How to Speak Jamaican (with Pictures)

2024 Author: Samantha Chapman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-19 08:07

The official language of Jamaica is English, but the national language is Jamaican Patois. This language is an English-based dialect, heavily influenced by Central and West African languages, so it has notable differences with traditional English. If you want to have an informal conversation with a native of Jamaica, you need to learn patois first.

Steps

Part 1 of 3: Learning the Pronunciation

Step 1. Learn the Jamaican alphabet

The Jamaican patois uses an alphabet based on the English one, but there are some small differences that are worth mentioning.

• Contrary to the English alphabet of 26 letters, the Jamaican alphabet has only 24. Most letters are pronounced the same as in English, with a few exceptions.

• The letters of the Jamaican alphabet are:

  • A, a [a]
  • B, b [bi]
  • Ch, ch [who]
  • D, d [of]
  • And, and [and]
  • F, f [and f]
  • G, g [gi]
  • H, h [hech]
  • I, i
  • J, j [jei]
  • K, k [kei]
  • L, l [el]
  • M, m [em]
  • N, n [en]
  • O, o [o]
  • P, p [pi]
  • R, r [ar]
  • S, s [es]
  • T, t [ti]
  • U, u [u]
  • V, v [vi]
  • W, w [dablju]
  • Y, y [wai]
  • Z, z [zei]

  

  Step 2. Learn to pronounce specific letters and combinations of letters

  In Jamaican, some letters sound the same as their English counterparts when you pronounce them within a word, while others are a little different. Learning to pronounce them all will help you speak the language better.

  • Here's how Jamaican letters are pronounced:

    • a, a ~ ə
    • b, b
    • ch, tʃ
    • d, d
    • and, ɛ
    • f, f
    • g, g / ʤ
    • h, h
    • i, i
    • j, ʤ
    • k, k
    • l, l / ɬ
    • m, m
    • n, n
    • o, ɔ ~ o
    • p, p
    • r, r ~ ɹ
    • s, s
    • t, t
    • u, u
    • v, v
    • w, w
    • y, y
    • z, z

  • Some letter combinations have special pronunciation rules. Here are the ones you need to consider:

    • yy, to:
    • ai, aǐ
    • er, ɜɹ
    • ie, iɛ
    • ier, -iəɹ
    • ii, i:
    • oo, o:
    • sh, ʃ
    • uo, ȗɔ
    • uor, -ȗɔɹ

    Part 2 of 3: Learning the Most Common Words and Phrases

    

    Step 1. Say hello to someone

    The simplest way to say "hello" in Jamaican is "wah gwan".

    • However, as in so many languages, there are so many different ways to greet someone. They vary based on the time of day and the general context.

    • Some common examples include:

      • "Gud mawnin" means "Good morning".
      • "Gud evening" means "Good evening".
      • "Hail up" means "Hello".
      • "Pssst" means "Hello".
      • "Wat a guh dung" means "What happens?".
      • "Weh yuh ah seh" means "How are you?", Even if it literally stands for "What are you saying?", From the English "What are you saying?".
      • "How yuh stay" means "How are you?", But literally "What is your state?".
      • "Howdeedo" means "How are you?". This phrase is usually used by the elderly.

      

      Step 2. Say goodbye to someone

      One of the simplest ways to say "goodbye" in Jamaican is "mi gaan", which literally means "I'm gone", from English "I'm gone".

      • However, as well as for goodbyes, there are many ways to say goodbye.

      • Here are some of the more common options:

        • "Likkle more" means "goodbye".
        • "Inna of morrows" means "see you tomorrow". Literally, this phrase means "in tomorrow", from English "in the tomorrows".
        • "Walk good" means "Be well".

        

        Step 3. Learn some formal phrases

        While Jamaican culture doesn't put too much weight on the etiquette, it's still a good idea to learn a few formal phrases. Use them at the right times and you will make a positive impression.

        • The most common phrases include:

          • "A Beg Yuh" means "please" or "could you please?".
          • "Jus a word" means "excuse me".
          • "Beg yuh pass" means "Can I pass?".
          • "Tanks" means "thank you".

        • Also, you should know how to respond when someone asks you how you are. Here are some phrases to use when everything is fine:

          • "Everything criss" means "Everything is fine".
          • "Everything is everything" and "everything cook an curry" mean "everything is fine".
          • "All fruits ripe" means "everything is fine".

          

          Step 4. Ask important questions

          When interacting with Jamaica natives, it's important to know how to ask for the things you need.

          • Here are some questions worth learning:

            • "Weh ah de bawtroom" means "Where's the bathroom?".
            • "Weh ah de hospital" means "Where is the hospital?".
            • "Weh ah de Babylon" means "Where are the police?".
            • "Do yuh speak english" means "Do you speak English?".

