Garifuna language: Difference between revisions

| states = North Coast of [[Honduras]] and [[Guatemala]], [[Belize]], [[Nicaragua]]'s [[Mosquito Coast]]

The language was once confined to the Antillean islands of [[Saint Vincent (island)|St. Vincent]] and [[Dominica]], but its speakers, the Garifuna people, were deported by the [[Kingdom of Great Britain|British]] in 1797 to the north coast of [[Honduras]]<ref>{{cite journal |last1last=Dreyfus-Gamelon |first1first=Simone |title=Et Christophe Colomb vint... |journal=Ethnies |date=1993 |volume=Chroniques d'une conquête |issue= 14 |page=104}}</ref> from where the language and Garifuna people has since spread along the coast south to Nicaragua and north to [[Guatemala]] and [[Belize]].

The Garifuna language was declared a [[Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity|Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity]] in 2008 along with [[Garifuna music]] and dance.<ref name="UNESCO">{{cite web |url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/RL/00001 |title=Language, dance and music of the Garifuna |date=2008 |work=unesco.org |access-date=1 January 2015 |archive-date=7 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141207161455/http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/RL/00001 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Garifuna is spoken in [[Central America]], especially in [[Honduras]] (146,000 speakers),{{citation needed|date=April 2015}} but also in [[Guatemala]] (20,000 speakers), [[Belize]] (14,100 speakers), [[Nicaragua]] (2,600 speakers), and the [[US]], particularly in [[New York City]], where it is spoken in [[Queens]], [[Brooklyn]] and the [[Bronx]],<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2011/may/28/some-ny-immigrants-cite-lack-of-spanish-as-barrier/|title=Some NY immigrants cite lack of Spanish as barrier|last=Torrens|first=Claudio|date=2011-05-28 |work=UTSanDiego.com |access-date=2013-02-10|archive-date=1 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201040607/http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2011/may/28/some-ny-immigrants-cite-lack-of-spanish-as-barrier/|url-status=live}}</ref> and in [[Houston]], which has had a community of Central Americans since the 1980s.<ref name="RodriguezJournalp5">{{harvnb|Rodriguez|1987|p=5}}</ref> The first feature film in the Garifuna language, ''[[Garifuna in Peril]]'', was released in 2012.<ref name=HondurasWeekly>{{cite news|title=Independent Honduran-American Film "Garifuna in Peril" Will Premiere in Honduras|url=http://www.hondurasweekly.com/national/item/17150-independent-honduran-american-film-garifuna-in-peril-will-premiere-in-honduras|access-date=10 October 2015|work=Honduras Weekly|date=October 17, 2013|archive-date=13 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180113150355/http://www.hondurasweekly.com/national/item/17150-independent-honduran-american-film-garifuna-in-peril-will-premiere-in-honduras|url-status=live}}</ref>

Descriptions of Island Carib people in the 17th century [[missionaries]] from Europe record the use of two languages: Carib as spoken by the men, and Arawak as spoken by the women. It is conjectured that the males retained the core Carib vocabulary while the grammatical structure of their language mirrored that or Arawak. As such, [[Island Carib language|Island Carib]] as spoken by males is considered either a [[mixed language]] or a [[relexification|relexified]] language. The West African influence in Garifuna is limited to a handful of loanwords and perhaps intonation. Contrary to what some believe, there is no influence from "African phonetics" as there is no such thing as a singular African phonetic system as languages in West Africa and Africa in general have extremely diverse phoneme inventories. The distinction between Garifuna and the [[Kalinago language]] can be explained by simple evolution due to the separation of the Garifuna being sent to Central America.

! scope="col" | Meaning

! scope="col" | Garifuna

! scope="col" | [[Island Carib language|Carib]]

! scope="row" | man

| ''{{lang|cab|wügüri}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|wokyry}}''

! scope="row" | woman

| ''{{lang|cab|würi}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|woryi}}''

! scope="row" | European

| ''{{lang|cab|baranagüle}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|paranakyry}}'' (one from the sea, ''{{lang|crb|parana}}'')

! scope="row" | good

| ''{{lang|cab|irufunti}}'' (in older texts, the ''f'' was a ''p'')

| ''{{lang|crb|iru'pa}}''

! scope="row" | anger/hate

| ''{{lang|cab|yeregu}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|areku}}''

! scope="row" | weapon/whip

| ''{{lang|cab|arabai}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|urapa}}''

! scope="row" | garden

| ''{{lang|cab|mainabu}}'' (in older texts, ''{{lang|cab|maina}}'')

| ''{{lang|crb|maina}}''

! scope="row" | small vessel

| ''{{lang|cab|guriara}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|kurijara}}''

! scope="row" | bird

| ''{{lang|cab|dunuru}}'' (in older texts, ''{{lang|cab|tonolou}}'')

| ''{{lang|crb|tonoro}}''

! scope="row" | housefly

| ''{{lang|cab|were-were}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|werewere}}''

