10 QUICK TIPS ABOUT JAMAICAN PATOIS

1. Jamaican Patois or Jamaican has long been regarded as a dialect. A simple definition of “dialect” by Merriam-Webster is “a form of a language that is spoken in a particular area and uses some of its own words, grammar, and pronunciations.”

2. Some people see Jamaican as a language. In his article, “Is Jamaica Patois a Language?” Karl Folkes suggests this to be the case as it “is rule-governed (has a grammar of its own); has its own ‘standard,’ has a community of native speakers…and can certainly be expressed orthographically in a uniform way that can – and should – encourage literacy development.” A simple definition of “language” by Merriam-Webster is “the system of words or signs that people use to express thoughts and feelings to each other.”

3. The acceptable spelling of phonetic sounds in Jamaican has not been agreed upon by everyone. Folkes writes the following sentences in Jamaican that he compares to English:
– Dem a fi mi [They’re mine.] can also be written, “Dem ah fi mi.”
– Kuyaman, awara. (Say, what’s up?) can also be written, “Cooyah man. Ah wara?”
– Unu a fi nuo seh a soh wi tan. [You must know that’s the way we are.] can also be written, “Oonoo fi know seh ah so we tan.”
– A wan dege sinting smady a gi mi. [It’s a measly thing someone is giving me.] can also be written, “Ah wan deggeh sinting smaddy ah gi mi.”
To date, there is no authority to say which spellings are correct and which are incorrect.

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