West Africa · Cape Verde·871K+ speakers

Cape Verdean Creole to English & English to Kriolu Translator

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Cape Verdean Creole

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Common Cape Verdean Creole Phrases

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Kriolu	English
	Hello
	Good morning
	Good afternoon
	Good evening / Good night
	How are you?
	Very well
	Thank you
	Goodbye

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About Cape Verdean Creole

Cape Verdean Creole (Kabuverdianu, also called Kriolu) is a Portuguese-lexified creole spoken across Cape Verde's islands and a large global diaspora — more Cape Verdeans live abroad than on the islands themselves, concentrated especially in the US (Massachusetts, Rhode Island), Portugal, France, and the Netherlands. It's often cited as one of the oldest creole languages still spoken, since Cape Verde had no prior population when Portuguese settlement began in the 15th century — the creole formed directly from contact between Portuguese settlers and enslaved West Africans on the then-uninhabited islands. The language splits into two main dialect branches: Barlavento (windward/northern islands) and Sotavento (leeward/southern islands, including the Santiago/Badiu variety often considered the most conservative form). Ethnologue, cited on the Wikipedia language page, counted 871,000 native speakers in 2017. Its ISO 639-3 code is kea.

871K+

Speakers worldwide

West Africa

Cape Verde

Did you know?

Wikipedia calls Cape Verdean Creole the oldest living creole, and the most widely spoken Portuguese-based creole.

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History of Cape Verdean Creole

Origins, evolution, and cultural impact

Cape Verdean Creole (Kabuverdianu, also called Kriolu) is a Portuguese-lexified creole spoken across Cape Verde's islands and a large global diaspora. More Cape Verdeans live abroad than on the islands themselves, concentrated especially in the US (Massachusetts, Rhode Island), Portugal, France, and the Netherlands. It is often cited as one of the oldest creole languages still spoken: Cape Verde had no prior population when Portuguese settlement began in the 15th century, and the creole formed directly from contact between Portuguese settlers and enslaved West Africans on the then-uninhabited islands. The language splits into two main dialect branches, Barlavento (windward, northern islands) and Sotavento (leeward, southern islands, including the Santiago variety, also called Badiu).

Formation on Santiago

Portuguese ships reached the archipelago between 1456 and 1460. Santiago, in the Sotavento group, became the historical center: both the old capital, Ribeira Grande (now Cidade Velha), and the present capital, Praia, are on that island. Royal privileges in 1466 and 1472 let Santiago's colonists trade along the West African coast. They arrived without servants, and cohabitation with enslaved Africans began at once. A. Carreira, as summarized on the Wikipedia article, traces the creole to a Portuguese pidgin that formed on Santiago from the 15th century. The APiCS survey of Santiago Creole says the language arose during this first period of the island's history, with more Portuguese-influenced speech in the ports and a more basilectal variety inland, where cotton, horses, and cloth were produced. Indirect evidence cited there (Lang 2006) indicates that Wolof speakers were the majority among the earliest enslaved people landed at Santiago. Later, as Cape Verdean merchants traded farther south, speakers of other Atlantic languages (including Diola, Manjaku, Balanta, and Temne) and of Mande languages, especially Mandinka, became more numerous. From 1565 the Portuguese coastal monopoly weakened. By the 1582 report of Francisco de Andrade, Santiago's population was about 13,400, and the late-16th-century crisis leveled town and country in ways that favored the more rural variety.

Two Branches, Island by Island

Wikipedia's account of settlement, cross-checked against linguistic comparison, spreads the creole in three phases. Santiago was occupied in the second half of the 15th century, then Fogo at the end of the 16th century. São Nicolau and Santo Antão followed, mostly in the second half of the 17th century. The remaining islands were settled from those earlier ones: Brava from Fogo, mostly at the start of the 18th century; Boa Vista and Maio through the 18th century; São Vicente and Sal mostly in the 19th century. São Vicente's settlers came largely from Santo Antão and São Nicolau. Scholars in Cape Verde usually call each island's speech a variant. Sotavento covers Brava, Fogo, Santiago, and Maio. Barlavento covers Boa Vista, Sal, São Nicolau, São Vicente, and Santo Antão. From a social point of view, Santiago and São Vicente matter most: they are the varieties of Praia and Mindelo, they have the most speakers, and São Vicente Creole is also widely used in the diaspora. Santiago speakers call their variety Badiu (APiCS records the autoglossonym badíu). The interior of Santiago, especially Santa Catarina, is described as the most conservative Santiago speech. The same sentence is built differently in the two cities. Santiago uses papia for "to speak" and Es fla-m for "they told me"; São Vicente uses fala and Es dze-m. The progressive is N sa-ta kanta on Santiago and N ti ta kanta on São Vicente. Sotavento marks an unfinished past by adding -ba to the verb. Barlavento uses tava before the verb.

Portuguese Beside Kriolu

Portuguese is still Cape Verde's only official language, and Creole is the first language of nearly the whole population on the islands. The two live in diglossia, with code-switching in informal speech and a continuum from basilectal Creole toward Portuguese. In 1975 Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau became independent as one state. A coup in Guinea-Bissau ended that union in 1981, and Cape Verde has been a separate republic since. A multiparty system replaced the one-party state in 1991. A 2005 government resolution set conditions for making Creole official, and a 2015 resolution superseded it. That officialization has not happened. One reason is that the language is not standardized: speakers are reluctant to write a variant that is not their own. The recognized alphabet is ALUPEC, the Alfabeto Unificado para a Escrita do Caboverdiano. Decree-Law No. 67/98 approved it for official use on an experimental basis in 1998, for five years. Decree-Law No. 8/2009 institutionalized it in 2009. The same law allows other writing systems when they are presented systematically. ALUPEC is recognized, and it is not mandatory. The first known grammar of Santiago Creole was written in 1885 by António de Paula Brito and published in 1888. In 1982 Manuel Veiga published Diskrison strutural di lingua Kabuverdianu, a description kept separate from the other varieties.

