Language Varieties in the US: The Case of Hawaiian Creole English

This paper describes Hawaiian Creole English (HCE), also knows as Pidgin. It outlines its origins and development, from a pidgin language that favoured communication among plantation workers of various ethnic origin to a creole language that acts as a native tongue for many speakers. Since around 1875, Hawaiian Pidgin experienced crucial transformations due to the introduction of English as the official language in Hawaii; thus, while the first pidgin was mostly made up of Hawaiian words and the labourers’ native languages (Chinese, Portuguese, etc.), the second kind of pidgin was also influenced by English. Pidgin vocabulary and syntax are briefly described, so as to underline the creative and colourful aspects of some expressions. From a sociolinguistic point of view, the use of Pidgin has been characterized by ambivalence, mainly due to the fact that Standard English is the language of education, government and business, while Hawaii Creole English is usually associated with low socio-economic status and lack of education. Notwithstanding this shared perception, in the fall of 1987, there was a strong protest against the decision of the Hawaii’s Board of Education to ban the use of HCE in schools. The outcome of the public protest was the full recognition of HCE as a language, which started to be used also in literary works. Its use, from the basilect to the acrolect variety, marks its crucial role in forming local identity.