View source for Haitian Creole

{{Short description|French-based creole language}}
{{Distinguish|text=[[Haitian French]], a variety of French spoken in Haiti}}
{{redirect-distinguish|Saint-Domingue Creole|Dominican Creole French}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Haitian Creole
| altname          = 
| nativename       = {{lang|ht|kreyòl ayisyen}}
| pronunciation    = {{IPA|ht|kɣejɔl ajisjɛ̃|}}
| states           = [[Haiti]]
| region           = 
| ethnicity        = [[Haitians]]
| speakers         = {{sigfig|13.157800|2}} million
| extinct          = 
| revived          = 
| era              = 
| date             = 2020
| dateprefix       = 
| ref              = e27
| speakers2        = 
| familycolor      = Creole
| fam1             = <br/>[[French-based creole languages|French Creole]]<ref name="Gurevich2004"/>
| fam2             = [[French-based creole languages|Circum-Caribbean French]]<ref name="Glottolog|hait1244|Haitian">{{Glottolog|hait1244|Haitian}}</ref>
| ancestor         = <!-- an ancestral form, such as Old English or Proto‑Basque! -->
| creator          = 
| created          = 
| setting          = 
| posteriori       = 
| dia1             = 
| dia2             = 
| dialects         = 
| sign             = 
| stand1           = 
| stand2           = 
| standards        = 
| script           = [[Latin script|Latin]] ([[Haitian Creole alphabet]])
| nation           = [[Haiti]]
| minority         = [[Bahamas]]<ref name="Dufour">{{cite web|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=IvA_DwAAQBAJ&q=minorité+langue+de+cuba+créole+haitïen|title=Exploring the Possibilities for the Emergence of a Single and Global Native Language|editor=Dufour, Fritz|page=4|year=2017|publisher=Language Arts & Disciplines|access-date=11 October 2020}}</ref><br>[[Cuba]]<ref name="Dufour"/><br>[[Costa Rica]]
| agency           = [[Akademi Kreyòl Ayisyen]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://menfp.gouv.ht/PARTENARIA_AKA_MENFP.html |title=''Cérémonie de lancement d'un partenariat entre le Ministère de l'Education Nationale et de la Formation Professionnelle et l'Académie Créole'' |date=8 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150728153214/http://menfp.gouv.ht/PARTENARIA_AKA_MENFP.html |archive-date=28 July 2015 |url-status=dead |language=fr, ht |publisher=Government of the Republic of Haiti |location=Port‑au‑Prince, Haiti |access-date=5 December 2015 }}</ref><br />(Haitian Creole Academy)
| iso1             = ht
| iso2             = hat
| iso2b            = 
| iso2t            = 
| iso3             = hat
| iso3comment      = 
| isoexception     = 
| lc1              = 
| ld1              = 
| lc2              = 
| ld2              = 
| iso6             = 
| glotto           = hait1244
| glottoname       = Haitian
| linglist         = 
| lingname         = 
| lingua           = 51-AAC-cb
| guthrie          = 
| aiatsis          = 
| aiatsisname      = 
| ietf             = ht
| image            = 
| imagesize        = 
| imagealt         = 
| imagecaption     = 
| imageheader      = 
| map              = Idioma haitiano.png
| mapsize          = 
| mapalt           = 
| mapcaption       = Distribution of Haitian Creole. Areas in dark blue are where it is spoken by a majority; areas in light blue are where it is spoken by a minority.
| map2             = 
| mapalt2          = 
| mapcaption2      = 
| boxsize          = 
| notice           = IPA
}}
[[File:Anbasadè Hervé Denis ap pale Relasyon ki dwe Egziste ant Ayiti ak Dyaspora a.webm|thumb|Ambassador Hervé Denis discusses the vital relationship between Haiti and its diaspora in Haitian Creole.]]

'''Haitian Creole''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|h|eɪ|ʃ|ən|_|ˈ|k|r|iː|oʊ|l}}; {{langx|fr|Créole haïtien}} {{IPA|fr|kʁeɔl ajisjɛ̃||LL-Q150 (fra)-Lyokoï-créole haïtien.wav}}; {{langx|ht|kreyòl ayisyen|links=no}}, {{IPA|ht|kɣejɔl ajisjɛ̃|}}<ref name="Faraclas2012"/><ref name="Valdman2002">{{cite journal|last=Valdman|first=Albert|date=2002|title=Creole: The National Language of Haiti|url=http://www.indiana.edu/~creole/creolenatllangofhaiti.html|url-status=dead|journal=Footsteps|volume=2|issue=4|pages=36–39|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150713215719/http://www.indiana.edu/~creole/creolenatllangofhaiti.html|archive-date=13 July 2015}}</ref>), or simply '''Creole''' ({{langx|ht|kreyòl|links=no}}), is a [[French language|French]]-based [[creole language]] that is spoken by over 13{{nbsp}}million [[Haitians|Haitian]] people worldwide.<ref>{{cite web |title=Discovering Languages: Haitian Creole |url=https://www.caslt.org/en/blog-discovering-languages-haitian-creole/ |website=Canadian Association of Second Language Teachers |date=6 February 2024 |publisher=CASLT |access-date=29 June 2025 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Haitian Creole |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Britannica |publisher=Britannica |access-date=29 June 2025 |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Haitian-Creole}}</ref> It is one of the two official languages of [[Haiti]] (the other being French), where it is the native language of the vast majority of the population. It is also the most widely spoken [[creole language]] in the world.<ref name="DeGraff2015">{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/02/opinion/a-creole-solution-for-haitis-woes.html |title=A Creole Solution for Haiti's Woes |work=The New York Times |date=1 August 2014 |page=A17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906084134/http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/02/opinion/a-creole-solution-for-haitis-woes.html |archive-date= 6 September 2015 |url-status=live |first1=Michel |last1=DeGraff |first2=Molly |last2=Ruggles |issn=0362-4331 |quote=Under the 1987 Constitution, adopted after the overthrow of Jean‑Claude&nbsp;Duvalier’s dictatorship, {{bracket|Haitian}}&nbsp;Creole and French have been the two official languages, but most of the population speaks only Creole fluently.}}</ref><ref name="Léonidas1995">{{cite book |last=Léonidas |first=Jean-Robert |title=Prétendus Créolismes: Le Couteau dans l'Igname |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9foaAQAAIAAJ |date=1995 |publisher=Editions du CIDIHCA |location=Montréal |language=fr |isbn=978-2-920862-97-5 |trans-title=So‑Called Creolisms: The Knife in the Yam |oclc=34851284 |lccn=95207252 |ol=3160860W}}</ref> 

The three main dialects of Haitian Creole are the Northern, Central, and Southern dialects; the Northern dialect is predominantly spoken in [[Cap-Haïtien]], the Central in [[Port-au-Prince]], and the Southern in the [[Les Cayes|Cayes]] area.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Schieffelin |first1=Bambi B. |last2=Doucet |first2=Rachelle Charlier |date=1994 |title=The "Real" Haitian Creole: Ideology, Metalinguistics, and Orthographic Choice |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/646527 |journal=American Ethnologist |volume=21 |issue=1 |pages=176–200 |doi=10.1525/ae.1994.21.1.02a00090 |jstor=646527 |issn=0094-0496|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

The language emerged from contact between French settlers and enslaved Africans during the [[Atlantic slave trade]] in the French colony of [[Saint-Domingue]] (now [[Haiti]]) in the 17th and 18th centuries.<ref name="DeGraff2007" /><ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Seguin|first=Luisa|title=Transparency and Language Contact: The Case of Haitian Creole, French, and Fongbe|publisher=Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages|year=2020|pages=218–252}}</ref> Although its vocabulary largely derives from 18th-century French, its grammar is that of a West African [[Volta–Congo languages|Volta–Congo]] language branch, particularly the [[Fon language|Fongbe]] and [[Igbo language|Igbo]] languages.<ref name=":0" /> It also has influences from Spanish, English, Portuguese, Taíno, and other West African languages.<ref name="Bonenfant2011">{{cite journal |last=Bonenfant |first=Jacques L. |title=History of Haitian-Creole: From Pidgin to Lingua Franca and English Influence on the Language |url=http://fmuniv.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/History_of_haitian_review_of_higher_education.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150323163405/http://fmuniv.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/History_of_haitian_review_of_higher_education.pdf |journal=Review of Higher Education and Self-Learning |volume=3 |issue=11 |date=2011 |archive-date=23 March 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref> It is not mutually intelligible with standard French, and it also has its own distinctive grammar. Some{{who|date=September 2025}} estimate that Haitians are the largest community in the world to speak a modern [[creole language]];<ref name="NadeauBarlow2008">{{cite book |first1=Jean-Benoît |last1=Nadeau |author-link1=Jean-Benoît Nadeau |first2=Julie |last2=Barlow |author-link2=Julie Barlow |title=The Story of French |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NN5oc0HFC7QC&pg=PA97 |date=2008 |publisher=St. Martin's Press |location=New York |isbn=978-0-312-34184-8 |page=97 |chapter=Far from the Sun |oclc=219563658 |lccn=2006049348 |orig-year=1st pub. 2006 |quote=There are more speakers of French-based Creoles than all other Creoles combined (including English), thanks mostly to Haiti, the biggest Creole-speaking nation in the world...}}</ref>{{Synthesis inline |date=September 2025 |reason=quote is about French-based creoles in general, not specifically Haitian creole, and "mostly" does not allow the synthesis shown in the article text.}} others{{who|date=September 2025}} estimate that more people speak [[Nigerian Pidgin]]{{cn|date=September 2025}}.

Haitian Creole's use in communities and schools has been contentious since at least the 19th{{nbsp}}century. Some Haitians view French as inextricably linked to the legacy of colonialism and language compelled on the population by conquerors, while Creole has been maligned by Francophones as a miseducated person's French.<ref name="Schieffelin1994"/><ref name="DeGraff2003">{{cite journal |last=DeGraff |first=Michel |author-link=Michel DeGraff |title=Against Creole exceptionalism |journal=Language |volume=79 |date=2003 |pages=391–410 |issue=2 |url=http://web.mit.edu/~linguistics/people/faculty/degraff/degraff-lang-79-02.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150729042434/http://web.mit.edu/~linguistics/people/faculty/degraff/degraff-lang-79-02.pdf |archive-date=29 July 2015 |url-status=live |doi=10.1353/lan.2003.0114 |s2cid=47857823 }}</ref> Until the late 20th{{nbsp}}century, Haitian presidents spoke only [[standard French]] to their fellow citizens,<!-- Jean-Claude Duvalier’s “firm as a monkey’s tail” speech by radio --> and until the 21st century, all instruction at Haitian elementary schools was in modern standard French, a second language to most of their students.<ref name="DeGraff2015"/>

Haitian Creole is also spoken in regions with [[Haitian diaspora|Haitian immigrant communities]], including other Caribbean islands, [[French Guiana]], [[Martinique]], [[France]], [[Canada]] (particularly [[Quebec]]) and the [[United States]] (including the U.S. state of [[Louisiana]]).<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last1=Spears|first1=Arthur K.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i3PBpDa-tBIC&dq=haitian+creole+history&pg=PP2|title=The Haitian Creole Language: History, Structure, Use, and Education|last2=Joseph|first2=Carole M. Berotte|date=2010-06-22|publisher=Lexington Books|page= 2|isbn=978-1-4616-6265-5|language=en}}</ref> It is related to [[Antillean Creole]], spoken in the [[Lesser Antilles]], and to other French-based creole languages.
 
{{TOC limit|2}}

==Etymology==
The word ''creole'' comes from the [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] term {{lang|pt|crioulo}}, which means "a person raised in one's house" and from the [[Latin]] {{lang|la|creare}}, which means "to create, make, bring forth, produce, beget".<ref name="Harper">{{cite web |title=Creole |work=Online Etymology Dictionary |url=http://etymonline.com/?term=creole |url-status=live |archive-url=https://timetravel.mementoweb.org/memento/20160121191947/http://etymonline.com/?term=creole |archive-date=21 January 2016 |editor-first=Douglas |editor-last=Harper }}</ref><ref name="Créolologie haïtienne">{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ftkuAAAAYAAJ|title=Créolologie haïtienne: latinité du créole d'Haïti : créole étudié dans son contexte ethnique, historique, linguistique, sociologique et pédagogique. Volume 1 of Livre du maître|editor=Archer, Marie-Thérèse|page=7|year=1998|publisher=Impr. Le Nata|access-date=11 October 2020}}</ref> In the [[New World]], the term originally referred to [[Criollo people|Europeans born and raised in overseas colonies]]<ref name="Valdman2002"/> (as opposed to the European-born ''[[peninsulares]]''). To be "as rich as a Creole" at one time was a popular saying boasted in [[Paris]] during the colonial years of Haiti (then named ''[[Saint-Domingue]]''), for being the most lucrative colony in the world.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-NxL6AoBZ20C&q=to+be+rich+like+a+creole+haiti&pg=PA489|title= America's Irresistible Attraction: Beyond the Green Card|editor= Dinga, John S.|page=489|year=2011|publisher=Trafford Publishing|isbn=9781426961250|access-date=11 October 2020}}</ref> The noun ''Creole'', soon began to refer to the language spoken there as well, as it still is today.<ref name="Valdman2002"/><ref name="Créolologie haïtienne"/>

==Origins==
{{Main|Creole language#Creole genesis}}
Haitian Creole contains elements from both the [[Romance languages|Romance]] group of [[Indo-European languages]] through its [[superstrate]], [[French language|French]], as well as influences from [[Languages of Africa|African languages]].<ref name="Glottolog|hait1244|Haitian"/><ref name="Gurevich2004">{{cite book |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LhPxHG8cLowC&pg=PA304 |title=Lenition and Contrast: The Functional Consequences of Certain Phonetically Conditioned Sound Changes |pages=112; 301–304 |last=Gurevich |first=Naomi |date=2004 |publisher=Routledge |chapter=Appendix A: Result Summary |location=New York |isbn=978-1-135-87648-7 |lccn=2004051429 |oclc=919306666 |ol=5731391W |quote=Name:&nbsp;... Haitian&nbsp;Creole&nbsp;...; Phylum:&nbsp;... Indo‑European...}}</ref><ref name="John2014">{{cite web |url=http://www.utexas.edu/cola/centers/lrc/general/ie-lg/Italic.html |title=Indo‑European Languages: Italic Family |last1=John |first1=Vijay |last2=Slocum |first2=Jonathan |date=2014 |website=Linguistics Research Center |publisher=University of Texas at Austin |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151006025330/http://www.utexas.edu/cola/centers/lrc/general/ie-lg/Italic.html |archive-date=6 October 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref> There are many theories on the formation of the Haitian Creole language.

One theory estimates that Haitian Creole developed between 1680 and 1740.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Spears |first1=Arthur K. |title=Haitian Creole chapter from the book: Languages and Dialects in the U.S.: Focus on Diversity and Linguistics (pp.180–195) |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338675782 |website=Research Gate |publisher=Routledge |access-date=24 November 2023}}</ref><ref name="Lefebvre2006">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_D91RqW-CFYC |title=Creole Genesis and the Acquisition of Grammar: The Case of Haitian Creole |last=Lefebvre |first=Claire |date=2006 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |pages=53–57, 190 |isbn=978-0-521-02538-6 |lccn=2006280760 |oclc=71007434 |ol=7714204M }}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |url=http://webcat1.library.ubc.ca:80/vwebv/holdingsInfo?bibId=8119102 |title=Pidgins, Creoles and mixed languages: an introduction |last=Velupillai |first=Viveka |date=2015 |publisher=John Benjamins Publishing Company |isbn=9789027252715 |series=Creole language library |location=Amsterdam; Philadelphia |pages=198 }}</ref> During the 17th century, French and Spanish colonizers produced [[tobacco]], [[cotton]], and [[sugarcane|sugar cane]] on the island.<ref name=":1" /> Throughout this period, the population was made of roughly equal numbers of {{lang|fr|[[engagé]]s}} (white workers), {{lang|fr|[[gens de couleur libres]]}} (free people of colour) and slaves.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Singler |first=John Victor |date=1996 |title=Theories of Creole Genesis, Sociohistorical Considerations, and the Evaluation of Evidence: The Case of Haitian Creole and the Relexification Hypothesis |journal=Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages |volume=11 |issue=2 |pages=185–230 |doi=10.1075/jpcl.11.2.02sin }}</ref> The economy shifted more decisively into sugar production about 1690, just before the French colony of {{lang|fr|[[Saint-Domingue]]}} was officially recognized in 1697.<ref name="DeGraff2007" /><ref name="Lefebvre2006"/> The sugar crops needed a much larger labor force, which led to an increase in slave trafficking. In the 18th century an estimated 800,000 West Africans were enslaved and brought to Saint-Domingue.<ref name=":1" /> As the slave population increased, the proportion of French-speaking colonists decreased.

