a leaf.
So you ARE able to use “yon” in negative sentences.

And you will not use “yon” if you’re using a non-specific noun in general term or if it’s plural, etc....
For example.
M pa bezwen jilèt.  - I don't need blades.
M pa wè moun deyò a. - I don't see anyone outside
Nou gen kola pou tout moun. - We have sodas for everyone

Answer to the second question.

You are right.  You should say “M pa kapab” instead.
"kapab" will go at the end of the sentence instead of "ka".

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Chwal ki gen dis mèt mouri nan poto meaning plzz

Chwal ki gen dis mèt mouri nan poto  “The horse which has ten masters dies at the hitching post” – A task with too many “handlers” gets neglected.
Basically, delegate specific people to do specific tasks and the task will get done, or at least you’ll know who to blame if it’s not done.

This makes me think of another Haitian Creole proverb.  It deals with task delegation also:  Si tout moun a cheval ki moun ki va fèmen baryè? “If everyone is on a horse, who will close the gate?”

Basically, everyone wants to be riding the horse but whose job is it to close the gate  after all the horses have passed through? 
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Question: Can you explain to me what "kob sol" is?

Kòbmoney
Sòl – a short-term money saving method among a group of people

Money used to pay “sòl”.
Sòl is a short-term money saving method that a group of friends use.
Each person in the group contributes a predetermined amount of money at a specified time.  The money will go to one person in the group each time it’s collected until everyone has received their “hand” (yon men).

So, a group of 10 people makes a payment of $500.00 on the 1st of every month –each person will take turn receiving a payment of $5000.00 on the 1st of every month until everyone is paid.  At that point, the group will most likely start the “sòl” over. As you can imagine, the first person that gets paid is usually the neediest person and the last payment will be a receipt of a nice $5000.00 saving.

It’s helpful when people who do not have access to banks do it (in Haiti). Some Haitians do it even when they have access to banks because they know the money will not be available to them until a specified time. It works for them if they’re trying to build a small saving or if it’s dangerous to go to the bank (as it can be in Haiti) when crooks, hiding in every corner, watch your comings and goings from the bank.

Many Haitians from all over the US do it, Africans too (They have another name for it).  Mostly women do it.  Some use it as a way to keep their spouse from spending their money too :)

Sometimes a friend may invite you to participate in a sòl.  They try to gather a lot of people because large groups yield large payments, but it can be a gamble if you don’t know the people you’re dealing with.


Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Question: Can you explain to me what "kob sol" is?...": 

If I’m in a sol that has 31 ppl at $400 a month someone gets pay every 3 weeks . I’m the last person to get pay how much money should I be receiving ? 


Mandaly says:
Oh man! a sòl. Tèt chaje!
Next time save in the bank. Isn't it more secure?
What if something happen to one of the participant, how will yo ensure that you get your money?
The payments should not be made every month, it should be made every three weeks when someone gets their hand.

Well, if you are the last person, you should be receiving 31 payments (from 31 people), which includes 1 payment from YOURSELF.  That's 30 x 400 = $12,000. And if you chose to bring your last payment TO YOURSELF, it should be 12, 400.


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Mandaly. Would you please translate these Books of the Bible for me; I cannot locate the correct spellings because of the "sound spellings" that accompany them:

Deuteronomy Detewonòm
Job jòb
Ecclesiastes Eklezyas
Ezekiel Ezekyèl
------------------
Ephesians Efezyen

Colossians Kolosyen

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Mandaly. I forgot to ask about the Book of Romans. Is Romans "Wom" with a grave accent on the "o",or is it "Women"? Mesi anpil

It’s Women (no aksan fòs or aksan grav)

Wòm is Haitian Creole for Rome

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One of my friends often says "gen bezwen" instead of just "bezwen." I believe she is from a different region of Haiti... is this just a form of accent?

We say it like that sometimes.
Pa egzanp:
Gen moun ki gen bezwen finansyèl, gen moun ki gen bezwen medical, e genyen ki bezwen sosyal.
Di m sa w gen bezwen, e m’a di w sim ka ede w.

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Yon moun te dim "mwen wè ou vle pyejem." Kisa li vle di?

