Publishing the research of SIL in Suriname Suriname is situated on the northeast coast of South America, between Guyana and French Guiana, and is home to about 15 distinct languages. Since it was a colony of The Netherlands until 1975, the official language of Suriname is Dutch. Other languages spoken in Suriname include several Amerindian languages, several Creole languages, Suriname Javanese and Sarnami Hindustani. SIL researchers first came to Suriname in 1968 and worked for more than 30 years doing language and anthropological research, literacy, as well as producing dictionaries, reading books, grammar descriptions, and doing translation. Since 2001, SIL no longer has an official presence in the country. This site makes their research available to anyone who is interested in learning more about these languages. Materials on this site include interactive html dictionaries which allow you to search for words online, vernacular stories and a pdf bibliography (143Kb) of all of the works SIL published in Suriname.

The History of Sranan, A Language of Suriname The History of Sranan, A Language of Suriname Dutch may be the official language of Suriname, 1 but most Surinamese speak Sranan, an English-based creole, which has been influenced by Dutch and Portuguese along with some West African languages. Sranan serves as a lingua franca for about 80% of a population nearing 500,000 individuals (Grimes, Brana-Shute). In fact, Sranan is only one of 16 languages spoken in Suriname. There are at least five different creoles used in Suriname, 2 in addition to six indigenous languages of native peoples, 3 two European languages, and two modified Asian languages. 4 Originally a simplified pidgin language, Sranan has undergone a process of expansion and creolization is now the native language for at least 120,000 Surinamese, and a second language for hundreds of thousands more.

Sranan is short for Sranan Tongo, which means ï¿½Suriname Language.ï¿½ History The area that we know now as Suriname was once populated mostly by Carib and Arawak natives. Christopher Columbus sighted the land in 1498, and Spanish and Portuguese explorers frequented the region during the 1500ï¿½s. After several unsuccessful attempts at settling there (the French in 1626 and 1639 and the English in 1645), Francis, Lord Willoughby, governor of Barbados started a colony in 1651, in what was known as ï¿½Willoughby Land.ï¿½ (Voorhoeve and Lichtveld 2). The first groups of Africans may have come as the slaves of the early Barbadian settlers, who started sugar, coffee, and cacao plantations. Subsequently, Africans may have been brought to Suriname from Brazil with the 200 Portuguese Jews who came to open tobacco plantations (Arends, ï¿½Demographicï¿½ 241).

Africans came from different linguistic backgrounds, but it is assumed that they communicated with each other in an early Afro-Portuguese pidgin that was common along the West African coast (Voorhoeve and Lichtveld 3). The Africans picked up English, which forms the basis of contemporary Sranan. Contact with Portuguese speakers also affected the language. But in 1667-68, a major change occurred. The Dutch gained control of Suriname, and consequently most of the English and their African slaves gradually left over a period of nine years (1671-80). The Dutch continued to bring new African slaves to Suriname, but the English-based language somehow lingered. Even though the Dutch ruled the country until 1975, surprisingly enough the first recorded information on any language spoken among the Africans is English, in 1693. But according to linguists Lilian Adamson and Norval Smith, ï¿½How precisely English functioned in the development of Sranan is highly controversialï¿½ (220). Lack of recorded data has left linguists perplexed about the early years of this interesting mixed language.

Such a contact of diverse peoples, each with different linguistic backgrounds, explains where Sranan gets its vocabulary from. In a random sampling of 476 Sranan verbs, 44% were English-derived. About 40% of the words were from Dutch, 5% came from Portuguese, 2% had African origins, and 9% had unknown origins (Voorhoeve and Lichtveld 241). This creole language, which began as a simplified pidgin, came about as an effort to communicate with speakers of other languages and developed into modern-day Sranan. 5 Over the years, several Africans gained their freedom. Many of them were ï¿½Creoles,ï¿½ who were part European and part African, and were the children of Dutch plantation owners and their African concubines (Voorhoeve and Lichtveld 5). Some of them were Maroons, 6 Africans who had escaped the plantations.

With a free African population, and with several incidences of legal interracial marriage, the Sranan-speaking population began to gain its voice at the 1783 publication of Hendrik Schoutenï¿½s partly Creole poem, ï¿½Een huishoudelijke twistï¿½ (ï¿½A Domestic Tiffï¿½), the first Sranan poem ever printed. 7 But sources written in Sranan predate this poem. According to historical linguist Adrienne Bruyn, ï¿½the earliest Sranan text available to us is the [J. D.] Herlein fragment from 1718ï¿½ (154). Later, from 1765 to 1798, several Sranan-Dutch dictionaries and language manuals were published (Plag 118). It is from these 18th-century publications that scholars obtain their knowledge of early Sranan. Moravian 8 missionaries, finally allowed to proselytize in Suriname, printed the first all-Sranan text, selections from the New Testament, in 1816.

In 1832, they printed the first Creole primer; and from 1852 to 1932, missionaries published a Sranan-language periodical, Makzien vo Kristen soema zieli (Magazine for Christian souls). The year 1855 saw the landmark publication of H.C. Fockeï¿½s Neger-Engelsch woordenboek (Negro-English Dictionary). Sranan was finally beginning to be considered a legitimate language. Unfortunately, many of the Dutch Surinamese were appalled that such headway was being made with what they viewed as a corrupt language. Jan Voorhoeve, a Dutch linguist, summarized the prevailing attitude of the times toward creole languages, ï¿½Almost everywhere a Creole language is regarded as a mongrel product unworthy of attentionï¿½ (10). On July 1, 1863 slavery was abolished in Suriname. The Dutch were the last Europeans to emancipate their people. However, the Surinamese slaves were not completely free; they had to work another ten years on the plantations, with minimal compensation.

The liberated Africans left the plantations in 1873. Soon afterward, they were replaced by East Indians (mostly from around Calcutta) and Chinese, who were contracted to work on the plantations for a specified number of years. About 37,000 Hindustanis arrived in Suriname before a movement in India led by Mahatma Gandhi stopped this immigration in 1916. In addition to the influx of Indians and Chinese, thousands of Javanese contract workers, from the island of Java in Indonesia, poured into the country (from 1891 to 1939). In 1877, Dutch was enforced in the schools and continued to be the main language of government and of the prestigious classes. Any Sranan-speaking students who wanted to further their education had to learn Dutch to attend the university near the capital Paramariboor in the Netherlands. Yet, in the midst of all the language prejudice, J. N. Helstone wrote Wan spraakkunst vo taki en skrifi da tongo vo Sranan (A Grammar to Talk and Write the Language of Suriname) in 1903.

