Why do so many people not know what language Jamaicans speak
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Why do so many people outside of Jamaica not know what language Jamaicans speak? I'm not Jamaican or have met any that I remember, and I always knew it was English, or a different dialect of it, yet most people I asked about Jamaica (which is just less than 10 people) had no clue what language Jamaicans speak. Only two knew it was English, but they were more knowledgeable about countries. The rest were like "...African? Jamaican?" or "Spanish or Jamaican" or "uhhhhh... I dunno."
Or is it because Jamaica is a small country and we don't hear much about it?
Why would anyone outside care, really?
i'm guessing most people don't know that Iranians speak Farsi, either.
Jamaicans speak English and a "patois" pidgin language of English and older African dialects. I only read the first post so far, but almost everyone I know, they know that Jamaicans primarily speak English. Jamaicans according to many people, speak better English than the English lol.
I am from Ohio and didn't grow up around Jamaicans. I never met one in person until I was in college. I did listen to reggae music though because my grandmother was a huge Bob Marley fan. All of his songs are in English that I remember. I also listened to more mainstream reggae of the 90s era when I was younger - Buju Banton was one of my favorites.
Is there a reason they should know? There're a lot of places where the language spoken is unknown. What makes Jamaica so special as compared, say, to Tasmania?
Jamaicans speak English and a "patois" pidgin language of English and older African dialects. I only read the first post so far, but almost everyone I know, they know that Jamaicans primarily speak English. Jamaicans according to many people, speak better English than the English lol.
I am from Ohio and didn't grow up around Jamaicans. I never met one in person until I was in college. I did listen to reggae music though because my grandmother was a huge Bob Marley fan. All of his songs are in English that I remember. I also listened to more mainstream reggae of the 90s era when I was younger - Buju Banton was one of my favorites.
Just this past Sunday I asked my youth group (predominantly black teenagers) how many had ever heard of Bob Marley.
A minority of them raised their hands.
I then asked if they knew Bob Marley's native language.
Just this past Sunday I asked my youth group (predominantly black teenagers) how many had ever heard of Bob Marley.
A minority of them raised their hands.
I then asked if they knew Bob Marley's native language.
None of them raised their hands.
If any of your students like 'old school' hip hop, they'll probably recognize DJ Kool Herc - he always acknowledged his Jamaican roots/reggae influence. I think he's from Kingston (not country).
Is there a reason they should know? There're a lot of places where the language spoken is unknown. What makes Jamaica so special as compared, say, to Tasmania?
Well, there are a lot of Jamaican people in New York and the surrounding area. People eat Jamaican food even if they are not Jamaican. Not so many Tasmanians. No Tasmanian food trucks that I've ever seen.
But people outside the NY Metro area might not be exposed to any more Jamaicans than they are Tasmanians.
You would think that everyone knows who Bob Marley was, though. Or Shaggy back in the 90s.
Well, there are a lot of Jamaican people in New York and the surrounding area. People eat Jamaican food even if they are not Jamaican. Not so many Tasmanians. No Tasmanian food trucks that I've ever seen.
But people outside the NY Metro area might not be exposed to any more Jamaicans than they are Tasmanians.
You would think that everyone knows who Bob Marley was, though. Or Shaggy back in the 90s.
The majority of people in America don't listen to raggae music. Really. Certainly not enough to know what Bob Marley's native language was. Most wouldn't have known what Ricky Martin's native language was, and most didn't listen to him, either.
It's important to be able to speak the correct language when buying weed.
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