Yon “pyèj”a trap, a lure
Pyejeto entrap, to trick

Mwen wè ou vle pyeje’m.” – “I see you want to entrap me

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Why is "lan" used in this translation of this scripture? "Se tout tan peche m lan devan je m." — Sòm 51:3. Is it literally saying, "The sin of mine is constantly in front of me"? Couldn't it also just say, "Se tout tan peche m devan je m."?

When it comes to using the HC definite article “nan” or “lan”, some Haitians primarily use “lan”.

They will say “ponm lan” – the apple , while others may say “ponm nan
Or “fanm lan” – the woman, while others say “fanm nan
Or “zanmi m lan” – my friend, while others say “zanmi m nan

Or “peche m lan” – my sin, while others say “peche m nan

I don't think the bible you're reading from uses "nan" as a definite article at all.  

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Poukisa yo aprann timoun ayisyen pou pa gade nan je ni pou yo pa kwaze pye yo, et pou pa soufle?

Granmoun pa tolere timoun gade yo nan je. Se timoun odasye ki fè sa dapre yo menm.  Sa demontre yon timoun ki gen aksyon sou li. 
Men m poko janm jwenn yon nasyon ki ka pèdi tan l ap defigire yon moun delatètopye tankou Ayisyen.  Depi yo gade w, yo gendwa di si w "gwo" oubyen si w "piti".  Etranje va gade w anba linèt, men Ayisyen di w, Bondye ba l je, se pou l gade.  Ya kanpe sou ran pou yo gade w. Sèlman yo p’ap gade w nan je.
Men pou di w vre, m gen pwoblèm ak moun ki pa ka gade m nan je lè y’ap pale avè m.  Lè yo fè sa yo sanble y’ap kache m yon bagay.

Zafè kwaze pye a se menm bagay la. Si w gen respè pou moun ki pi gran pase w, ou chita devan l nan yon fason ki onore l….. yon fason ki soumèt. Se konsa m te leve.

Pou koze soufle a, m pa konn sa pou m di :)  Gramoun mwen ta flanke m yon kalòt si m pwenti bouch mwen ap soufle devan yo.  E si m ta mande yo, “poukisa m ka soufle sou granmoun?” yo ta flanke m on lòt souflèt.  Donk se granmou yo ki konnen sekrè a, paske yo pa’t janm ban m chans envestige sa :)


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Ki kote m kapab trouve roch galet?

Ou pral fè yon “resèt”?

Wòch galèt se nan larivyè ou ranmase sa.

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What is santi pise?

What’s the context? Besides the obvious meaning, you can find this in a name-calling type of situation.

Someone might call another “ti santi pise” meaning vagabond, worthless person

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“Se sa m bliye m pat fe” can you explain the usage of this term, specifically when can I use it? Thanks Mandalay.

Your example literally means it’s what I forgot I didn’t do basically meaning that I did everything

Or in the future tense Se sa m bliye m p’ap – (literally, it’s what I forget I will not do) meaning that I will do everything.

Pa egzanp:
Misye te tonbe joure m. Se sa l bliye l pa’t di’m. (notice past tense) – He began to curse at me. He really let me have it/ or He didn’t mince his words.

Another example of how it’s used:
John had not seen his wife for two weeks. When he called her on the phone to say he was coming home, he playfully said to her, Lè m rive lakay se sa m bliye m’ pa’p fè w. (notice future tense)- meaning that he’s  really going to indulge with her.

One more example:
N’ap desann Jakmèl pou wikenn nan avèk kèk ti medam. Napwen travay. Nanpwen obligasyon. Nou pral pran plezi nou nèt. Se sa n bliye n p’ap fè. Meaning We’re going to party hard (or something like that)


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how do u say lonbay in english

Bonjou, Mandaly! I'm reviewing Singular Definite Articles and I'm confused about one of the examples for the Special Note about the vowels "i" and "ou." You said words that end with "i" or "ou" and is preceded by a nasal sound will use "AN." Here's my confusion. You used "LENNMI AN" instead of "LENNMI A.


