Mixed-language

Article

A mixed language is a language that results from the merger of two other languages. The phenomenon has been mostly observed in colonial scenarios during the early modern and modern ages, which resulted in the production of pidgin and creole languages (Cotticelli Kurras 2007).

In general, when two languages overlap for a long enough period of time, a mixed language is one of the possible outcomes. When this is indeed the case, generally the most prestigious language (in colonial areas, the language of the colonists) will lend the lexicon, while the grammatical structures will come from the local substrate (or substrata), although in several cases the situation can be more balanaced and less polarized. For a recent presentation, see Meakins and Stewart 2022.

Example

Most examples come from the modern world, while no clear example emerged in antiquity. To some extent, English could be seen as a mixed language, combining Germanic and Latin features through the influence of French, but it can be debated whether this characterization is methodologically correct.

References

Meakins F and Stewart J. Mixed Languages. In: Mufwene S, Escobar AM (eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Language Contact: Volume 2. Cambridge, pp. 310-343.