Unfortunately, the government in the early 20th century mounted their efforts eradicate Sranan and schools would severely punish kids who spoke it. Parents concerned about social status discouraged it in the home. Finally, in the post-World War II era, J. G. A. Koenders tried to gain respect for Sranan as a unique language. He worked to change the prejudiced government policies and racist attitudes that sought to obliterate the language and culture. He published his unpopular ideas in Foetoe-boi (Servant) and scandalized the Surinamese literati when he translated a beautiful sonnet by Willem Kloos into Sranan. Surinamese students studying abroad in Holland questioned the Dutch hegemony and sought their own cultural identity. Some students began a movement called Wie Eegie Sanie (Our Own Things). According to the students, Sranan was ï¿½was best suited to become the national language because it was the only language spoken in Surinam that had indigenous rootsï¿½ (Voorhoeve and Lichtveld 11).

Frisians, supporting their own language movement in the Netherlands, published some Sranan writing in their cultural magazine De Tsjerne (The Churning Tub). Several Sranan to Frisian translations appeared in an effort to bolster support for traditionally oppressed languages. In Suriname, Sranan was spoken less surreptitiously and gained wider acceptance. This was accompanied by a greater sense of pride in their vernacular culture and religion. Conclusion Since independence in 1975, Sranan has gained greater status (although Dutch is still the prestigious language). Many linguists are fascinated by this unique language. Soon after 1975, thousands of Surinamese moved to the Netherlands, where there is now a considerably large Sranan-speaking population. Creole expert Norval Smith writes that Sranan is ï¿½spoken by the population of the coastal area in Surinam, as well as the considerable emigré population in the Netherlands. The total number 1st and 2nd language speakers is around 500,000ï¿½ (341).

The Netherlands Antilles has some Sranan speakers, and the Netherlands is home to about 225,000 speakers (Grimes). Sranan has survived hundreds of years of prejudice and racism and, like all languages, continues to change. Notes 1 . Suriname is also spelled Surinam, so quoted material often contains the variant spelling. 2 . The other creole languages are English-based Ndjukáá, Guyanese, and Kwinti. Saramaccan is either English- or Portuguese-based, with influences from KiKongo (Grimes). 3 . Indigenous languages include Akurio, Kalihna, Trióó, and Wayana from the Cariban family; Arawak from the Arawakan family; and Warao, a language isolate (Grimes). 4 . The European and modified Asian languages are Caribbean Javanese from the Austronesian family, and Dutch, English, and Caribbean Hindi from the Indo-European family (Grimes). 5 .

Iï¿½ve chosen to call the language ï¿½Srananï¿½ throughout the text, even though over the years, earlier forms of Sranan were called, ofttimes disparagingly, Suriname Creole, Creole, Takitaki, Surinaams, Nengretongo, etc. 6 . Maroon, a West Indies slave who escaped, comes from ï¿½French maron, marron, a modification of American Spanish cimarrón, from cimarrón wild, savage.ï¿½ We get the meaning of the verb maroon, ï¿½to put ashore on a desolate island or coast and leave to one's fate,ï¿½ from the name given to these fugitives. 7 . See Voorhoeve and Lichtveld 286-8 for the complete poem in Dutch and Sranan; it also includes an English translation. 8 . Moravia is now a part of the Czech Republic called Morava.

Appendix A To introduce you to this language, here is a familiar passage from The Prophet Joseph Smithï¿½s Testimony in Sranan: A ten a faja ben do na mi tapoe, mi si toe glori soema san ben de so krin Pn san glori ben de so bigi dati mi no man taki fa. Den ben tenapoe na tapoe mi ini loktoe. Wan foe den taki nanga mi, kari mi na nen. En sori tapoe a trawan Pn taki: ï¿½Disi na mi lobi manpikin, Arki na En.ï¿½ (Smith, Getoigi 5) The English version below is not a direct Sranan-to-English translation, but is the original: When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the otherï¿½This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him! (Smith, JS-H 1:17) Appendix B Maps of the countries where Sranan is spoken.

The online Ethnologue lists 120,000 speakers in Suriname, with another 280,000 who use Sranan as a second languageï¿½a total of 400,000 speakers. The Netherlands Antilles has some speakers, and the Netherlands is home to 225,000 speakers, who are mostly immigrants from Suriname (Grimes). See pages 8A-8C. Works Cited Adamson, Lilian, and Norval Smith. ï¿½Sranan.ï¿½ Arends, Muysken, and Smith 219-32. Arends, Jacques. ï¿½Demographic Factors in the Formation of Sranan.ï¿½ Arends, Early 233-85. ï¿½, ed. The Early Stages of Creolization. Creole Language Library 13. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Pub. Co., 1995. Arends, Jacques, Pieter Muysken, and Norval Smith, eds. Pidgins and Creoles: An Introduction. Creole Language Library 15.

Amsterdam: John Benjamins Pub. Co., 1994. Brana-Shute, Gary. ï¿½Suriname.ï¿½ 1999 World Book. CD-ROM. IBM. 1998. Bruyn, Adrienne. ï¿½Relative Clauses in Early Sranan.ï¿½ Arends, Early 149-202. Grimes, Barbara F., ed. ï¿½Surinam.ï¿½ Ethnologue. 13th ed. Dallas: Summer Institute of Linguistics, 1996. Online. Internet. Available: . ï¿½Maroon.ï¿½ Merriam-Websterï¿½s Collegiate Dictionary. Electronic ed. Version 1.2. CD-ROM. Merriam-Webster, 1994-6. Plag, Ingo. ï¿½The Emergence of taki as a Complementizer in Sranan: On Substrate Influence, Universals, and Gradual Creolization.ï¿½ Arends, Early 113-48. Smith, Joseph.

ï¿½Joseph Smithï¿½History [JS-H].ï¿½ The Pearl of Great Price. Salt Lake City, UT: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1989. Smith, Jozef [Joseph Smith]. A Getoigi foe a Profeti Jozef Smith [The Prophet Joseph Smithï¿½s Testimony]. Salt Lake City, UT: A Kerki foe Jesus Kristus foe a Noja-dé Santa Den e Ori ala Leti [The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints], 1987. Smith, Norval. ï¿½An Annotated List of Creoles, Pidgins, and Mixed Languages.ï¿½ Arends, Muysken, and Smith 331-74. Voorhoeve, Jan, and Ursy M. Lichtveld, eds. Creole Drum: An Anthology of Creole Literature in Suriname. Trans. Vernie A. February. Caribbean Series 15. New Haven, CT: Yale UP, 1975.

For an introduction to the Sranan language, which includes a mini-dictionary, see The languages of Suriname The languages of Suriname The larger part of the Surinamese population is descended from immigrants who came from three different continents: Africa, Asia and Europe. Because of that fact, the Surinamese people speak many different languages: Dutch (language of the colonists from The Netherlands), Sranan (creole language), Sarnami Hindi (language descended of Hindi from India), Javanese (from Indonesia), Chinese (from China) and Maroon and American Indian langauges. Dutch is the official language of Suriname. It is used at the schools and by the government. However in everyday situations Surinamese will often use Sranan. Sranan is a language that emerged as communication language between European immigrants, African immigrants and the native Indians. It contains elements from English, Portugese, Dutch, and influences from African and Indian languages. The language was used from around 1700. This text contains a short introduction into Sranan.

