Pidgin Dialect of English Spoken on the Hawaiian Essay Example For Students

Pidgin: Dialect of English Spoken on the Hawaiian Essay IslandsPidgin is a dialect of English spoken in the Hawaiian Islands. Itconsists of the shortening of many words commonly used in everyday Englishspeech. Some examples include, da (the), odda (other), Tre (meaning tree andthree), bra (anyone you know), da kine (anything you dont know), cus (anyfriend), and many others. Pidgin has its social barriers as well. It isprimarily spoken in the lower class neighborhoods consisting of the Hawaiiansand the Filipinos. The dialect has been associated with the members of theseneighborhoods and their problems, such as, alcoholism, illiteracy, and a poorstandard of living. I come from a diverse family background, my mother isScottish, English, Italian, French, and much more. My father is part Hawaiianand part Scottish. Being such I have to choose which lifestyle is right for me. There is a tug-a-war between the Hawaiian part of me and the Haole part of me. The two cultures that I consider myself, Scottish and Hawaiian, are both proud,interesting, and contain their own prescriptions toward behavior. The pidgindialect is a major part of life in the lower class Hawaiian neighborhoods. Formost children in these neighborhoods it is the language spoken at home. Theother people of the islands look at this dialect as a sign of a poor educationand up-bringing. My mother did not want her son associated with such a group ofindividuals. When I started school at Maunawili School and began to pick up Pidginand start to speak it at home she took it upon herself to change me. At thistime she was teaching sixth grade at Keolu Elementary. She saw how her kidscould not speak proper English, only Pidgin. Many of them also wrote in Pidgin,something I had begun to do. My mother saw this behavior and forced me tochange. My parents put me in Punahou School, one of the best private schools inthe nation, to facilitate this change. It may seem that she did not want me togrow up proud of my Hawaiian heritage, but that is far from the truth. Shetaught me to respect the culture for its beautiful aspects, the hula, and theHawaiian Language. My father taught me about the aina (land). He showed mehow the Hawaiians of yesterdays believed the aina to be the physicalrepresentation of their beliefs in their gods. He showed me Peles (the firegoddess) home in Kilauea volcano, then her wrath when the lava from her ventsdestroyed many homes in Puu Oo and many other exciting aspects of the culture. I was told to keep with the traditions that make me unique, both Hawaiian andHaole. Category: Social Issues