Many African slaves in the colony had come from [[Niger–Congo languages|Niger-Congo]]-speaking territory, and particularly speakers of [[Kwa languages]], such as [[Gbe languages|Gbe]] from West Africa and the [[Central Tano languages]], and [[Bantu languages]] from Central Africa.<ref name="Lefebvre2006"/> Singler suggests that the number of Bantu speakers decreased while the number of Kwa speakers increased, with Gbe being the most dominant group. The first fifty years of {{lang|fr|Saint‑Domingue|italic=no}}'s sugar boom coincided with emergent Gbe predominance in the [[French West Indies#French Caribbean|French Caribbean]]. In the interval during which Singler hypothesizes the language evolved, the Gbe population was around 50% of the kidnapped enslaved population.<ref name="Lefebvre2006"/>

[[Classical French]] ({{lang|fr|français{{nbsp}}classique}}) and {{lang|fr|[[langues d'oïl]]|italic=no}} ([[Norman language|Norman]], {{lang|fr|[[Poitevin dialect|Poitevin]]|italic=no}} and {{lang|fr|[[Saintongeais dialect|Saintongeais]]|italic=no}} dialects, [[Gallo language|Gallo]] and [[Picard language|Picard]]) were spoken during the 17th and 18th centuries in {{lang|fr|Saint‑Domingue|italic=no}}, as well as in [[New France]] and [[French West Africa]].<ref name="Valdman2002"/><ref name="Lefebvre2004">{{cite book |title=Issues in the Study of Pidgin and Creole Languages |last=Lefebvre |first=Claire |pages=240–241 |date=2004 |chapter=The linguistic situation in Haiti at the time Haitian Creole was formed |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_wbzAPZ7ZrYC&pg=PA240 |publisher=John Benjamins Publishing Company |series=Studies in language companion series |volume=70 |doi=10.1075/slcs.70 |isbn=978-1-58811-516-4 |issn=0165-7763 |lccn=2004041134 |oclc=54365215}}</ref>  Slaves lacked a common means of communication and as a result would try to learn French to communicate with one another, though most were denied a formal education. With the constant trafficking and enslavement of Africans, the language became increasingly distinct from French. The language was also picked up by other members of the community and became used by the majority of those born in what is now Haiti.<ref name="Valdman2002"/>

===Saint-Domingue Creole French===
{{further|Creole French}}[[File:Costumes de Differents Pays, 'Negre and Negresse de St. Domingue' LACMA M.83.190.354.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|A rich [[Saint-Domingue Creoles|Creole]] planter of [[Saint-Domingue]] with his wife]]
In [[Saint-Domingue]], people of all classes spoke [[Creole French]]. There were both lower and higher registers of the language, depending on education and class. Creole served as a [[lingua franca]] throughout the [[West Indies]].<ref name="carlbrasseauxglennconrad">{{cite book |title=The Road to Louisiana: The Saint-Domingue Refugees, 1792–1809|author=Carl A. Brasseaux, Glenn R. Conrad|year=1992|publisher=Center for Louisiana Studies, University of Southwestern Louisiana|location=New Orleans|pages=4, 5, 6, 8, 11, 15, 21, 22, 33, 38, 108, 109, 110, 143, 173, 174, 235, 241, 242, 243, 252, 253, 254, 268}}</ref>

{{blockquote|{{lang|ht|L'Entrepreneur. Mo sorti apprend, Mouché, qué vou té éprouvé domage dan traversée.

Le Capitaine: Ça vrai.

L'Entr: Vou crére qué navire à vou gagné bisoin réparations?

Le C: Ly té carené anvant nou parti, mai coup z'ouragan là mété moué dan cas fair ly bay encor nion radoub.

L'Entr: Ly fair d'iau en pile?

Le C: Primié jours aprés z'orage, nou té fair trente-six pouces par vingt-quatre heurs; mai dan beau tem mo fair yo dégagé ça mo pu, et tancher miyor possible, nou fair à présent necqué treize pouces.<ref name="sjducoeurjoly">{{cite book |title=Manuel des habitans de Saint-Domingue|author= S.J. Ducoeurjoly|year=1803|pages=363, 364 }}</ref>}}}}

{{blockquote|The Entrepreneur: I just learned, sir, that you garnered damages in your crossing.

The Captain: That's true.

The Entrepreneur: Do you believe that your ship needs repair?

The Captain: It careened before we left, but the blow from the hurricane put me in the position of getting it refitted again.

The Entrepreneur:  Is it taking on a lot of water?

The Captain: The first days after the storm, we took on thirty-six inches in twenty-four hours; but in clear weather, I made them take as much of it out as I was able, and attached it the best we possibly could; we're presently taking on not even thirteen inches.}}

----

[[File:Flag of Haiti (1964–1986, civil).svg|thumb|right|upright=0.7|The flag of the [[Empire of Haiti (1804-1806)|Empire of Haiti (1804–1806)]]]]
{{blockquote|{{lang|ht|Haïti, l'an 1er, 5e, jour de l'indépendance.

Chère maman moi,

Ambassadeurs à nous, partis pour chercher argent France, moi voulé écrire à vous par yo, pour dire vous combien nous contens. Français bon, oublié tout. Papas nous révoltés contre yo, papas nous tués papas yo, fils yo, gérens yo, papas nous brûlées habitations yo. Bagasse, eux viennent trouver nous! et dis nous, vous donner trente millions de gourdes à nous et nous laisser Haïti vous? Vous venez acheter du sucre, du café, de l’indigo chez nous? Mais vous payez la moitié du droit à nous. Vous pensez, chère maman, que nous avons accepté le marché. Le président nous a embrassés, bon papa Makau. Yo bu santé roi de France, santé [[Jean-Pierre Boyer|Boyer]], santé [[Henri Christophe|Christophe]], santé Haïti, santé indépendance. Puis yo dansé Balcindé et Bai chi ca colé avec Haïtiens. Moi pas pouvé dire vous combien tout ça noble et beau.

Venir voir fils à vous sur habitation, maman moi, li donné vous cassave, gouillave et pimentade. Il est bien content si vous pouvez mener la blanche France pour épouse. Dis-lui, si ben heureuse. Nous plus tuer blancs, frères, amis, et camarades à nous.

Fils à vous, embrassez-vous, chère maman, moi.

Congo, Haïtien libre et indépendant, au Trou-Salé.<ref name="lbouchard">{{cite book |title=La Nouveauté No. 38|author=L. Bouchard|date=8 October 1825|pages=3, 4}}</ref>}}}}

[[File:Comte Coriolan Dérival Lévêque.jpg|right|thumb|upright=0.8|A Haitian planter]]
{{blockquote|Haiti, 1st year, 5th day of independence.

My dear mother,

Our ambassadors left to get money from France, I want to write to you through them, to tell you how much we are happy. The French are good, they forgot everything. Our fathers revolted against them, our fathers killed their fathers, sons, managers, and our fathers burned down their plantations. Well, they came to find us, and told us, "you give thirty million gourdes to us and we'll leave Haiti to you? (And we replied) Will you come buy sugar, coffee, and indigo from us? You will pay only half directly to us." Do you believe my dear mother, that we accepted the deal? Our President hugged the good papa Makau (the French ambassador). They drank to the health of the [[Napoleon|King of France]], to the health of [[Jean-Pierre Boyer|Boyer]], to the health of [[Henri Christophe|Christophe]], to the health of Haiti, to independence. Then they danced Balcindé and Bai chi ca colé with Haitian women. I can't tell you how beautiful and noble all of this is.

Come see your son at his plantation, my mother, he will give you cassava, goyava, and pimentade. He will be happy if you can bring him a white Frenchwoman for a wife. Tell her, if you please. We won't kill anymore whites, brothers, friends, and camarades of ours.

Your son hugs you, my dear mother.

Congo, free and independent Haitian, at Trou-Salé.}}

===Differences between Haitian Creole and French===
Haitian Creole and French have similar pronunciations and also share many lexical items.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|last=Hall|first=Robert Anderson|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5MYRAAAAIAAJ&dq=haitian+creole+origin&pg=PA11|title=Haitian Creole: Grammar, Texts, Vocabulary|date=1953|publisher=American Anthropological Association|language=en}}</ref><ref name="Lagarde2007">{{cite book |last=Lagarde |first=François |title=Français aux Etats-Unis (1990–2005): migration, langue, culture et économie |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gXscYwsV2sAC&pg=PA137 |date=2007 |publisher=[[Peter Lang (publisher)|Peter Lang International Academic Publishers]] |isbn=978-3-03911-293-7 |page=137 |language=fr |chapter=5.&nbsp;Langues §{{nnbsp}}1.&nbsp;Locaters §{{nnbsp}}1.2.&nbsp;Immigrés |oclc=122935474 |lccn=2008271325 |series=Transversales |volume=20 |location=Bern, Switzerland |quote={{lang|fr|le français et le créole haïtien&nbsp;... sont des langues différentes «&thinsp;non-mutuellement intelligibles&thinsp;»}}}}</ref> However, many [[cognate]] terms actually have different meanings. For example, as Valdman mentions in ''Haitian Creole: Structure, Variation, Status, Origin'', the word for "frequent" in French is {{lang|fr|fréquent}}; however, its cognate in Haitian Creole {{lang|ht|frekan}} means 'insolent, rude, and impertinent' and usually refers to people.<ref name=":02">{{cite book |title=Haitian Creole&thinsp;: structure, variation, status, origin |last=Valdman |first=Albert |publisher=Equinox |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-84553-387-8 |location=Equinox |page=14}}</ref> In addition, the grammars of Haitian Creole and French are very different. For example, in Haitian Creole, verbs are not conjugated as they are in French.<ref name="Valdman2002" /> Additionally, Haitian Creole possesses different phonetics from standard French; however, it is similar in phonetic structure.<ref name=":3" /> The phrase-structure is another similarity between Haitian Creole and French but differs slightly in that it contains details from its African substratum language.<ref name=":3" />

Both Haitian Creole and French have also experienced [[semantic change]]: words that had a single meaning in the {{nowrap|17th century}} have changed or have been replaced in both languages.<ref name="Valdman2002" /> For example, "{{lang|ht|Ki jan ou rele?}}" ("What is your name?") corresponds to the French "{{lang|fr|Comment vous appelez‑vous&thinsp;?}}". Although the average French speaker would not understand this phrase, every word in it is in fact of French origin: {{lang|fr|qui}} "who"; {{lang|fr|genre}} "manner"; {{lang|fr|vous}} "you", and {{lang|fr|héler}} "to call", but the verb {{lang|fr|héler}} has been replaced by {{lang|fr|appeler}} in modern French and reduced to a meaning of "to flag down".<ref name="Valdman2002" />

Claire Lefebvre proposed the theory of [[relexification]], arguing that the process of relexification (the replacement of the phonological representation of a substratum lexical item with the [[phonological]] representation of a superstratum lexical item, so that the Haitian creole lexical item looks like French, but works like the substratum language(s)) was central in the development of Haitian Creole.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Lefebvre |first=Claire |date=1997 |title=Relexification in Creole Genesis: The Case of Demonstrative Terms in Haitian Creole |journal=Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages |volume=12 |issue=2 |pages=181–201 |doi=10.1075/jpcl.12.2.02lef |issn=0920-9034 }}</ref>

The [[Fon language]], also known as the Fongbe language, is a modern [[Gbe languages|Gbe language]] native to [[Benin]], [[Nigeria]] and [[Togo]] in [[West Africa]]. This language has a grammatical structure similar to Haitian Creole, possibly making Creole a [[relexification]] of Fon with vocabulary from French. The two languages are often compared:<ref name="Lefebvre1986">{{cite book |last=Lefebvre |first=Claire |date=1986 |chapter=Relexification in Creole Genesis Revisited: the Case of Haitian Creole |editor-last1=Muysken |editor-first1=Pieter |editor-last2=Smith |editor-first2=Norval |title=Substrata Versus Universals in Creole Genesis |location=Amsterdam |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tAkYez_Kv7IC&pg=PA279 |publisher=John Benjamins Publishing Company |isbn=978-90-272-5221-0 |pages=279–301 |lccn=86018856 |oclc=14002046 |ol=5268669W |series=Creole Language Library |volume=1 |doi=10.1075/cll.1.13lef |issn=0920-9026}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
! [[French language|French]]
! [[Fon language|Fon]]
! Haitian Creole
! English
|-
| {{lang|fr|'''la''' maison}}<ref>{{synthesis span|The modern French construction {{lang|fr|la&nbsp;maison‑là}} (roughly "that&nbsp;there&nbsp;house") instead of the standard {{lang|fr|la&nbsp;maison}} ("the&nbsp;house") is only superficially and coincidentally similar to the Haitian&nbsp;Creole construction.|date=July 2018}}</ref>
| {{lang|fon|afe '''a'''}}
| {{lang|ht|kay '''la'''}}
| '''the''' house
|}

===Taíno influence===
There are a number of [[Taíno language|Taíno]] influences in Haitian Creole; many objects, fruit and animal names are either ''haitianized'' or have a similar pronunciation. Many towns, places or sites have their official name being a translation of the Taíno word.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Taíno
!Haitian Creole
!Meaning
|-
|''Amani''
|Amani-y 
|The nickname of the town of [[Saint-Marc]] and famous beach
|-
|''Ayiti, Ayti''
|Ayiti, [[Haiti]]
|The name of the country and the island. It means "Land of Great Mountains" 
|-
|''Barbacoa''
|Babekyou
|[[Barbecue]]
|-
|''Bajacu''
|Bayakou
|The northern star, dawn, a Vodoun Loa associated with the star<!-- "and a garbage cleaner which usually works at dawn" (vandalism?) -->
|-
|''Batey''
|Batèy
|[[Batey (sugar workers' town)|Batey]], a settlement around a sugar mill
|-
|''Caiman''
|Kayiman
|[[Alligator]]
|-
|''Caimito''
|Kayimit
|[[Chrysophyllum cainito|Star apple]]
|-
|''Canari''
|Kannari
|A clay pot to keep water cool
|-
|''Canoa''
|Kannòt
|[[Canoe]]
|-
|''Casabe''
|Kasav
|[[Cassava]]
|-
|''Casique''
|Kasik
|[[Cacique]], an indigenous chief
|-
|''Cayo''
|Okay, or [[Les Cayes]]
|A commune and seaport in the Sud département of Haiti
|-
|''Gonaibo''
|Gonayiv, or [[Gonaïves]]
|The biggest city and capital of [[Artibonite (department)|Artibonite]]
|-
|''Guanabo''
|Gonav, [[Gonâve Island|Gonâve]] or Lagonav 
|The biggest satellite island of [[Hispaniola]] and last refuge of the [[Taíno]]
|-
|''Guayaba''
|Gwayav
|[[Guava]]
|-
|''Hamaca''
|Amaka
|[[Hammock]]
|-
|''Jatibonico''
|Latibonit, or [[Artibonite River|Artibonite]]
|The longest river of [[Hispaniola]] and the biggest and most populous département of Haiti. In Taíno the word means "sacred water".
|-
|''Lambi''
|Lanbi
|[[Conch]]
|-
|''Mabi''
|Mabi 
|A bitter drink known in the West Indies as [[Mauby]]
|-
|''Maboya''
|Mabouya
|[[Iguana]]
|-
|''Mahis''
|Mayi
|[[Maize]]
|-
|''Mamey''
|Mamey, or Abriko 
|The nickname of the town of [[Abricots]]
|-
|''Manati''
|Lamanten
|[[Manatee]]
|-
|''Mani''
|Manba
|[[Peanut butter]]
|-
|''Sabana''
|Savann
|[[Savanna]]
|-
|''Tiburon''
|Tibiwon
|The same word means "[[Tiburon, Sud|Tiburon]]", a coastal town in the South Peninsula (also called [[Tiburon Peninsula]]) and a river near the town 
|-
|''Yaguana''
|Leyogàn, [[Léogane]] 
|A coastal town south of [[Port-au-Prince]] and capital of the cacicat of [[Jaragua, Hispaniola|Xaragua]]
|-
|''Yucahu''
|[[Loco (loa)|Loko]], or Louquo
|The patron of healers and plants, a Vodoun Loa related to [[Yúcahu|Yucahu]], the supreme deity of the Taíno
|-
|}