If you are looking for information about the official language of Suriname, Dutch, check out the Integral Dutch Course (>100k) at location 1 or location 2 . Below you will find some useful expressions in Sranan, mini-dictionaries Sranan-English and vice versa and pointers to literature about Sranan. The spelling used here is the same as in the 1985 book on Sranan by Max Sordam and Hein Eersel. Contents Literature about Sranan Some useful expressions in Sranan odi masra (misi) - good day mister (miss) fa waka? - how are you? fa yu tan? - how are you? mi bun - I am fine mi siki - I am ill grantangi - thanks mi o si - see you later tan bun - stay well disi na mi masra (uma) - this is my husband (wife) mi wroko gi ... - I work for ... mi komopo de ... - I come from ... yu abi wan ... gi mi - do you have a ... for me? yu sabi pe mi man feni ...? - do you know where I can find ...?

mi abi tu pikin - I have two children mi manpikin abi seybi yari - my son is seven years old mi umapikin tan na oso - my daughter stayed home mi lobi ... - I like ... a presi dati fara? - is that place far away? omeni? - how much?

Numbers and pronouns in Sranan wan - one tu - two dri - three fo - four feyfi - five siksi - six seybi - seven ayti - eight neygi - nine tin - tin mi - I yu - you a - he,she,it wi - we unu - you (plural) den - they Sranan-English minidictionary a - he/she/it/his/hers/its abi - have aksi - ask ala - all arki - listen ati - hart/hurt ay - yes ayti - eight baka - back bakra - european bari - yell bay - buy bigi - big boy - boy brada - brother buku - book bun - good/well dape - there dati - that datra - doctor de - from/be (place) den - they dey - day disi - this doro - door drape - there dri - three dyari - garden dyaso - here dyompo - jump ede - head ef - if esde - yesterday esi - soon ete - yet fa - how fara - far faya - fire feni - find fesi - in front/face feyfi - five fo - four

 fosi - first fos(i) tron - first time foto - city (fu)furu - steal gado - god gi - for/give go - will (verb) gowtu - gold grantangi - thanks ingi - indian ini - in masra - mister k(a)ba - stop/already kan - can (verb) kari - call kerki - church kisi - get komopo - come (from) kon - come kondre - country koti - cut koyri - go for a walk krin - clean krosi - clothes langa - long lasi - lose libi - live/life lobi - love/like ma - but makandra - each other man - can (verb) manpikin - son mati - friend mi - I/my misi - miss/mrs.

moni - money moro - more mun - month munde - monday musu - have to na - be/at neti - night neygi - nine nofo - enough noso - nose noti - nothing nyun - new o - abbreviation of go odi - good day ogri - naughty omeni - how much ondro - under oso - house/home oten - when oto - car pe - where pikin - child/small pipel - people presi - place psa - ago redi - red sabi - know safri - soft san - what sani - thing satra - saturday seri - sell seybi - seven si - see siki - be ill siksi - six sisa - sister skowtu - police skribi - write sma - people sneysi - chinese sonde - sunday sroto - lock srudati - soldier sturu - chair su - shoe suma - who tamara - tomorrow tan - stay tap - at taygi - tell teki - take tide - today tifi - teeth tin - ten tongo - language tori - story trafasi - different trow - marry tu - two tumsi - too much tyari - carry uma -

 woman un - your (plural) unu - you (plural) umapikin - daughter waka - walk wan - one/a wani - want wantron - immediately wenkri - shop weri - wear wi - we/our wiki - week wroko - work yari - year yepi - help yere - hear yu - you (singular)/your (singular) yuru - hour English-Sranan mini-dictionary a - wan ago - psa all - ala already - kaba ask - aksi at - tap back - baka be (place) - de be ill - siki be/at - na big - bigi book - buku boy - boy brother - brada but - ma buy - bay call - kari can (verb) - kan can (verb) - man car - oto carry - tyari chair - sturu child - pikin chinese - sneysi church - kerki city - foto clean - krin clothes - krosi come - kon come (from) - komopo country - kondre cut - koti daughter - umapikin day - dey different - trafasi doctor - datra door - doro each other - makandra eight - ayti

 enough - nofo european - bakra face - fesi far - fara find - feni fire - faya first - fosi first time - fos(i) tron five - feyfi for - gi four - fo friend - mati from - de (in) front - fesi garden - dyari get - kisi give - gi go for a walk - koyri god - gado gold - gowtu good - bun good day - odi hart - ati have - abi have to - musu he - a head - ede hear - yere help - yepi here - dyaso hers - a his - a home - oso hour - yuru house - oso how - fa how much - omeni hurt - ati i - mi if - ef immediately - wantron in - ini indian - ingi it - a its - a jump - dyompo know - sabi language - tongo listen - arki live/life - libi lock - sroto long - langa lose - lasi love/like - lobi marry - trow miss - misi mister - masra monday - munde money - moni month - mun more - moro mrs.

- misi my - mi naughty - ogri new - nyun night - neti nine - neygi nose - noso nothing - noti one - wan our - wi people - pipel people - sma place - presi police - skowtu red - redi saturday - satra see - si sell - seri seven - seybi she - a shoe - su shop - wenkri sister - sisa six - siksi small - pikin soft - safri soldier - srudati son - manpikin soon - esi stay - tan steal - (fu)furu stop - kaba story - tori sunday - sonde take - teki teeth - tifi tell - taygi ten - tin thanks - grantangi that - dati there - d(r)ape they - den thing - sani this - disi three - dri today - tide tomorrow - tamara too much - tumsi two - tu under - ondro walk - waka want - wani we - wi wear - weri week - wiki well - bun what - san when - oten where - pe who - suma will (verb) - go/o woman - uma work - wroko write - skribi year - y

ari yell - bari yes - ay yesterday - esde yet - ete you (singular) - yu you (plural) - unu your (singular)- yu your (plural) - un Literature about Sranan Sordam, Max and Hein Eersel, Sranantongo, Surinaamse taal: een korte inleiding tot het Sranantongo met uitgebreide woordenlijst (In Dutch), Bosch & Keuning NV, Baarn, 1985 and 1989, ISBN 90 246 4495 x Titjari, Surinaamse spraakkunst : leri, lesi, taki nanga skrifi Sranantongo : 'na fosi Sranan grammatika buku (In Dutch), Sangrafoe reeks, Amsterdam, 1985.