            

            Step 5. Refer to other people

            When you talk about others, you need to know what terms to use to describe them.

            • Here are some of the most important examples:

              • "Brethren" means "relatives".
              • "Chile" or "pickney" both mean "child".
              • "Fahda" means "father".
              • "Madda" means "mother".
              • "Ginnal" or "samfy man" both mean "crook".
              • "Criss ting" means "beautiful girl".
              • "Youthman" means "young man" or "young woman".

              

              Step 6. Describe some terms with compound words

              Words of this type are quite common in Jamaican patois, especially in relation to parts of the body. Some of the most used compound words include:

              • "Hand miggle" means "center of the hand" or "palm".
              • "Hiez-ole" means "ear hole" or "inner ear".
              • "Foot battam" means "sole of the foot" or "sole".
              • "Nose-ole" means "Nose hole" or "nostril".
              • "Yeye-wata" means "water of the eyes" or "tears".
              • "Yeye-ball" means "eye".

              

              Step 7. Take note of the most common expressions

              In addition to the words, phrases and expressions mentioned above, there are many other Jamaican idioms that you should learn to master the language.

              • Some common phrases include:

                • "Blouse an skirt" or "rawtid" both mean "wow".
                • "Out a Road" an expression that describes something new or emerging.
                • "Cut out" means "to leave somewhere".
                • "Too nuff" means "intrusive".
                • "Hush yuh mouth" means "be quiet".
                • "Link mi" means "come and see me".
                • "Back a yard" is a phrase used to refer to one's homeland or hometown.
                • "Bleach" is an expression that indicates when a person has not slept, usually because they have preferred to have fun.

                Part 3 of 3: Understanding the Basic Rules of Grammar

                

                Step 1. Do not combine subjects and verbs

                As in Italian, Jamaican sentences also include subjects, verbs and object complements. However, the verb does not change according to the subject, as happens in Italian or English.

                • Eg:

                  • In English, the verb "speak" changes according to the subject: I speak, you speak, he speaks, we speak, you all speak, they speak.
                  • In Jamaican, the verb "speak" does not change according to the subject: mi speak, yu speak, im speak, wi speak, unu speak, dem speak.

                  

                  Step 2. Form the plurals with "dem" or "nuff"

                  In Jamaican, adding "s" or "es" to a word does not make it plural as it does in English. Instead, you will need to use "dem", "nuff" or a number.

                  • Put "dem" at the end of the word: "baby dem" in Jamaican is equivalent to "babies" in English or "bambini" in Italian.
                  • Put "nuff" at the beginning of a word to indicate that the subjects are many: "nuff plate" in Jamaican means "many plates" in Italian.
                  • Put a number before a word to specify a precise quantity: "ten book" in Jamaican means "ten books" in Italian.

                  

                  Step 3. Simplify pronouns

                  In patois pronouns do not have gender variations and do not change even if they are used as a subject or complement.

                  • Also, there are no possessive pronouns in Jamaican.

                  • The pronouns are:

                    • "Mi" means "I", "me", "me" and "mine".
                    • "Yu" means "you", "you" and "yours".
                    • "Im" means "he", "she", "him", "le", "lo" and "his".
                    • "Wi" means "we", "us" and "our".
                    • "Unu" means "you", "you" and "yours".
                    • "Dem" means "them".

                    

                    Step 4. Connect the words with "a"

                    In Jamaican, the copula or connecting verb is the letter "a". It is also used as a particle.

                    • As a linking verb: "Mi a run" means "I'm running" or "I am running" in English, with the "a" replacing "am".
                    • As a particle: "Yu a teacha" means "You are a teacher" with the "a" replacing "you are a".

                    

                    Step 5. Use repetition to add emphasis

                    In patois, words are often repeated to emphasize an idea, to create intensity or to express character traits.

                    • For example, to describe how big a child has grown you might say "Im big-big" which means "He is very big".
                    • Similarly, if you wish to express how true something is, you can say "A tru-tru" which means "It is very true".
                    • Duplication is often used to describe negative characteristics, such as "greedy" (nyami-nyami), "messy" (Chakka-chakka) or "weak" (fenkeh-fenkeh).

                    

                    Step 6. Accept double negatives

                    Double negation is not allowed in English, while in Jamaican phrases it is often used.

                    For example, saying "Mi nuh have nun" in Jamaican is the same as saying "I don't have none" in English. Although in the British language it would be incorrect, in Jamaican it is the most common way of saying

                    

                    Step 7. Don't change verb forms

                    Verbs don't change based on time. To indicate a tense variation, you need to add a word in front of the verb.

                    • More specifically, to render a past verb, you have to anticipate it with "en", "ben", or "did".
                    • For example, in Jamaican, the present tense of going is "guh". Saying "a guh" means "it's going". Saying "did guh" means "went".