==History==
===Early development===
Haitian Creole developed in the 17th and 18th centuries in the colony of [[Saint-Domingue]], in a setting that mixed speakers of various Niger–Congo languages with French colonists.<ref name="DeGraff2007">{{cite book |last=DeGraff |first=Michel |author-link=Michel DeGraff |title=Comparative Creole Syntax: Parallel Outlines of 18&nbsp;Creole Grammars |chapter-url=http://web.mit.edu/~linguistics/people/faculty/degraff/degraff2007hc-ccs.pdf |date=2007 |publisher=Battlebridge |location=London |isbn=978-1-903292-01-3 |pages=101–102 |chapter=''Kreyòl Ayisyen'', or Haitian Creole ('Creole French') |editor-last1=Holm |editor-first1=John |editor-link1=John A. Holm |editor-last2=Patrick |editor-first2=Peter L. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150731175451/http://web.mit.edu/~linguistics/people/faculty/degraff/degraff2007hc-ccs.pdf |archive-date=31 July 2015 |url-status=live |oclc=192098910 |ol=12266293M }}</ref> In the early 1940s under President {{lang|fr|[[Élie Lescot]]|italic=no}}, attempts were made to standardize the language. American linguistic expert [[Frank Laubach]] and Irish Methodist missionary [[H.&nbsp;Ormonde McConnell]] developed a standardized [[McConnell–Laubach orthography|Haitian Creole orthography]]. Although some regarded the orthography highly, it was generally not well received.<ref name="Fontaine1981">{{cite journal |first=Pierre-Michel |last=Fontaine |date=1981 |title=Language, Society, and Development: Dialectic of French and Creole Use in Haiti |journal=Latin American Perspectives |volume=8 |pages=28–46 |issue=1 |doi=10.1177/0094582X8100800103 |issn=0094-582X |jstor=2633128 |s2cid=145302665 |oclc=5724884282 }}</ref> Its [[orthography]] was standardized in 1979. That same year Haitian Creole was elevated in status by the Act of 18 September 1979.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.axl.cefan.ulaval.ca/amsudant/haiti-loi-1979.htm |title=Haïti: Loi du 18 septembre 1979 |website=Chaire pour le développement de la recherche sur la culture d'expression française en Amérique du Nord |publisher=[[Université Laval]] |location=Québec City |language=fr |trans-title=Haiti: Act of 18 September 1979 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150727195106/http://www.axl.cefan.ulaval.ca/amsudant/haiti-loi-1979.htm |archive-date=27 July 2015 |url-status=live |quote={{lang|fr|L'usage du créole, en tant que langue commune parlée par les 90&thinsp;% de la population haïtienne, est permis dans les écoles comme instrument et objet d'enseignement.}} }}</ref> The {{lang|fr|Institut Pédagogique National}} established an official orthography for Creole, and slight modifications were made over the next two decades. For example, the {{nowrap|hyphen (-)}} is no longer used, nor is the apostrophe.<ref name="Védrine2007">{{cite book |last=Védrine |first=Emmanuel W. |date=2007 |orig-year=1st pub. 1994 |chapter=Òtograf ofisyèl la |chapter-url=http://potomitan.info/vedrine/koudey.pdf#page=131 |url=http://potomitan.info/vedrine/koudey.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150407185537/http://potomitan.info/vedrine/koudey.pdf#page=131 |archive-date= 7 April 2015 |title=Yon koudèy sou pwoblèm lekòl Ayiti |trans-title=Official spelling |language=ht |edition=2nd |location=Boston |page=131 |isbn=978-0-938534-28-0 |lccn=94-65943 |oclc=37611103 |quote={{lang|ht|Nou suiv sa yo rele ‘òtograf ofisyèl’ la lan tout sa li mande. Tout liv oubyen dokiman {{lang|fr|Éditions&nbsp;Deschamps|italic=unset}} sòti respekte òtograf sa a alalèt. Yon sèl ti eksepsyon petèt, se kesyon apostwòf nou pa anplwaye aprè de gwoup kòm {{nowrap|‘m ap’ (m'ap)}}; {{nowrap|‘sa k ap fèt?’}} {{nowrap|(sa k'ap fèt?)}}|italic=yes}} }}</ref>{{rp|131}}<ref name="Schieffelin1994"/>{{rp|185–192}} The only accent mark retained is the [[grave accent]] in {{angbr|è}} and {{angbr|ò}}.<ref name="Schieffelin1994"/>{{rp|433}}

===Becoming an official language===
The Constitution of 1987 upgraded Haitian Creole to a national language alongside French.<ref name="Sonino1989">{{cite book |last=Valdman |first=Albert |editor-first=Elisabetta |editor-last=Zuanelli Sonino |title=Literacy in School and Society: Multidisciplinary Perspectives |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mywBCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA59 |date=1989 |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |isbn=978-1-4899-0909-1 |page=59 |chapter=The Use of Creole as a School Medium and Decreolization in Haiti |doi=10.1007/978-1-4899-0909-1 |quote=In 1979, by a presidential decree, Haitian Creole was officially recognized as classroom medium and as school subject at the primary level. In the 1983 Constitution it was upgraded to the level of national language with French. |oclc=646534330 |series=Topics in Language and Linguistics |lccn=89-35803 |ol=9382950W}}</ref> It classified French as the {{lang|fr|langue d'instruction}} or "language of instruction", and Creole was classified as an {{lang|fr|outil d'enseignement}} or a "tool of education". The Constitution of 1987 names both Haitian Creole and French as the official languages, but recognizes Haitian Creole as the only language that all Haitians hold in common.<ref name="Hebblethwaite2012">{{cite journal |last=Hebblethwaite |first=Benjamin |date=2012 |url=http://users.clas.ufl.edu/hebble/Hebblethwaite%202012%20JPCL.pdf#page=9 |title=French and underdevelopment, Haitian Creole and development: Educational language policy problems and solutions in Haiti |journal=Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages |volume=27 |pages=255–302 |quote=Article&nbsp;5 of the&nbsp;... Constitution of 1987&nbsp;... recognizes Creole as the sole language that unites all Haitians. |issue=2 |issn=0920-9034 |doi=10.1075/jpcl.27.2.03heb |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150727200835/http://users.clas.ufl.edu/hebble/Hebblethwaite%202012%20JPCL.pdf#page=9 |archive-date=27 July 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref>{{rp|263}}<ref name="Article5">{{cite web |url=http://sdn.mefhaiti.gouv.ht/lois/CH87/CH_P01.php#A5 |title=''La Constitution de 1987, Article&nbsp;5'' |trans-title=Constitution of 1987, Article&nbsp;5 |date=1987 |language=fr |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110912034618/http://www.sdn.mefhaiti.gouv.ht/lois/CH87/CH_P01.php#A5 |archive-date=12 September 2011 |url-status=dead |access-date=31 July 2015 |quote={{lang|fr|Tous les Haïtiens sont unis par une Langue commune&nbsp;: le Créole.}} }}</ref> French is spoken by only a small percentage of citizens.<ref name="DeGraff2007" /><ref name=":2" />

===Literature development===
Even without government recognition, by the end of the 19th century, there were already literary texts written in Haitian Creole such as {{lang|fr|[[Oswald Durand]]|italic=no}}'s {{lang|fr|Choucoune|italic=yes}} and {{lang|fr|[[Georges Sylvain]]|italic=no}}'s {{lang|ht|Cric?{{nbsp}}Crac!|italic=no}}. {{lang|fr|[[Félix Morisseau-Leroy]]|italic=no}} was another influential author of Haitian Creole work. Since the 1980s, many educators, writers, and activists have written literature in Haitian Creole. In 2001, ''Open Gate: An Anthology of Haitian Creole Poetry'' was published. It was the first time a collection of Haitian Creole poetry was published in both Haitian Creole and English.<ref>{{cite book |title=Open Gate: An Anthology of Haitian Creole Poetry |last=Laraque |first=Paul |date=April 2001 |publisher=Curbstone Press |isbn=978-1-880684-75-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/opengateantholog00paul }}</ref> On 28 October 2004, the Haitian daily {{lang|fr|[[Le Matin (Haiti)|Le Matin]]|italic=yes}} first published an entire edition in Haitian Creole in observance of the country's newly instated "Creole Day".<ref name="DeGraff2005">{{cite journal |last=DeGraff |first=Michel |author-link=Michel DeGraff |url=http://web.mit.edu/linguistics/people/faculty/degraff/degraff2005fallacy_of_creole_exceptionalism.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150421020826/http://web.mit.edu/linguistics/people/faculty/degraff/degraff2005fallacy_of_creole_exceptionalism.pdf |archive-date=21 April 2015 |url-status=live |title=Linguists' most dangerous myth: The fallacy of Creole Exceptionalism |journal=Language in Society |volume=34 |issue=4 |date=2005 |issn=0047-4045 |doi=10.1017/S0047404505050207 |pages=533–591 |s2cid=145599178 }}</ref>{{rp|556}} Haitian Creole writers often use different literary strategies throughout their works, such as code-switching, to increase the audience's knowledge on the language.<ref name=":2" /> Literature in Haitian Creole is also used to educate the public on the dictatorial social and political forces in Haiti.<ref name=":2" />

====Notable Haitian Creole-language writers====
* {{lang|fr|[[Louis-Philippe Dalembert]]|italic=no}} (b. 1962), poet and novelist
* {{lang|ht|[[Frankétienne]]|italic=no}} (1936–2025), poet, playwright, painter, musician, activist
* {{lang|ht|[[Ady Jean-Gardy]]|italic=no}} (b. 1967), international press activist
* {{lang|ht|[[Josaphat-Robert Large]]|italic=no}} (1942–2017), poet, novelist and art critic
* {{lang|fr|[[Félix Morisseau-Leroy]]|italic=no}} (1912–1998), poet and playwright
* {{lang|ht|[[Elsie Suréna]]|italic=no}} (b. 1956), writer and visual artist
* {{lang|ht|[[Lyonel Trouillot]]|italic=no}} (b. 1956), poet and novelist

==Sociolinguistics==

===Role in society===

Although both [[French language|French]] and Haitian Creole are official languages in [[Haiti]], French is often considered the high language and Haitian Creole the low language in the [[Diglossia|diglossic relationship]] of these two languages in society.<ref name=":02"/> That is to say, for the minority of Haitian population that is bilingual, the use of these two languages largely depends on the social context: standard French is used more in public, especially in formal situations, whereas Haitian Creole is used more on a daily basis and is often heard in ordinary conversation.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Férére |first=Gérard A. |date=March 1977 |title=Diglossia in Haiti: A Comparison with Paraguayan Bilingualism |jstor=40653330 |journal=Caribbean Quarterly |volume=23 |issue=1 |pages=50–69|doi=10.1080/00086495.1977.11671912 }}</ref>

There is a large population in Haiti that speaks only Haitian Creole, whether under formal or informal conditions:{{blockquote|French plays no role in the very formal situation of a Haitian peasant (more than 80% of the population make a living from agriculture) presiding at a family gathering after the death of a member, or at the worship of the family [[lwa]] or voodoo spirits, or contacting a Catholic priest for a church baptism, marriage, or solemn mass, or consulting a physician, nurse, or dentist, or going to a civil officer to declare a death or birth.|source=Yves Dejean<ref>{{cite journal |last=Dejean |first=Yves |date=1983 |title=Diglossia revisited: French and Creole in Haiti |journal=Word |volume=34 |issue=3 |pages=189–213 |doi=10.1080/00437956.1983.11435744 |oclc=5845895993 |issn=0043-7956 |doi-access=free }}</ref>{{rp|192}}}}

===Use in educational system===
In most schools, French is still the preferred language for teaching. Generally speaking, Creole is more used in public schools,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Scott |first1=Nicole A. |title=Creole Languages |journal=Encyclopedia of Race and Racism |date=2013 |url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/galerace/creole_languages/0?institutionId=3205 |access-date=23 October 2019}}</ref> as that is where most children of ordinary families who speak Creole attend school.

Historically, the education system has been French-dominant. Except the children of elites, many had to drop out of school because learning French was very challenging to them and they had a hard time to follow up.{{citation needed |date=September 2017}} The Bernard Reform of 1978 tried to introduce Creole as the teaching language in the first four years of primary school; however, the reform overall was not very successful.<ref>{{cite book |title=World Education Encyclopedia: A Survey of Educational Systems Worldwide |url=https://archive.org/details/worldeducationen0003unse |url-access=registration |date=2002 |publisher=Gale Group |isbn=978-0-02-865594-9 |location=Detroit, Michigan }}</ref> The use of Creole has grown; after the earthquake in 2010, basic education became free and more accessible to the monolingual masses.{{citation needed|date=September 2017}} In the 2010s, the government has attempted to expand the use of Creole and improve the school system.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2013/02/06/haitian-schools-expand-use-of-creole-language?offset=50 |title=Haitian schools expand use of Creole language |last=Daniel |first=Trenton |date=6 February 2013 |work=US News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170730114936/https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2013/02/06/haitian-schools-expand-use-of-creole-language?offset=50 |archive-date=30 July 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Hebblethwaite |first=Benjamin |date=2012 |title=French and underdevelopment, Haitian Creole and development |url=http://users.clas.ufl.edu/hebble/Hebblethwaite%202012%20JPCL.pdf |journal=Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages |volume=27 |issue=2 |pages=255–302 |doi=10.1075/jpcl.27.2.03heb |issn=0920-9034 |access-date=31 July 2015 |archive-date=27 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150727200835/http://users.clas.ufl.edu/hebble/Hebblethwaite%202012%20JPCL.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Orthography==

Haitian Creole has a [[phonemic orthography]] with highly regular spelling, except for proper nouns and foreign words. According to the official standardized orthography, Haitian Creole is composed of the following 32 symbols: {{angbr|a}}, {{angbr|an}}, {{angbr|b}}, {{angbr|ch}}, {{angbr|d}}, {{angbr|e}}, {{angbr|è}}, {{angbr|en}}, {{angbr|f}}, {{angbr|g}}, {{angbr|h}}, {{angbr|i}}, {{angbr|j}}, {{angbr|k}}, {{angbr|l}}, {{angbr|m}}, {{angbr|n}}, {{angbr|ng}}, {{angbr|o}}, {{angbr|ò}}, {{angbr|on}}, {{angbr|ou}}, {{angbr|oun}}, {{angbr|p}}, {{angbr|r}}, {{angbr|s}}, {{angbr|t}}, {{angbr|ui}}, {{angbr|v}}, {{angbr|w}}, {{angbr|y}}, and {{angbr|z}}.<ref name="Faraclas2012">{{cite book |title=The Haitian Creole Language: History, Structure, Use, and Education |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4xbGzLuBvWwC |date=2012 |publisher=Lexington Books |location=Lanham, Maryland |page=100 |chapter=II.&nbsp;Structure and Use §{{nnbsp}}4.&nbsp;Orthography |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4xbGzLuBvWwC&pg=PA100 |first1=Nicholas |last1=Faraclas |first2=Arthur K. |last2=Spears |first3=Elizabeth |last3=Barrows |first4=Mayra Cortes |last4=Piñeiro |editor1-first=Arthur K. |editor1-last=Spears |editor2-first=Carole M. Berotte |editor2-last=Joseph |isbn=978-0-7391-7221-6 |lccn=2010015856 |oclc=838418590 |orig-year={{nowrap|1st pub. 2010}}}}</ref>{{rp|100}} The letters {{angbr|c}} and {{angbr|u}} are always associated with another letter (in the [[Multigraph (orthography)|multigraph]]s {{angbr|ch}}, {{angbr|ou}}, {{angbr|oun}}, and {{angbr|ui}}). The Haitian Creole alphabet has no {{angbr|q}} or {{angbr|x}}; when {{angbr|x}} is used in loanwords and proper nouns, it represents the sounds {{IPA|/ks/}}, {{IPA|/kz/}}, or {{IPA|/gz/}}.<ref name="Schieffelin1994"/>{{rp|433}}

