Bajan Slang - Language of Barbados
Bajan slang is the English dialect spoken on the Caribbean island of Barbados. And just to make it clear English is the official language of Barbados. Some people have asked us to explain the specifics of the Bajan slang.
Bajan slang, English mixed with a few African words
Bajan English is influenced by the African culture. That means a few terms do have an African origin. For example 'coucou' (a local dish) or the word 'okra' (a vegetable). But compared to other Caribbean islands the language in Barbados contains less terms with an African origin. Barbadian English is also called Bajan dialect or Bajan English but the majority simply calls it Bajan slang.
Bajan Slang pronunciation - characteristics
Barbadians speaking Bajan slang sometimes pronunce certain words differently. For example th is spoken like a t therefore the word three sounds more like tree. Things like that can sometimes be a bit confusing. Another characteristic of the Bajan Slang is that some Barbadians don't speak full sentences - Bajans like to use 'short cuts'.
Tip for conversations on Barbados
It will may happen to you, that you aren't able to follow a Bajan during a conversation. Most Barbadians are very friendly - and if reminded - they will make an effort to speak ordinary english. As you may already have noticed, I do sometimes use the word Bajan and sometimes Barbadian. I also recommend you our article about another commonly ask question: What is right? - Bajan or Barbadian?