20295: Antoine: On Haitian Creole translations (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Guy S. Antoine <webmaster@haitiforever.com>

Nothing personal against Bryant Freeman, A. Valdman
or even Greg Chamberlain who offered a surprisingly
authoritative-sounding conclusion on the translation
of Aristide's controversial resignation statement (I did
not even know that Chamberlain spoke Kreyòl, oh my!)
Freeman and Valdman are well-established academic
experts on the Creole language, and so are Michel
Degraff and Roger Savain, among others, who have
spoken it their entire lives.  By sheer coincidence, one
will also find Haitian and Haitian-American experts
on this very list, not to mention at least eight million
speakers who would have no trouble whatsoever
understanding exactly what the statement said, whether
they agreed with it or not, whether it was a ruse or not,
whatever value or lack of value one might want to
attach to it.  In fact, if I recall Chamberlain's statement,
he plainly stated that Albert Valdman's translation was
incorrect!  Way to go, Greg...  Curiously enough,
Michel Degraff dared to challenge you on that linguistic
particularity.  Best to ignore him (or enlist Poincy to the
rescue.)

Michel, Michel, when shall you learn?  Wasn't it a few
years ago that the delicious Kathy Grey bested you on
this list by telling you the proper writing of "Mambo"?
For some strange reason, you insisted that it should be
written "Manbo".  You even went so far as telling her
that there was nothing "kreyòl" about her spelling of
"Mambo Racine Sans Bout".  Ti gason tèt di wo! Where
is Du Tuyau when we really need him? Nou bannann!

Hey, Kathy and Greg, nothing personal!  I do, I really do
want to learn Creole the British, French, or American way.
One has to defer to the regional geo-political forces of the
day. But the Haitian Creole experts have been so silent,
one has to wonder whether they are currently undergoing
rehab for proper Creole translation.  A good thing too, IF
it were the case, because eight millions of us are waiting
impatiently for the results.

My excuses to Chamberlain and Grey if I mistranslated
their writings on this topic.

Guy S. Antoine
Windows on Haiti
http://haitiforever.com