Although the H. Creole article “an” is used for words that end with a nasal vowel such “pen an, kan an, pon an”; it’s  also used for words that end with a non-nasal vowel which is preceded by a nasal sound:

Examples:

You'll say "zanmi an" instead "zanmi a", because of the nasal sound "zan..." in zanmi
You'll say "fanmi an" instead of "fanmi a" because of the nasal sound "fan..." in fanmi.

We say:
jou a
or jou an
avangou a 
or avangou an
bouk la
or bouk lan
soukous la
or soukous lan
lanmou an because of the nasal sound "lan..." in lanmou

Thus “lennmi an”

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Ki jan w di "the matter at hand" Eske w Gen yon fraz pou sa nan kreyol?


The matter at handsijè, kesyon; sijè ki sou tab la, kesyon ki sou tab la

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what is dyayi? I've seen many different translations. i know it means to dance or move your body some way but what does mean "mwen pral dyayi sou ou"?


 M pral djayi sou ou” seems to mean “I’m going to flip out on you” (to be angry or furious).  I’m not sure what the context is.

It also translates to shake, to have the shakes, to go into a trembling fit.
Egzanp:
Fanm nan t’ap kriye nan antèman pitit li a.  Li t’ap djayi atè a.  Se dis gason ki t’oblije kenbe l anvan l te vin resi kalme.

Djayi” can also mean “to dance”.

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What are some synonyms for "ugly" besides "lèd" regarding people or thing? for example, "That house around the corner is ugly." "Flavor of love or flavor flave is an ugly person." What are some degrees of ugliness in creole(if there is any)?


What are some synonyms for "ugly" besides "lèd" regarding people or thing? for example, "That house around the corner is ugly." "Flavor of love or flavor flave is an ugly person." What are some degrees of ugliness in creole(if there is any)?

Degrees of ugliness?  Is that about comparatives?

You should listen to Maurice Sixto’s Sentaniz where the mistress of the house calls Sentaniz ugly in many many different ways….

In Haitian Creole we may use  koukou, makawon,  mafweze, kaka zonbi, mangousa, malfouti,  chwèt, makoubi, etc….

As for describing an ugly object, we might use gwosomodo

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Lè yo rele mwen “blan” an Ayiti

This post is written by Scott. 

 
Bonjou mesyedam, lasosyete d Ayiti.

Jodiya mwen vle diskite yon mo mwen tande trè souvan an Ayiti – “blan.” Lè m flannen nan santye andeyò, lè m achte pwovizyon nan mache, lè m fè dekabès, lè m ap rele “Anmwey !” aprè pikan pike gwo zotèy mwen, mwen tande moun di “Blan.” E se pa yon sèl fason pou yo di l. Moun ka rele l, moun ka chwichwi l, moun ka tchwipe l, e moun ka salye avè l ak tout politès. Kelkeswa ka a, mwen konn tande l.

Sa k fè moun di sa alantou mwen tout tan? Oke chè lektè, m ap mete sekre rèd pa m nan lari. Mwen menm, mwen gen po blan, je vèt, mwen fèt lòtbòdlo. Donk, an Ayiti moun konn rele mwen "blan." E jodiya, mwen ta vle pataje yon ti tranch esperyans mwen genyen ak mo sa a nan bèl peyi nou.

Bon, an palan de esperyans pa m, mwen ka fè de (2) kan moun ki konn rele mwen "blan."

            Premyeman, gen moun ki rele mwen "blan" premye fwa yo wè mwen paske yo poko konnen kijan mwen rele, yo wè mwen se yon etranje, e san touche gwo istwa kolonyal, se nan jan sa nou konn kalifye moun konsa an Ayiti. Aprè sa nou koze, nou bay blag, nou mande youn lòt anpil kesyon. Mwen aprann konbyen sè ak frè yo genyen, e mwen di yo manman mwen byen, menm si sante li pa pafè. Mwen esplike kòman mwen travay nan yon lekòl. Nou pataje esperyans nou ak lide nou sou sistèm edikasyon, e nou diskite ki wòl kominote entènasyonal la ak dyaspora a ka genyen nan zafè sa yo. Kòm mwen se yon Kreyolis, souvan nou pale sou wòl lang kreyòl ak lang franse nan sosyete a tou.