{|
|-
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em; text-align: center;"
|-
! colspan="4"| [[Consonant]]s
|-
! Haitian orthography !! IPA !! Examples !! English approximation
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|b
| {{IPA link|b}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''b'''agay
| style="text-align:left;"| '''b'''ow
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|ch
| {{IPA link|ʃ}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''ch'''o
| align="left"| '''sh'''oe
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|d
| {{IPA link|d}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''d'''ous
| style="text-align:left;"| '''d'''o
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|f
| {{IPA link|f}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''f'''ig
| style="text-align:left;"| '''f'''estival
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|g
| {{IPA link|ɡ}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''g'''wo
| style="text-align:left;"| '''g'''ain
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|h
| {{IPA link|h}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''h'''ountò
| style="text-align:left;"| '''h'''otel
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|j
| {{IPA link|ʒ}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''j'''edi
| align="left"| mea'''s'''ure
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|k
| {{IPA link|k}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''k'''le
| align="left"| s'''k'''y
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|l
| {{IPA link|l}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''l'''iv
| align="left"| c'''l'''ean
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|m
| {{IPA link|m}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''m'''achin
| align="left"| '''m'''other
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|n
| {{IPA link|n}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''n'''òt
| align="left"| '''n'''ote
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|ng
| {{IPA link|ŋ}}
| style="text-align:left;"| bildi'''ng'''
| align="left"| feeli'''ng'''
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|p
| {{IPA link|p}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''p'''ase
| align="left"| s'''p'''y
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|r
| {{IPA link|ɣ}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''r'''ezon
| style="text-align:left;"| between '''g'''o and lo'''ch'''
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|s
| {{IPA link|s}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''s'''is
| style="text-align:left;"| '''s'''ix
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|t
| {{IPA link|t}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''t'''out
| style="text-align:left;"| '''t'''o
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|v
| {{IPA link|v}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''v'''yann
| style="text-align:left;"| '''v'''ent
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|z
| {{IPA link|z}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''z'''ewo
| style="text-align:left;"| '''z'''ero
|-
! colspan="4"| Non-native consonants
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|dj
| {{IPA link|dʒ}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''dj'''az
| style="text-align:left;"| '''j'''azz
|-
! colspan="4"| [[Semivowel]]s
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|w
| {{IPA link|w}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''w'''i
| style="text-align:left;"| '''w'''e
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|y
| {{IPA link|j}}
| style="text-align:left;"| p'''y'''e
| style="text-align:left;"| '''y'''es
|-
! colspan="4"| [[Semivowel]] followed by vowel (digraph)
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|ui
| {{IPA link|ɥ}}{{IPA link|i}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''ui'''t
| style="text-align:left;"| roughly like s'''wee'''t
|}
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable" style="margin: 1em 2em; text-align: center;"
|-
! colspan="4"| [[Vowel]]s
|-
! Haitian orthography !! IPA !! Examples !! English approximation
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|a
(or à before an n)
| {{IPA link|a}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''a'''b'''a'''ko
p'''à'''n
| align="left"| br'''a'''
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|e
| {{IPA link|e}}
| style="text-align:left;"| al'''e'''
| align="left"| h'''ey'''
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|è
| {{IPA link|ɛ}}
| style="text-align:left;"| f'''è'''t
| align="left"| f'''e'''stival
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|i
| {{IPA link|i}}
| style="text-align:left;"| l'''i'''de
| align="left"| mach'''i'''ne
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|o
| {{IPA link|o}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''o'''ranj
| align="left"| bl'''ow''' 
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|ò
| {{IPA link|ɔ}}
| style="text-align:left;"| dey'''ò'''
| align="left"| s'''o'''rt
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|ou
| {{IPA link|u}}
| style="text-align:left;"| n'''ou'''
| align="left"| y'''ou'''
|-
! colspan="4"| [[Nasal vowel]]s
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|an<br/>(when not followed by a vowel)
| {{IPA link|ã}}
| style="text-align:left;"| '''an'''pil
| align="left"| many
|-
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|en<br/>(when not followed by a vowel)
| {{IPA link|ɛ̃}}
| style="text-align:left;"| mw'''en'''
| align="left"| en {{IPAblink|ɛ}}
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|on<br/>(when not followed by a vowel)
| {{IPA link|õ}}
| style="text-align:left;"| t'''on'''t'''on'''
| align="left"| tone {{IPAblink|o}}
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|oun<br/>(when not followed by a vowel)
| {{IPA link|ũ}}
| style="text-align:left;"| m'''oun'''
| align="left"| No English equivalent;<br/>nasalized {{IPAblink|u}}
|}
|}
* There are no silent letters in the Haitian Creole orthography.
* {{Anchor|à}}All sounds are always spelled the same, except when a vowel carries a [[grave accent]] {{nowrap|{{angbr|`}} before {{angbr|n}}}}, which makes it an oral vowel instead of a nasal vowel:
** {{nowrap|{{angbr|en}} for {{IPA|/ɛ̃/}}}} and {{nowrap|{{angbr|èn}} for {{IPA|/ɛn/}}}};
** {{nowrap|{{angbr|on}} for {{IPA|/ɔ̃/}}}} and {{nowrap|{{angbr|òn}} for {{IPA|/ɔn/}}}}; and
** {{nowrap|{{angbr|an}} for {{IPA|/ã/}}}} and {{nowrap|{{angbr|àn}} for {{IPA|/an/}}}}.
* When immediately followed by a vowel in a word, the digraphs denoting the nasal vowels ({{angbr|an}}, {{angbr|en}}, {{angbr|on}}, and sometimes {{angbr|oun}}) are pronounced as an oral vowel followed by {{IPA|/n/}}.
* There is some ambiguity in the pronunciation of the high vowels of the letters {{angbr|i}} and {{angbr|ou}} when followed in spelling by {{angbr|n}}.<ref name="Cadely 2002">{{cite journal |title=Le statut des voyelles nasales en Créole&nbsp;haïtien |journal=Lingua |date=2002 |pages=437–438 |last=Cadely |first=Jean‑Robert |author-link=Jean-Robert Cadely |language=fr |trans-title=The Status of Nasal Vowels in Haitian&nbsp;Creole |volume=112 |issue=6 |doi=10.1016/S0024-3841(01)00055-9 |issn=0024-3841  |quote=L’absence d’opposition distinctive dans la distribution des voyelles hautes ainsi que le facteur combinatoire illustré ci-dessus amènent certains auteurs&nbsp;... à considérer les voyelles nasales {{IPA|[ĩ]}}&nbsp;et&nbsp;{{IPA|[ũ]}} comme des variantes contextuelles de leurs correspondantes orales. Toutefois, l’occurrence dans le vocabulaire des Haïtiens de nombre de termes qui se rattachent pour la plupart à la religion vaudou contribue à affaiblir cette analyse. Par exemple, dans la liste des mots que nous présentons&nbsp;... il est facile de constater que les voyelles nasales hautes n’apparaissent pas dans l’environnement de consonnes nasales:<br/>{{bracket|{{IPA|ũɡã}}}} ‘prêtre vaudou’<br/>{{bracket|{{IPA|ũsi}}}} ‘assistante du prêtre/ de la prêtresse’<br/>{{bracket|{{IPA|ũfɔ}}}} ‘sanctuaire du temple vaudou’<br/>{{bracket|{{IPA|hũ}}}} ‘tambour’<br/>{{bracket|{{IPA|oɡũ}}}} ‘divinité vaudou’<br/>{{bracket|{{IPA|ũɡɛvɛ}}}} ‘collier au cou du prêtre vaudou’<br/>{{bracket|{{IPA|bũda}}}} ‘derrière’<br/>{{bracket|{{IPA|pĩɡa}}}} ‘prenez garde’<br/>{{bracket|{{IPA|kaʃĩbo}}}} ‘pipe de terre’<br/>{{bracket|{{IPA|jũ/ũ nɛɡ}}}} ‘un individu’}}</ref> Common words such as {{lang|ht|moun}} ("person") and {{lang|ht|machin}} ("car") end with consonantal {{IPA|/n/}}, while very few words, mostly adopted from African languages, contain nasalized high vowels, as in {{nowrap|{{lang|ht|houngan}} ("vodou priest")}}.
* The diphthong {{IPA|/ɥi/}} is extremely rare, and maybe only exists in the common word ''uit'' (← French ''huit'') "eight". Most other instances of this diphthong have been replaced by {{IPA|/wi/}}, e.g. ''fwi'' (← ''fruit'') "fruit", ''nwit'' (← ''nuit'') "night".

===Haitian orthography debate===
The first technical orthography for Haitian Creole was developed in 1940 by [[H. Ormonde McConnell]] and [[Primrose McConnell]], Irish Methodist missionaries. It was later revised with the help of [[Frank Laubach]], resulting in the creation of what is known as the [[McConnell–Laubach orthography]].<ref name="Schieffelin1994">{{cite journal |url=http://journals.linguisticsociety.org/elanguage/pragmatics/article/download/387/387-681-1-PB.pdf |title=The 'Real' Haitian Creole: Ideology, Metalinguistics, and Orthographic Choice |last1=Schieffelin |first1=Bambi B. |last2=Doucet |first2=Rachelle Charlier |date=September 1992 |journal=Journal of Pragmatics |volume=2 |issue=3 |pages=427–443 |doi=10.1525/ae.1994.21.1.02a00090 |issn=0378-2166 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150728140830/http://journals.linguisticsociety.org/elanguage/pragmatics/article/download/387/387-681-1-PB.pdf |archive-date=28 July 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref>{{rp|434}}<ref name="Andrews">{{cite book|last1=Andrews|first1=Helen|title=[[Dictionary of Irish Biography]]|date=2009|publisher=Cambridge University Press|editor1-last=McGuire|editor1-first=James|location=Cambridge|chapter=Frances Elaine ('Primrose') McConnell ''in'' Beckett, George Francis|editor2-last=Quinn|editor2-first=James}}</ref>

The McConnell–Laubach orthography received substantial criticism from members of the Haitian elite. Haitian scholar [[Charles Pressoir]] critiqued the McConnell–Laubach orthography for its lack of codified [[front rounded vowel]]s, which are typically used only by francophone elites.<ref name="Schieffelin1994"/>{{rp|436}} Another criticism was of the broad use of the letters {{angbr|k}}, {{angbr|w}}, and {{angbr|y}}, which Pressoir argued looked "too American".<ref name="Schieffelin1994"/>{{rp|431–432}} This criticism of the "American look" of the orthography was shared by many educated Haitians, who also criticized its association with [[Protestantism]].<ref name="Schieffelin1994"/>{{rp|432}} The last of Pressoir's criticisms was that "the use of the circumflex to mark nasalized vowels" treated nasal sounds differently from the way they are represented in French, which he feared would inhibit the learning of French.<ref name="Schieffelin1994"/>{{rp|431}}

The creation of the orthography was essentially an articulation of the language ideologies of those involved and brought out political and social tensions between competing groups. A large portion of this tension lay in the ideology held by many that the French language is superior, which led to resentment of the language by some Haitians and an admiration for it from others.<ref name="Schieffelin1994"/>{{rp|435}} This orthographical controversy boiled down to an attempt to unify a conception of Haitian national identity. Where {{angbr|k}} and {{angbr|w}} seemed too Anglo-Saxon and American imperialistic, {{angbr|c}} and {{angbr|ou}} were symbolic of French colonialism.<ref name="Romaine2002">{{cite journal |title=Signs of Identity, Signs of Discord: Glottal Goofs and the Green Grocer's Glottal in Debates on Hawaiian Orthography |last=Romaine |first=Suzanne |author-link=Suzanne Romaine |date=2002 |journal=Journal of Linguistic Anthropology |volume=12 |issue=2 |pages=189–224 |doi=10.1525/jlin.2002.12.2.189 |issn=1055-1360 |jstor=43104013  |quote=For some opponents of the official orthography, {{angbr|k}} and {{angbr|w}} are tainted with the perceived stigma of being Anglo-Saxon and smack of American imperialism. The French symbols {{nowrap|{{angbr|c}} and {{angbr|ou}}}}, however, are allied with colonialism.}}</ref>{{rp|191}}

===French-based orthography===
When Haiti was still a colony of France, edicts by the French government were often written in a French-lexicon creole and read aloud to the slave population.<ref name="Ayoun"/> The first written text of Haitian Creole was composed in the French-lexicon in a poem called ''[[Lisette quitté la plaine]]'' in 1757 by [[Duvivier de la Mahautière]], a white Creole planter.<ref name="Ayoun">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VVg6AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA230 |title=Studies in French Applied Linguistics |editor=Ayoun, Dalila |page=230 |year=2008 |isbn=978-90-272-8994-0 |publisher=John Benjamins Publishing |access-date=4 September 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UNgxtsjOIf4C&pg=PT257 |title=Beyond the Slave Narrative: Politics, Sex, and Manuscripts in the Haitian Revolution |editor=Jenson, Deborah |page=257 |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-84631-760-6 |publisher=[[Liverpool University Press]] |access-date=4 September 2017}}</ref>

Before Haitian Creole orthography was standardized in the late 20th century, spelling varied, but was based on subjecting spoken Haitian{{nbsp}}Creole to written French, a language whose spelling has a complicated relation to pronunciation. Unlike the phonetic orthography, French orthography of Haitian{{nbsp}}Creole is not standardized and varies according to the writer; some use exact French spelling, others adjust the spelling of certain words to represent pronunciation of the cognate in Haitian{{nbsp}}Creole, removing the silent letters. For example:<br />{{lang|ht|Li ale travay nan maten}} ({{abbr|lit.|literally}} "He goes to work in the morning") could be transcribed as:
* {{lang|ht|Li ale travay nan maten}},
* {{lang|ht|Lui aller travail nans matin}}, or
* {{lang|ht|Li aller travail nans matin}}.

==Grammar==
Haitian Creole grammar is highly [[Analytic language|analytical]]: for example, verbs are not inflected for tense or person, and there is no [[grammatical gender]], which means that adjectives and articles are not inflected according to the noun. The primary word order is [[subject–verb–object]] as it is in French and English.

Many grammatical features, particularly the pluralization of nouns and indication of possession, are indicated by appending certain markers, like {{lang|ht|yo}}, to the main word. There has been a debate going on for some years as to whether these markers are [[affix]]es or [[clitic]]s, and if punctuation such as the hyphen should be used to connect them to the word.<ref name="Schieffelin1994"/>{{rp|185–192}}

Although the language's vocabulary has many words related to their French-language cognates, its sentence structure is like that of the West African [[Fon language]].<ref name="Lefebvre1986"/>

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! Fon
! French
! English
|-
| {{interlinear|lang1=ht
    |bekàn mwen
    |bike my
    |
  }}
| {{interlinear|lang1=fon
    |keke che
    |bike my
    |
  }}
| {{interlinear|lang1=fr
    |ma bécane
    |my bike
    |
  }}
| my bike
|-
| {{interlinear|lang1=ht
    |bekàn mwen yo
    |bike my PL
    |
  }}
| {{interlinear|lang1=fon
    |keke che le
    |bike my PL
    |
  }}
| {{interlinear|lang1=fr
    |mes bécanes
    |my bikes
    |
  }}
| my bikes
|}

===Pronouns===
There are six pronouns: first, second, and third person, each in both singular, and plural; all are of French etymological origin.<ref name="SaintMartin2005">{{cite thesis |url=https://getd.libs.uga.edu/pdfs/saint-martin_weston_200508_ma.pdf#page=17 |title=Les formes des pronoms personnels de l'haïtien et leur place en comparaison avec celles du français |date=2005 |pages=9–11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160427032723/http://getd.libs.uga.edu/pdfs/saint-martin_weston_200508_ma.pdf#page=17 |archive-date=27 April 2016 |url-status=live |first=Weston |last=Saint&nbsp;Martin |language=fr  |oclc=155834626 }}</ref> There is no difference between direct and indirect objects.

{| class="wikitable"
! colspan="2" scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! rowspan="2" scope="col" | Fon<ref name="Lefebvre2006"/>{{rp|142}}
! rowspan="2" scope="col" | French
! rowspan="2" scope="col" | English
|-
! scope="col" | Long form
! scope="col" | Short form<ref name="Védrine2007"/>{{rp|131}}<ref name="Léger2011">{{cite book |last=Léger |first={{not a typo|Frenand}} |date=2011 |title=Pawòl Lakay: Haitian-Creole Language and Culture for Beginner and Intermediate Learners |publisher=Educa Vision |location=Coconut Creek, Florida |page=6 |isbn=978-1-58432-687-8 |oclc=742361935}}</ref>
|-
| rowspan="5" | {{lang|ht|mwen}}
| rowspan="5" | {{lang|ht|m}}
| rowspan="5" | {{lang|fon|nyɛ̀}}
| {{lang|fr|je}}
| rowspan="2" | I
|-
| {{lang|fr|j'}}
|-
| {{lang|fr|me}}
| rowspan="3" | me
|-
| {{lang|fr|m'}}
|-
| {{lang|fr|moi}}
|-
| rowspan="4" | {{lang|ht|ou}}{{efn|sometimes the French pronoun {{lang|fr|on}} ("one", "[[generic you|{{bracket|generic}}{{nbsp}}you]]", "[[singular they|{{bracket|singular}}{{nbsp}}they]]") is translated to Haitian Creole as {{lang|ht|ou}}<ref name="DamoiseauJean-Paul2002 ou">{{cite book |last1=Damoiseau |first1=Robert |last2=Jean-Paul |first2=Gesner |title=J'apprends le créole haïtien |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2QggpjJxBocC |date=2002 |publisher={{lang|fr|Faculté de Linguistique Appliquée, Université d'État d'Haïti}} and {{lang|fr|Éditions Karthala}} |location=Port-au-Prince and Paris |language=fr, ht |isbn=978-2-84586-301-9 |trans-title=I’m Learning Haitian Creole |oclc=50772881 |ol=4553655W |quote={{lang|ht|Kèlkeswa kote '''ou''' fè nan peyi a lè ou kite Pòtoprens, '''ou''' travèse zòn kote yo fè jaden...}}&nbsp;/ {{lang|fr|Quelle que soit la route qu{{'}}'''on''' emprunte pour sortir de Port-au-prince, '''on''' traverse des zones cultivées.}} |pages=66–67}}</ref> and other times it is translated as {{lang|ht|yo}}<ref name="DamoiseauJean-Paul2002 yo">{{cite book |last1=Damoiseau |first1=Robert |last2=Jean-Paul |first2=Gesner |title=J'apprends le créole haïtien |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2QggpjJxBocC |date=2002 |publisher='{{lang|fr|Faculté de Linguistique Appliquée, Université d'État d'Haïti}} and {{lang|fr|Éditions Karthala}} |location=Port-au-Prince and Paris |language=fr, ht |isbn=978-2-84586-301-9 |trans-title=''I'm Learning Haitian Creole'' |oclc=50772881 |ol=4553655W |quote={{lang|ht|'''Yo''' pa fè diferans ant «&thinsp;kawotchou&thinsp;» machin ak «&thinsp;wou&thinsp;» machin nan. '''Yo''' di yonn pou lòt. Gen kawotchou ki fèt pou resevwa chanm, genyen ki pa sèvi ak chanm. '''Yo''' rele kawotchou sa a tiblès...}}&nbsp;/ {{lang|fr|'''On''' ne fait pas de différence entre «&thinsp;pneu&thinsp;» et «&thinsp;roue&thinsp;» d'une voiture. '''On''' dit l'un pour l'autre. Il y a des pneus conçus pour recevoir une chambre à air, il y en a qui s'utilisent sans chambre à air. '''On''' appelle ce dernier type de pneus «&nbsp;tubeless&nbsp;».}} |pages=82–83}}</ref>}}{{efn|sometimes {{lang|fr|ou}} is written as {{lang|ht|w}} and in the [[#Sample|sample phrases below]], {{lang|ht|w}} indicates {{lang|fr|ou}}.}}
| rowspan="4" | {{lang|ht|w}}
| rowspan="4" | {{lang|fon|hwɛ̀}}
| {{lang|fr|tu}}
| rowspan="4" | you (singular), thou (archaic)
|-
| {{lang|fr|te}}
|-
| {{lang|fr|t'}}
|-
| {{lang|fr|toi}}
|-
| rowspan="6" | {{lang|ht|li}}{{efn|in the northern part of Haiti, {{lang|ht|li}} is often shortened to {{lang|fr|i}} as in [[Guadeloupe]], [[Martinique]] and the other [[Lesser Antilles]].}}
| rowspan="6" | {{lang|ht|l}}
| rowspan="6" | {{lang|fon|é}}, {{lang|fon|éyɛ̀}}
| {{lang|fr|il}}
| {{lang|fr|he}}
|-
| {{lang|fr|elle}}
| she, her
|-
| {{lang|fr|le}}
| him, it
|-
| {{lang|fr|la}}
| her, it
|-
| {{lang|fr|l'}}
| him, her, it
|-
| {{lang|fr|lui}}
| him, her, it
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|nou}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|n}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fon|mí}}
| {{lang|fr|nous}}
| we, us
|-
| {{lang|fr|vous}}<ref name="DeGraffVéronique2000">{{cite journal |last1=DeGraff |first1=Michel |author-link1=Michel DeGraff |last2=Véronique |first2=Daniel |title=À propos de la syntaxe des pronoms objets en créole haïtien&nbsp;: points de vue croisés de la morphologie et de la diachronie |trans-title=On the Syntax of Object Pronouns in Haitian Creole: Contrasting Perspectives of Morphology and Diachrony |url=http://www.persee.fr/doc/lgge_0458-726x_2000_num_34_138_2373 |language=fr |journal=[[Langages]] |volume=34 |issue=138 |series=Syntaxe des langues créoles |date=2000 |pages=89–113 |issn=0458-726X |doi=10.3406/lgge.2000.2373 |jstor=41683354 |oclc=196570924}}</ref>{{rp|94}}
| you (plural){{efn|in southern Haiti, the second person plural is {{lang|ht|zòt}}}}
|-
| rowspan="5" | {{lang|ht|yo}}{{efn|sometimes the French pronoun {{lang|fr|on}} ("one", "[[generic you|{{bracket|generic}}{{nbsp}}you]]", "[[singular they|{{bracket|singular}}{{nbsp}}they]]") is translated to Haitian Creole as {{lang|ht|yo}}<ref name="DamoiseauJean-Paul2002 yo"/> and other times it is translated as {{lang|ht|ou}}<ref name="DamoiseauJean-Paul2002 ou"/>}}
| rowspan="5" | {{lang|ht|y}}
| rowspan="5" | {{lang|fon|yé}}
| {{lang|fr|ils}}
| rowspan="2" | they
|-
| {{lang|fr|elles}}
|-
| {{lang|fr|les}}
| rowspan="3" | them
|-
| {{lang|fr|leur}}
|-
| {{lang|fr|eux}}
|}
{{notelist}}