J. Voorhoeve, Voorstudies tot een beschrijving van het Sranan Tongo (Negerengels van Suriname) (In Dutch), Noord-Hollandsche Uitgevers Maatschappij, 1953. Also PhD thesis of the University of Amsterdam. Suriname Facts, Facts about Suriname Facts about Suriname Suriname Facts Where is Suriname? The Republic of Suriname is the smallest sovereign state in South America. The country is located in northern South America. It has an estimated population of 490,000. The country’s name is believed to be derived from a Taino group called Surinen, who first inhabited the region. Which countries border Suriname? The country is bordered by French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and Atlantic coast to the north. What is the capital of Suriname? Paramaribo is the capital of Suriname. It is located on the banks of Suriname River and has an estimated population of 250,000. Which is the largest city of Suriname? The capital of Suriname, Paramaribo is the largest city of Suriname.

The historic inner city of Paramaribo was declared UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2002. It has the country’s only cinema, and on Sundays and other holidays there is a popular bird-song competition. What is the currency of Suriname? Since 2004, the Suriname dollar has been the currency of Suriname. Its ISO 4217 code is SRD and is divided into 100 cents. Coins are available in the denominations of 1, 5, 10, 25, 100, and 250 cents, while notes are available in the denominations of 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 dollars. What are the main ethnic groups in Suriname? The largest ethnic group in Suriname is the Hindustani, who emigrated from northern India in the 19th Century. Hindustani constitute 37% of the population, followed by Creole community (31%), Javanese (15%), Maroons (10%), and Amerindians (2%). What is the official language of Suriname? The official language of Suriname is Dutch.

The country became an associate member of the Dutch Language Union in 2004. Along with Dutch, the country has many recognized regional languages. These are: Sranan Tongo, Hindi, Bhojpuri, English, Sarnami, Javanese, Hakka, Malay, etc. What is the religion of Suriname? The country has many religious and ethnic groups and the constitution provides for freedom of religion. Overall, 40.7% of the population is Christian, 20% is Hindu, 13.5% is Muslim, while 3.3% follow indigenous religions. What is the literacy rate in Suriname? According to the statistics compiled by UNICEF, the estimated literacy rate in Suriname is 91%. The main university in the country is the Anton de Kom university. Which model of governance is followed in Suriname? Suriname is a democracy based on the 1987 constitution. The legislative consists of 51-member unicameral National Assembly, elected by the citizen for five years. The country is divided into 10 administrative districts and every district is headed by district commissioner appointed by the president. Who is the political leader of Suriname?

Desi Bouterse is the president of Suriname. He is the ninth president of the republic, and was elected on July 19, 2010. Robert Ameerali is the vice president. When is the National Day of Suriname celebrated? November 25 is celebrated as the National Day of Suriname. The country was a plantation colony of the Netherlands. In 1954, the Dutch granted a limited self-government to Suriname, with the Netherlands retaining control of defense and foreign affairs. On this day in 1975, Dutch government granted full independence to the country. What is the economy of Suriname like? Bauxite industry dominates the economy of the country. It comprises more than 15% of the GDP and 70% of export earnings. The estimated GDP of the country is 4.794 billion dollars. Rice, bananas, and shrimp are other main exports. The economy of the country is dependent on commerce. Its main trade partners are Netherlands, United States, Canada and Caribbean countries. What are the important landmarks in Suriname?

The major landmarks of the country are: Jules Wijdenbosch Bridge, which is constructed over the river Suriname and was completed in 2000. The Cathedral of St Peter and Paul, which is 114 years old. It was a theater before being converted into a cathedral. Suriname is one of the few countries in the world where a synagogue is located next to a mosque. It is located in the center of the capital. Suriname | history - geography | Britannica.com Country Data Overview (PDF) Suriname, country located on the northern coast of South America . Suriname is one of the smallest countries in South America, yet its population is one of the most ethnically diverse in the region. Its economy is dependent on its extensive supply of natural resources, most notably bauxite , of which it is one of the top producers in the world. The southern four-fifths of the country is almost entirely covered with pristine tropical rainforest . Formerly known as Dutch Guiana, Suriname was a plantation colony of the Netherlands that gained its independence on Nov. 25, 1975. From 1980 to 1987 the country was governed by a succession of military regimes.

A new civilian constitution was approved in 1987. Another military coup took place in 1990, but the country returned to civilian rule the following year. The capital, Paramaribo , lies 9 miles (15 km) from the Atlantic Ocean on the Suriname River . Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. The Maroni River near the village of Cottica, Suri. Carl Frank/Photo Researchers Land Suriname is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north, by French Guiana to the east, by Brazil to the south, and by Guyana to the west. Suriname is involved in territorial disputes with both Guyana and French Guiana that are legacies of colonial rule. The dispute with Guyana centres on the New River Triangle, a 6,000-square-mile (15,600-square-km) area between two tributaries of the Courantyne River in southern Guyana.

In addition to claiming the New River Triangle, Suriname also contests its border with Guyana along the Courantyne: Suriname claims sovereignty over the entire river and thus views its west bank as the border, while Guyana claims that the thalweg, or deepest channel of the river, is the boundary. In 2007 a United Nations international tribunal settled another long-standing boundary dispute between the two countries, in which Suriname was awarded one-third of a disputed area of the Caribbean Sea . The area in contention with French Guiana is the 5,000-square-mile (13,000-square-km) region between the Itany and Marouini rivers in the southwestern corner of French Guiana. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. list of presidents of Brazil Suriname has a tropical climate. The populated area in the north has four seasons: a minor rainy season from early December to early February, a minor dry season from early February to late April, a major rainy season from late April to mid-August, and a major dry season from mid-August to early December.

Daytime temperatures in Paramaribo range between 70 and 90 °F (21 and 32 °C). In the interior, diurnal temperature extremes can vary by as much as about 20 degrees. However, the range in average temperatures between the warmest month, September, and the coldest, January, is only about 3 degrees. Rainfall is highest in the central and southeastern parts of the country. Annual rainfall averages about 75 inches (1,900 mm) in the west and 95 inches (2,400 mm) in Paramaribo. Plant and animal life The flora of the coastal area is better known than that of the interior. It consists of some 4,000 species of ferns and seed plants and a large number of mosses, weeds, and mildews. About nine-tenths of Suriname’s area is covered with heterogeneous forest consisting of more than 1,000 species of trees. The baboen (Virola surinamensis), which grows in the coastal area, is used to make plywood.

The kapok (Ceiba pentandra) reaches a height of more than 150 feet (45 metres). The Central Suriname Nature Reserve, covering nearly 3,950,000 acres (1,600,000 hectares), was established in June 1998 in west-central Suriname. It is one of the largest protected areas of rainforest in the world and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2000. There are some 150 species of mammals, including monkeys, wild pigs, deer, manatees, jaguars, ocelots, armadillos, sloths, and anteaters. The tapir is the largest land mammal. Reptiles include caimans, iguanas, and the boa constrictor. The beaches on the eastern part of the coast are breeding grounds for marine turtles, which are protected by law. About 650 species of birds, including hummingbirds, vultures, and parrots, have been identified. Some 350 species of fish occupy coastal and inland waters.