Pale nou fin pale youn ak lòt, mwen pa "blan" ankò, mwen se “zanmi,” “Msye Scott,” ou “Tiscot.” Men wi, gen kèk moun ki konn rele m “blan” toujou. Mwen di yo “Se pa konsa fanmi mwen lòtbo konn rele m, non papa!” (gen kèk ti grenn moun ki parèt sezi. "Non ? Manman w pa rele ou blan ?" Adje.) E si nou rive fini koze a nèt, mwen pa vle moun ki konnen mwen byen rele mwen "blan" paske se kòmsi nou ka bliye tout lòt karatèristik, lefèt ke nou chak gen pwòp istwa ak rèv nou, e se sèlman koulè ki enpòtan. Aprè mwen di sa, moun konn reponn "Tout moun se moun. Tout moun gen menm valè." Pifò Ayisyen konprann sa byen. Anfèt, jeneralman isit la moun konprann sa pi byen pase lòt kote sou latè, e se pou sa mwen renmen pale avèk Ayisyen e mwen gen anpil zanmi Ayisyen.

            Gen yon dezyèm gwoup moun ki konn rele mwen blan tou. Men okonmansman yo pa rele mwen blan. Non, odebi se “Monsieur Scott, bienvenue en Haïti. Comment allez-vous?” Tre janti, non? Men, sa pa dire twòp tan. Menmsi mwen eseye mare lang mwen, mwen gen tandans antre bouch mwen nan koze EPT (Edikasayon Pou Toutmoun) oubyen sou valè lang Kreyòl Ayisyen an, e kòman m ap etidye kilti ak istwa d Ayiti. Epitou, mwen ka fè wè nan de tan twa mouvman yo konstate mwen pa rich. Donk, mwen pa rich, mwen pa sòt. Kisa yo ka fè ak yon etranje ki pa ni sòt ni rich ?

            Bridsoukou, se pa « Bienvenue Monsieur Scott » ankò. Bridsoukou, se yon blan mwen ye. Yon etranje, yon moun ki sòt yon lòt kote. Yo pale ak zanmi yo devan mwen e yo di "Kominote entènasyonal la ap toujou mete tèt yo nan zafè nou." Yo pase m nan tenten, yo rele mwen “yon blan fou.” Yo pa reponn lè mwen pale ak yo an kreyòl. Mezanmi, sa preske fin dekouraje mwen nèt.

Bon, san fè okenn konklizyon, mwen ka kondanse esperyans mwen ak mo “blan” an konsa:

Pou pifò moun an Ayiti, plis mwen pale kreyòl, plis mwen fè efò pou konprann sosyete Ayiti, e plis nou di ansanm ke yon bon edikasyon se yon dwa pou tout timoun, kèlkeswa koulè, kèlkeswa nasyonalite, kèlkeswa lang, e kèlkeswa klas, plis yo konn ban mwen yon non pase jis “blan.”

Men pou yon dezyèm ti gwoup, dotan mwen pale sou lide sila yo, dotan yo konn rele mwen “blan.” Men mwen santi gwoup sa a sèvi ak mo a nan yon lòt fason. Genlè se pa sèlman yon jan pou kalifye mwen, men se yon metòd pou fè m santi m kòm yon moun deyò, pou betize mwen, e, dabò, pou fè mwen fèmen bouch mwen ak tout koze Edikasyon Pou Toutmoun sa a.

Mwen pa ka di mwen konprann tout bagay nan sosyete Ayisyen an, e donk jodiya m ap sèlman pataje esperyans mwen  ak nou. Epi, si nou vle, nou ka eksplike m kisa li siyifye.

-pa Scott

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Mési anpil for all your speedy responses, Mandaly! Now another question. How come "You" plural is "Nou" like the Haitian Creole "We" instead of "Vou" or something like that? Won't this be confusing? Also, do you have any audio lessons for these pronouns? I can't even try to imagine what these contractions sound like, "L, N, and Y" for "Li, Nou, and Yo." I'm starting to run into a bit of challenge from not hearing as I read. Xoxoxo

Usually if the word is within context, you will not be confused.

