Creole Exam Dialectal Variation 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which term describes a creole that has shifted back toward its lexifier language over time due to social pressure?
- Decreolization (Correct answer)
- Hypercreolization
- Pidginization
- Relexification
Correct answer: Decreolization
Decreolization occurs when a creole adopts more features of the prestigious lexifier language, often due to education or social mobility pressures.
Question 2: In Haitian Creole, the article system differs from French primarily in that articles are:
- Postposed after the noun (Correct answer)
- Completely absent
- Identical to French articles
- Always definite
Correct answer: Postposed after the noun
Haitian Creole places definite articles after the noun (e.g., 'kay la' = 'the house'), unlike French where articles precede the noun.
Question 3: The speech variety closest to the standard language on the creole continuum is called the:
- Basilect
- Mesolect
- Acrolect (Correct answer)
- Superstrate
Correct answer: Acrolect
The acrolect is the variety of speech on a creole continuum that most closely resembles the standard or prestige language.
Question 4: Which US state has been historically associated with Louisiana Creole, a French-based creole language?
- Mississippi
- Louisiana (Correct answer)
- Alabama
- Georgia
Correct answer: Louisiana
Louisiana Creole developed among enslaved and free Black populations in Louisiana and is still spoken there today.
Question 5: Gullah, spoken on the Sea Islands of South Carolina and Georgia, is primarily lexified by which language?
- Portuguese
- French
- English (Correct answer)
- Spanish
Correct answer: English
Gullah is an English-based creole that developed among enslaved Africans on the Sea Islands and retains many West African grammatical features.
Question 6: Which feature is commonly found across many creole languages regardless of their lexifier?
- Grammatical gender agreement
- TMA (Tense-Mood-Aspect) preverbal markers (Correct answer)
- Complex case inflections
- Obligatory verb conjugation for person
Correct answer: TMA (Tense-Mood-Aspect) preverbal markers
Preverbal TMA markers are a near-universal feature of creole languages, where separate words before the verb indicate tense, mood, and aspect.
Question 7: In sociolinguistics, 'code-switching' in creole-speaking communities most often refers to:
- Forgetting one's native language
- Alternating between the creole and the lexifier language within a conversation (Correct answer)
- Using only the basilect variety
- Writing creole in a standardized script
Correct answer: Alternating between the creole and the lexifier language within a conversation
Code-switching in creole communities involves alternating between the creole and its lexifier (e.g., Haitian Creole and French) depending on social context.
Creole Exam Dialectal Variation 2
Which term describes a creole that has shifted back toward its lexifier language over time due to social pressure?