===Possessive pronouns===

====Singular====

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
|  rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|pa mwen an}}
| {{lang|fr|le mien}}
| mine (masculine)
|-
| {{lang|fr|la mienne}}
| mine (feminine)
|-
|  rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|pa ou a}}
| {{lang|fr|le tien}}
| yours (masculine)
|-
| {{lang|fr|la tienne}}
| yours (feminine)
|-
|  rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|pa li a}}
| {{lang|fr|le sien}}
| his/hers/its (masculine)
|-
| {{lang|fr|la sienne}}
| his/hers/its (feminine)
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|pa nou an}}
| {{lang|fr|le/la nôtre}}
| ours
|-
| {{lang|fr|le/la vôtre}}
| yours ("of you-PLURAL")
|-
|  rowspan="1" | {{lang|ht|pa yo a}}
| {{lang|fr|le/la leur}}
| theirs 
|}

====Plural====

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|pa mwen yo}}
| {{lang|fr|les miens}}
| rowspan="2" | mine
|-
| {{lang|fr|les miennes}}
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|pa ou yo}}
| {{lang|fr|les tiens}}
| rowspan="2" | yours
|-
| {{lang|fr|les tiennes}}
|-
| rowspan="2" |{{lang|ht|pa li yo}}
| {{lang|fr|les siens}}
| rowspan="2" | his/hers/its
|-
| {{lang|fr|les siennes}}
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|pa nou yo}}
| {{lang|fr|les nôtres}}
| ours
|-
| {{lang|fr|les vôtres}}
| yours ("of you-PLURAL") 
|-
| rowspan="1" |{{lang|ht|pa yo}}
| rowspan="1" | {{lang|fr|les leurs}}
| theirs
|}

===Plural of nouns===
Definite nouns are made plural when followed by the word {{lang|ht|yo}}; indefinite plural nouns are unmarked.

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|liv yo}}
| {{lang|fr|les livres}}
| the books
|-
| {{lang|ht|machin yo}}
| {{lang|fr|les voitures}}
| the cars
|-
| {{lang|ht|tifi yo met wòb}}
| {{lang|fr|les filles mettent des robes}}
| the girl<u>s</u> put on dress<u>es</u>
|}

===Possession===
Possession is indicated by placing the possessor or possessive pronoun after the item possessed. In the Capois dialect of northern Haiti, {{lang|ht|a}} or {{lang|ht|an}} is placed before the possessive pronoun.  Note, however, that this is not considered the standard Kreyòl most often heard in the media or used in writing.<ref>Tézil, David.&nbsp;2019. The nasalization of the Haitian Creole determiner ''La'' in non-nasal contexts: a variationist sociolinguistic study. PhD dissertation, Indiana University.

(Têzil 2019, p. 9, notes: "[T]his variety is frequently subject to depreciative [sic] attitudes, as Capois speakers face the predominance of Port-au-Prince Creole...")</ref>

Possession does not indicate definiteness ("my friend" as opposed to "a friend of mine"), and possessive constructions are often followed by a definite article.

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|lajan li}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|son argent}}
| his money
|-
| her money
|-
| {{lang|ht|fanmi mwen}}
| rowspan="3" | {{lang|fr|ma famille}}
| rowspan="3" | my family
|-
| {{lang|ht|fanmi m}}
|-
| {{lang|ht|fanmi an m}} (Capois dialect)
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|kay yo}}
| {{lang|fr|leur maison}}
| their house
|-
| {{lang|fr|leurs maisons}}
| their houses
|-
| {{lang|ht|papa ou}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|ton père}}
| rowspan="2" | your father
|-
| {{lang|ht|papa w}}
|-
| {{lang|ht|chat Pyè a}}
| {{lang|fr|le chat de Pierre}}
| Pierre's cat
|-
| {{lang|ht|chèz Marie a}}
| {{lang|fr|la chaise de Marie}}
| Marie's chair
|-
| {{lang|ht|zanmi papa Jean}}
| {{lang|fr|l'ami du père de Jean}}
| Jean's father's friend
|-
| {{lang|ht|papa vwazen zanmi nou}}
| {{lang|fr|le père du voisin de notre ami}}
| our friend's neighbor's father
|}

===Indefinite article===
The language has two indefinite articles, {{lang|ht|on}} and {{lang|ht|yon}} (pronounced {{IPA|/õ/}} and {{IPA|/jõ/}}) which correspond to French {{lang|fr|un}} and {{lang|fr|une}}. {{lang|ht|Yon}} is derived from the French {{nowrap|{{lang|fr|il y a un}}}} {{nowrap|("there is a")}}. Both are used only with singular nouns, and are placed before the noun:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|on kouto}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|un couteau}}
| rowspan="2" | a knife
|-
| {{lang|ht|yon kouto}}
|-
| {{lang|ht|on kravat}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|une cravate}}
| rowspan="2" | a necktie
|-
| {{lang|ht|yon kravat}}
|}

===Definite article===
In Haitian Creole, the definite article has five forms,<ref name="HeurtelouVilsaint2004">{{cite book |last1=Heurtelou |first1=Maude |last2=Vilsaint |first2=Féquière |title=Guide to Learning Haitian Creole |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vYz_NUPIbC4C&pg=PT28 |edition=2nd |date=2004 |publisher=Educa Vision |location=Coconut Creek, Florida |language=en, ht |page=[https://archive.org/details/guidetolearningh0000heur/page/28 28] |chapter=Atik defini ak atik endefini |isbn=978-1-58432-108-8 |oclc=56117033 |lccn=2007362183 |url=https://archive.org/details/guidetolearningh0000heur/page/28 }}</ref>{{rp|28}} and it is placed '''after''' the noun it modifies. The final syllable of the preceding word determines which form the definite article takes.<ref name="Cadely2003">{{cite book |last=Cadely |first=Jean-Robert |title=Recent Development in Creole Studies |series=Linguistische Arbeiten |volume=472 |date=2003 |publisher=Max Niemeyer Verlag |location=Tübingen, Germany |page=20 |chapter=Nasality in Haitian Creole |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=reoiAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA20 |editor-last=Adone |editor-first=Dany |doi=10.1515/9783110948318.5 |isbn=978-3-11-094831-8 |issn=0344-6727 |oclc=5131095031}}</ref>{{rp|20}} If the last sound is an [[oral consonant]] or a glide (spelled 'y' or 'w'), and if it is preceded by an [[oral vowel]], the definite article is {{lang|ht|la}}:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
!Note
|-
| {{lang|ht|kravat '''la'''}}
| {{lang|fr|la cravate}}
| the tie
|
|-
| {{lang|ht|liv '''la'''}}
| {{lang|fr|le livre}}
| the book
|
|-
| {{lang|ht|kay '''la'''}}
| {{lang|fr|la maison}}
| the house
|From French "la cahut(t)e" (English "hut, shack")
|-
| {{lang|ht|kaw '''la'''}}
| {{lang|fr|le corbeau}}
| the crow
|
|}

If the last sound is an [[oral consonant]] and is preceded by a [[nasal vowel]], the definite article is {{lang|ht|lan}}:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|lanp '''lan'''}}
| {{lang|fr|la lampe}}
| the lamp
|-
| {{lang|ht|bank '''lan'''}}
| {{lang|fr|la banque}}
| the bank
|}

If the last sound is an [[oral vowel]] and is preceded by an [[oral consonant]], the definite article is {{lang|ht|a}}:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|kouto '''a'''}}
| {{lang|fr|le couteau}}
|the knife
|-
| {{lang|ht|peyi '''a'''}}
| {{lang|fr|le pays}}
| the country
|}

If the last sound is any [[oral vowel]] other than ''i'' or ''ou'' and is preceded by a [[nasal stop|nasal consonant]], then the definite article is also ''a:''

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
|{{lang|ht|lame '''a'''}}
|{{lang|fr|l'armée}}
|the army
|-
|{{lang|ht|anana '''a'''}}
|{{lang|fr|l'ananas}}
| the pineapple
|-
|''dine '''a'''''
|''le dîner''
|the dinner
|-
|''nò'' '''''a'''''
|''le nord''
|the north
|}

If a word ends in {{lang|ht|mi}}, {{lang|ht|mou}}, {{lang|ht|ni}}, {{lang|ht|nou}}, or if it ends with any [[nasal vowel]], then the definite article is ''an'':

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|fanmi '''an'''}}
| {{lang|fr|la famille}}
| the family
|-
| {{lang|ht|jenou '''an'''}}
| {{lang|fr|le genou}}
| the knee
|-
| {{lang|ht|chen '''an'''}}
| {{lang|fr|le chien}}
| the dog
|-
| {{lang|ht|pon '''an'''}}
| {{lang|fr|le pont}}
| the bridge
|}

If the last sound is a [[nasal stop|nasal consonant]], the definite article is {{lang|ht|nan}}, but may also be {{lang|ht|lan}}:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
!
|-
| {{lang|ht|machin '''nan'''}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|la voiture}}
| rowspan="2" | the car
|
|-
| {{lang|ht|machin '''lan'''}}
|
|-
| {{lang|ht|telefonn '''nan'''}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|le téléphone}}
| rowspan="2" | the telephone
| rowspan="2" |The spelling "telefòn" is also attested.
|-
| {{lang|ht|telefonn '''lan'''}}
|-
| {{lang|ht|fanm '''nan'''}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|la femme}}
| rowspan="2" | the woman
|
|-
| {{lang|ht|fanm '''lan'''}}
|
|}

===Demonstratives===
There is a single word {{lang|ht|sa}} that corresponds to English "this" and to "that" (and to French {{lang|fr|ce}}, {{lang|fr|ceci}}, {{lang|fr|cela}}, and {{lang|fr|ça}}). As in English, it may be used as a [[demonstrative]], except that it is placed '''after''' the noun that it qualifies. It is often followed by {{lang|ht|a}} or {{lang|ht|yo}} (in order to mark [[grammatical number|number]]): {{lang|ht|sa a}} ("this here" or "that there"):

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|jaden sa bèl}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|ce jardin est beau}}
| this garden is beautiful
|-
| that garden is beautiful
|}

As in English, it may also be used as a pronoun, replacing a noun:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|sa se zanmi mwen}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|c'est mon ami}}
| this is my friend
|-
| that is my friend
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|sa se chen frè mwen}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|c'est le chien de mon frère}}
| this is my brother's dog
|-
| that is my brother's dog
|}

===Verbs===
Many verbs in Haitian Creole are the same spoken words as the French [[infinitive]], but there is no [[grammatical conjugation|conjugation]] in the language; the verbs have one form only, and changes in [[Grammatical tense|tense]], [[grammatical mood|mood]], and [[grammatical aspect|aspect]] are indicated by the use of [[#Tense markers|markers]]:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|li ale travay nan maten}}
| {{lang|fr|il va au travail le matin}}
| he goes to work in the morning
|-
| {{lang|fr|elle va au travail le matin}}
| she goes to work in the morning
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|li dòmi aswè}}
| {{lang|fr|il dort le soir}}
| he sleeps in the evening
|-
| {{lang|fr|elle dort le soir}}
| she sleeps in the evening
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|li li Bib la}}
| {{lang|fr|il lit la Bible}}
| he reads the Bible
|-
| {{lang|fr|elle lit la Bible}}
| she reads the Bible
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|mwen fè manje}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|je fais à manger}}
| I make food
|-
| I cook
|-
| {{lang|ht|nou toujou etidye}}
| {{lang|fr|nous étudions toujours}}
| we always study
|}

====Copula====
{{Main|Copula (linguistics)#Haitian Creole}}

The concept expressed in English by the [[copula (linguistics)|verb "to{{nbsp}}be"]] is expressed in Haitian Creole by three words, {{lang|ht|se}}, {{lang|ht|ye}}, and sometimes {{lang|ht|e}}.

The verb {{lang|ht|se}} (pronounced similarly to the English word "say") is used to link a subject with a [[subject complement|predicate nominative]]:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|li se frè mwen}}
| {{lang|fr|c'est mon frère}}
| he is my brother
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|mwen se yon doktè}}
| {{lang|fr|je suis médecin}}
| rowspan="2" | I'm a doctor
|-
| {{lang|fr|je suis docteur}}
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|sa se yon pyebwa mango}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|c'est un manguier}}
| this is a mango tree
|-
| that is a mango tree
|-
| {{lang|ht|nou se zanmi}}
| {{lang|fr|nous sommes amis}}
| we are friends
|}

The [[Subject (grammar)|subject]] of a sentence with {{lang|ht|se}} might not be included. In which case, the sentence is interpreted as if the subject were {{lang|ht|sa}} ("this" or "that") or {{lang|ht|li}} ("he", "she" or "it"):

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|se yon bon ide}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|c'est une bonne idée}}
| that's a good idea
|-
| this is a good idea
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|se nouvo chemiz mwen}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|c'est ma nouvelle chemise}}
| that's my new shirt
|-
| this is my new shirt
|}

To express "I want to be", usually {{lang|ht|vin}} ("to{{nbsp}}become") is used instead of {{lang|ht|se}}.

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! colspan="2" scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|li pral vin bofrè m}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|il va devenir mon beau-frère}}
| rowspan="2" | he will be my {{nowrap|brother-in-law}}
| rowspan="2" | he will be my stepbrother
|-
| {{lang|ht|li pral vin bofrè mwen}}
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen vle vin yon doktè}}
| {{lang|fr|je veux devenir docteur}}
| colspan="2" | I want to become a doctor
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|sa pral vin yon pye mango}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|ça va devenir un manguier}}
| colspan="2" | that will become a mango tree
|-
| colspan="2" | this will become a mango tree
|-
| {{lang|ht|nou pral vin zanmi}}
| {{lang|fr|nous allons devenir amis}}
| colspan="2" | we will be friends
|}

{{lang|ht|Ye}} also means "to{{nbsp}}be", but is placed exclusively at the '''end''' of a sentence, after the [[Predicate (grammar)|predicate]] and the [[subject (grammar)|subject]] (in that order):

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen se Ayisyen}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|je suis haïtien}}
| rowspan="2" | I am Haitian
|-
| {{lang|ht|Ayisyen mwen ye}}
|-
| {{lang|ht|Kòman ou ye?}}
| ''{{abbr|[[wikt:literally|lit.]]|literally}}'' {{lang|fr|Comment + vous + êtes ("Comment êtes-vous?")}}
| How are you?
|}

Haitian Creole has [[stative verbs]], which means that the verb "to{{nbsp}}be" is not [[Covert (linguistics)|covert]] when followed by an [[adjective]]. Therefore, {{lang|ht|malad}} means both "sick" and "{{nowrap|to be sick}}":

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen gen yon sè ki malad}}
| {{lang|fr|j'ai une sœur malade}}
| I have a sick sister
|-
|{{lang|ht|sè mwen malad}}
|{{lang|fr|ma sœur est malade}}
|my sister is sick
|}

====To have====
The verb "to have" is {{lang|ht|genyen}}, often shortened to {{lang|ht|gen}}.