If I come onto a group of people and I want to say hello, I’d say: Kouman nou ye mezanmi? How are you all doing? (Actually that’s how I usually greet a group of people)

Or in a speech, the speaker might say to the audience.

Nou pa dwe bay legen.  Nou pa dwe fè bak.  Se pou nou kenbe la. Se pou nou vanse douvan. – You must not give up. You must not back down.  You must hang in there.  You must move forward.
It’s easy to see that “nou”, in both examples above, translates as plural “you” here?
 
And if both of us were having a conversation, and I said:
Kisa pou nou fè menm?So what should we do?
Here, we know that “nou” translates “we”.

So it’s all in the context.

And regarding listening exercises, the more you listen to all types of conversations the more your ears will be trained and eventually be comfortable in understanding and hearing the pronouns whether they’re contracted or not.
 
Kenbe la.

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what does it mean to "fe sisisy" in hcreole? btw i probably spelled it wrong! thanks?

Do you mean fè lasisin, or is it something else?  Fè lasisin – taunt, to tease someone with food

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Mandaly. From what I have been reading about Ayiti and alcohol; it seems to indicate that the Creoles there do not drink strong drink. The articles imply that they drink milder drinks on the average. I am talking about common Creole folk. Pa vre? Also, does Ayiti brew a national beer or a national hard liqueur such as vodka, whiskey or bourbon? I am trying to get my travel plans in order. Mesi bokou


We have a few alcoholic beverages that are native to Haiti in addition to some homemade cocktails.  Kleren (Clairin) may be the strongest:

Kleren (clairin) – Strong alcoholic drink distilled from sugar canes.

Wonm Babankou (rhum Barbancourt) – Haitian rum

Prestij (Prestige) – Haitian Beer

Kremas (Cremas) – Creamed coconut alcoholic beverage

Like (liqueur) – red alcoholic beverage primarily flavored with beets

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Mon vlé mandé an kwésyon...es moun ayisien sevi pawol-la "zot"? adan dominik,gwadloup, st.lisi e matnik we use that when talking to a group of people. Pa egzanp...zot pa ka manjé (are you all not eating). Also in dominica we use "sa" to able/can. For example...mon pa sa kopwann kwéyòl pyes (I can not understand creole at all) .Curious if these are used in haiti. Mési anchay

1.
Enpe moun te konn itilize “zòt” lontan lontan.  Men kounye a, depi alfabetizasyon Kreyòl la, yo pa itilize l fasil ankò. Kounye a, depi kèk tan, nou itilize “nou” nan plas “zòt”.

Pa egzanp, nou di:
Kòman nou ye? (to a group of people)
How are you all doing?

Ou kapab jwenn mo “zòt” la nan liv ki te ekri lontan ak nan ansyen bib Kreyòl Aysiyen an
 

2.
WI, nou itilize “sa” pou nou di “kapab” (nan fraz negatif).
Pa egzanp:
M tonbe m pa sa leve. – I’ve fallen I can’t get up.
M pa sa konpran anyen nan sa w’ap di. – I can’t understand anything that you’re saying.
Yo tèlman sezi yo pa sa pale. – They are se shocked they can’t talk.
…..
3.
Lòt bagay:
Nou pa itilize aksan sou “e” paske nan lang Kreyòl la nou pa genyen prononsyasyon “e” Franse a.
Pa egzanp:
Nou di rele nan plas rélé
Nou di pale nan plas palé
Etc…


Mwen konprann Kreyòl ou, eske ou konprann Kreyòl mwen ?

 

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How can I use the expression SE PA PALE like you did in the email. I don’t get it .do you a couple of example. mesi


Se pa pale  - it goes without saying,  needless to say, there’s no doubt, unquestionably, for sure

1. Timoun alèkile pa respekte paran yo. Sa ki rich yo menm se pa pale, yo pi mal. - Kids these days do not respect their parents.  The wealthy ones, for sure, are the worst.

2. Mina te entelijan anpil.  Li te maton nan chimi, biyoloji, syans natirèl yo, etc...  Matematik menm se pa pale, nanpwen yon pwoblèm matematik li pa t ka rezoud. - Mina was very smart.  She was good with chemistry, biology, the natural sciences, etc… As for math, that’s for sure, there wasn’t a math problem that she couldn’t solve.

