Many people today view Pidgin as "broken" or incorrect English. Authors Kent Sakoda, native speaker of Pidgin and instructor in the Department of Second Language Studies at UH-Mânoa, and Jeff Siegel, Director of the Charlene Sato Center for Pidgin, Creole and Dialect Studies at UH, explain that Pidgin is a distinct language with its own vocabulary and grammatical patterns. They begin with an account of the origins of Pidgin on the sugar cane plantations of Hawaiÿi, showing how it has been influenced by Hawaiian, Portuguese, Cantonese, Japanese, and other languages. They further explain that Pidgin is technically a creole language, similar to creoles in other parts of the world, such as the Caribbean. Using examples from local Pidgin literature, Sakoda and Siegel illustrate the pronunciation and writing system of Pidgin and its word classes, phrases, and sentences. The book also includes a short list of Pidgin words sure to be familiar to island residents.
Book Description
Pidgin Grammar: An Introduction to the Creole Language of Hawaiÿi is an interesting and accessible reference for anyone wanting to know more about this unique language of the Hawaiian Islands. This is the first book devoted entirely to a serious description of Pidgin origins and grammar, and the first work on Pidgin grammar that does not require knowledge of linguistics.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Pidgin to da Max,
This review is from: Pidgin Grammar: An Introduction to the Creole Language of Hawaii (Paperback)
Most non-linguists will find the first two chapters and the conclusion pretty fascinating, but may want to skim the rest of the book because it goes into word classes (which are pretty interesting, actually), phrases, sentence structures and da kine. One of the most interesting sections in the book is called "The current situation." If you look around the newsstands and bookstores in the islands, you will discover that there are books and even magazines in pidgin now! In recent years, the authors explain, advocacy of pidgin has developed in Hawai`i. There is a group at the University of Hawai`i called "Da Pidgin Coup" that has written a position paper on "Pidgin and Education," which is available on the Internet. There are currently many flavors of spoken pidgin, from "heavy" to "light" and variations in between. What helps make this book interesting is that the authors stick pretty much to the "heavy" variety in their exploration of pidgin grammar, so much of the content is somewhat exotic for non-pidgin speakers. There is a good pidgin word list and references at the end of the book.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hey, if you good language readah you betta buy dis one.,
By
This review is from: Pidgin Grammar: An Introduction to the Creole Language of Hawaii (Paperback)
Hey, please listen, you guys, cuz dis review fo real. Two real akamai university guys wen seet down long time an wen broke deah brains fo write dis book, yeah? So plenny good stuffs heah. Dey real smaht in da head dese guys, long time an lotta study awready een school, so dey stay knoween ukupaila big words fo tell bout how da pidgin talkahs stay talk story wid each odda for real kine out undaneat da mango tree. An no stupid stuffs heah, dese no moke guys dat ony open da mout an' pilau stuffs fall out. No, brah (o seestah), ony da smaht kine stuffs ees good enuff fo dese teacha guys.Me, I one linguistics guy too, an' long time ago almos small kid time I wen marry one really pretty Samoan wahine from O'ahu, La'ie side. But she no like talk pidgin now cuz in school her teachas dey stay telling her no can talk lidat, but she know I love listen an' talk an' read da kine, yeah?, so den las yeah she wen buy me one book Honolulu side, Pidgin To Da Max -- really funny kine book. Dis book, Pidgin Grammar, not fo makin' jokes an' no mo funny cahtoon pichas in heah, but choke really good stuffs heah, fo real if you da smaht kine readah. So I tellin' you fo real, if you buy 'em you no goin' tink you wen do someting stupid an' you no goin' tink you wen' buy one pilau kine book.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hawai'ian Pidgin,
By
This review is from: Pidgin Grammar: An Introduction to the Creole Language of Hawaii (Paperback)
This is a great book that descibes in clear, precise detail how the language is spoken. Good for haole to understand Hawai'ian Pidgin.
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