In Trinidad and Tobago we have a strong French background and sometimes it really amazes me just how much French has influenced our creole language.
Literally everyone in Trinidad uses oui as a tag. (e.g. I going to sleep now, oui) Very few know how it’s really spelt or that it’s French.
My aunt always uses the word “blague” when she talks about making fun of someone else and I never understood it because I swear that only when I go to Mayaro (a seaside village in the south east of the island) I hear it used frequently.
I didn’t know how to say joke in French, so I looked it up and believe it or not, it’s “blague” … I am 99% certain that’s where my aunt’s “blague” comes from. How or why only people from that village use it is the question I want answered next.
That's because Trinis have a creole background from the smaller islands (Grenada, Dominica, martinique ect) Back in the later 1700s when Trinidad was owned by the Spaniards the country wasnt being used and wasnt very populated so the King of Spain released an official order to the smaller french caribbean islands that basically said any white plantation owners (with their slaves) and any freed slaves can come to trinidad get a piece of land free of tax, become a naturalized citizen, promised military defense of the island and gave them access to trade, all they had to do was pledge their allegiance to the spanish throne. It's called the "Cedula of population". The reason for it was again because the island had basically no habitants and the land was essentially going to waste. So trinis are basically descents of the smaller french caribbean islands. That's why yall have small groups of creole culture and people who know a little patois. Unfortunately the culture and language is dying out in trinidad tho. Also fun fact "blag" is joke in creole coming from the french word "blague" of the same meaning. (If you arent aware the creole/patois spoken in places like Dominica, Haiti, st lucia, martinique, grenada ect is french based) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cedula_of_Population