3. Misye te lage nan plezi nèt.  Li te nan nayklib chak swa.  Li pa’t refize dwòg.  Li t’ap depanse adwat agoch. Kanta pou fanm menm, se pa pale, chak swa li te kouche ak youn diferan. – He was living a life of pleasure. He was at the nightclubs every night.  He didn’t refuse drugs.  He was spending money left and right.  As for women, needless to say, he slept with a different one each night.

 

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panama m tonbe sa ki deye ranmase l pou mwen. what is panama?

What would profite translate here “Tigaso an te byen profit pendan l te avek nou la”

Pwofite – to seize to occasion, take the opportunity

Ti gason an te “byen” pwofite pandan l te avèk nou - The boy thrived “well” while he was with us
 
 

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Bonjou, Mandaly! I've completed up to Lesson 12 and I'm about to start Lesson 13 after I review all my notes and things from Lessons 1-12. And guess what? I took my first test (Definite Articles) and got 100%! M KONTAN!!! ……..

"Bonjou, Mandaly! I've completed up to Lesson 12 and I'm about to
start Lesson 13 after I review all my notes and things from Lessons 1-12. And
guess what? I took my first test (Definite Articles) and at 100%! M KONTAN!!!
^_^ Right now I'm reviewing the practice portion of the notes I took from your
video lessons about the Singular Definite Articles. Well, here's my question.
For "The book is in the box" to be translated as "Liv la nan bwat la." Why is
that? I don't understand what "NAN" means here. I Only know "NAN" to be one of
the Haitian Creole forms of "THE" but....that wouldn't make sense in this
sentence. Does this word mean something else now?"


Answer:

Awesome.  Mwen kontan deske ou kontan :)

"nan", here, is the preposition "in", "inside"

liv la      | nan  | bwat la
the book | in    | the box
The book is in the box.

Here is another example
kouto a   | nan | gode a
the knife | in   | the cup
The knife is in the cup.

If you were to have "nan" as a definite article and "nan" as preposition, you would write down both.
example:
Madanm nan |  nan |  chanm nan
The woman   | in     | the room
The woman is in the room.





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Mesye bonjou or madan bonjou?

Larèn nan pa konprann. Li mande plis esplikasyon mezanmi :)

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mache prese pa domi san sou pe

This question is about fek and soti. I see that you use it for past tenses, you wrote ‘m fek pale ave l’ – ‘I just spoke to her’. Would it make sense to add ‘te’ to that sentence: ‘m fek te pale ave l’ or is it ‘m te fek pale ave l? would it mean the same thing then? Mesi


Fèk and sòti, in this case, will indicate an event that happened a short while ago, very recently, not too long ago

FYI: Some people may say fèk, fenk,fèrank, or fenrank

Some people may say sòti or sot

And sometimes they may use fèk sot together

Egzanp:

1. M fèk wè papa w. – I just saw your dad (not too long ago)

2. M sot benyen, se pousa cheve mouye konsa. – I just showered that’s why my hair is so wet.

3. Nou pa grangou. Nou fenk sot manje. – We’re not hungry. We just ate. (a short while ago)

 

If you do add “te”, the  Haitian Creole past tense determiner, then it will make the difference between past tense or present perfect and past perfect.

4. M fèk pale avè l – I just spoke to her. OR I’ve just spoken to her

5. M te fèk pale avè l – I had just spoken to her.

It’ll make more sense in the next sentence:

6. Nou te fèk fin manje ansanm lè lapolis te parèt douvan pòt la. - We had just finished eating together when the police showed up at the front door.

You could not have said: Nou fèk fin manje ansanm lè ….

 

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Ki denye mo ou lan sa? What’s “lan sa”?


lan sa – (in this literally), on the subject, on the matter

Ki denye mo ou lan sa?”

What’s your last word in this? literalman

What are your thoughts?

What’s your perspective?

What’s your opinion on this?

