Jamaica’s patois Bible: The Word of God is now available in creole

By Michael Ireland
Senior International Correspondent, ASSIST News Service
KINGSTON, JAMAICA (ANS) — For the first time the Bible is being translated into Jamaican patois.

According to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), it’s a move welcomed by those Jamaicans who want their mother tongue enshrined as the national language — but opposed by others, who think learning and speaking English should be the priority.

In its report, by Robert Pigott, BBC News religious affairs correspondent,the BBC said that in the Spanish Town Tabernacle near the capital, Kingston, the congregation is hearing the word of God in the language of the street for the first time.

At the front of the concrete-block church, a young man and woman read alternate lines from the Bible. This is the Gospel of St Luke in Jamaican patois — or more precisely, “Jiizas – di buk we Luuk rait bout im.”

The sound of the creole, developed from English by West African slaves in Jamaica’s sugar plantations 400 years ago, has an electrifying effect on those listening, the BBC said.

Several women rose to testify, in patois, to what it means to hear the Bible in their mother tongue.

“It’s almost as if you are seeing it,” says a woman, referring to the moment when Jesus is tempted by the Devil. “In the blink of an eye, you get the whole notion. It’s as though you are watching a movie… it brings excitement to the word of God.”

The Rev Courtney Stewart, General Secretary of the West Indies Bible Society, who has managed the translation project, insists the new Bible demonstrates the power of patois, and cited a line from Luke as an example.

Excerpt from the Bible: ‘Jesus will be born…’ Luke, chapter one, verses 26-28
(Graphic via BBC website).

It’s the moment when the Angel Gabriel goes to Mary to tell her she is going to give birth to Jesus.

English versions read along these lines: “And having come in, the angel said to her, ‘Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you: blessed are you among women.'”

“Now compare that with our translation of the Bible,” says Stewart.

“De angel go to Mary and say to ‘er, me have news we going to make you well ‘appy. God really, really, bless you and him a walk with you all de time.”

Stewart told the BBC the project is largely designed to bring scripture alive, but it also has another important function — to rescue patois from its second-class status in Jamaica and to enshrine it as a national language.

“The language is what defines us as Jamaicans,” insists Courtney Stewart. It is who we are — patois-speakers.”

The BBC said the patois Bible represents a bold new attempt to standardize -the language, with the historically-oral tongue written down in a new phonetic form.

For example the passage relating the angel’s visit to Mary reads: “Di ienjel go tu Mieri an se tu ar se, ‘Mieri, mi av nyuuz we a go mek yu wel api. Gad riili riili bles yu an im a waak wid yu all di taim.”

In its online report, the BBC said the New Testament has been completed by a team of translators at the Bible Society in Kingston — working from the original Greek — who intend to publish it in time for the 50th anniversary of Jamaica’s independence from Britain on August 6 next year.

But some traditionalist Christians say the patois Bible dilutes the word of God, and insist that creole is no substitute for English, the BBC reports.

Bishop Alvin Bailey, at the Portmore Holiness Church of God near Kingston, argued that Patois is too limited a language to represent the nuances of Biblical text, and has to resort to coarse expressions to makes its meaning clear.

“I don’t think the Patois words can effectively communicate what the English words have communicated,” he said, adding: “Even those (Patois) words that we would want to use to fully explain what was in the original, are words that are vulgar.”

Many others see the elevation of patois as a backward step for Jamaica, in a globalised world demanding English.

The BBC explained that the vast majority of children arrive at school speaking little apart from the creole of their ancestors, and teachers are under intense pressure from the government to replace it with English.

The head teacher at St Richard’s Primary School in Kingston, Jacqueline Williams, said she can understand the policy, because people make up so much of what Jamaica exports.

“If they do go elsewhere they would have to have English as the language of communication,” she says. “That’s why it is being sold as our first language.”

The BBC said that pressure is felt by even by the smallest of the children in their smart uniforms playing outside the two blocks of brightly-colored classrooms.

“A little child in our class who can only speak that way… is going to be embarrassed,” said Williams. “I think that esteem problems can develop because of it.”

The BBC report went on to say that linguists at the University of the West Indies in Kingston, who have been working on the translation, insist that patois is an authentic language, with its own tenses and consistent grammatical rules.

Dr Nicole Scott claims that the response to declining exam results in English — which has been to reinforce the emphasis on English — is counter-productive.

“Literacy in patois would help the students to appreciate the structures that are used in English,” she said.

Dr Scott said the new system of writing used the in patois Bible is critical if language skills are to be taught in creole, and that the Bible holds sufficient sway in Jamaica to act as powerful model, the BBC reported.

“I think it will be massively, massively, helpful. People will realize they can hear the word of God in their own language and understand it very well, this same language that has been stigmatized for so long,” Scott said.

Sugar plantation Patois was developed from English by African slaves on sugar plantations, the BBC stated.

Faith Linton, a linguist of almost 80 years of age, who was one of the founders of the Patois Bible project, believes the way patois continues to be looked down upon threatens the very future of Jamaica itself.

From the balcony of her old plantation estate house on the north coast of Jamaica, managers once kept an eye on slaves working the sugar cane.

She spoke nothing but patois until she was 12.

“The damage is deeply psychological,” she insisted. “The patois-speaker feels inferior, full stop.”Because the model is the white English man, his language and educational standards… and we have not been able to attain it.

“Out of this sense of inferiority will come violence, illiteracy, disturbed behavior and damaged emotional attitudes. All those spring from the idea that my identity is inferior,” she said.

