14303: Mason: Haitian Creole Needs a Standardized Lexicon (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: MariLinc@aol.com

In 14271: Pierre Jean: Re: 14260: Lyall on Visas, Pierre Jean
<pierrejean01@yahoo.com> wrote:

"let's go visit a family that leaves in a mud-covered hut with a thatched
roof,..."

Although I am sure that Pierre Jean's use of "leaves" instead of "lives" in
the above quote was unintentional, it still brings to my mind an ongoing
debate with regard to the still widespread belief that Haitian Creole's
spelling system (orthography) is phonetically-based.

In other words, how a word is pronounced determines its spelling, thereby
allowing for many spelling variations for each and every word in its lexicon.

The English word "lives" is indeed pronounced by many Haitians as "leaves".
But, because the spelling system of American English is NOT
phonetically-based, regardless of how a Haitian or a German or a Russian or
Alabaman or Mississippian pronounces "lives", "lives" is still correctly
spelled as "lives".

Haitian Creole also is NOT a phonetically-based system (rather, it is
phonemically-based). Yet, most Haitians, when writing Haitian Creole, still
treat it as if it were a phonetically-based writing system. So, even though
more and more Haitians are adapting to the IPN phonemically-based writing
norms for Haitian Creole (each sound has a specific written representation),
there is still a wide variation in the spelling of individual words.

With regard to one of the two of Haiti's national languages (HC), a next step
beyond having a standardized orthographical system is still needed: A
standardized lexicon. A standardized way for writing individual words,
regardless of pronunciation differences from one place to another.


I fully realize that Haiti has other "more immediately pressing" issues with
which to deal right now. Like: who gets to live, who gets to eat, who gets to
buy petrol to drive a vehicle, who receives electricity, who can get educated
in Haiti without having to resort to dangerous sea voyages in order to
ultimately populate in a major way the campuses of UMASS-Boston, Roxbury
Community College, SUNY, universities in Florida, etc. (only to find out
after receiving their diplomas that they are still not welcomed in Haiti by
the business elite because they outflank the existing business elite in
skills and expertise and the business elite in Haiti is not used to fair
competition, nor does it want to wake up early from their mid-day naps after
their multi-drink lunches to return to the growing lines awaiting service at
their places of business in the early- to mid-afternoon sun), who is
connected to the Internet, etc.


But, I don't think that my above plea is "outside the realm of the
necessary". It really comes down to "which comes first: the chicken or the
egg"?

- Does the lack of HC literacy in Haiti impede participation of ALL of
Haiti's people in the democratic process? EVEN IF the State of Florida, with
all its funds and access to high technology, still has not found a way to
support the HC language via its touch-screen voting machines (after promising
to do so after the y2k election debacle, thereby stemming off a pending
lawsuit), what is Haiti's excuse? It has an oligarchy with financial
resources (should it choose to apply them to such a quest) to access any high
tech tools it chooses!

- Why is the Haitian autocracy / aristocracy / oligarchy so afraid of HC
literacy?

- Is HC illiteracy a result of OR the cause of Haiti's lack of acting in full
unity to the opportunities presented to her by the stalwart actions of her
ancestors nearly 200 years ago?

Whatever, we could keep going around in circles -- should we choose.

However, the fact that SOME in Haiti hold the "keys to the kingdom" with
regard to HC literacy for Haiti's masses, yet choose NOT to share them, tells
me that SOME in Haiti do not want Haiti's masses to participate in the
democratic process, except as "yes men" to their owners / bosses / overlords.


The standardization of HC which I have proposed above and at
http://hometown.aol.com/mit2haiti/Orthography.htm is NOT a new line of
advocacy on my part. I'm not an opportunist. In fact, I've suffered greatly
over the long-term for advocating for such a principle.

See this 1996 posting to soc.culture.haiti:

http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&threadm=4mp8u9%244se%40news

.nyu.edu&rnum=1&prev=/groups%3Fq%3DKreyol%2BSelman%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26ie%3DUT

F-8%26selm%3D4mp8u9%25244se%2540news.nyu.edu%26rnum%3D1

And follow it all the way through.

You will see there that I was the first (in 1996) to advocate for within the
soc.culture.haiti Forum (BEFORE Corbett had a Website; BEFORE the Haitian
Forum on Windows on Haiti appeared) our "catching up with" the officially
recognized spelling system of Haitian Creole and that John Kozyn and Jean
Saint-Vil (Jafrikayiti) were early to stand up to speak on behalf of the
legitimacy of an already existing officialized Haitian Creole orthography
(even though John Kozyn was a bit off with regard to the timing). Jaf,
however, was "right on" both in validating the timing and content of the
officialization of HC orthography within that Forum.

Yes, back then, I was Marilyn P. Mason (mmason@mit.edu), rather than Marilyn
Mason (MariLinc@aol.com). Yes, I'm the same person but it has NEVER
class-wise or politically or economically been popular for a mere technical
secretary in the Department of Chemistry at MIT in Cambridge, MA (USA) to "go
on public record" with regard to Haitian Creole linguistics issues, a base
better covered once Michel DeGraff arrived at MIT's Department of Linguistics
and Philosophy later that year! Any more than it was later class-wise or
politically or economically popular for me to advocate for the same issues as
President of the now-defunct MIT2.

Yet, quite frankly, friends, it doesn't so much matter WHO was first to
comment upon or substantiate within ANY particular Forum issues which
transcend all of us.

What matters most -- in the end -- is that "natif-natal" Haitians, also
trained in the science of linguistics AND in collaboration with HC-proficient
researchers, dictionary builders, writers, editors, publishers, software
developers and Haiti's government ULTIMATELY put the seal of approval upon A
standardized HC lexicon -- no matter who played what part along the way in
such an arduous process.

Marilyn

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Marilyn Mason
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