Haitian Creole ↔ English Reference, Look up Haitian Creole and English Words

Do you know why a humming bird is called WANGANEGES in Creole? I was under the impression the word WANGA has to do with voodoo.

Yes, the name wanganègès is made up of two common words in Haitian Creole.

wanga - sorcery, magic spell, luck; nègès – black woman

Besides getting praise for its beauty and radiance the wanganègès has been known to be used as love potion to gain a woman’s affection. Specifically a man may kill the bird, burn it and concoct a powder mixture with the ashes. He would carry the powder in his handkerchief.
Kolibri, another type of wanganègès, will also be translated as hummingbird.

Have you heard the song about a humming bird Kolibri by Ticorn? On Youtube: http://youtu.be/v3yVPiMj2Fw

 

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Mandaly. Ki jan ou di an Kreyol Ayisyen a mixed group of boys and girls? Is it as in Spanish; the masculine form "los muchachos" / "gason yo"? Mesi bokou.


We say mesyedam for mixed group of males and females.

How’s your trip to Haiti coming along? I was thinking of you and thought you had left already :)

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How do you say culture, to be cultured, to harass


To harassentimide, toumante, kaponnen, pèsekite, ran (subject) san souf

Culturekilti, levasyon

Culturedkiltive, edike, save

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What does "kalewes"mean ? Example "tout moun ap kalewes yo"


Kalewès – to sit around and do nothing, to loaf, to chill, to bum around

"tout moun ap kalewes yo" – Everyone is sitting around doing nothing, or Everyone is loafing around.

Kèl lòt egzanp:

-Mesye sa yo pa gen responsablite.  Tout lajounen y’ap kalewès.

-Fanm nan chita sou bouda l maten midi swa ap kalewès. 

-Kalewès pa peye lwaye.

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A woman in Haiti told me of a medicine that helps kids to stop sucking their fingers.I may spell this wrong it’s lalwua and something else. Would you happen to know what it is and where to get it?


I do not know of any medicine in Haiti that would do that.  The woman may have told you about lalo (aloe) or a plant like aloe which they cut and slice and rub on the kid’s finger.  It’s bitter.  Haitians also try other things like covering the finger with a sock or smearing it with piman (hot pepper) or kaka poul (chicken feces) – imagine the handful of harmful bacteria a child could ingest with that last one.  They say that most kids eventually grow out of this behavior, but if he/she doesn’t and you are worried then talk to a doctor.

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Hello, Mandaly! I'm making steady progress through your lessons! Wa cheri mwen is SOOOO proud of me! Ha, ha! Anyway, I have a quick question. I seem to have hit a tiny snag--I have so much trouble pronouncing "w." I was like, OU is such a tiny word already! It's even SHORTER? :-O ha, ha. My question is....do I HAVE to use contracted forms? Is it mandatory since you said Haitians commonly use it? Xoxo (One more thing...how do you pronounce your name? ^_^)

Bonjou zanmi :)
Keep up the progress
My name is pronounced Muh-n-dah-lee with the accent on the first syllable. Some of my friends call me Mandy. Close Haitian friends call me Manda or Mandarine :)

No you do not have to use contractions if you’re not ready for them.  What I usually tell people is that even though you don’t use them you do have to know what they sound like and how they’re used since people that are having conversations with you will be using them.

The best way to be familiar with them is to listen to a lot of Creole.   Here these three posts might be helpful to your specific question.  The first and third post contain audio: http://sweetcoconuts.blogspot.com/search/label/you%20%22ou%22%20%22w%22

Pase bon jounen J

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Mandlay, 'eske' seems to have many, many uses. Could you please explain


We use “eske” to form “yes or no” questions.  In English you have the auxiliary “do” or “did”, “will”, “should”, etc… In Haitian Creole just use “eske”.  

Here’s a couple of examples:

Are you ready?Eske ou pare?  (verb to be – present tense)

Were you here before me?Eske ou te la anvan m? (verb to be – past tense)

Do you want to eat now?Eske ou vle manje kounye a? (auxiliary “do”)

Should we help this poor kid?Eske nou dwe timoun mizerab sa a? (asking question with auxiliary verb “should”)

Can please close door after you leave? – Tanpri eske ou ka fèmen pòt la lè w sòti? (with auxiliary verb “can”)

Etc…

We can also ask questions in Haitian Creole without using “eske”.