People Ethnic groups South Asians, descendants of contract labourers from India, are the largest ethnic group in Suriname, making up more than one-fourth of the population. The second major ethnic group, accounting for nearly one-fifth of the population, is the Creoles, who in Suriname are people of mainly African descent. The descendants of Javanese (people from the island of Java in Indonesia) contract labourers and the Maroons (descendants of escaped slaves of African origin) each constitute nearly one-sixth of the population. At least one-eighth of the population is of mixed ethnicity . Indians, descendants of the original inhabitants of Suriname, make up only a tiny fraction of the population. The coastal groups include the Carib and Arawak , while the Trio (Tiriyo), Wayana-Aparai, Warao (Warrau), Wayarekule (Akuriyo), Tucayana, and Akurio live in the interior. Minor ethnic groups in Suriname include descendants of Chinese, Lebanese, Portuguese, and Dutch immigrants; Creoles from the West Indies; and U.S. citizens.

More-recent immigrants include Chinese—known in Suriname as “New Chinese” to distinguish them from the descendants of those Chinese who were brought over as labourers in the 19th century—and Brazilians who arrived in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Languages Dutch is the official language of Suriname, but the extent to which members of the various ethnic groups are able to use the language differs. Most of the population learns Dutch as a second language. Additional languages include Sranan and other creole languages ; English; Sarnami, which originated from Hindi and Urdu; Javanese ; and a number of Maroon and South American Indian languages . Religion The principal religion is Christianity , brought to Suriname by European colonizers. About two-fifths of the people are Christians, mainly Roman Catholics and Moravians. Hindus, nearly all of whom are South Asians, account for about one-fifth of the population. Slightly more than one-eighth of Surinamese are Muslim, mostly the Javanese and a small South Asian group. Judaism, present in Suriname since the early 16th century, is still practiced, while many of the Chinese are Confucians.

African and Indian religions are still widely followed. Settlement patterns Nearly three-fourths of the Surinamese population resides in urban areas. Some one-fifth of them are concentrated in the capital, Paramaribo, and its surrounding area. The capital city is spread out along the Suriname River. Many of its Dutch colonial buildings remain intact, and its historic centre was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2002. Smaller urban centres include Nieuw Nickerie , in the northwest near the Guyanese border; Albina, in the northeast on the border with French Guiana; Moengo, in the centre of the bauxite-mining region in northeastern Suriname; and Paranam, in the bauxite-mining and bauxite-processing region on the Suriname River south of Paramaribo. Small settlements of Maroons and Indians make up almost the entire population of the interior. Some Indian villages are located in the coastal area, and nomadic groups live along the Brazilian border in the south. Paramaribo, Suri.

Robert Caputo—Aurora/Getty Images Demographic trends The birth rate in Suriname has steadily decreased since independence; indeed, from 1970 to 2007 it dropped by about half, to below the world average. More than one-fourth of the population is under age 15. After 1973, when it was announced that Suriname would become independent, a large number of people emigrated to the Netherlands. By 1980, according to some estimates, one-third of the population had left the country; many of those who left were professionals and skilled workers. In the early 21st century, migration to the Netherlands had decreased significantly, and many retired workers had returned to Suriname. Meanwhile, starting in the late 20th century, significant numbers of Chinese immigrated to Suriname. In addition, during the early 21st century there was an influx of Brazilians, who came to the country mainly to work in gold-mining activities. Economy Suriname’s economy is dependent on mineral resources, mainly oil , gold , and bauxite, from which alumina (used in the smelting of aluminum metal) is made.

Aside from natural resources, the chief sources of income are from agriculture and remittances, mostly from the Netherlands, French Guiana, and the United States. Suriname is a member of the Caribbean Community , an organization of Caribbean countries and dependencies. Agriculture, forestry, and fishing Less than 1 percent of Suriname’s land is arable, and about half of this is cultivated . Most of the farmland is on the New Coastal Plain. In this region drainage is necessary most of the year, owing to a surplus of precipitation. During dry periods evaporation exceeds precipitation, and thus irrigation is necessary. More than half of the cultivated land in Suriname is planted with rice , the basic food staple. There are two rice harvests every year—the principal one in the spring and a second crop in the autumn. Some rice is exported, as are bananas, citrus fruits, coconuts, and palm oil. Sugar, coffee, and cocoa, formerly important export items, are produced mainly for domestic consumption . Because more than nine-tenths of Suriname is forested, great timber resources exist, but they have not been fully exploited. Plywood and timber are exported.

There is a small fishing industry, centred in Paramaribo, that exports shrimp to North America . Resources and power Bauxite is the leading mineral in Suriname, with mines near Paranam and Overdacht. Gold mining has grown in importance. Reserves of chromium, clay, copper, diamonds, iron ore, manganese, nickel, platinum, and tin are also found in Suriname. The State Oil Company of Suriname (Staatsolie) produces a significant amount of oil from wells in the Tambaredjo area, from which some crude oil is exported, and production activities began at the neighbouring Calcutta field in 2006. A small refinery was established there in the 1990s. Offshore oil exploration of the Guyana-Suriname Basin, which was stalled for decades because of the maritime boundary dispute with Guyana, began again in 2008. The Brokopondo Dam and a hydroelectric power plant on the Suriname River produce electricity for the bauxite-refining operations in Paranam. The dam impounds the 600-square-mile (1,550-square-km) W.J. van Blommestein Lake.

Manufacturing The main industry in Suriname is the mining and processing of bauxite. There are an aluminum smelter and an alumina refinery in Paranam. Apart from the bauxite and wood-processing industries, manufacturing is limited to small import-substitution enterprises. Processed foods, clothing, cigarettes, and construction material are produced for the domestic market. Finance, trade, and services Local banks and insurance companies either are subsidiaries of or cooperate with foreign companies, mostly from the Netherlands and the United States. Monetary policy is controlled by the minister of finance and the president of the Central Bank of Suriname (established 1957), the bank of issue. The national currency is the Suriname dollar, which replaced the guilder in 2004. Bauxite, alumina, and gold account for almost three-fourths of total exports. Imports consist mostly of machinery and transport equipment, fuels, food products, and chemical products. Suriname’s main trade partners are the United States, Canada , the Netherlands, and Trinidad and Tobago . Nearly two-fifths of the population is employed in the service sector, which employs a larger proportion of the labour force than any other sector.

Tourism began to develop only in the early 21st century and is centred on the country’s environmental features. Transportation Surface transport systems are for the most part limited to the coastal area. The East-West Highway connects Paramaribo with Albina on the eastern border and with Nieuw Nickerie on the western border. There is a road from Paramaribo to Afobaka near the Brokopondo Dam. Only one-fourth of the roads are paved. Rivers and canals are an important means of transport. The lower courses of the larger rivers are accessible to oceangoing vessels. Paramaribo is the chief port. An international airport is located about 25 miles (40 km) south of the capital city in the town of Zanderij. Government and society Constitutional framework Under the 1987 constitution, legislative power is exercised by the popularly elected 51-member unicameral National Assembly , which in turn elects a president and vice president. The president, vice president, and members of the National Assembly serve five-year terms. The president is the chairman of a nonelective, military-influenced Council of State, which ensures that the government’s actions conform to the law.

