Definition

Noun: 1. A simplified language: A pidgin is a grammatically simplified form of a language that develops as a means of communication between groups of people who do not share a common language. It typically has a limited vocabulary and simplified structure, drawing elements from the languages of its users. It is not the native language of any speech community. 2. A contact language for specific purposes: A pidgin often arises for specific, practical purposes such as trade, commerce, or administration between groups with different linguistic backgrounds.

Usage

• Pidgins are contact languages created for immediate, practical communication.
• They are characterized by simplified grammar and a limited vocabulary.
• A pidgin is not anyone's first language; it is a second language for all its speakers.
• The term is often used in the compound form "pidgin English," referring to a pidgin based on the English language.

Examples

• Noun:
  • Tok Pisin, a language of Papua New Guinea, began as a pidgin based on English.
  • In the 19th century, a pidgin developed for trade between Chinese merchants and English sailors.
  • They used a simple pidgin to negotiate the price of goods.

Advanced Usage

• Pidginization: The process by which a pidgin is formed, involving simplification and reduction of languages in contact.
• Creole: When a pidgin becomes the native first language of a community, it undergoes expansion and stabilization to become a creole language. For example, a pidgin may evolve into a creole.

Variants and Related Words

• Pidgin English (n): A specific type of pidgin language that is lexified primarily by English. Example:
• Pidginization (n): The linguistic process of creating a pidgin.
• Creole (n): A stable, natural language that has developed from a pidgin and become the native language of a community.

Synonyms

• Contact language
• Trade language
• Lingua franca (Note: A lingua franca is often an existing, full language used for communication between different groups, whereas a pidgin is a newly created, simplified language.)

Idioms and Fixed Phrases

• That's not my pidgin: (British English, informal, dated) This idiom means "that is not my business or concern." It derives from a reinterpretation of "pidgin" as a corruption of the word "business."
  • Example: "How they manage their budget is not my pidgin."

Noun

1. an artificial language used for trade between speakers of different languages