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen gen lajan nan bank lan}}
| {{lang|fr|j'ai de l'argent dans la banque}}
| I have money in the bank
|}

====There is====
The verb {{lang|ht|genyen}} (or {{lang|ht|gen}}) also means "there is" or "there are":

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|gen anpil Ayisyen nan Florid}}
| {{lang|fr|il y a beaucoup d'Haïtiens en Floride}}
| there are many Haitians in Florida
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|gen on moun la}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|il y a quelqu'un là}}
| there is someone here
|-
| there is someone there
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|pa gen moun la}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|il n'y a personne là}}
| there is nobody here
|-
| there is nobody there
|}

====To know====
The Haitian Creole word for "to know" and "to know how" is {{lang|ht|konnen}}, which is often shortened to {{lang|ht|konn}}.

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|Èske ou konnen non li?}}
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|fr|Est-ce que tu connais son nom?}}
| Do you know his name?
|-
| Do you know her name?
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|mwen konnen kote li ye}}
| {{lang|fr|je sais où il est}}
| I know where he is
|-
| {{lang|fr|je sais où elle est}}
| I know where she is
|-
| {{lang|ht|Mwen konn fè manje}}
| {{lang|fr|Je sais comment faire à manger}}
| I know how to cook<br/>({{abbr|lit.|literally}} "I know how to make food")
|-
| {{lang|ht|Èske ou konn ale Ayiti?}}
| {{lang|fr|Est-ce que tu as été en Haïti?}}
| Have you been to Haiti?<br/>({{abbr|lit.|literally}} "Do you know to go to Haiti?")
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|Li pa konn li franse}}
| {{lang|fr|Il ne sait pas lire le français}}
| He cannot read French<br/>({{abbr|lit.|literally}} "He doesn't know how to read French")
|-
| {{lang|fr|Elle ne sait pas lire le français}}
| She cannot read French<br/>({{abbr|lit.|literally}} "She doesn't know how to read French")
|}

====To do====
{{lang|ht|Fè}} means "do" or "make". It has a broad range of meanings, as it is one of the most common verbs used in [[idiomatic phrase]]s.

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|Kòman ou fè pale kreyòl?}}
| {{lang|fr|Comment as-tu appris à parler Créole?}}
| How did you learn to speak Haitian Creole?
|-
| {{lang|ht|Marie konn fè mayi moulen.}}
| {{lang|fr|Marie sait faire de la farine de maïs.}}
| Marie knows how to make cornmeal.
|}

====To be able to====
The verb {{lang|ht|kapab}} (or shortened to {{lang|ht|ka}}, {{lang|ht|kap}} or {{lang|ht|kab}}) means "to be able to (do something)". It refers to both "capability" and "availability":

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen ka ale demen}}
| {{lang|fr|je peux aller demain}}
| I can go tomorrow
|-
| {{lang|ht|petèt mwen ka fè sa demen}}
| {{lang|fr|je peux peut-être faire ça demain}}
| maybe I can do that tomorrow
|-
| {{lang|ht|nou ka ale pita}}
| {{lang|fr|nous pouvons aller plus tard}}
| we can go later
|}

====Tense markers====
There is no [[grammatical conjugation|conjugation]] in Haitian Creole. In the present non-progressive tense, one just uses the basic verb form for [[stative verb]]s:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen pale kreyòl}}
| {{lang|fr|je parle créole}}
| I speak Creole
|}

When the basic form of [[action verb]]s is used without any verb [[marker (linguistics)|markers]], it is generally understood as referring to the past:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | French
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen manje}}
| {{lang|fr|j'ai mangé}}
| I ate
|-
| {{lang|ht|ou manje}}
| {{lang|fr|tu as mangé}}
| you ate
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|li manje}}
| {{lang|fr|il a mangé}}
| he ate
|-
| {{lang|fr|elle a mangé}}
| she ate
|-
| {{lang|ht|nou manje}}
| {{lang|fr|nous avons mangé}}
| we ate
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|yo manje}}
| {{lang|fr|ils ont mangé}}
| rowspan="2" | they ate
|-
| {{lang|fr|elles ont mangé}}
|}

{{lang|ht|Manje}} means both "food" and "to eat", as {{lang|fr|manger}} does in [[Canadian French]]{{citation needed|date=September 2017}}; {{lang|ht|m ap manje bon manje}} means "I am eating good food".

For other [[grammatical tense|tenses]], special "tense marker" words are placed before the verb. The basic ones are:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Tense marker
! scope="col" | Tense
! scope="col" | Annotations
|-
| {{lang|ht|te}}
| [[simple past]]
| from French {{lang|fr|été}} ("been")
|-
| {{lang|ht|t ap}}
| past [[progressive aspect|progressive]]
| a combination of {{lang|ht|te}} and {{lang|ht|ap}}, "was doing"
|-
| {{lang|ht|ap}}
| [[present progressive]]
| with {{lang|ht|ap}} and {{lang|ht|a}}, the [[pronoun]]s nearly always take the short form ({{lang|ht|m ap}}, {{lang|ht|l ap}}, {{lang|ht|n ap}}, {{lang|ht|y ap}}, etc.). From 18th-century French {{lang|fr|être après}}, progressive form
|-
| {{lang|ht|a}}
| [[future tense|future]]
| some limitations on use. From French {{lang|fr|avoir à}} ("to have to")
|-
| {{lang|ht|pral}}
| near or definite [[future tense|future]]
| translates to "going to". Contraction of French {{lang|fr|pour aller}} ("going to")
|-
| {{lang|ht|ta}}
| conditional future
| a combination of {{lang|ht|te}} and {{lang|ht|a}} ("will do")
|}

[[Simple past]] or [[past perfect]]:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | English
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|mwen te manje}}
| I ate
|-
| I had eaten
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|ou te manje}}
| you ate
|-
| you had eaten
|-
| rowspan="4" | {{lang|ht|li te manje}}
| he ate
|-
| she ate
|-
| he had eaten
|-
| she had eaten
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|nou te manje}}
| we ate
|-
| we had eaten
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|yo te manje}}
| they ate
|-
| they had eaten
|}

Past [[progressive aspect|progressive]]:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen t ap manje}}
| I was eating
|-
| {{lang|ht|ou t ap manje}}
| you were eating
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|li t ap manje}}
| he was eating
|-
| she was eating
|-
| {{lang|ht|nou t ap manje}}
| we were eating
|-
| {{lang|ht|yo t ap manje}}
| they were eating
|}

[[Present progressive]]:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|m ap manje}}
| I am eating
|-
| {{lang|ht|w ap manje}}
| you are eating
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|l ap manje}}
| he is eating
|-
| she is eating
|-
| {{lang|ht|n ap manje}}
| we are eating
|-
| {{lang|ht|y ap manje}}
| they are eating
|}

For the [[present progressive]], it is customary, though not necessary, to add {{lang|ht|kounye{{nbsp}}a}} ("right{{nbsp}}now"):

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|m ap manje kounye a}}
| I am eating right now
|-
| {{lang|ht|y ap manje kounye a}}
| they are eating right now
|}

Also, {{lang|ht|ap manje}} can mean "will eat" depending on the context of the sentence:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | English
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|m ap manje apre m priye}}
| I will eat after I pray
|-
| I am eating after I pray
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|mwen p ap di sa}}
|  I will not say that
|-
| I am not saying that
|}

Near or definite [[Future tense|future]]:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen pral manje}}
| I am going to eat
|-
| {{lang|ht|ou pral manje}}
| you are going to eat
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|li pral manje}}
| he is going to eat
|-
| she is going to eat
|-
| {{lang|ht|nou pral manje}}
| we are going to eat
|-
| {{lang|ht|yo pral manje}}
| they are going to eat
|}

[[Future tense|Future]]:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|n a wè pita}}
| see you later<br/>({{abbr|lit.|literally}} "we will see later")
|}

Other examples:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen te wè zanmi ou yè}}
| I saw your friend yesterday
|-
| {{lang|ht|nou te pale lontan}}
| we spoke for a long time
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|lè l te gen uit an...}}
| when he was eight years old...
|-
| when she was eight years old...
|-
| {{lang|ht|m a travay}}
| I will work
|-
| {{lang|ht|m pral travay}}
| I'm going to work
|-
| {{lang|ht|n a li l demen}}
| we'll read it tomorrow
|-
| {{lang|ht|nou pral li l demen}}
| we are going to read it tomorrow
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen t ap mache epi m te wè yon chen}}
| I was walking and I saw a dog
|}

[[Recent past tense|Recent past]] markers include {{lang|ht|fèk}} and {{lang|ht|sòt}} (both mean "just" or "just now" and are often used together):

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen fèk sòt antre kay la}}
| I just entered the house
|}

A verb [[grammatical mood|mood]] marker is {{lang|ht|ta}}, corresponding to English "would" and equivalent to the French conditional tense:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|yo ta renmen jwe}}
| they would like to play
|-
| {{lang|ht|mwen ta vini si m te gen yon machin}}
| I would come if I had a car
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{lang|ht|li ta bliye w si ou pa t la}}
| he would forget you if you weren't here
|-
| she would forget you if you weren't here
|}

====Negation====
The word {{lang|ht|pa}} comes before a verb and any tense markers to negate it:

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Haitian Creole
! scope="col" | English
|-
| {{lang|ht|Rose pa vle ale}}
| Rose doesn't want to go
|-
| {{lang|ht|Rose pa t vle ale}}
| Rose didn't want to go
|}

==Lexicon==
{{See also|Wiktionary:Appendix:Haitian Creole Swadesh list}}

Most of the lexicon of Creole is derived from French, with significant changes in [[pronunciation]] and [[Morphology (linguistics)|morphology]]; often the French [[definite article]] was retained as part of the noun. For example, the French definite article ''la'' in ''la lune'' ("the moon") was incorporated into the Creole noun for moon: {{lang|ht|lalin}}. However, the language also inherited many words of different origins, among them [[Wolof language|Wolof]], [[Fon language|Fon]], [[Kongo language|Kongo]], English, Spanish, [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]], [[Taíno language|Taino]] and [[Arabic language|Arabic]].{{citation needed|date=February 2017}}

Haitian Creole creates and borrows new words to describe new or old concepts and realities. Examples of this are {{lang|ht|fè bak}} which was borrowed from English and means "to move backwards" (the original word derived from French is {{lang|ht|rekile}} from {{lang|fr|reculer}}), and also from English, ''napkin'', which is being used as well as {{lang|ht|tòchon}}, from the French {{lang|fr|torchon}}.{{citation needed|date=February 2017}}

===Sample===
{{Unreferenced section|date=February 2017}}
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Haitian Creole
!IPA
!Origin
!English
|-
|ablado<ref name="Worldmark">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F7hZAAAAYAAJ |title=Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life: Americas |editor1=Gall, Timothy L. |editor2=Hobby, Jeneen |page=265 |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-4144-4890-9 |access-date=1 February 2017}}</ref>
|{{IPA|/ablado/}}
|{{langx|es|hablador|links=no}}
|"a talker"
|-
|anasi
|{{IPA|/anasi/}}
|{{langx|ak|ananse}}
|spider
|-
|annanna
|{{IPA|/ãnãna/}}
|{{langx|tnq|ananas}}; also used in French
|pineapple
|-
|Ayiti
|{{IPA|/ajiti/}}
|{{langx|tnq|Ahatti|lit=mountainous land|links=no}}
|Haiti ("mountainous land")
|-
|bagay
|{{IPA|/baɡaj/}}
|{{langx|fr|bagage|links=no|lit=baggage}}
|thing
|-
|bannann
|{{IPA|/bãnãn/}}
|{{langx|fr|banane|links=no|lit=banana}}
|banana/plantain
|-
|bekàn
|{{IPA|/bekan/}}
|{{langx|fr|bécane|links=no}}
|bicycle
|-
|bokit<ref name="Bonenfant2011"/>
|{{IPA|/bokit/}}
|bucket
|
|-
|bòkò
|{{IPA|/bɔkɔ/}}
|{{langx|fon|bokono}}
|sorcerer
|-
|Bondye
|{{IPA|/bõdje/}}
|{{langx|fr|bon dieu|links=no|lit=good God}}
|God
|-
|chenèt
|{{IPA|/ʃenɛt/}}
|{{langx|fr|quénette|links=no}} (French Antilles)
|gap between the two front teeth
|-
|chouk
|{{IPA|/ʃuk/}}
|{{langx|ff|chuk|lit=to pierce, to poke}}
|poke
|-
|dekabès
|{{IPA|/dekabes/}}
|{{langx|es|dos cabezas|lit=two heads|links=no}}
|two-headed win during dominos
|-
|dèyè
|{{IPA|/dɛjɛ/}}
|{{langx|fr|derrière|links=no}}
|behind
|-
|diri
|{{IPA|/diɣi/}}
|{{langx|fr|du riz|links=no|lit=some rice}}
|rice
|-
|èkondisyone
|/ɛkondisjone/
|air conditioner
|air conditioner
|-
|Etazini<ref name="TargèteUrciolo1993a">{{cite book |url=https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/3503981/haitian-creole-aeur-english-dictionary-pdf-catmonfoundationorg/74 |title=Haitian Creole–English Dictionary |date=1993 |pages=i, 63, 141 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151112235939/http://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/3503981/haitian-creole-aeur-english-dictionary-pdf-catmonfoundationorg/74 |archive-date=12 November 2015 |url-status=dead |last1=Targète |first1=Jean |last2=Urciolo |first2=Raphael G. |language=ht, en |publisher=Dunwoody Press |location=Kensington, Maryland |edition=2nd |isbn=978-0-931745-75-1 |lccn=93071725 |oclc=30037768 |ol=3628156W |via=Yumpu |quote=Most English words that are of the same origin as Creole words are marked with an asterisk&nbsp;(*).... ''Etazini'' n{{bracket|oun}} United States*&nbsp;... ''ozetazini'' In the U.S.A. |access-date=13 November 2015 }}</ref>
|{{IPA|/etazini/}}
|{{langx|fr|États-Unis|links=no}}
|United States
|-
|fig
|{{IPA|/fiɡ/}}
|{{langx|fr|figue|links=no|lit=fig}}
|banana<ref name="Bollée2018">{{cite book |url=https://www.uni-bamberg.de/fileadmin/uni/fakultaeten/split_lehrstuehle/romanische_sprachwissenschaft/PI_F.pdf#page=32 |title=Dictionnaire étymologique des créoles français d'Amérique |date=2018 |page=32 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180726171824/https://www.uni-bamberg.de/fileadmin/uni/fakultaeten/split_lehrstuehle/romanische_sprachwissenschaft/PI_F.pdf#page=32 |archive-date=26 July 2018 |url-status=live |editor1-first=Annegret |editor1-last=Bollée |language=fr, en |publisher=Buske |location=Hamburg |series=Kreolische Bibliothek |volume=29 |issue=I  |isbn=978-3-87548-881-4 |oclc=982379542}}</ref>
|-
|je
|{{IPA|/ʒe/}}
|{{langx|fr|les yeux|links=no|lit=the eyes}}
|eye
|-
|kannistè<ref name="Bonenfant2011"/>
|{{IPA|/kannistɛ/}}
|canister
|tin can
|-
|kay
|{{IPA|/kaj/}}
|{{langx|fr|la cahutte|links=no|lit=the hut}}
|house
|-
|kle
|{{IPA|/kle/}}
|{{langx|fr|clé|links=no|lit=key}}
|key, wrench
|-
|rowspan="2" |kle kola
|rowspan="2" |{{IPA|/kle kola/}}
|{{langx|fr|clé|links=no|lit=key}}
|rowspan="2" |bottle opener
|-
|cola
|-
|kònfleks
|{{IPA|/kɔnfleks/}}
|corn flakes
|breakfast cereal
|-
|kawotchou
|{{IPA|/kawotʃu/}}
|{{langx|fr|caoutchouc|links=no|lit=rubber}}
|tire
|-
|lalin
|{{IPA|/lalin/}}
|{{langx|fr|la lune|links=no|lit=the moon}}
|moon
|-
|li
|{{IPA|/li/}}
|{{langx|fr|lui|links=no}}
|he, she, him, her, it
|-
|makak
|{{IPA|/makak/}}
|{{langx|fr|macaque|links=no}}
|monkey
|-
|manbo
|{{IPA|/mãbo/}}
|{{langx|kg|mambu}} or {{langx|fon|nanbo|links=no}}
|vodou priestess
|-
|marasa
|{{IPA|/maɣasa/}}
|{{langx|kg|mapassa|links=no}}
|twins
|-
|matant
|{{IPA|/matãt/}}
|{{langx|fr|ma tante|links=no|lit=my aunt}}
|aunt, aged woman
|-
|moun
|{{IPA|/mun/}}
|{{langx|fr|monde|links=no|lit=world}}
|people, person
|-
|mwen
|{{IPA|/mwɛ̃/}}
|{{langx|fr|moi|links=no|lit=me}}
|I, me, my, myself
|-
|nimewo
|{{IPA|/nimewo/}}
|{{langx|fr|numéro|links=no|lit=number}}
|number
|-
|oungan
|{{IPA|/ũɡã/}}
|{{langx|fon|houngan|links=no}}
|vodou priest
|-
|piman
|{{IPA|/pimã/}}
|{{langx|fr|piment|links=no}}
|a very hot [[chile pepper|pepper]]
|-
|pann
|{{IPA|/pãn/}}
|{{langx|fr|pendre|links=no|lit=to hang}}
|clothesline
|-
|podyab
|{{IPA|/podjab/}}
|{{langx|fr|pauvre diable|links=no}} or {{langx|es|pobre diablo|links=no}}
|poor devil
|-
|pwa
|{{IPA|/pwa/}}
|{{langx|fr|pois|links=no|lit=pea}}
|bean
|-
|sapat<ref name="Worldmark"/>
|{{IPA|/sapat/}}
|{{langx|es|zapato|links=no}}; {{langx|fr|savatte|links=no}}
|sandal
|-
|seyfing
|{{IPA|/sejfiŋ/}}
|surfing
|sea-surfing
|-
|tonton
|{{IPA|/tõtõ/}}
|{{langx|fr|tonton|links=no}}
|uncle, aged man
|-
|vwazen
|{{IPA|/vwazɛ̃/}}
|{{langx|fr|voisin|links=no}}
|neighbor
|-
|zonbi
|{{IPA|/zõbi/}}
|Kongo: ''nzumbi''
|soulless corpse, living dead, ghost, [[zombie]]
|-
|zwazo
|{{IPA|/zwazo/}}
|{{langx|fr|les oiseaux|links=no|lit=the birds}}
|bird
|}