It has constitutional powers to annul laws passed by the National Assembly. The judicial system consists of a Court of Justice and cantonal courts. Suriname is a member of the Caribbean Court of Justice, the final court of appeal for Caribbean Community members. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Local government Local government was established in Suriname in 1987. It is divided into distrikten (districts) and ressorten (subdistricts). Each district has a representative and an executive branch of government. The former are run by district raden (district councils), and the latter are administered by districtsbestuur (district administrations). At the subdistrict level there is only a representative branch managed by ressort raad (subdistrict councils). Both the district and subdistrict councils are elected every five years at the country’s general elections. Political process Universal suffrage was introduced in 1948; Surinamese citizens age 18 and older are allowed to vote. Political mobilization and party affiliation have evolved along strongly ethnic lines. South Asians, Creoles, and Javanese all have played major roles in the development of the country’s constitutional democracy .

The Progressive Reform Party (Vooruitstrvende Hervormde Partij; VHP) is a leading Hindu party; the Suriname National Party (Nationale Partij Suriname; NPS) was founded by Creoles; and the Pendawa Lima (“Five Sons of King Pandu”) is a predominately Javanese party. The Surinamese Liberation Army (SLA), a guerrilla group better known as the Jungle Commando and consisting mainly of Maroons, formed in 1986 with the intent to overthrow the standing government. In retaliation, the National Army carried out raids in Maroon villages. The killing and detaining of many Maroons resulted in the flight of many to French Guiana. After a formal peace agreement was reached in 1992, most of them returned to Suriname, where they control economic activity on their lands. Health and welfare Health conditions are relatively good in Suriname. Most tropical diseases are combated effectively. Medical care in the interior is provided by the Foundation for Medical Mission of the Evangelical Brethren in Suriname, which operates medical centres in the larger Maroon and Indian settlements. Most of the population has health insurance. All collective labour agreements include medical care.

The unemployed and workers in the informal sector, however, must obtain a special certificate from the government to receive free medical care. Unemployment benefits and other social provisions are almost nonexistent. Education About nine-tenths of Surinamese age 15 and older are literate. Suriname’s system of education is modeled on that of the Netherlands, and Dutch is the language of instruction. School attendance is compulsory for children up to age 12, and education at all levels is free. More than nine-tenths of the children in the coastal areas attend primary school. Suriname has secondary schools, junior colleges, a teacher’s college, and vocational and technical schools. The Anton de Kom University of Suriname, founded in 1968 as the University of Suriname, has faculties of law, medicine, social science and economics, engineering, and natural resources. Cultural life Cultural milieu Suriname is a culturally diverse society, with harmonious contact between its ethnic groups in the cultural sphere. Fine arts, such as painting and sculpture, were traditionally middle-class concerns dominated by Western cultural standards, but since independence the works of artists from different ethnic groups have received more recognition.

Culinary traditions cross ethnic lines, and elements from South Asian, Javanese, Creole, Western African, and Chinese cuisine are often blended. The arts Suriname’s art forms derive from several ethnic traditions. Those of Javanese descent, for example, support a number of gamelan (Indonesian orchestra) troupes. Suriname’s Indians and Maroons developed a strong crafts industry, producing colourful textiles, baskets, and wood carvings for export. Most Surinamese writing is in the Dutch, Sranan, and Hindi languages. Among the country’s leading writers are Albert Helman, whose published works include dozens of volumes of fiction and plays; Martinus Haridat Luchtman, who, under the pen name Shrinivasi, is the author of several books of poems; Astrid Roemer, a popular novelist; and Cynthia McLeod, who has written several historical novels that have earned a wide readership in both Suriname and the Netherlands.

Surinamese music is represented by musical groups such as Fra Fra Bigband, an orchestra from Paramaribo that blends indigenous forms of kaseko (dance music combining Western march , jazz , and calypso ), kawina (a type of Creole pop music ), and winti (ritual music) to form a distinctly Surinamese brand of Afro-Caribbean jazz. In recent years, Suriname-based groups also have collaborated with Western African musicians, adding talking drums and thumb pianos ( lamellaphones ) to their instrumentation. Sports and recreation The country’s most popular sports are football (soccer), basketball, and volleyball. Although Suriname has no professional sports teams, several Surinamese players have become members of well-known European soccer clubs. Suriname made its Olympic debut at the 1968 Mexico City Games. Suriname’s Anthony Nesty won the gold medal in the 100-metre butterfly competition at the 1988 Seoul Games and later earned a bronze in the same event at the 1992 Barcelona Games. Fishing is a common recreational sport, particularly from August to October, when many people fish with bamboo poles in freshwater swamps and creeks.

Hunting is also popular. A traditional Surinamese activity is birdkeeping. The most commonly caught birds are the large-billed seed finches (Oryzoborus crassirostris) known in the country as twa-twas. A competition among these whistling birds takes place Sunday mornings at Independence Square in Paramaribo and in other cities throughout Suriname. Media and publishing All non-government-owned media were shut down in 1982. However, since then several private entities resumed operation. The major independent daily newspapers are De Ware Tijd (“The True Times”) and De West (“The West”); both are printed in Dutch. Most of the government-owned television and radio stations broadcast in Dutch, and some also air in local languages. There are a large number of smaller commercial radio stations. Page 1 of 2 Suriname Language and Languages Genealogy - FamilySearch Wiki Family History Centers An exceptional variety of languages is spoken in Suriname. Dutch is the official language. It is used mainly in education, government, business and the media. Suriname became the third member of the Dutch Language Union in 2004.

Dutch is spoken as a mother tongue by about 60% of the Surinamers, while most others speak it as a second or third language. In the capital Paramaribo it is the main home language in two thirds of the households. Only in the interior of Suriname is Dutch hardly known. Recognised regional languages: Sranan Tongo, Hindi, English, Sarnami, Javanese, Malay, Bhojpuri, Hakka, Cantonese, Saramaccan, Paramaccan, Ndyuka, Kwinti, Matawai, Cariban, Arawakan Kalina Sranan Tongo, a local creole language originally spoken by the Creole population group, is the most widely used language in the streets and often interchangeably with Dutch depending on the formality of the setting. Surinamese Hindi, a dialect of Bhojpuri, is the third-most used language, spoken by the descendants of British Asian contract workers. Javanese is spoken by the descendants of Javanese (Indonesian) contract workers.

