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Antiguan and Barbudan English
Region	Antigua and Barbuda
Language family	Indo-European Germanic West Germanic North Sea Germanic Anglo–Frisian Anglic English Caribbean English Antiguan and Barbudan English
Early forms	Old English Middle English Early Modern English
Dialects	Antiguan and Barbudan Creole
Writing system	Latin (English alphabet) Unified English Braille
Official status
Official language in	Antigua and Barbuda (de facto)
Language codes
ISO 639-3	–
Glottolog	None
IETF	en-AG

Antiguan and Barbudan English (ABE) or Antiguan and Barbudan Standard English is a dialect of English used in Antigua and Barbuda. ABE co-exists with Antiguan and Barbudan Creole.

History

The English language was brought to Antigua and Barbuda by settlers in the 1620s. The first confirmed English settlement in Antigua and Barbuda was established in 1632. In 1674, the first sugar plantation was established in the country. This is when the first African slaves were brought to the country, and soon, the majority of people in Antigua and Barbuda were of African descent. When speakers of Antiguan English made contact with these Antiguan slaves, Antiguan and Barbudan Creole emerged.

During the colonial era, ABE remained the dominant dialect of English in Antigua and Barbuda, being used in official documents and in formal settings. By the twentieth-century, a culture of code-switching emerged, especially in the education system, where ABE was used as the official language of academic communication. When Antigua and Barbuda gained independence in 1981, English was mentioned in the Constitution as the language to be used in parliamentary proceedings, but not as the official language. As of December 2024, no law in Antigua and Barbuda establishes ABE or any other language as official.

As of the last census in 2011, most immigrants living in Antigua and Barbuda come from an English-speaking country. This includes the top four countries that send immigrants to Antigua and Barbuda.

Phonetics and phonology

The dialect is generally non-rhotic, and glottal stops are rare. Questions usually do not have the rising intonation that other dialects may have, and vowel length distinctions are less prominent. Open vowels are also present, and diphthongs have been known to be pronounced as monophthongs (time is /taːm/ and face is /fɛs/). Trap and bath may be pronounced with an open /a/ sound.

Vocabulary

While ABE is influenced by British English, non-British terms are frequently used. Prominent examples include parking lot instead of car park and traveler instead of traveller.

See also

• Regional accents of English speakers

References

1. "Unified English Braille (UEB)". Braille Authority of North America (BANA). 2 November 2016. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
2. Lanaghan. Antigua and the Antiguans. p. 12.
3. "Unearthing Antigua's slave past". BBC News. 28 February 2016. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
4. Ballester, Teresa Galarza (2014). "An outline of the social history of the creole language of Antigua (West Indies)" (PDF). Language and Migration. University of Alcalá. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
5. McDonald, Natalie (May 2012). Language Hegemony in Education: An Antiguan Perspective (PDF). Retrieved 14 December 2024.
6. "Antigua and Barbuda: Constitution, 1981" (PDF). laws.gov.ag. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
7. "Laws or Acts of Parliament In Alphabetical Order". laws.gov.ag. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
8. "Q58. Country of birth" (PDF).
9. Hector, H. X. (14 December 2024). "Antiguan and Barbudan English: A basic overview". Axarplex. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
10. Michael (15 July 2021). "Committal adjourned for alleged parking lot thief". Antigua Observer Newspaper. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
11. Radio, ABS TV (3 June 2021). "CHANGES TO COVID-19 TESTING PROTOCOLS FOR TRAVELERS - ABS TV Radio Antigua & Barbuda". Retrieved 14 December 2024.

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