! scope="row" | tree

| ''{{lang|cab|wewe}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|wewe}}''

! scope="row" | lizard/iguana

| ''{{lang|cab|wayamaga}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|wajamaka}}''

! scope="row" | star

| ''{{lang|cab|waruguma}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|arukuma}}''

! scope="row" | sun

| ''{{lang|cab|weyu}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|weju}}''

! scope="row" | rain

| ''{{lang|cab|gunubu}}'' (in older texts, ''{{lang|cab|konobou}}'')

| ''{{lang|crb|konopo}}''

! scope="row" | wind

| ''{{lang|cab|bebeidi}}'' (in older texts ''{{lang|cab|bebeité}}'')

| ''{{lang|crb|pepeito}}''

! scope="row" | fire

| ''{{lang|cab|watu}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|wa'to}}''

! scope="row" | mountain

| ''{{lang|cab|wübü}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|wypy}}''

! scope="row" | water, river

| ''{{lang|cab|duna}}'' (in older texts ''{{lang|cab|tona}}'')

| ''{{lang|crb|tuna}}''

! scope="row" | sea

| ''{{lang|cab|barana}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|parana}}''

! scope="row" | sand

| ''{{lang|cab|sagoun}}'' (in older texts ''{{lang|cab|saccao}}'')

| ''{{lang|crb|sakau}}''

! scope="row" | path

| ''{{lang|cab|üma}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|oma}}''

! scope="row" | stone

| ''{{lang|cab|dübü}}''

| ''{{lang|crb|topu}}''

! scope="row" | island

| ''{{lang|cab|ubouhu}}'' (in earlier texts, ''{{lang|cab|oubao}}'')

| ''{{lang|crb|pa'wu}}''

Relatively few examples of [[diglossia]] remain in common speech. It is possible for men and women to use different words for the same concept such as ''{{lang|cab|au ~ nugía}}'' for the pronoun "I", but most such words are rare and often dropped by men. For example, there are distinct Carib and Arawak words for "man" and "women", four words altogether, but in practice, the generic term ''{{lang|cab|mútu}}'' "person" is used by both men and women and for both men and women, with grammatical gender agreement on a verb, adjective, or demonstrative, distinguishing whether ''{{lang|cab|mútu}}'' refers to a man or to a woman (''{{lang|cab|mútu lé}}'' "the man", ''{{lang|cab|mútu tó}}'' "the woman").

There remains, however, a diglossic distinction in the [[grammatical gender]] of many inanimate nouns, with abstract words generally being considered grammatically feminine by men and grammatically masculine by women. Thus, the word ''{{lang|cab|wéyu}}'' may mean either concrete "sun" or abstract "day"; with the meaning of "day", most men use feminine agreement, at least in conservative speech, while women use masculine agreement. The equivalent of the abstract [[impersonal pronoun]] in phrases like "it is necessary" is also masculine for women but feminine in conservative male speech.

!<{{small>|voiceless</small>}}

!<{{small>|voiced</small>}}

[{{IPAblink|o]}} and [{{IPAblink|e]}} are allophones[[allophone]]s of /ɔ/ and /ɛ/.<ref>{{harvnb|Haurholm-Larsen|2016|pages=18–21}}</ref>

! 1stcolspan="2" | 2nd person

! 2ndrowspan="2" | 3rd person

The forms ''{{lang|cab|au''}} and ''{{lang|cab|amürü''}} are of [[Cariban languages|Cariban]] origin, and the others are of Arawakan origin. All speakers use the third-person pronouns ''ligía'' (masculine singular), ''tuguya'' (feminine singular), and ''hagía'' (plural).

*''{{lang|cab|isâni''}} "child" – ''{{lang|cab|isâni-gu''}} "children"

*''{{lang|cab|wügüri''}} "man" – ''{{lang|cab|wügüri-ña''}} "men"

*''{{lang|cab|hiñaru''}} "woman" – ''{{lang|cab|hiñáru-ñu''}} "women"

*''{{lang|cab|itu''}} "sister" – ''{{lang|cab|ítu-nu''}} "sisters"

The plural of ''{{lang|cab|Garífuna''}} is ''{{lang|cab|Garínagu''}}.

*''{{lang|cab|ibágari''}} "life"

*''{{lang|cab|n-ibágari''}} "my life"

*''{{lang|cab|b-ibágari''}} "your (singular) life"

*''{{lang|cab|l-ibágari''}} "his life"

*''{{lang|cab|t-ibágari''}} "her life"

*''{{lang|cab|wa-bágari''}} "our life"

*''{{lang|cab|h-ibágari''}} "your (plural) life"

*''{{lang|cab|ha-bágari''}} "their life"

The conjugation of the verb ''{{lang|cab|alîha''}} "to read" in the [[Present tense|present]] [[Continuous and progressive aspects|continuous tense]]:

*''{{lang|cab|n-alîha-ña''}} "I am reading"

*''{{lang|cab|b-alîha-ña''}} "you (singular) are reading"

