Embedding Papiamentu in the Mixed Language Debate

Abstract

This paper takes as a point of departure the hypothesis that Papiamentu

descends from Upper Guinea Portuguese Creole (a term covering the sister varieties

of the Cape Verde Islands and Guinea-Bissau and Casamance), speakers of which arrived on Curaçao in the second half of the 17th century, subsequently shi/ed their basic content vocabulary towards Spanish, but maintained the original morphosyntax. .is scenario raises the question of whether, in addition to being a creole, Papiamentu can be analyzed as a so-called mixed (or intertwined) language. .e present paper positively answers this question by drawing parallels between (the emergence of) Papiamentu and recognized mixed languages.