The Maroon languages, somewhat intelligible with Sranan Tongo, include Saramaka, Paramakan, Ndyuka, Aukan, Kwinti and Matawai. Amerindian languages, spoken by Amerindians, include Carib and Arawak. Hakka Chinese and Cantonese are spoken by the descendants of the Chinese contract (koelie, coolie) workers. Mandarin is spoken by more recent Chinese immigrants. English, Spanish and Portuguese are also used. English is used in schools and business purposes, while Spanish and Portuguese are spoken by South American residents (Portuguese for Brazilians) and their descendants and also taught in schools. The public discourse about Suriname's languages is a part of ongoing debates about the country's national identity. While Dutch is perceived as a remnant of colonialism by some, the use of the popular Sranan became associated with nationalist politics after its public use by former dictator Dési Bouterse in the 1980s, and groups descended from runaway slaves like the Maroons resent it.

Some propose to change the national language to English, so as to improve links to the Caribbean and North America, or to Spanish, as a nod to Suriname's geography. Guiana Francesa | Article about Guiana Francesa by The Free Dictionary Guiana Francesa | Article about Guiana Francesa by The Free Dictionary Related to Guiana Francesa: Guyane francaise , Guyane French Guiana (gēăn`ə, –än`–), Fr. La Guyane française, officially Department of Guiana, French overseas department (2005 est. pop. 195,000), 35,135 sq mi (91,000 sq km), NE South America, on the Atlantic Ocean. Part of the Guiana Guiana , region, NE South America. It faces the Atlantic Ocean on the north and east and is enclosed on the west and south within a vast semicircle formed by the linked river systems of the Orinoco, the Río Negro, and the lower Amazon. ..... Click the link for more information. region, it is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the north, Suriname on the west, and Brazil on the south and east.

Cayenne Cayenne , city and district (1990 pop. 41,659), capital of French Guiana, on Cayenne island at the mouth of the Cayenne River. The city has a shallow harbor, and deep-draft ships must anchor some distance out. Timber, rum, essence of rosewood, and gold are exported. ..... Click the link for more information. is the capital and largest city. The Oyapock (Oiapoque) River on the east and the Tumuc-Humac Mts. on the south separate it from Brazil. The Maroni River on the west forms the border with Suriname Suriname , officially Republic of Suriname, republic (2005 est. pop. 438,000), 63,037 sq mi (163,266 sq km), NE South America, on the Atlantic Ocean. Part of the Guiana region, it is separated from Brazil on the south by the Tumuc-Humac Mts. ..... Click the link for more information. .

French Guiana has two districts (arrondissements): Cayenne, the coastal region, where more than 90% of the population is concentrated; and the larger interior district of Saint Laurent-du-Maroni. The population is largely of mixed African and European descent, but there are also minorities of blacks, whites, indigenous peoples, Chinese, and South Asians. French is the official language, but Creole and other languages and dialects are spoken as well. The population is predominantly Roman Catholic. French Guiana is largely dependent on subsidies and imports from the mother country. Fishing and forestry are the prime industries, and timber, shrimp, and rum made from local sugarcane are the chief exports. Rice, corn, bananas and other fruits, vegetables, and manioc are grown for subsistence. There are gold (discovered in 1855), petroleum, and other mineral deposits; exploitation, however, has been hindered by inadequate transportation and scarcity of labor. The Plan Vert (Green Plan), adopted in the late 1970s to increase production in agriculture and forestry, met with only partial success. The department (also one of 26 official regions of France) is represented in the French National Assembly and Senate.

It is governed by a prefect and an elected council. History French settlement dates from 1604. In the Dutch wars of Louis XIV, Cayenne was captured (1676) by the Dutch but was later retaken. The Portuguese and British occupied it during the Napoleonic Wars, but the Congress of Vienna (1815) restored French authority. French Guiana was used as a penal colony and place of exile during the French Revolution, and under Napoleon III permanent penal camps were established. Devils Island Devils Island, Fr. Île du Diable, the smallest and southernmost of the Îles du Salut, in the Caribbean Sea off French Guiana. A penal colony founded in 1852, it was used largely for political prisoners, the most celebrated of whom was Alfred Dreyfus. ..... Click the link for more information. , one of the Îles du Salut, off the coast, became notorious. The penal colonies were evacuated after World War II. In 1947, French Guiana became an overseas department of France, and in 1974 it also became an administrative region.

The Guiana Space Center, a rocket-launching base at Kourou Kourou, town and commune (2007 pop. 25,918), N French Guiana, on the coast 26 mi (42 km) NW of Cayenne. A rocket-launching base, the Guiana Space Center, is mainly in the commune near the town; the Soyuz launch complex portion of the center is in neighboring Sinnamary commune. ..... Click the link for more information. and Sinnamary, was established in 1968; it is used by the European Space Agency, Arianespace, and the French space agency. Economic problems and divisions between the white European elite and the Creole majority persisted into the 1990s, accompanied by increasing local demands for autonomy. A proposal, however, for an unspecified increase in French Guiana's autonomy was rejected in a referendum in 2010. French Guiana (Guyane Française), a country in northeastern South America. Possession of France; since 1946, an overseas department of France.

Borders with Surinam on the west, Brazil on the south and east, and the Atlantic Ocean on the north and northeast. Area, 91,000 sq km. Population, 48,000 (1969). French Guiana is administered by a prefect appointed by the French government. It has an elective body, the General Council, which is elected by the people for six years. The country has one deputy in the Senate and one in the National Assembly of the French parliament. Its administrative center is the city of Cayenne. Administratively, French Guiana is divided into two districts. Natural features. French Guiana is situated in the northeastern part of the Guiana Highlands. The land surface essentially consists of a low plain with individual insular quaqua-versal massifs (elevations to 850 m), framed in the north by a narrow coastal accumulative depression. There are deposits of gold and, in the thick crust of weathering, bauxites. The climate is subequatorial—hot and humid. Average monthly temperatures in Cayenne are 28°-29° C.

Precipitation is 3,210 mm a year, with the maximum in winter and spring. Autumn is droughty. The river network is dense, and rivers are deep but full of rapids and navigable only at their mouths. The largest rivers are the Maroni and the Oyapock, which run along the borders. There are dense evergreen forests (tropical rain forests) with valuable varieties of trees. In the northern and central portion of the country in leeward depressions (with respect to the moist northeast trade wind), there are patches of tall-grass savanna. The forests are inhabited by monkeys, tapirs, jaguars, lobbi (a kind of guinea pig), snakes, and many birds and insects. There are abundant fish in the rivers and many shrimp off the coast. E. N. L UKASHOVA Population. Negroes and mulattoes (creóles) make up as much as 80 percent of the population. About 2,000 of them are the so-called forest Negroes—descendants of fugitive slaves, who live in forests in the interior of the country.

