Non-European and Indo-European pidgins and creoles: are there principled
typological differences?
Peter Bakker, Aarhus University
In a study involving more than 152 non-creole languages and 34 pidgins and creoles, it
appeared that pidgins and creoles cluster together (Bakker, Daval-Markussen &
Parkvall), separate from the non-creoles. Techniques developed in evolutionary biology
were used to draw phylogenetic trees and networks. The results show that these younger
languages form a typological subgroup, distinct from non-creoles. This was based on
between 30 and 46 structural features.
Out of the 34 pidgins and creoles studied, five had a non-European base.
These five languages appear to cluster together in two groupings. In another study
involving a smaller sample of 18 creoles (no pidgins), the non-European lexifier creoles
also appear to cluster together.
In this paper we will discuss the results and interpret them. In comparison
with non-creoles, the non-European creoles and European creoles form one grouping, but
within the creoles, the non-European ones appear to stand out.