TRINIDAD (Port of Spain)

TRINIDAD (TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO)

Location:

TRINIDAD is the larger and more populous of the two major islands that make up the twin-island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It's located nothern of South America, in the Caribean. The island lies 11 km off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. 

With an area of 4,768 km² , it is also the fifth largest in the West Indies.                                                           
                                                                            Trinidad and Tobago on a world map ⤵

Most beautiful places to visit in Trinidad & Tobago

How did English became an official language?
In Trinidad, English is the official language, it is spoken by nearly everyone. However, a few people still speak French Creole, Spanish or Hindi. For that, there are a rich, lively and ever changing culture of languages in this island.

But how did English became an official language?

• For know that, we must back in time. In 1498, with the arrival of Christopher Columbus (on this third voyage) the island of Trinidad began to be a Spanish colony. Spanish began to be spoken and after that, the island changed hands between the British, French, Dutch and Courlanders. Finally, Trinidad ended up in British hands and English was declared the official language.

• Trinidadian English (TE) or Trinidad and Tobago Standard English is a dialect of English is the most spoken language in used in Trinidad.                                                                                 

• This English has been influenced by French and Hindi.

• Trinidadian English co-exists with both non-standard varieties of English as well as other dialects, namely Trinidadian Creole in Trinidad.

In this image are represented the main dialects and accents of English by continent.

*How is the Trinidadian? If you don't know how to speak with Trinidadian accent, you can see this tutorial and you will learn it.

Accent and other curious things:  

Trinidadian usage includes a large number of local words and expressions. Many of these have non-English origins - these derive  from French and French Creole, Spanish and West African languages. 

Trinidadian speech is characterised by dropped final consonants and a lack of pluralisation. There is no standard orthography for the written language; written forms that try to capture the sound of the language tend to converge. 

 There are four open back vowels, /æ ɑː ɒ ɔː/, but in RP there are only three, /æ ɑ ɔ/, and in most dialects of  English only two, /æ ɒ/. In addition, which words have which vowel varies between dialects. Words like bath and cloth have the vowels /ɑː ɒ/ in RP, but /æ ɔ/ in Trinidadian English. The table above shows some of these dialectal differences.

SOME EXPRESSIONS  IN TRINIDADIAN ENGLISH

• Ay or Aye - means either hey, or you
• Allyuh - you all
• Awa - literally means "or what", but its usage is to make Trinidadian slang flow better. For example, "yuh wastin' muh time, awa?" , literally meaning "are you wasting my time?"
• Babaash - bootleg rum, i.e., moonshine made from fruits.
• Bacchanal - commotion, a wild party, a fight between neighbours, family or friends. E.g. The wedding reception was 'real' bacchanal cause of the difference in religions between the bride and groom.
• Bad - a description of something that is extremely good. It can also be used to describe a sexually promiscuous female (see baddist)
• Badjohn/Baa-John - a bully

  *Spanish in TRINIDAD: 

The government requires that Spanish must be taught in secundary schools. In 2006, Spanish is established like first foreign language.

External links:

• A Trinidadian accent: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=914XYj30uJg
• Discussion of a paper by Lise Winer
• An Ethnolinguistic Study of the Trinidadian Creole community in Flatbush, Brooklyn by Keisha T. Lindsay and Justine Bolusi
• 50 Frequenty Asked Questions on Caribbean Language by the Society for Caribbean Linguistics
• Wiwords A cross-referencing dictionary of West Indian words with a large number of Trinidadian terms
• The Sociolinguistic Situation of Trinidad and Tobago. 1997.
• Phonological Hypercorrection in the Process of Decreolization--the Case of Trinidadian English.

* TRINIDAD like stage: 

A lot of famous singers have chosen Trinidad and Tobago like setting for their videos. This is the case of Nicki Minaj, Pound the Alarm video. All the images in the video are recorded in Trinidad, and in the capital, Port of Spain.

By: Julio Bernal Sánchez