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PATOIS

Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language | 1998 | | Copyright

PATOIS [Pronunciation: ‘patwa’].
1. A non-technical term for a DIALECT, especially if it has low status in relation to a STANDARD, literary language: peasants speaking a local patois. Although it is strongly associated with French, the term has been used for such a variety of any language, often to suggest low, mixed usage: ‘“Alas” cried she, in a patois dialect, between French and Spanish’ ( Charlotte Smith, Ethelinde, 1789); ‘To ascertain that she had nothing patois in her dialect’ ( Hannah More, Female Education, 1799).

2. The SLANG or JARGON of a particular group: a criminal patois.

3. Also sometimes Patwa. A common name for a Caribbean CREOLE, especially Jamaican Creole (usually without the definite article): ‘She said something in patois and went on washing up’ ( Jean Rhys, Voyage in the Dark, 1934). The meaning varies according to location. In Dominica, St Lucia, Grenada, and Trinidad, it refers to the French-based Creole of the Lesser Antilles. In Guyana, the term is not popular, Creolese being preferred. In those countries where French-based Creole is the major VERNACULAR (St Lucia and Dominica), there is a growing feeling that the term is pejorative and Creole or Kweyol is often used instead. Compare ARGOT, BRITISH BLACK ENGLISH, CANT, LINGO.

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TOM McARTHUR. "PATOIS." Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

TOM McARTHUR. "PATOIS." Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O29-PATOIS.html

TOM McARTHUR. "PATOIS." Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1998. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O29-PATOIS.html

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patois

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English | 2009 | Copyright

pat·ois / ˈpaˌtwä; ˈpä-/ • n. (pl. same ) the dialect of the common people of a region, differing in various respects from the standard language of the rest of the country: the nurse talked to me in a patois that even Italians would have had difficulty in understanding. ∎ the jargon or informal speech used by a particular social group: the raunchy patois of inner-city kids.

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"patois." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-patois.html

"patois." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-patois.html

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patois

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology | 1996 | | Copyright

patois local dialect, spec. of France or French Switzerland; hence gen. XVII. — (O)F. patois ‘rough speech’, perh. f. OF. patoier handle roughly, trample, f. patte paw.

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T. F. HOAD. "patois." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

T. F. HOAD. "patois." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 12, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-patois.html

T. F. HOAD. "patois." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-patois.html

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patois

Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes | 2007 | Copyright

patois •Valois • chamois •fatwa, patois •wah-wah • Hardwar • memoir •Renoir • peignoir • pissoir • Chippewa •François, Françoise •renvoi • Vaudois • boudoir •pourboire • bourgeois • abattoir •fille de joie • Delacroix • repertoire •conservatoire • reservoir

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"patois." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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"patois." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved February 12, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-patois.html

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Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Saving the patois HERITAGE: Cash lifeline to help preserve a dialect under... Newspaper article from: Birmingham Evening Mail (England); 9/19/2006
	Jean Rhys's postmodern narrative authority: Selina's patois in "Let Them Call... Magazine article from: College Literature; 3/22/2008
	The language of sunshine; City course on Jamaican patois.(News) Newspaper article from: Birmingham Evening Mail (England); 3/2/2005