We may not think of Jamaica as a bilingual society, but local bloggers are assuring us that it is. English and Patois—or Patwa, as it's often written—are widely spoken, but the Jamaican mother ...

While most words in Jamaican patois have English origins, much of its grammar derives from the languages of West Africa, so it can be nearly incomprehensible to foreigners. The language was created by ...

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Walk into any government office, courtroom or classroom in Jamaica, and you’ll be expected to speak the official language, English. But venture into the street, tune into a radio ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. A teacher points to a blackboard in a school in Jamaica. As Jamaica continues to loosen its ties with the British monarchy, ...

Igbo culture and languages, as well as other cultures from Africa, were key in forming the Jamaican Patois language and culture during the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. The Jamaican Patois is a ...

(AP) When English teacher Faith Linton first proposed translating the Bible into Jamaica’s patois tongue in the late 1950s, most people who heard the idea shook their heads. Some on the deeply ...