==={{lang|ht|Nèg}} and {{lang|ht|blan}}===
Although {{lang|ht|nèg}} and {{lang|ht|blan}} have similar words in French ({{lang|fr|nègre}}, a pejorative to refer to black people, and {{lang|ht|blanc}}, meaning white, or white person), the meanings they carry in French do not apply in Haitian Creole. {{lang|ht|Nèg}} means "a person" or "a man" (like "guy" or "dude" in American English).<ref name="Katz2013">{{cite book |last=Katz |first=Jonathan M. |author-link=Jonathan M. Katz |title=The Big Truck That Went By: How the World Came to Save Haiti and Left Behind a Disaster |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cFKdtzGITDcC&pg=PT77 |date=2013 |publisher=St. Martin's Press |isbn=978-1-137-32395-8 |pages=77–78 |lccn=2012037217 |oclc=886583605 |ol=16813109W}}</ref> The word {{lang|ht|blan}} generally means "foreigner" or "not from Haiti". Thus, a non-black Haitian man (usually biracial) could be called {{lang|ht|nèg}}, while a black person from the US could be referred to as {{lang|ht|blan}}.<ref name="Katz2013"/><ref name="HaitiMarycare">{{cite journal |url=http://haitimarycare.org/Newsletter_Spring_2013.pdf#page=2 |journal=Haiti Marycare News |title=Vignettes from Jakzi |date=2013  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150504203203/http://haitimarycare.org/Newsletter_Spring_2013.pdf#page=2 |archive-date=4 May 2015 |url-status=usurped }}</ref>

Etymologically, the word {{lang|ht|nèg}} is derived from the French {{lang|fr|nègre}} and is cognate with the Spanish {{lang|es|negro}} ("black", both the color [[black|black]] and the [[black people|people]]).<!-- , and [[cognate]] with the English "negro". In Haitian Creole, however, {{lang|ht|nèg}} does not have pejorative connotations. -->

There are many other Haitian Creole terms for specific tones of skin including {{lang|ht|grimo}}, {{lang|ht|bren}}, {{lang|ht|roz}}, and {{lang|ht|mawon}}. Some Haitians consider such labels as offensive because of their association with color discrimination and the Haitian class system, while others use the terms freely.

==Examples==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Haitian Creole
!English
|-
|Papa Nou ki nan sièl,
ké non ou jouinn tout réspè,
ké règn ou vini,
ké volonté ou akonpli ,
sou té a tankou nan sièl.
Ban nou jod a pin chak jou nou,
padonnin nou péché nou,
tankou nou padonnin moun ki ofansé nou.
Pa minnin nou nan tentasion,
min délivré nou an-ba malin an.
Amen.
| Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day, our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Amen.
|}

===Salutations===

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Haitian Creole
!English
|-
|A demen!
|See you tomorrow!
|-
|A pi ta!
|See you later!
|-
|Adye!
|Good bye! (permanently)
|-
|Anchante!
|Nice to meet you! ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "enchanted!")
|-
|Bon apre-midi!
|Good afternoon!
|-
|Bòn chans!
|Good luck!
|-
|Bòn nui!
|Good night!
|-
|rowspan="2" |Bonjou!
|Good day!
|-
|Good morning!
|-
|Bonswa!
|Good evening
|-
|Dezole!
|Sorry!
|-
|Eskize m!
|Excuse me!
|-
|Kenbe la!
|Hang in there! (informal)
|-
|Ki jan ou rele?
|rowspan="4"| What's your name?
|-
|Ki non ou?
|-
|Ki non w?
|-
|Kòman ou rele?
|-
|Mwen rele{{nbsp}}
|rowspan="2" |My name is...
|-
|Non m se.
|-
|Ki jan ou ye?
|How are you?
|-
|Ki laj ou?
|rowspan="2" |How old are you? ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "What is your age?")
|-
|Ki laj ou genyen?
|-
|Kòman ou ye?
|How are you?
|-
|Kon si, kon sa
|So, so
|-
|Kontinye konsa!
|Keep it up!
|-
|M ap boule
|I'm managing (informal; {{abbr|lit|literally}}. "I'm burning")<br/>(common response to ''[[#sakapfèt|sa kap fèt]]'' and ''[[#sakpase|sak pase]]'')
|-
|M ap kenbe
|I'm hanging on (informal)
|-
|M ap viv
|I'm living
|-
|Mal
|Bad
|-
|Men wi
|Of course
|-
|Mèsi
|Thank you
|-
|Mèsi anpil
|Many thanks
|-
|Mwen byen
|I'm well
|-
|Mwen dakò
|I agree
|-
|Mwen gen an
|I'm years old
|-
|Mwen la
|I'm so-so (informal; {{abbr|lit|literally}}. "I'm here")
|-
|N a wè pita!
|See you later! ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "We will see later!")
|-
|Orevwa!
|Good bye (temporarily)
|-
|Pa mal
|Not bad
|-
|Pa pi mal
|Not so bad
|-
|rowspan="3" |Padon!
|Pardon!
|-
|Sorry!
|-
|Move!
|-
|rowspan="2" |Padone m!
|Pardon me!
|-
|Forgive me!
|-
|Pòte w byen!
|Take care! ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "Carry yourself well!")
|-
|rowspan="2" id="sakapfèt" |Sa k ap fèt?
|What's going on? (informal)
|-
|What's up? (informal)
|-
|rowspan="2" id="sakpase" |Sa k pase?
|What's happening? (informal)
|-
|What's up? (informal)
|-
|Tout al byen
|All is well ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "All goes well")
|-
|Tout bagay anfòm
|Everything is fine ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "Everything is in form")
|-
|Tout pa bon
|All is not well ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "All is not good")
|}

==Proverbs and expressions==
{{See also|Wikiquote:Haitian proverbs}}

Proverbs play a central role in traditional Haitian culture and Haitian Creole speakers make frequent use of them as well as of other metaphors.<ref name="RahillJean-GillesThomlisonPinto-Lopez2011">{{cite journal |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/51577269 |title=Metaphors as Contextual Evidence for Engaging Haitian Clients in Practice: A Case Study |last1=Rahill |first1=Guitele |last2=Jean-Gilles |first2=Michele |last3=Thomlison |first3=Barbara |last4=Pinto-Lopez |first4=Elsa |date=2011 |journal=American Journal of Psychotherapy |volume=65 |issue=2 |pages=138–139 |issn=0002-9564 |pmid=21847891 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151031034246/http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Guitele_Rahill/publication/51577269_Metaphors_as_contextual_evidence_for_engaging_Haitian_clients_in_practice_a_case_study/links/00b7d51a368119544d000000.pdf#page=6 |archive-date=31 October 2015  |quote=The importance of metaphors in Haitian storytelling is reflected in the value ascribed to proverbs as an important aspect of teaching and reinforcing practical wisdom and values to children and community members. The existence of two separate texts in which 999 to more than 3000 Haitian proverbs are documented serve as evidence of the importance of these proverbs and their centrality in traditional Haitian culture... |doi=10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.2011.65.2.133 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

===Proverbs===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Haitian Creole
!English
|-
|Men anpil, chay pa lou
|Strength through unity<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ngw.nl/int/car/haiti-nat.htm |title=Civic Heraldry of Haiti |website=Heraldry of the World |access-date=6 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140426232645/http://ngw.nl/int/car/haiti-nat.htm |archive-date=26 April 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref> ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "With many hands, the burden is not heavy";<ref name="McAlister2002">{{cite book |title=Rara!: Vodou, Power, and Performance in Haiti and Its Diaspora |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BYiXSOTFvHIC&pg=PA168 |last=McAlister |first=Elizabeth A. |date=2002 |isbn=978-0-520-22822-1 |publisher=University of California Press |chapter=6.&nbsp;Voices under Domination: Rara and the Politics of Insecurity |page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9790520228237/page/168 168] |quote=[[Jean-Bertrand Aristide|Aristide]] took ownership of the {{lang|ht|pwen}} and replied with another: {{'}}{{lang|ht|Men anpil chay pa lou}}{{'}} ("With many hands, the burden is not heavy"). |oclc=5559545903 |ol=7711139M |lccn=2001005016 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9790520228237/page/168 }}</ref> Haitian Creole equivalent of the French on the [[coat of arms of Haiti]], which reads {{lang|fr|l'union fait la force}})
|-
|Apre bal, tanbou lou
|There are consequences to your actions ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "After the dance, the drum is heavy")<ref name="Cynn2008">{{cite journal|title=''Nou Mande Jistis!'' (We Demand Justice!): Reconstituting Community and Victimhood in Raboteau, Haiti |journal=Women's Studies Quarterly |date=2008 |first=Christine |last=Cynn |volume=36 |issue=½ |pages=42–57 |doi=10.1353/wsq.0.0071 |issn=1934-1520 |jstor=27649734 |s2cid=84608576 |oclc=5547107092  |quote=After Aristide announced his unexpected candidacy in the 1990 presidential elections, the American ambassador to Haiti, Alvin&nbsp;Adams, in a speech assured Haitians that the United States would support whichever candidate was elected but concluded his remarks with a proverb (or ''pwen'') emphasizing the problems that would remain after the elections: ‘After the dance, the drum is heavy {{bracket|''Apre bal, tanbou lou''}}’....}}</ref>
|-
|Sak vid pa kanpe
|No work gets done on an empty stomach ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "An empty bag does not stand up")<ref name="Freeman1997">{{cite book |last=Freeman |first=Bryant C. |author-link=Bryant Freeman |title=Haitian–English Medical Phraseology |url=http://kuscholarworks.ku.edu/bitstream/handle/1808/12505/Freeman_Haitian%20English%20Medical%20Phraseology.pdf |date=1997 |publisher=Institute of Haitian Studies, University of Kansas |location=Lawrence, Kansas |oclc=38740045 |series=Medicine in Haiti |volume=1 |language=en, ht |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150907022948/http://kuscholarworks.ku.edu/bitstream/handle/1808/12505/Freeman_Haitian%20English%20Medical%20Phraseology.pdf |archive-date=7 September 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref>{{rp|60}}
|-
|Pitit tig se tig
|Like father like son ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "The son of a tiger is a tiger")
|-
|Ak pasyans w ap wè tete pis
|Anything is possible ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "With patience you will see the breast of the ant")
|-
|Bay kou bliye, pote mak sonje
|The giver of the blow forgets, the carrier of the scar remembers
|-
|Mache chèche pa janm dòmi san soupe
|You will get what you deserve
|-
|Bèl dan pa di zanmi
|Not all smiles are friendly ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "Good teeth don't mean (that person is) a friend")
|-
|Bèl antèman pa di paradi
|A beautiful funeral does not guarantee heaven
|-
|Bèl fanm pa di bon mennaj
|A beautiful wife does not guarantee a happy marriage
|-
|Dan konn mòde lang
|People who work together sometimes hurt each other ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "Teeth are known to bite the tongue")
|-
|Sa k rive koukouloulou a ka rive kakalanga tou
|What happens to the dumb guy can happen to the smart one too ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "What happens to the turkey can happen to the rooster too")<ref name="Freeman1997"/>{{rp|75}}
|-
|Chak jou pa Dimanch
|Your luck will not last forever ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "Not every day is Sunday")
|-
|Fanm pou yon tan, manman pou tout tan
|A woman is for a time, a mother is for all time<ref name="Freeman1997"/>{{rp|93}}
|-
|Nèg di san fè, Bondye fè san di
|Man talks without doing, God does without talking<ref name="Freeman1997"/>{{rp|31}}
|-
|Sa Bondye sere pou ou, lavalas pa ka pote l ale
|What God has saved for you, nobody can take it away
|-
|Nèg rich se milat, milat pòv se nèg
|A rich negro is a mulatto, a poor mulatto is a negro
|-
|Pale franse pa di lespri
|Speaking French does not mean you are smart<ref name="Freeman1997"/>{{rp|114}}
|-
|Wòch nan dlo pa konnen doulè wòch nan solèy
|The rock in the water does not know the pain of the rock in the sun<ref name="Rosenthal2006">{{cite journal |url=http://eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=1169 |title=Undeclared War on Haiti's Poor |last=Rosenthal |first=Kent |date=11 July 2006 |journal=Eureka Street |volume=16 |issue=8 |issn=1036-1758 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140709235751/http://eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=1169 |archive-date= 9 July 2014 |url-status=live |quote=The rock in the sun cannot get ahead like the rock in the water. Whether you’re the rock suffering in the sun or whether you’re cooling off in the water depends on where you were born, what passport you hold, what education you have, whether you speak French, whether your parents are peasants or well-off, whether your parents are married or if you have a birth certificate. Chance can deal a very cruel or kind hand in Haiti. }}</ref>
|-
|Ravèt pa janm gen rezon devan poul
|Justice will always be on the side of the stronger<ref name="Joint 1999">{{cite book |last=Joint |first=Gasner |title=Libération du vaudou dans la dynamique d'inculturation en Haïti |date=1999 |chapter=Impact social du vaudou |publisher=[[Gregorian & Biblical Press]] |location=Rome |series=Interreligious and Intercultural Investigations |volume=2 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FP5UHuZD44sC&pg=PA167 |isbn=978-88-7652-824-8 |lccn=2001421254 |oclc=51448466 |trans-title=The Liberation of Vodou in the Dynamic of Inculturation in Haiti |language=fr |page=167 |quote=''Cette situation d’injustice institutionalisée est dénoncée par la philosophie populaire dans les adages courants comme&nbsp;:&nbsp;... ''«{{nnbsp}}Ravèt pa janm gen rezon devan poul{{nnbsp}}»''&nbsp;... «{{nnbsp}}Un cafard ne saurait l’emporter sur un poulet{{nnbsp}}». Expression populaire et imagée de la loi de la jungle: «{{nnbsp}}la raison du plus fort est toujours la meilleure{{nnbsp}}».''}}</ref> ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "A cockroach in front of a chicken is never correct")
|-
|Si ou bwè dlo nan vè, respèkte vè a
|If you drink water from a glass, respect the glass
|-
|Si travay te bon bagay, moun rich ta pran l lontan
|If work were a good thing, the rich would have grabbed it a long time ago
|-
|Sèl pa vante tèt li di li sale
|Let others praise you (lit. "Salt doesn't brag that it's salty," said to those who praise themselves)
|-
|Bouch granmoun santi, sak ladan l se rezon
|Wisdom comes from the mouth of old people ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "The mouth of the old stinks but what's inside is wisdom")
|-
|Tout moun se moun
|Everyone matters ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "Everybody is a person")<ref name="Joseph2014">{{cite journal |url=https://www.academia.edu/11683047 |title=Toward a Politico-Theology of {{not a typo|Relational|it|y}}: Justice as Solidarity and the Poor in Aristide's Theological Imagination |last=Joseph |first=Celucien L. |date=2014 |journal=Toronto Journal of Theology |volume=30 |issue=2 |page=270 |doi=10.3138/tjt.2105 |s2cid=144847968 |issn=0826-9831 |quote={{nowrap|[[Peter Hallward|{{bracket|Peter}} Hallward]]}} has wrongly misconstrued {{nowrap|[[Jean-Bertrand Aristide|{{bracket|Jean-Bertrand}} Aristide]]’s}} affirmative and egalitarian principle ''{{nowrap|{{lang|ht|tout moun se moun}}}}'' (‘Everybody is a person’)—the idea that everyone matters and that ‘everyone is endowed with the same essential dignity.’}}</ref>
|}

