Polyglots

Most Surinamis speak at least two languages: Dutch and Sranantongo. Sranan Tongo's lexicon is thus a fusion of English, Dutch, Portuguese and Central and West African languages. It began as a pidgin spoken primarily by African slaves in Suriname who often did not have a common African language. Sranan also became the language of communication between the slaves and the slave-owners, as the slaves were prohibited to speak Dutch. As other ethnic groups were brought to Suriname as contract workers, Sranan became a lingua franca. Besides Dutch, that is the official language that is used in schools, government and media, many Surinamis speak a third language, that of their ethnic group or country of origin. On the streets of Paramaribo one can hear Sarnami Hindi, Javanese, Chinese, Portuguese and English. This is also reflected in the television stations one can receive. There are several Hindustani channels, a couple of Javanese channels and programmes from Brazil, Holland and the Caribbean. Suriname is truely a multi-lingual society!