# Sranan Tongo

Sranan Tongo (Sranantongo, "Surinamese tongue", Sranan, Surinamese Creole) is an English-based creole language from Suriname, in South America, where it is the first or second language for 519,600 Surinamese people (approximately 80% of the population). It is also spoken in the Netherlands and across the Surinamese diaspora. It is considered both an unofficial national language and a lingua franca.
Sranan Tongo developed among enslaved Africans from Central and West Africa, especially along the Caribbean coastline, after contact with English planters and indentured workers from 1651–67. Its use expanded to the Dutch colonists who took over the territory in 1667 and decided to maintain the local language as a lingua franca. Because the number of English colonists was massively reduced following the arrival of the Dutch, later additions to the language and the presence of African influences have made it distinct from other Afro-Caribbean creoles based on English.

## History

Sranan Tongo likely developed from an English-based pidgin, when English colonists in what was then part of the English colony of Guiana imported enslaved Africans for the plantations. The enslaved Africans, who were often from various tribes, did not have an African language in common and developed a pidgin to communicate. After the Dutch takeover in 1667, following the Treaty of Westminster (1674) (in exchange for ceding the North American eastern seaboard colony of New Netherland to the English), a substantial overlay of words were adopted from the Dutch language, making it a secondary lexifier.$^{:403–4}$ There were also additions from Spanish and Portuguese—some of these dating from earlier Portuguese occupation of the colony, which has preceded the arrival of the British.
The first enslaved Africans probably spoke Gbe languages or Kikongo as their native tongues, and were bilingual for some time. In the early 18th century (1720), large numbers of Akan people (65%) from the region then called the Gold Coast were also transported to plantations in Suriname. The addition of the Akan language into early Sranan Tongo, which had already undergone a process of creolization at that time, further altered the language, causing relexification and giving the creole its own distinct form of Africanisms.$^{:403–4,408}$ As other ethnic groups, such as East Indians and Chinese, were brought to Suriname as indentured workers, Sranan Tongo became a lingua franca.
Indigenous peoples in Suriname also intermarried with enslaved Africans, adding a significant amount of their cultural influence to Sranan and Afro-Surinamese culture.

## Characteristics

Despite having a significant number of English language words in its lexicon, the lack of contact with English speakers from the 17th century means Sranan Tongo is rarely mutually intelligible with modern English and is distinct from most other English-based creoles.$^{:403–4}$ The African language influences of Sranan Tongo are Gbe (Fon, Ewe, Aja, Gun, Gen (Mina), Xwelak), KiKongo, and Akan (Twi and Fante). The African influence on Sranan can be found in its grammar, morphology and phonology. Next to its idioms and idiophones in addition to its culinary, botanical, zoological, anatomical, artifactual, musical and Winti lexicon. The influence of the Cariban language, Carib - and Arawak can be found in Sranan's botanical, zoological, musical, culinary and Winti lexicon.
Remnants of Sranan's Portuguese-based period can still be traced in its lexical items of Portuguese origin and the Ancestral tradition of Odos. Odos Afro-Surinamese people proverbs, folk-lore and stories, passed down generationally during slavery through oral tradition in Sranan. These stories are still a part of Afro-Surinamese culture and identity, with many that can be traced back to specific regions in Central and West Africa where they originated.

### Phonology and orthography

Until the middle of the 20th century, most written texts in Sranan, seen at the time as a low-prestige language, used a spelling that was not standardized but based on Dutch orthography. In view of the considerable differences between the phonologies of Sranan and Dutch, this was not a satisfactory situation.
With the emergence of a movement striving for the emancipation of Sranan as a respectable language, the need for a phonology-based orthography was felt. A more suitable orthography developed as an informal consensus from the publications of linguists studying Sranan and related creoles. For every-day use, the Dutch-based spelling remained common, while some literary authors adopted (variants of) the linguistic spelling. To end this situation, the Surinamese government commissioned a committee of linguists and writers to define a standard spelling, which was adopted and came into force in 1986. This standard essentially followed the linguistic consensus. As the language is not taught in schools, while Dutch is, many speakers are not clearly aware of the principles on which this spelling is based and continue to use a Dutch-like, variant spelling.

## Modern use

Although the formal Dutch-based educational system repressed the use of Sranan Tongo, in the past pejoratively dismissed as Taki Taki (literally meaning 'talk talk' or 'say say'), it gradually became more accepted by the establishment and wider society to speak it. During the 1980s, this language was popularized by publicly known speakers, including chairman Dési Bouterse, who often delivered national speeches in Sranan Tongo.
Sranan Tongo remains widely used in Suriname and in Dutch urban areas populated by immigrants from Suriname. They especially use it in casual conversation, often freely mixing it with Dutch. Written code-switching between Sranan Tongo and Dutch is also common in computer-mediated communication. People often greet each other in Sranan Tongo by saying, for example, fa waka ('how are you'), instead of the more formal Dutch hoe gaat het ('how is it going').
In 2021, Sranan Tongo appeared for the first time in the Eurovision Song Contest in Jeangu Macrooy's song, "Birth of a New Age".

## Literature

As a written language, Sranan Tongo has existed since the late 18th century. The first publication in Sranan Tongo was in 1783 by Hendrik Schouten who wrote a part Dutch, part Sranan Tongo poem, called Een huishoudelijke twist ('A Domestic Tiff'). The first important book was published in 1864 by Johannes King, and relates to his travels to Drietabbetje for the Moravian Church.
Early writers often used their own spelling system. An official orthography was adopted by the government of Suriname on July 15, 1986, in Resolution 4501. A few writers have used Sranan in their work, most notably the poet Henri Frans de Ziel ("Trefossa"), who also wrote God zij met ons Suriname, Suriname's national anthem, whose second verse is sung in Sranan Tongo.
Other notable writers in Sranan Tongo are Eugène Drenthe, André Pakosie, Celestine Raalte, Michaël Slory, and Bea Vianen.

## Example

Following are the Lord's Prayer in standard and Dutch-based spelling, followed by an English translation.

### Translation

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial, and deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and for ever. Amen.