===Expressions===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Haitian Creole
!English
|-
|Se lave men, siye l atè
|It was useless work ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "Wash your hands and wipe them on the floor")
|-
|M ap di ou sa kasayòl te di bèf la
|Mind your own business
|-
|Li pale franse
|He cannot be trusted, he is full of himself ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "He speaks French")<ref name="FaediDuramy2008">{{cite journal |last=Faedi Duramy |first=Benedetta |title=The Double Weakness of Girls: Discrimination and Sexual Violence in Haiti |journal=Stanford Journal of International Law |volume=44 |page=150 |date=2008 |quote={{lang|ht|Li pale franse}} (He speaks French (so he is likely deceiving you).)}}</ref>
|-
|Kreyòl pale, kreyòl konprann
|Speak straightforwardly and honestly ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "Creole talks, Creole understands")<ref name="Freeman1997"/>{{rp|29}}
|-
|Bouche nen ou pou bwè dlo santi
|You have to accept a bad situation ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "Pinch your nose to drink smelly water")<ref name="Freeman1997"/>{{rp|55}}
|-
|Mache sou pinga ou, pou ou pa pile: "Si m te konnen!"
|"Be on your guard, so you don't have to say: 'If only I'd known!'"<ref name="Freeman1997"/>{{rp|159}}
|-
|Tann jis nou tounen pwa tann
|To wait forever ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "left hanging until we became string beans" which is a word play on ''tann'', which means both "to hang" and "to wait")
|-
|San pran souf
|Without taking a breath; continuously
|-
|W ap konn jòj 
|Warning or threat of punishment or reprimand ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "You will know George")
|-
|Dis ti piti tankou ou
|Dismissing or defying a threat or show of force ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "Ten little ones like you couldn't.")
|-
|Lè poul va fè dan
|Never ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "When hens grow teeth")<ref name="TargèteUrciolo1993b">{{cite book |last1=Targète |first1=Jean |last2=Urciolo |first2=Raphael G. |title=Haitian Creole–English Dictionary |url=https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/3503981/haitian-creole-aeur-english-dictionary-pdf-catmonfoundationorg/165 |edition=2nd |date=1993 |publisher=Dunwoody Press |location=Kensington, Maryland |language=ht, en |isbn=978-0-931745-75-1 |page=154 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150907185630/http://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/3503981/haitian-creole-aeur-english-dictionary-pdf-catmonfoundationorg/165 |archive-date=7 September 2015 |url-status=dead |via=Yumpu |lccn=93071725 |ol=3628156W |oclc=30037768 |quote={{lang|ht|Lè poul va fè dan}}: Never (when hens grow teeth). |access-date=7 September 2015 }}</ref>
|-
|Piti piti zwazo fè nich li
|You will learn ({{abbr|lit|literally}}. "Little by little the bird makes its nest")<ref name="Freeman1997"/>{{rp|110}}
|}

==Usage abroad==

===United States and Canada===
[[File:Timoun Syèj (Creole).jpg|thumb|Haitian Creole display at a car rental counter in the [[Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport]]{{nbsp}}(2014)]]
{{See also|Haitian Americans|Haitian Canadians}}
[[File:Stop the Spread of Germs updated (Haitian Creole).pdf|thumb|A [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention|CDC-sponsored]] poster about the [[COVID-19 pandemic|COVID-19]] prevention in Haitian Creole]]
Haitian Creole is used widely among Haitians who have relocated to other countries, particularly the [[Haitian Americans|United States]] and [[Haitian Canadian|Canada]]. Some of the larger Creole-speaking populations are found in [[Montreal]], [[Quebec]] (where French is the official language), [[New York City]], [[Boston]], and [[Central Florida|Central]] and [[South Florida metropolitan area|South Florida]] ([[Miami]], [[Fort Lauderdale, Florida|Fort Lauderdale]], and [[Palm Beach County, Florida|Palm Beach]]). To reach out to the large Haitian population, government agencies have produced various public service announcements, school-parent communications, and other materials in Haitian Creole. For instance, [[Miami-Dade County, Florida|Miami-Dade County]] in [[Florida]] sends out paper communications in Haitian Creole in addition to English and Spanish. In the Boston area, the [[MBTA subway|Boston subway system]] and area hospitals and medical offices post announcements in Haitian Creole as well as English.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://cdn.mbta.com/uploadedfiles/Contact_Us/MC09021%20Title%20VI_Version1_Creo.pdf|title=enfòmaysyan sou tit iv – haitian creole|access-date=9 August 2018|archive-date=9 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180809060141/https://cdn.mbta.com/uploadedfiles/Contact_Us/MC09021%20Title%20VI_Version1_Creo.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> North America's only Creole-language television network is [[Haitian Broadcasting Network|HBN]], based in Miami.  These areas also each have more than half a dozen Creole-language [[AM radio]] stations.<ref name="Moise2015">{{cite web |url=http://bonpounou.com/onlinehaitianradio.html |title=Haitian Radio Stations |work=Bonpounou |date=30 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150809201921/http://bonpounou.com/onlinehaitianradio.html |archive-date= 9 August 2015 |url-status=live |last=Moise |first=Raymond }}</ref>

Haitian Creole and Haitian culture are taught in many colleges in the United States and the Bahamas. [[York College, City University of New York]], features a minor in Haitian Creole.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.york.cuny.edu/produce-and-print/contents/bulletin/school-of-arts-and-sciences/foreign-languages-esl-and-humanities/creole-minor |title=Creole (Minor) |date=2014 |publisher=York College |location=Jamaica, New York |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150830210939/http://www.york.cuny.edu/produce-and-print/contents/bulletin/school-of-arts-and-sciences/foreign-languages-esl-and-humanities/creole-minor/ |archive-date=30 August 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Indiana University]]'s Albert Valdman founded the country's first Creole Institute<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://frit.indiana.edu/about/creole.html|title=Creole Institute History|website=Department of French and Italian}}</ref>  where Haitian Creole, among other facets of Haiti, were studied and researched. The [[University of Kansas]], [[Lawrence, Kansas|Lawrence]] has an Institute of Haitian studies, founded by [[Bryant Freeman]]. The [[University of Massachusetts Boston]], [[Florida International University]], and [[Indiana University Bloomington]] offer seminars and courses annually at their Haitian Creole Summer Institutes. [[Brown University]], [[University of Miami]], [[Tulane University]], and [[Duke University]]<ref name="Duke2015">{{cite web |title=Schedule of Classes, Fall&nbsp;2015 |publisher=Duke University |location=Durham, North Carolina |page=40 |url=https://registrar.duke.edu/sites/default/files/uploaded-images/Fall%202015%2003-23-15.pdf#page=40 |date=2015 |access-date=31 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150729173819/http://registrar.duke.edu/sites/default/files/uploaded-images/Fall%202015%2003-23-15.pdf#page=40 |archive-date=29 July 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref> also offer Haitian Creole classes, and [[Columbia University]] and [[NYU]] have jointly offered a course since 2015.<ref name="Columbia2015">{{cite web |url=http://www.columbia.edu/cu/bulletin/uwb/subj/KREY/W1101-20153-001/ |title=Elementary Haitian Kreyol |date=2015 |website=Directory of Classes |publisher=Columbia University |location=New York |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150830210805/http://www.columbia.edu/cu/bulletin/uwb/subj/KREY/W1101-20153-001/ |archive-date=30 August 2015 |url-status=dead |access-date=30 August 2015 |quote=This course is part of the language exchange program with New York University... }}</ref><ref name="Columbia2016">{{cite web |url=http://ilas.columbia.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2016-Spring-NYU-Courses-Approved-for-CU_6-courses.pdf |title=Institute of Latin American Studies: CU–NYU Consortium Courses: Spring&nbsp;2016 |date=4 November 2015 |page=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160107002429/http://ilas.columbia.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2016-Spring-NYU-Courses-Approved-for-CU_6-courses.pdf |archive-date= 7 January 2016 |url-status=live |publisher=Columbia University |location=New York }}</ref> The [[University of Chicago]] began offering Creole courses in 2010.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://clas.uchicago.edu/language_teaching/haitiankreyol.shtml |title=College of Liberal Arts and Sciences |access-date=18 January 2017 |archive-date=18 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170118213425/https://clas.uchicago.edu/language_teaching/haitiankreyol.shtml |url-status=dead }}</ref>

{{As of|2015}}, the [[New York City Department of Education]] counted 2,838 Haitian Creole-speaking [[English-language learner]]s (ELLs) in the city's K–12 schools, making it the seventh most common home language of ELLs citywide and the fifth most common home language of Brooklyn ELLs.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://schools.nyc.gov/NR/rdonlyres/3A4AEC4C-14BD-49C4-B2E6-8EDF5D873BE4/213766/201516DemographicReportv5FINAL.pdf |title=English Language Learner Demographics Report for the 2015–16 School Year |archive-date=18 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180418031925/http://schools.nyc.gov/NR/rdonlyres/3A4AEC4C-14BD-49C4-B2E6-8EDF5D873BE4/213766/201516DemographicReportv5FINAL.pdf |publisher=New York City Department of Education |access-date=19 July 2018}}</ref>{{rp|19–20}} Because of the large population of Haitian Creole-speaking students within NYC schools, various organizations have been established to respond to the needs of these students. For example, Flanbwayan and Gran Chimen Sant Kiltirèl, both located in Brooklyn, New York, aim to promote education and Haitian culture through advocacy, literacy projects, and cultural/artistic endeavors.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Cerat |first=Marie Lily |year=2011 |title=Myths and Realities: A History of Haitian Creole Language Programs in New York City |journal=Journal of Haitian Studies |volume=17 |pages=73–91 }}</ref>

===Cuba===
{{See also|Haitian Cubans|Languages of Cuba}}

Haitian Creole is the second most spoken language in [[Cuba]] after Spanish,<ref name="CubaJournal">{{cite web |url=http://cubajournal.co/haitian-and-creole-culture-in-cuba/ |title=Haitian and Creole Culture in Cuba |editor=Press |date=16 March 2016 |publisher=Cuba Journal |access-date=7 February 2017 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203063119/http://cubajournal.co/haitian-and-creole-culture-in-cuba/ |archive-date=3 February 2017 }}</ref><ref name="AfroCubaWeb">{{cite web |url=http://www.afrocubaweb.com/haiticuba.htm |title=Haiti in Cuba |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150630053243/http://afrocubaweb.com/haiticuba.htm |archive-date=30 June 2015 |url-status=live |website=AfroCubaWeb }}</ref> where over 300,000 [[Afro-Cuban#Haitian Cubans|Haitian immigrants]] speak it. It is recognized as a minority language in Cuba and a considerable number of Cubans speak it fluently. Most of these speakers have never been to Haiti and do not possess Haitian ancestry, but merely learned it in their communities. In addition, there is a Haitian Creole radio station operating in [[Havana]].<ref name="AfroCubaWeb"/>

===Dominican Republic===
{{See also|Haitians in the Dominican Republic|Languages of the Dominican Republic}}
{{As of|2012}}, the language was also spoken by over 450,000 Haitians who reside in the neighboring [[Dominican Republic]],<ref name="ONE">{{cite web |url=http://countryoffice.unfpa.org/dominicanrepublic/drive/InformeENI-2012-General.pdf#page=163 |title=Primera Encuesta Nacional de Inmigrantes en la República Dominicana |date=2012 |publisher=Oficina Nacional de Estadística |location=Santo Domingo |page=163 |language=es |trans-title=First National Survey of Immigrants in the Dominican Republic |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150621051704/http://countryoffice.unfpa.org/dominicanrepublic/drive/InformeENI-2012-General.pdf#page=163 |archive-date=21 June 2015 |url-status=dead |access-date=17 June 2015 }}</ref> although the locals do not speak it. However, some estimates suggest that there are over a million speakers due to a huge population of undocumented immigrants from Haiti.<ref name="DR1">{{cite news |date=16 August 2005 |title=Illegal Haitians deported |url=http://dr1.com/news/2005/dnews081605.shtml#13 |work=DR1 |access-date=31 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150619103211/http://dr1.com/news/2005/dnews081605.shtml#13 |archive-date=19 June 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>

===The Bahamas===
As of 2009, up to 80,000 Haitians were estimated residing in the Bahamas,<ref name="Davis2009">{{cite web |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8257660.stm |title=Bahamas outlook clouds for Haitians |date=20 September 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150528051439/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8257660.stm |archive-date=28 May 2015 |url-status=live |first=Nick |last=Davis |work=BBC News |location=London }}</ref> where about 20,000 speak Haitian Creole. It is the third most‑spoken language after English and [[Bahamian Creole]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ethnologue.com/country/BS/languages|title=Ethnologue – Bahamas (18th ed.) |work=Ethnologue }}</ref>

==Software==
After the [[2010 Haiti earthquake]], international aid workers desperately needed translation tools for communicating in Haitian Creole. Furthermore, international organizations had little idea whom to contact as translators. As an emergency measure, [[Carnegie Mellon University]] released data for its own research into the public domain.<ref>{{cite web |title=Carnegie Mellon releases data on Haitian Creole to hasten development of translation tools |url=http://esciencenews.com/articles/2010/01/27/carnegie.mellon.releases.data.haitian.creole.hasten.development.translation.tools |website=e!&nbsp;Science News |date=27 January 2010 |access-date=31 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130702160548/http://esciencenews.com/articles/2010/01/27/carnegie.mellon.releases.data.haitian.creole.hasten.development.translation.tools |archive-date= 2 July 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Microsoft Research]] and [[Google Translate]] implemented [[alpha version]] [[machine translators]] based on the Carnegie Mellon data.

Several smartphone apps have been released, including learning with flashcards by [[Before You Know It (software)|Byki]] and two medical dictionaries, one by Educa Vision and a second by [[Ultralingua]], the latter of which includes an audio phrase book and a section on cultural anthropology.

==See also==
{{InterWiki|code=ht}}
{{Portal|Haiti|Languages}}

* [[Afro-Brazilians]]
* [[Akademi Kreyòl Ayisyen]]
* [[Antillean Creole French]]
* [[Creole language]]
* [[Louisiana Creole French]]
* [[Michel DeGraff]]
* [[Radio Haiti-Inter]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book |last=Anglade |first=Pierre |title=Inventaire Étymologique des Termes Créoles des Caraibes d'origine Africaine |date=1998 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Rl9EJfAL68sC |isbn=9782296352582 |publisher=Editions L'Harmattan|language=fr}}
* {{cite book |last=DeGraff |first=Michel |author-link=Michel DeGraff |editor-last=Kenstowicz |editor-first=Michael |date=2001 |chapter=Morphology in Creole genesis: Linguistics and ideology |title=Ken Hale: A life in language |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |publisher=MIT Press |pages=52–121 |chapter-url=http://web.mit.edu/Linguistics/people/faculty/degraff/degraff-hale-festschrift.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150729042902/http://web.mit.edu/linguistics/people/faculty/degraff/degraff-hale-festschrift.pdf |archive-date=29 July 2015 |url-status=live |isbn=978-0-262-61160-2 |lccn=00-061644 |oclc=44702224}}
* {{cite journal |last=Lang |first=George |title=A Primer of Haitian Literature in ''Kreyòl''{{nnbsp}} |journal=Research in African Literatures |volume=35 |date=2004 |pages=128–140 |doi=10.1353/ral.2004.0046 |issue=2 |issn=1527-2044 |jstor=3821349  |s2cid=162026210 }}

==External links==
{{InterWiki|code=ht}}
{{Incubator|ht|Wiktionary}}
{{Wikibooks|Haitian Creole}}
{{Wikiversity|Haitian Creole}}
* {{cite web |title=Indiana University Creole Institute |url=http://www.indiana.edu/~creole/}}
* [[wikt:Appendix:Haitian Creole Swadesh list|Haitian Creole basic vocabulary]] (from Wiktionary's [[wikt:Appendix:Swadesh lists|Swadesh-list appendix]])
*[https://www.hopeforhaitischildren.org/hfhcmedia/Haitian_Creole_English_Dictionary_2nd_printing.pdf Haitian Creole-English dictionary (PDF)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211216143906/https://www.hopeforhaitischildren.org/hfhcmedia/Haitian_Creole_English_Dictionary_2nd_printing.pdf |date=16 December 2021 }}
{{Haiti topics}}
{{Languages derived from French}}
{{Gallo-Romance languages and dialects}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Haitian Creole| ]]
[[Category:French-based pidgins and creoles]]
[[Category:Languages of Haiti]]
[[Category:Languages of the Bahamas]]
[[Category:Languages of Costa Rica]]
[[Category:Languages of Cuba]]
[[Category:Languages of the Dominican Republic]]
[[Category:Languages of the United States]]
[[Category:Subject–verb–object languages]]
[[Category:Languages of the African diaspora]]
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]