A few Jamaican patois rules:

Plural nouns are made with the word “dem” (“they” or “them” in English) — so the plural of “uoli prafit” (“holy prophet” is “uoli prafit dem”, and the plural of “enimi” (“enemy” is “enimi dem”

The past tense is marked by the word “did” — so “he lived” is, in patois, “im did liv”

The future tense can be marked with ” a go” or “wi” (“will” — “Im a go siev” is “He will save”, and “Yu wi nuo” is “You will know”

Examples:

“Jos laik ou im did taak chuu im uoli prafit dem” — Just like how he talked through his holy prophets

“Im a go siev wi fram wi enimi dem” — He will save us from our enemies

“So yu wi nuo se wa yu ier a chuu” — So you will know that what you hear is true

http://www.assistnews.net/Stories/2011/s11120112.htm

All ina one STING Review on a few More Artists

After watching some of the performances I decided to take notes as many of the performers really need to be talked about. Some more than once

The band was off key a few times…and at other times  was not anything anyone wanted to hear…

Raking pankin from Japan- The band played well for her couldn’t make out most of her words but the message was about peace and was good until the host came out disrespectfully and got her off set… during the performance ,the band had to be told to stop twice…excuse for rude dismissal was lateness…

Rich- was short effective and catchy- one song allowed until the host reminded him of the time

Max element—the host called him out…he came out. Performed well.-hair unkempt

Rasmonasy-good performance…distracting however as there were men behind holding flag- at one point there were four men holding one flag

Arsenal- He came out prancing around so much it took away from his performance…it was hard  to hear him clearly

Ras in white sailor suit…good sounding. Good performance

Influence- Came out and quickly went off key  and when he finally  sang he started jumping all over the stage

Lafam-group nonsense there was nothing catchy or attractive about their performance

Casanova—Seemed like a very good artist and sang good old time sounding festival sounding music…band could not play his rhythm which was disgraceful until he finally asked them to stop playing and sang without the band well . He Introduced a German reggae singer who was not as commanding but overall the performance was good.

Gemstone a female performer sang very well, her song was good, until she called out Mr. Rango a Spanish Reggae artist who was I am sorry to say a horrible distraction. Overall the performance was different and good

Ronnydon-nothing to remember him by…wasn’t good, not bad

Danger- came on stage and at first the pace of his voice was slow while he talked I got a little nervous about hearing him sing but he was a very good dj

Jahmeile- was plagued by band troubles as the band took a while to find his number. He was ok not good or bad.

Thriller- came out and put on a very good show, over all a very good performer/good singer

Black Queen-Unattractive and distracting performer her lashes looked horrible, the hair was so plastic it glistened .She was a fairly good singe until she got into her second song that was wack. She also had a few words for Liang’’ because mi nuh suck no hood and suck no pussy dem nuh put har pan flyer’ ’host came on to take her off and left allowing her to sing another song and she did not come off stage until she thought she was done. Even left her back up dancers on stage.

Dis a one a Black Queen dancer dem...tan bad man

Sashi- flop nothing else to say there

Nitro – Ran in like a mad man wildly singing mama Africa even the guitar player had a laugh on him

Food kartel and Kush – Brought nuff vibes the clash was friendly and well planned, lyrics were funny.

Food Kartel & Kush

Davino – Performed well but made it a point of duty to tell the audience that he was performing unpaid

Pickney – Very good artist his child like voice made his lyrics fun, very good performer

Face- of all persons came out and rinsed every female artist, including rehashing the Lisa Hype saga Face yuh stale and love fake hype..Dere is nothing fi ride offa di Lisa Hype saga whey almost two year old..Get a life! Advantage tekking a nuh nothing fi females put each other down offa and yuh did tan well bad look like yuh did a go a shop ina yuh flat shoes…Face yuh did not MADE IT..kaw if mi seh mek it a go look too nice FACE ,,Yuh gwaan good wid di singing but low Lisa Hype now..a how much fi har one back can carry suh?

DI/ Daniele- you did not medz it boo boo. God know di shiney blue was distracting di only time mi enjoy di performance a when Shereen did come on..she is a lovely singer

Shereene

Blaze – Apart from the distracting color of his hair, he was a good performer, refreshing to hear

Tellla – Performance was a good one but had to bring up Lisa Hype and mentioned that if she was the one who sucked Kartel  she would have house etc, Tella it must stop! Ah time unno work together ina di business and try mek tings get bigger fi dancehall women dan fi join di stale news pudung band wagon

Flex – Yuh neva mek it sorry, it is absolutely stupid for someone to start jumping around before they start singing.-

This caused a big lacking in the quality of the performance as it took a while for him to catch himself but really didn’t fully recover from the lost breath. He introduced Kibaki who sang off key as the band seemingly could not find his number either, he sounded quite similar to Mavado, after Kibaki sang, Flex got better at his performance…He caught his breath

Landmine-Came on but flopped because the band did not know his rhythm and he was unable to perform well due to this

Jermaine- A soulful performer he sang very well but over-emphasized a few words and ended up using the dreaded H in a few words where it didn’t belong. His voice cracked a little…but over all a very good singer

Big up o ‘’pretty bwaay Floyd whey seh ‘’di brother has ROSEN to stardom’’

Now dis artist dung yasso a doe know him name but him give it to Kartel and seh Free Mason sell him puss ina bag and seh Portia fi go ras up