Forro Creole

== Overview ==
Forro Creole, Sãotomense or Santomense, is a Portuguese-based creole language spoken in São Tomé and Príncipe.
== History ==
São Tomé is an island of the Gulf of Guinea, discovered by the Portuguese in the 15th century. It was uninhabited at the time, but Portuguese settlers used the island as a center of the slave trade, and there was a need for slaves in the island. Since both parties needed to communicate, a pidgin was formed. The substrate languages were from the Bantu and Kwa groups. This pidgin then became fixed (creolized) as it became the mother language of children born from Portuguese men and African women slaves. Mixed marriages were then encouraged by the Portuguese Crown, for the sake of settlement.
Later because of Dutch and French pressure to gain the island, many Portuguese settlers left. Children of Portuguese and black women were, eventually, not considered African or slaves; some were considered full right Portuguese citizens. Those mixed-raced that did not have the status of Portuguese, those with darker skin, often gained a "forro" designation, because their Portuguese fathers did not want to enslave their children. The São Tomean Creole is mostly known as "Forro", the language of the freed slaves or Crioulo Santomense, not to be confused with São Tomean Portuguese (a variety and dialect of Portuguese in São Tomé and Príncipe). Portuguese is the main language for children until their early 20s, when they relearn Forro. The rich São Tomean culture also preserves a unique mixture of Portuguese and African cultures.
== Forro Creole excerpts from Wikipedia article "Forro Creole" ==
: Hello: Seja lovadu! (proposed: sejalovadu); From Port. seja louvado
: Good Morning: Bom dja ô (proposed: Bondja o); From Port. bom dia
: Good Afternoon: Bos tadji ô (proposed: Boxtadji o); From Port. boas tardes or boa tarde
: Good Evening: Boj notxi ô (proposed: Bojnotxi o); From Port. boas noites or boa noite
: What's your name: Que nomi bo e? (proposed: Ke nomi bo e?); possibly from Port. qual é o teu nome? or como te chamas? – compare with vernacular Brazilian Portuguese que nome você tem?
: My name's Pedro: Nomi mu sa Pedro; possibly from Port. o meu nome é Pedro.
Not everything is from Portuguese:
: I live in Neves (São Tomean city): Nga-ta Tlaxa. (-ta is from está and tlaxa is from praça)
Category:Creole Languages
Category:Portuguese-based Creole Languages
Category:Africa
Category:São Tomé and Príncipe