Papiamento: How Much Do You Know About This Language?
This article is in partnership with Day Translations.
Have you ever heard of a language called Papiamento? According to Wikipedia, the definition of Papiamento or Papiamentu (as said in English, or Papiaments as said in Dutch) is a Portuguese-based creole language spoken in the Dutch Caribbean. The Dutch Caribbean comprises a number of islands which are popular tourist destinations. You will find references to the ABC islands when you are doing searches about the Dutch Caribbean because the main islands’ names start with A, B and C: Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao. Papiamento Creole is the result of a mix of Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch and English.
Years ago I visited Bonaire in the Dutch Caribbean after trekking the Inca Trail in Machu Picchu, Peru. The island is not only stunning but it has a rich history, mostly because of the slave trade. Beyond the stunning beaches, the flamingos and the sightings of various sea life including the parrot fish, there are well preserved houses that used to be inhabited by slaves working on the land. These constructions are simple but impactful as they are painted a bright yellow and are all the same size and shape.
Papiamento Getting Recognised as an Official Language
The earliest date that Papiamento was recognised as an official language in the Dutch Caribbean or Dutch Antilles was 1986.
A local news outlet for the island of Curaçao reported in 2024 that Papiamento was officially recognised by the Netherlands through a Charter and this will allow this minority language to gain a certain number of protections in order to prevent its extinction or weakening. The report states:
The Charter is a Council of Europe treaty aimed at protecting minority languages traditionally present within the territory of a State.
In Bonaire Papiamento was recognised as an official language in 2007 and in Aruba, where the first Papiamento language newspaper had been published in 1871, in 2003 it was confirmed as the most spoken language in the island.
- How Many People Speak Papiamento Today?
The answer to the question of how many people speak Papiamento currently is 230,000 and this figure includes language speakers around the world, not just in the main Dutch Caribbean islands of Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao.
According to WorldData, in Curaçao alone 120,000 people speak Papiamento there is not much data at present about worldwide Papiamento speaker outside of the Dutch Caribbean. 81% of the Curaçao population speak Papiamento as native speakers then about 70% in Aruba and the Dutch Caribbean, with only 17% of the population of St. Martin (Sint Maarten) being Papiamento speakers (which equates to a total of 7,000 people as native Papiamento speakers).
While currently the Papiamento language is not widely spoken, during colonial times it was considered as a lingua franca, a common way to communicate among different ethnic groups within the Caribbean.
In fact, the origins of Papiamento have been tracked to the 16th century (1500s) when the Caribbean Islands were under Spanish and Dutch control. As a language, Papiamento has a strong oral tradition and written standards were developed much later.
During the 20th century Papiamento was finally introduced as a study subject in local schools.
Photo by iSAW Company on Unsplash
