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Julian · Expert Joined: 09 Sep 2006 Posts: 324

Since it was brought up in another subforum ...

LINGUISTIC FEATURES OF CAJUN ENGLISH

(Excerpted from a dissertation by Juanita Cox)

Modification of the consonant /s/ :

/s/ = /z/ : sink --> zink ; gas --> gaz

Simplification of the consonant cluster /th/ :

/θ/ = /t/ : thick --> tick ; bath --> bat

Simplification or modification of some final consonant clusters :

Deletion of /r/ in medial and final position :

Deletion or modication of some final consonants :

Devoicing of some initial and final consonants and consonant clusters :

Vowel modifications :

Selected vowels are pronounced as nasals, as in French :

Second syllable stress on words that usually have first syllable stress:

straw' berry --> straw ber' ry

Nouns:

a. Plural overgeneralization :

b. Deletion of plural :

Verbs:

a. Use of 'went' to indicate action completed :

b. Change in verb conjugation :

had gone --> had went

c. Change in tense :

He gave me some soup for lunch. --> He give me some soup for lunch.

d. Deletion of linking verb :

We are going to my momma's. --> We goin' to my momma's.

e. Omission of modals and auxiliaries in questions :

What did I do? --> What I do?

f. Deletion of 'ed' :

He is married to Janice. --> He is marry to Janice.

g. Use of 'bring' in place of 'take' :

I am going to take Joe to the doctor. --> I'm goin' bring Joe to the doctor.

Noun-verb agreement :

Pronouns:

a. Intensifying pronoun form and order change :

b. Substitution of 'them' for 'those' :

See those nutria? --> See them nutria?

c. Use of pronominal apposition :

Troy came home. --> Troy he come home.

Possessives :

a. Substitution of 'you' for 'your' :

He came into your house. --> He come into you house.

b. Deletion of markers:

They wash people's houses. --> They wash people houses.

c. Deletion of infinitive construction :

I'm going to get it. --> I'm goin' get it.

Adverbs and adjectives :

a. Addition of 's' to selected adverbs :

b. Omission of 'ly' :

He ran slowly. --> He ran slow.

Sentence pattern :

a. Inversion of question form :

Can I sharpen my pencil? --> I can sharpen my pencil?

b. Use of yes and no for emphasis :

c. Placement of 'there' :

We spent one day there. --> We spent there one day.

Julian · Expert Joined: 09 Sep 2006 Posts: 324

And here's Justin Wilson again, speaking Cajun English:

"Son, where in da world did you get all dem squirrel?

Irrintzi · Expert Joined: 27 Dec 2006 Posts: 168

The pronounciation's simplification, the vowel nasalisation, all this reminds me that an influence of Louisianan French-speakers is partially at origin of the peculiarity of Cajun English, isn't it?

ddog800 · Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2007 5:25 pm Post subject:

Porthos · Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2007 6:22 pm Post subject:

One Cajun-English speaker I can think of is "Farmer Fran" from The Waterboy. He was nearly impossible to understand, and the characters in the movie couldn't even understand him.

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