Sisters Under the Skin

This paper shows that the Atlantic English-based Creoles share six features which are derivable neither from superstratal, substratal, nor universal influences, and therefore constitute idiosyncratic correspondences. The six features indicate that these Creoles all derive from a single ancestor of expanded structure, in contrast to the dominant polygenetic scenario under which the Atlantic English-based Creoles emerged, in essence, independently of one another in their respective locations. The findings have implications for all conceptions of creole genesis, in arguing for diffusion as a pivotal, rather than marginal factor. The features discussed are copulas da and de, pronoun unu, anterior marker bin, adverbial self and the obligative verb fu.