SRANANTONGA

also called Sranan Tongo, Taki-taki, or Ningre-tongo, a creole language spoken in Suriname (formerly Dutch Guiana) in northeastern South America. Sranantonga originated as a pidgin based on English, spoken by slaves of African descent who worked on the plantations of Suriname. The pidgin was strongly influenced by the African languages native to the slaves, as well as by Portuguese, the language of the original Guianan plantation owners, who were Portuguese Jews. These latter were displaced by the English, whose language formed the basis for Sranantonga. In the 17th century the part of Guiana in which Sranantonga was spoken was taken over by the Dutch, and since then Sranantonga has added a strong Dutch overlay. The language as spoken currently bears very little clear resemblance to Dutch, Portuguese, or English. Examples of typical sentences in Sranantonga are Mek konu gi-em moni en bai sani, dan eng sa go kir eng, Let the king give him money to buy things, then he will go (and) kill it; Mi sa gi(bi) yu tin sensi, I'll give you ten cents; and Mi doifi frei gowe, ma mi xoluk, dati tan, My dove flew away, but my luck, that stays. Saramacca, another pidgin spoken by Guianan Bush Negroes, is also English-based, with Portuguese influences. However, it shows much greater evidence of African influence and less Dutch influence than does Sranantonga. Saramacca preserves an African system of pitches, a high pitch (marked by an acute accent) distinguished from a low pitch: Mi t ty des d d mi, I am taking medicine to the man.