CREOLE, TELL US WHICH PART OF ASIA YOU COME FROM...
Clicanoo.com (Reunion, 23.03.09)
Particularly original, the "Etymological dictionary of Creole from Reunion. Words of Asian origin" of Pascal Marion offers a collection of definitions. Independent researcher and rebellious, the author has not received the support of French universities unlike the universties of Portugal and USA.
Who knows that the word Creole "Caria" (termite) comes from the Tamil through the Indo-Portuguese? Who remembers the delicious "sarcives" comes from the Cantonese "cha Siou", literally "roasted fork"? This is a collection of words and definitions proposed by Pascal Marion in his amazing "Etymological dictionary of Creole from Reunion. Words of Asian origin." Not content to give the etymological origin, sometimes very old (like the word Karan which comes from the Sanskrit "officer, scribe"), he pushed the detail to replicate the ancient words in their original spelling. It goes from the Chinese characters to Tamil Hindi, Sanskrit, Gujarati,Bengali and Arabic writings, in a remarkable reading comfort. He also discovered many original Malagasy words (like "roumazave") and a map of the Austronesian languages, to which Malagasy belongs.
CDI IN COLLEGES AND HIGH SCHOOLS
This choice of linguistic adventurer did not win the accession of the french academic world, in which Pascal Marion submitted its work. He was particularly criticized for having preferred the words of Indian origin (at the expense of other Asian origin), and not proposing sufficient entries in its dictionary. The author defends himself: "India has much more influenced Creole meetings, including with the words Indo-Muslim". The absence of the word "Hajj"? "This is not a religious dictionary," says Pascal Marion, who prefers to remain distant from the concept of "community" which is dividing the Reunionese society at present. Another criticism of this self-taught linguist: he has transcribed the words in Creole as a etymologic spelling. While the absence of a written standard, academics wish that the documents are published with a minimum of two graphs: an etymological (from the French spelling) and newly developed phonological (eg KWZ). Pascal Marion refuses strongly: "In the old documents, written Creole with a C, not with a K!" So there! Independent researcher and rebellious, Pascal Marion has a passion for anthropology and India, the country of his wife, and learnt Hindi, Bengali and Tamil. In the family, we also speak English, and explain the Creole words. In a encyclopedic curiosity ("I read several hundred books to write the dictionary"), the author wants to give to the new generations informations that Reunionese families do not give anymore. "Sometimes, I see that the friends of my children do not know some Creole words," says this father. "I see parents who talk in French to their children". I believe that Creole will disappear and I regret that very much. Because Creole is the language that has formatted Reunion, Creole connects us to Europe.
Etymological dictionary of Creole from Reunion. Words of Asian origin. 236 definitions of words, several pieces of poetry or Creole songs, and 25 colour pages of reproductions of old documents, drawings, including maps of Asia. Price: 49.95 euros, to order the Carré de sucre Editions