DUTCH SIDE ENGLISH
A Dutch St. Maarten accent is pretty particular, and very different from a French St. Martin accent, I can generally hear it even when we're yankin' in proper English. It is distinctly different then the English patois of Jamaica and the other British Isles, due in no small part to our learning Dutch in school and influences from our French neighbors and North American visitors. Unlike in Aruba, Curacao and Bonaire where there is a distinctly Hispanic bend to their accents, due to their proximity to South America, Saba's accent is most similar to ours. A St. Maarten accent is difficult to place if you have never heard it, and unless you're from here, or have been here, you may have never heard it.
Click the pic to go to this interesting article about Papiamentu in the Willemstad Journal.
Dushi - Sweet, Delicious, or Tasty. Dushi is also regularly used as a term of endearment.
Sushi - Sounds like: Sushi - Means: Dirty Bong - Good |
PAPIAMENTO / PAPIAMENTUThough there is some debate as to the exact origins of Papiamentu, it's most likely derived from African Pidgin and Iberian with some Dutch and Spanish Influences.
Papiamento pretty much has two main dialects: Papiamento in Aruba sounds a little more like Spanish, with many words in ending with "o". Many of those words are the same in the Papiamentu of Curaçao and Bonaire, but end with "u" instead of an "o". This difference is likely attributable to the influences of the relatively large population of Sephardic Jews on Curacao since the 1600's. 
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