Indians (about 10 percent of the population) survive only in remote forest areas. The remainder of the population is made up of Europeans (primarily French) and émigrés from Asia (including Chinese). The official language is French. Most believers are Catholics; the forest Negroes and Indians retain vestiges of their ancient beliefs, and to some extent, they have kept their own languages. The official calendar is the Gregorian. Population growth averaged 2.3 percent a year during 1963-69. The average density is 0.5 persons per sq km. In the coastal section, where over 90 percent of the population is concentrated, the density is about 3 persons per sq km. The economically active population is 18,000, of whom 30 percent are employed in agriculture (1968). The urban population is more than 50 percent. Cayenne is the major city (population, 24,500, in 1967); other cities are Kourou and St.-Laurent-du-Maroni. Historical survey.

The first French colonists appeared on the territory of present-day French Guiana in 1604. They founded the city of Cayenne in the first half of the 17th century. From the 17th to the early 19th century, there was a struggle for possession of the country among the Dutch, British, and French, who held the territory by turns. French power was finally consolidated in 1817. Plantation farming, based on the exploitation of Negro slaves taken from Africa, began to develop from the end of the 17th century. Slavery was abolished in 1794 but was restored shortly thereafter, in the early 19th century. (It was abolished for good in 1848.) French Guiana was turned into a place of exile (the “dry guillotine”) from the time of the Great French Revolution. Many communards were exiled there after the fall of the Paris Commune of 1871. French Guiana achieved the status of an overseas department of France in 1946.

The fundamental demand of the progressive forces of French Guiana—who are united in the Union of the Guianan People (Union du Peuple Guyanais, founded in 1958), the Guianan Socialist Party (Parti Socialiste Guyanais), and other parties—is the granting of autonomy to the Guianan people. In addition to the local parties, there are branches of several French parties in French Guiana including the Union of Democrats for the Republic (Union des démocrates pour la République). S. S. B AMOGOV Economy. French Guiana is a backward agrarian country. Less than 0.1 percent of the land is cultivated (primarily on the coast); 0.6 percent is covered with meadows and pasture and 95 percent with forests, and other land amounts to about 4.4 percent. The main agricultural plantation crops are sugarcane (a yield of 3,000 tons in 1968), bananas (1,000 tons), and cacao. Rice (a harvest of 20 tons in 1968), corn (85 tons), cassava (6,000 tons), and vegetables are raised.

Livestock raising does not satisfy the country’s demand for meat. In 1967-68, there were 2,000 head of cattle and 6,000 swine. Gold (159 kg in 1968) and bauxites are mined. The output of electric power was 20.3 million kilowatt-hours in 1968. There is logging (about 100,000 cu m in 1968) and fishing (3,500 tons of fish and shrimp in 1968). Rum and essence of rose are produced. Shrimp are canned and frozen. The country has 272 km of roads. Hauling is done primarily by water. The seaport is Cayenne; a deepwater port is under construction in Mayuri (1971). Exports amounted to 17 million francs and imports 256 million francs in 1968. The main export commodities are gold, lumber, rum, and shrimp. The most important imports are foodstuffs, fuel, cloth, building materials, equipment, and rolled metal.

Foreign trade is carried on with France (three-fourths of the country’s imports, by value), Surinam, the countries of the French West Indies (primarily Martinique and Guadeloupe), and the USA. The monetary unit is the French franc. Education. The system of public education is based on French legislation. Instruction is in French. There is compulsory education for children six to 14 years old. There are five-year elementary schools. The secondary school program lasts four years in the incomplete schools (the collèges) and seven years in the complete schools (the lycées). Vocational training is essentially based on elementary school. There are no higher educational institutions or specialized secondary schools. During the 1967-68 school year there were 7,200 students in elementary schools, 1,500 students in secondary schools, and 786 students in vocational schools. In Cayenne there is a small library, a museum, and the Pasteur Institute, a scientific-research institute that deals with problems of tropical diseases. In 1968, French specialists completed construction of a major space research center in the vicinity of Kourou. V. Z.

K Dutch Phrases For Travellers to Suriname Suriname | EmbassyWashingtonDC.com Surinamese Money, Services & More Languages Spoken in Suriname The people of Suriname speak Dutch. The main national and official language of Suriname is Dutch. Dutch is a West Germanic language and placed 40th based on number of native speakers of 20 million. We’ve released a collection of popular Dutch holiday language keyword phrases or words, that any traveler could use to manage in Suriname. We highly recommend you learn them from Dutch holiday phrases web site. Top ^ Advice For Understanding Dutch Language Conversation and much more conversation in Dutch - The trick to learn Dutch is countless hours of conversation with folks who speaks Dutch a lot better than you. An hour or so of talking (with corrections and Dutch dictionary for reference) is as good as five hours in a Dutch class room and 10 hours with a Dutch language course all by yourself. Studying Dutch language for three or four hours each day for two weeks is more valuable for mastering Dutch than learning one hour on a daily basis for three months. It is no surprise that many Dutch students who take language lessons in school and never remember it over time.

The secret to learn the Dutch is intensity of of study. Get started with the One hundred most commonly used Dutch words and phrases and attempt to create sentences with them. Master adequate Dutch grammar to be able to accomplish this as well as do it till you feel relatively at ease with all of them. Continue practicing these sentence in your mind. Another use for your dictionary is you can practice these sentences in Dutch while going about your day and never conversing with any one. Take a pocket Dutch dictionary or an English-Dutch dictionary app on your smartphone. Figure out the Dutch pronunciation patterns. Use Dutch audio and online courses for the first 100 words and phrases and basic grammar in Dutch language. Following the first 100 phrases in Dutch, concentrate on becoming conversational. Studies have shown that the most common 100 phrases in Dutch language account for 50% of all the spoken communication. The most common 1,000 phrases account for 80% of all spoken communication. “How do you say X?” in Dutch is a vital sentence you can possibly learn. Learn it early and use it often. Top ^ What do I require to study Dutch language?

Dutch language courses can be found as traditional language courses, audio courses and online courses. The traditional Dutch courses are comprised of dialogue textbooks, explanation of Dutch grammer and exercises. Typically they are offered either in CDs or MP3s. A large number of courses are ideal for complete beginners or people with only little understanding of the Dutch language. One of the main providers these Dutch language courses is Linguaphone who also have courses for in excess of One hundred languages and contain all audio courses, explorer courses for individuals who would like to learn the basics, and in-depth courses for more serious students. The other service provider of language courses is Teach Yourself and Colloquial courses and they offer a great deal of languages. Dutch Audio Courses is normally made of CDs or MP3s with limited printed material. All dialogues, exercises, instructions and explanations of %%are recorded and the focus of these courses is teaching you to learn and speak the language. Pimsleur language courses gives you genuine pronunciation in Dutch and a manageable amount of vocabulary. Computer Based Language Learning are offered on CD-ROMs and DVDs. Each one of these courses usually include dialogues, audio, exercises and tests in Dutch. Teach Me!

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Question: What is the official language of Surinam
Answer: Dutch