Questions for you? – Were these the “many” uses you were talking about?  Mèsi.

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Premye So Pa So (Audio)

Download link for this audio:
http://limanecasimi.audioacrobat.com/download/45300580-3676-ff73-5667-3c08a876cfa3.mp3

Click here to listen to this audio:
http://www.audioacrobat.com/play/WqmkhStW


Saw genyen figi w kagou konsa?
What’s wrong your face is so down and out?
Why do you look so down?
 
M santi lavi a mete pye sou kou m. Tout sa m fè pou m libere tèt mwen pa reyisi.
I feel life has put a foot on my neck.  Everything I do to free myself has been unsuccessful.
I feel that life has a foot on my neck.  I’ve tried unsuccessfully to free myself.
 
M pa janm tande w pale konsa avan.  Sa’w genyen?
I’ve never heard you talk like that before.  What’s wrong?
 
Janm travay di pou konmès mwen mache enpi sa pa janm fèt!  Men kounye a m pral oblije fèmen biznis mwen. M pa konn sa m va fè kounye a.  M pa janm reyisi nan anyen m fè. Mwen toujou echwe nan tout sa m fè.  Petèt m pa t fèt pou m gen siksè nan lavi a ditou.
I’ve worked so hard for my business to flourish and it’s never happened.  So now I’ll have to close my business.  I don’t know what I’ll do now. I never succeed in anything I do.  I always fail at everything I do.  Maybe I was not meant to be successful in life at all.
 
Sa  w’ap di la?  Sanble ou deside fè bèk atè nèt?
What are you saying?  It’s seemed that you have totally surrendered.
 
Men wi, m fin dekouraje  nèt.
Of course, I’m totally disappointed.
 
Pa dekouraje w zanmi m. Premye so pa so ditou.  Ou ka kilbite plizyè fwa nan lavi a, men lè w tonbe se pa pou w rete atè a.  Se pou w leve pou kontinye lite.
Don’t be discouraged my friend.  The first "fail" is no failure at all.  You may stumble many times in life but when you fall you shouldn’t stay down.  You must get up to continue to fight.
 
Mwen fin bay tout enèji m ak tout sa m te genyen .  M pa gen fòs ki rete pou rekòmanse ankò.
I have given all my energy and all that I had.  I don’t have strength left to start over.
 
Si tout moun t’ap fè tankou w.  Si yo te bay legen nan premye echèk yo fè anpil envasyon sou latè a pa t’ap egziste.
If everyone was doing the same as you, if they gave up at their first failures many inventions on earth wouldn’t have existed.
 
Men mezanmi si m’ap pede tonbe leve konsa, moun va di se madichon ki nan kò m kifè m pa ka reyisi nan anyen.
But If I keep going up and down like this people would say that it’s a curse that makes me unsuccessful.
 
Bliye sa tout moun panse oubyen di – Se pa pou yo w’ap viv.  Apre Granmèt la se ou menm ki mèt tèt ou.  Gade machè met fanm sou ou tande! Premye so pa so.
Forget what everyone thinks or says.  You’re not living for them. After God you are your own master.  Look my dear be courageous you hear!  The first fall is no fall.
 
Pou m di w laverite sa se pa ni premye ni dezyèm so mwen pran non.  Mwen kwè m sou katriyèm oubyen menm senkyèm.
To tell you the truth this is neither my first nor my second fall.  I believe I’m on my fourth or even my fifth.
 
Enben se pa gwo zafè.  Tank ou pran so se tank ou va jwenn divès fason pou pare so a.
Well that’s no big deal.  The more you fall, the more you’ll find diverse ways to break the fall.
 
A! petèt yon jou m’a envante kouman moun pare so.   Mèsi pou ankourajman ou.  Mwen te byen bezwen sa.
Ah! Maybe one day I’ll invent ways for people to break a fall.  Thanks for your encouragement. I really needed this.
 
Pa gen pwoblèm.  Kontinye eseye e kenbe la.
No problem.  Keep trying and hang in there.
 
 

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