*''{{lang|cab|l-alîha-ña''}} "he is reading"

*''{{lang|cab|t-alîha-ña''}} "she is reading"

*''{{lang|cab|wa-lîha-ña''}} "we are reading"

*''{{lang|cab|h-alîha-ña''}} "you (plural) are reading"

*''{{lang|cab|ha-lîha-ña''}} "they are reading"

The conjugation of the verb ''{{lang|cab|alîha''}} "to read" in the simple present/past tense:

*''{{lang|cab|alîha-tina''}} "I read"

*''{{lang|cab|alîha-tibu''}} "you (singular) read"

*''{{lang|cab|alîha-ti''}} "he reads"

*''{{lang|cab|alîha-tu''}} "she reads"

*''{{lang|cab|alîha-tiwa''}} "we read"

*''{{lang|cab|alîha-tiü''}} "you (plural) read"

*''{{lang|cab|alîha-tiñu''}} "they (masculine) read"

*''{{lang|cab|alîha-tiña''}} "they (feminine) read"

*1 = ''{{lang|cab|aban''}}

*2 = ''{{lang|cab|biñá, biama, bián''}}

*4 = ''{{lang|cab|gádürü''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|quatre''}})

*5 = ''{{lang|cab|seingü''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|cinq''}})

*6 = ''{{lang|cab|sisi''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|six''}})

*7 = ''{{lang|cab|sedü''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|sept''}})

*8 = ''{{lang|cab|widü''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|huit''}})

*9 = ''{{lang|cab|nefu''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|neuf''}})

*10 = ''{{lang|cab|dîsi''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|dix''}})

*11 = ''{{lang|cab|ûnsu''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|onze''}})

*12 = ''{{lang|cab|dûsu''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|douze''}})

*13 = ''{{lang|cab|tareisi''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|treize''}})

*14 = ''{{lang|cab|katorsu''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|quatorze''}})

*15 = ''{{lang|cab|keinsi''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|quinze''}})

*16 = ''{{lang|cab|dîsisi''}}, ''{{lang|cab|disisisi''}} (< "''{{lang|fr|dix-six''}}" → ''{{lang|fr|seize''}})

*17 = ''{{lang|cab|dîsedü''}}, ''{{lang|cab|disisedü''}} (< ''{{lang|cab|dix-sept''}})

*18 = ''{{lang|cab|dísiwidü''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|dix-huit''}})

*19 = ''{{lang|cab|dísinefu''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|dix-neuf''}})

*20 = ''{{lang|cab|wein''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|vingt''}})

*30 = ''{{lang|cab|darandi''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|trente''}})

*40 = ''{{lang|cab|biama wein''}} (< 2 Xx ''{{lang|fr|vingt''}} → ''{{lang|fr|quarante''}})

*50 = ''{{lang|cab|dimí san''}} (< "''{{lang|fr|demi cent''}}" → ''{{lang|fr|cinquante''}})

*60 = ''{{lang|cab|ürüwa wein''}} (< "''{{lang|fr|trois-vingt''}}" → ''{{lang|cab|soixante''}})

*70 = ''{{lang|cab|ürüwa wein dîsi''}} (< "''{{lang|fr|trois-vingt-dix''}}" → ''{{lang|fr|soixante-dix''}})

*80 = ''{{lang|cab|gádürü wein''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|quatre-vingt''}})

*90 = ''{{lang|cab|gádürü wein dîsi''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|quatre-vingt-dix''}})

*100 = ''{{lang|cab|san''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|cent''}})

*1,000 = ''{{lang|cab|milu''}} (< ''{{lang|fr|mil''}})

*1,000,000 = ''{{lang|cab|míñonu''}} (< engl.English {{lang|en|million}}?)

The [[word order]] is [[verb–subject–object]] (VSO, fixed).<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Ravindranath |first=Maya |date=2009-12-22 |title=Language Shift and the Speech Community: Sociolinguistic Change in a Garifuna Community in Belize |url=https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/33 |journal=Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations |access-date=10 October 2022 |archive-date=26 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526100219/https://repository.upenn.edu/server/api/security/csrf |url-status=live }}</ref>

* {{Cite web |url=http://www.native-languages.org/garifuna.htm |title=Garifuna (Black Carib) |access-date=2007-03-14 |publisher=Native Languages of the Americas |archive-date=14 March 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070314205056/http://www.native-languages.org/garifuna.htm |url-status=live }}

* {{Cite thesis |last=Haurholm-Larsen |first=Steffen |title=A Grammar of Garifuna |date=2016 |degree=PhD |publisher=University of Bern |url=https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/91473 |doi=10.7892/boris.91473 |doi-access=free |access-date=19 December 2019 |archive-date=26 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526100203/https://boris.unibe.ch/91473/ |url-status=live }}

*[http://endangeredlanguagealliance.org/main/language-projects/garifuna Garifuna, Endangered Language Alliance] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220305075806/https://endangeredlanguagealliance.org/main/language-projects/garifuna |date=5 March 2022 }}