Learning Trinidad and Tobago Patois 🇹🇹

Learning Trinidad and Tobago Patois/ Creole
My dad's country

Standard English is the national language of the two island country Trinidad & Tobago, or Trinbago. After Standard English, everyone speaks Trinbago Patois/ Creole, and other languages.

Trinidad & Tobago is a heavily multicultural country, with the majority of people being of Indian or African descent. The language of Trinbago has influence from the British, French, Spanish, Portuguese, African Yoruba, Lebanese, Syrian, Hindustani, Tamil, Cantonese, Hakka, Indigenous Trinbago Caribs, Indigenous Trinbago Arawaks, and many more! 

Music

• Soca
• Calypso
• Chutney

Indigenous Trinis and Tobagonians 

• Caribs 
• Arawak Lokono
• Arawak Shebaya, this ethnicity is now extinct
• Warao, this ethnicity is also found in Venezuela (Venezuela is right beside Trinbago)
• Yao, this ethnicity is now extinct

Phrases

• Lick - Hit 
• Padna - Partner/ Significant Other
• Obeah - Sorcery/ Witchcraft in the Caribbean
• Awa - Or what
• Eh-Eh! - Exclamation! 
• Eh-Eh! - Disapproval 
• Eh-Eh! - Oooh what's the gossip 
• Allyuh - You all
• Whappun - What happened

• Yuh ass buss - You are in trouble
• Buss yuh ass - Beat you up
• Dutty - Dirty
• Whey yuh dey? - Where are you?
• Chupid - Stupid
• Chupidness - Stupidness
• Do hot yuh head - Don't worry about it
• Bol face - Bold face meaning like bossy

• Oh Lawd! - Oh Lord! Exclamation! 
• Vex - Angry 
• Whey/Whey Sah - Something shocking, astonishing or unbelievable 
• Yuh hear! - You hear! Exclamation! 
• Jus now - Wait a lot time 
• Down the road 
• The usual spot

• Bacannal - Drama/Party/Gossip/Trouble/Commotion
• Fete - Party
• Liming - Partying/ Hanging out
• Playing Mas - Playing masquerade, wearing masquerade costumes during Carnival 
• Carnival - Big street party with a masquerade competition

Food & Drink

• Doubles - Doubles are two pieces of bara with a chickpea channa inside
• Dhalpuri - Round flat bread with chickpeas inside
• Buss up shut - Thin soft flaky flatbread that's been ripped up like a busted up shirt
• Sada - Soft flat bread
• Paratha - Thin soft flat bread
• Roti - Round flat bread

• Aloo pie - A fried bread with potato filling
• Aloo - Potato (from Bhojpuri Hindustani)
• Pelau - a mixture of rice, beans, etc cooked together
• Bake - Fried bread
• Pholourie - Fried dough balls

• Macaroni pie - Macaroni baked with crumbs sprinkled to make it crunchy
• Cassava pone - The fruit cassava is made into a paste pie shape
• Lo mein - A dish with noodles and other ingredients
• Callaloo - A green leafy vegetable 
• Okra - A vegetable
• Zaboca - Avocado
• Black pudding - just google it lol
• Solo - A sugary fizzy coloured drink
• Peardrax - A sugary fizzy pear flavour drink 

My Favourite Trini Songs

• Trini to de bone
• Obeah man  by The Mighty Sparrow
• One cent, five cent, ten cent, dollar
• Tiney Winey