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Antiguan Creole is a Creole language spoken in Antigua and Barbuda. There are subtle differences in Antiguan Creole's usage by different speakers, and Antiguans often use it in combination with Standard English. The tendency to switch back and forth from Creole to Standard English often seems to correlate with the class status of the speaker. Persons of higher social status tend to switch between Standard English and Antiguan Creole more readily, due to their more extensive formal education in the English-language school system. Creole usage is more common, and is less similar to Standard English, as speakers descend the socioeconomic ladder. In the years before Antigua and Barbuda's independence (in 1981), Standard English was widely spoken. However, after independence, Antiguans began to take a certain measure of pride in their language . Many Antiguan words are derived from English or African origins. The creole was formed when slaves owned by English planters imitated the English of their enslavers but pronounced it with their own inflections. This can be easily seen in phrases such as "Me nah go," meaning "I am not going," or in "Ent it?," presumably a cognate of "Ain't it?" |