Berry Jessica R
Independent Scholar, Orangeburg, South Carolina.
Semin Speech Lang. 2025 Mar;46(2):107-116. doi: 10.1055/s-0045-1809533. Epub 2025 Jun 27.
This article explores the linguistic and cultural significance of Gullah Geechee, an English-based Creole language, and its speakers as bilingual users. It examines the historical roots, linguistic features, and sociocultural importance of Gullah Geechee, which emerged from the interaction of African languages and English during the transatlantic slave trade. The study highlights Gullah Geechee's role as a linguistic variety used by African Americans, focusing on its phonological, syntactical, and lexical traits while challenging the marginalization of both Gullah Geechee and African American English as "broken" English. This article also looks at generational shifts in language use and identity among Gullah Geechee speakers, from historical stigmatization to a modern revival of cultural pride. It advocates for recognizing Gullah Geechee and African American English as legitimate languages, promoting culturally responsive teaching and bidialectal education. Emphasizing the need for systemic change, this article calls for the validation of heritage languages to support linguistic justice, academic success, and cultural preservation. Through its exploration of language structures, educational frameworks, and social attitudes, this work contributes to discussions on bilingualism and the preservation of marginalized dialects in American society.
本文探讨了古拉-吉奇语（一种以英语为基础的克里奥尔语）及其使用者作为双语者的语言和文化意义。它考察了古拉-吉奇语的历史根源、语言特征和社会文化重要性，这种语言是在跨大西洋奴隶贸易期间非洲语言与英语相互作用的过程中产生的。该研究强调了古拉-吉奇语作为非裔美国人使用的一种语言变体的作用，重点关注其语音、句法和词汇特征，同时对将古拉-吉奇语和非裔美国英语边缘化视为“蹩脚”英语的观点提出了挑战。本文还研究了古拉-吉奇语使用者在语言使用和身份认同方面的代际转变，从历史上的污名化到现代文化自豪感的复兴。它主张将古拉-吉奇语和非裔美国英语视为合法语言，促进具有文化适应性的教学和双语教育。本文强调需要进行系统性变革，呼吁对传统语言进行认可，以支持语言公正、学术成就和文化保护。通过对语言结构、教育框架和社会态度的探索，这项工作有助于在美国社会中关于双语现象和边缘化方言保护的讨论。