Key Timeline

1456–1460

Portuguese ships reach the archipelago; Santiago becomes the early center of settlement

15th–16th centuries

Cape Verdean Creole forms on Santiago from contact between Portuguese settlers and enslaved West Africans

19th century

São Vicente is settled mainly from Santo Antão and São Nicolau; its Barlavento variety develops

1888

António de Paula Brito's Santiago Creole grammar, written in 1885, is published

1975

Cape Verde becomes independent from Portugal; Portuguese remains the only official language

1998

Decree-Law 67/98 approves ALUPEC experimentally for five years

2009

Decree-Law 8/2009 institutionalizes ALUPEC; use stays optional

Linguistic Features

Portuguese Lexifier

Wikipedia puts roughly 90 to 95 percent of the vocabulary with Portuguese, while the grammar diverges enough that an untrained Portuguese speaker struggles with a basic conversation. Verbs drop the Portuguese infinitive -r: kanta from cantar.

Aspect Markers

Tense and aspect use particles rather than conjugation. N ta da is "I give." The progressive differs by island: N sa-ta kanta on Santiago, N ti ta kanta on São Vicente. An unfinished past takes -ba on the verb in Sotavento (N ta daba) and tava before the verb in Barlavento (N tava da).

Negation with ka

The negator ka sits after the subject and before any aspect marker: Nu ka ta bibe, "We don't drink." Santo Antão uses n' instead: Mi n' kre, "I don't want."

West African Substrate

The non-Portuguese remainder is traced to West African languages. APiCS, citing Lang 2006, says Wolof speakers were the majority among the first enslaved people at Santiago, with later arrivals including speakers of Temne, Balanta, Manjaku, and Mandinka.

Cultural Significance

Kriolu is the everyday language of Cape Verdean identity, while Portuguese holds schools, administration, and official acts. Written Creole has a long literary trail. Eugénio Tavares of Brava published Mornas – cantigas crioulas, one of the early books of creole texts. Wikipedia's dialect survey also names Santiago writers such as Tomé Varela da Silva, and São Vicente writers such as Sérgio Frusoni and Ovídio Martins. Frusoni translated a gospel poem into São Vicente Creole. The first grammar, Brito's of 1885, was itself written in Santiago Creole beside a Portuguese column.

Current Status

Ethnologue, cited on Wikipedia, counted 871,000 native speakers in 2017. APiCS describes about one million speakers in the archipelago and abroad, and notes that not everyone in the diaspora has full command. On the islands, nearly everyone speaks a local variety as a first language. Portuguese is still the only official language. ALUPEC has been the recognized alphabet since Decree-Law 8/2009, and writers are not required to use it. Diaspora communities keep the language in New England (especially the Boston area), Portugal, the Netherlands, France, and elsewhere. Santiago Creole alone accounts for a large share: APiCS estimates about 250,000 speakers on Santiago and another 250,000 in diaspora communities around the Atlantic.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Cape Verdean Creole (Kabuverdianu, also called Kriolu) is a Portuguese-lexified creole and the first language of nearly everyone in Cape Verde. It formed on the islands after Portuguese settlement began in the 15th century, and it is also spoken in diaspora communities, especially in the northeastern United States, Portugal, France, and the Netherlands. Its ISO 639-3 code is kea. Ethnologue counted 871,000 native speakers in 2017.

No. It is a distinct language. Most of its vocabulary comes from Portuguese (Wikipedia puts the share at about 90 to 95 percent), but the grammar is different, and an untrained Portuguese speaker will struggle to follow a basic conversation. Portuguese remains Cape Verde's only official language.

They are varieties of the same language. Santiago Creole is a Sotavento (southern) variety, spoken in Praia and across Santiago. Speakers also call it Badiu. São Vicente Creole is a Barlavento (northern) variety, spoken in Mindelo, and it is widely used in the diaspora. The same idea is built differently: Santiago uses papia for "to speak" and Es fla-m for "they told me," while São Vicente uses fala and Es dze-m. The progressive is N sa-ta kanta on Santiago and N ti ta kanta on São Vicente.

Both. Everyday speakers usually say Kriolu (or Kriol). Kabuverdianu is the fuller name, used in formal writing and in the ALUPEC standard. You will also see Kriolu Kabuverdianu.

No. Portuguese is still the only official language. Cape Verdean Creole is the first language of nearly everyone on the islands, and the two languages are used side by side.

Ethnologue, cited on Wikipedia, counted 871,000 native speakers in 2017. APiCS describes about one million speakers in Cape Verde and abroad, and notes that not everyone in the diaspora has full command of the language.

The alphabet officially recognized by Cape Verde is ALUPEC (Alfabeto Unificado para a Escrita do Caboverdiano). Decree-Law 67/98 approved it experimentally in 1998. Decree-Law 8/2009 institutionalized it in 2009. It is recognized, and it is not mandatory.

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