| Bislama | |
|---|---|
| Bichelamar | |
| Bislama | |
| Region | Vanuatu |
Native speakers | 10,000 (2011)[1] 200,000 L2 speakers[citation needed] |
English Creole
| |
| Latin, Avoiuli (local) | |
| Official status | |
Official language in | Vanuatu |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-1 | bi |
| ISO 639-2 | bis |
| ISO 639-3 | bis |
| Glottolog | bisl1239 |
| Linguasphere | 52-ABB-ce |
Bislama (English: /ˈbɪsləmɑː/ BISS-lə-mah;[2] Bislama: [biˈslama]; also known by its earlier French name, bichelamar[3] [biʃlamaʁ]) is an English-based creole language. It is the national language of Vanuatu, and one of the three official languages of the country, the other ones being English and French. Bislama is the first language of many of the "Urban ni-Vanuatu" (citizens who live in Port Vila and Luganville) and the second language of much of the rest of the country's residents. The lyrics of "Yumi, Yumi, Yumi", the country's national anthem, are composed in Bislama.
More than 95% of Bislama words are of English origin, whilst the remainder comprises a few dozen words from French as well as some specific vocabulary inherited from various languages of Vanuatu—although these are essentially limited to flora and fauna terminology.[4] While the influence of these vernacular languages is low on the vocabulary side, it is very high in the morphosyntax. As such, Bislama can be described simply as a language with an English vocabulary and an Oceanic grammar and phonology.[5]