An English-based creole language (often shortened to English creole) is a creole language for which English was the lexifier, meaning that at the time of its formation the vocabulary of English served as the basis for the majority of the creole's lexicon.[1] Most English creoles were formed in British colonies, following the great expansion of British naval military power and trade in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. The main categories of English-based creoles are Atlantic (the Americas and Africa) and Pacific (Asia and Oceania).
Over 76.5 million people globally are estimated to speak an English-based creole. Sierra Leone, Malaysia, Nigeria, Ghana, Jamaica, Suriname and Singapore have the largest concentrations of creole speakers.
It is disputed to what extent the various English-based creoles of the world share a common origin. The monogenesis hypothesis[2] [3] posits that a single language, commonly called proto–Pidgin English, spoken along the West African coast in the early sixteenth century, was ancestral to most or all of the Atlantic creoles (the English creoles of both West Africa and the Americas).
| Name | Country | data-sort-type="number" | Number of speakers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Western Caribbean | ||||
| Bahamian Creole | (2018) | |||
| Bermudian Creole English | (2016) | Dialect of Jamaican Patois | ||
| Turks and Caicos Creole English | (2023) | Dialect of Jamaican Patois | ||
| Jamaican Patois | (2001) | |||
| Belizean Creole | (2014) | Dialect of Jamaican Patois | ||
| Miskito Coast Creole | (2009) | Dialect of Jamaican Patois | ||
| Limonese Creole | (2013) | Dialect of Jamaican Patois | ||
| Bocas del Toro Creole | (2000) | Dialect of Jamaican Patois | ||
| San Andrés–Providencia Creole | (2018) | Dialect of Jamaican Patois | ||
Eastern Caribbean | ||||
| Virgin Islands Creole | (2019) | |||
| Anguillan Creole | (2001) | Dialect of Leeward Caribbean English Creole | ||
| Antiguan Creole | (2019) | Dialect of Leeward Caribbean English Creole | ||
| Saint Kitts Creole | (2015) | Dialect of Leeward Caribbean English Creole | ||
| Montserrat Creole | (2020) | Dialect of Leeward Caribbean English Creole | ||
| Vincentian Creole | (2016) | |||
| Grenadian Creole | (2020) | |||
| Tobagonian Creole | (2011) | |||
| Trinidadian Creole | (2011) | |||
| Bajan Creole | (2018) | |||
| Guyanese Creole | (2021) | |||
| Sranan Tongo | (2016–2018) | Including L2 users | ||
| Saramaccan | (2018) | |||
| Ndyuka | (2018) | Dialects: Aluku, Paramaccan | ||
| Kwinti | 250 (2018) | |||
North America | ||||
| Gullah | 390 (2015) | Ethnic population: 250,000 | ||
| Afro-Seminole Creole | 200 (1990)[4] [5] | Dialect of the Gullah language | ||
West Africa | ||||
| Krio | (2019) | Including L2 speakers | ||
| Kreyol | (2015) | Including 5,000,000 L2 speakers | ||
| Ghanaian Pidgin | (2011) | |||
| Nigerian Pidgin | Including L2 users | |||
| Cameroonian Pidgin | (2017) | |||
| Equatorial Guinean Pidgin | (2020) | Including L2 users (2020) | ||
| Name | Country | data-sort-type="number" | Number of speakers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaiian Pidgin | (2015) | Including 400,000 L2 users[6] [7] [8] | ||
| Ngatikese Creole | 700 (1983) | |||
| Tok Pisin | Including 4,000,000 L2 users (2001) | |||
| Pijin | (2012–2019) | 530,000 L2 users (1999) | ||
| Bislama | (2011) | |||
| Pitcairn-Norfolk | Almost no L2 users. Has been classified as an Atlantic creole based on internal structure.[9] | |||
| Australian Kriol | Including 10,000 L2 users (1991) | |||
| Torres Strait Creole | (2016) | |||
| Bonin English | data-sort-value="1000" | Possibly 1,000–2,000 (2004) | Sometimes considered a mixed language[10] | |
| Singlish | ||||
| Manglish |