Page 16 - AHATA

Tuesday 4 November 2025 locAl
A10

Origin of Papiamento- Aruba’s native language

ORANJESTAD — Papia- but which we never saw in
mento, Creole language of the history of Portugal that
ABC (Aruba, Bonaire and we study from primary edu-
Curacao) is from the Cape cation to higher education.
Verdean Creole family However, it has always been
(Cape Verdean language) tried to deceive us, in colo-
and was taken to the Carib- nial time, that we were de-
bean in the 9th century by scendants of Viriato (Iberian
the Cape Verdeans of that hero in the fight against the
time (linings and slaves), Romans) and the pastors of
experts in cane culture and the Hermini Mountains, but
sugar production, and who not much speaking of our
were hired by Jewish en- black-African ancestry.
trepreneurs who went to
invest in this business in the We Cape Verdeans under-
Caribbean. Cape Verdeans stand each other very well
taught this pre-industrial rev- with these Antillans and East-
olution technology (planting erns, whose language is from
cane and producing sugar, the same Creole family of
which they had learned Cape Verde (Cape Verdean
from Madeirans) to slaves language), speaking their
from other African regions, Creole and we ours. There-
and did so in their language, fore, Papiamento, Papi Cris-
Cape Verde Creole (Cape tang, Patuá Macaense and
Verdean language) , hence the creoles, said of Portu-
the language implanted in is not true. Papiamento is not Papi Cristang of Malacca, coast of Africa (from Senegal guese origin, Daman, India,
Aruba, Bonaire and Cura- direct from Portuguese, Gali- the Patuá of Macau, and to Sierra Leone), and which Sri Lanka, Myanmar, some lo-
cao. cian or Castilian, it is from the several creoles from the was taken east by the thou- cations in the Philippines and
Cape Verde Creole family east (from Daman, Sri Lan- sands of cable – Verdeans some places in Indonesia,
Unlike many interesting (Cape Verdean language). ka, Myanmar, Philippines, (linings and slaves, already are creoles of the language
stories, wanting to link Pa- You can see this best when Indonesia) and Africa (Casa- Christianized and speaking family Cape Verde Creole
piamento directly to Portu- it’s saying obscene words mança, Guinea Bissau, Sierra Creole) who served as sailors (Cape Verdean language)
guese, Galician or Castilian and offending someone, Leone and Nigeria, these last and “slaves of arms′′ in Portu- and indirectly the Galaico-
(see Papiamento, on Wiki- precisely as they say today in two releases to the English), guese caravels, demanding Duriense or Galaico-Portu-
pedia – Portuguese version both ABC and Cape Verde all originated in the Creole of the east. I don’t know why guese, a language that the
and Spanish version, where islands. The obscene words Cabo Verde (Cape Verdean the official history of Portu- people spoke in Portugal in
the Portuguese and Spanish, kept the original, had no language), which was the gal usually omits this fact, the 6th and 7th century.q
each claim the direct origin lexical influence either from French language spoken in which is in the chronicles of
of Papiamento), in fact, this Castilian or Dutch. Also the Portuguese feitories on the the quinrentist chroniclers, Source: Dushi Aruba

Aruba’s kite flying tradition

(Oranjestad)—Every year leading up to King’s Day.
for King’s Day, Arubans These kites were tradition-
gather with friends and ally made with things found
family to fly kites. Big or in the nearby mondi* and in
small, paper or plastic, the kitchen at home. Using
blue skies fill up with these dried up cactus sticks for
colorful flying contraptions, the frame, old news papers,
brightening our yearly cel- and glue made from flour,
ebration of the Dutch Mon- water and salt to dry faster
arch. (some people even use
cornstarch slurry as glue),
The tradition of flying kites kids usually make their own
starts at home in the weeks kites with their friends, par-
ents or other close family create their own designs— and whose could fly flaw-
members. Tails are made the more colorful, the bet- lessly and longer in the air.
from old bed sheets, ripped ter! For this year’s celebration,
and tied together to create Centro di Bario Playa Pa-
a long string of fabric trail- People usually fly their kites bao located in Madiki is
ing behind the back end in big open fields, like emp- organizing another edition
of the kite. To finish off the ty soccer and baseball of their kite flying event
process, people used fish fields found all around the with different categories of
lines or thin rope to tie three island around noon, when height starting at 8AM.
corners of the kite together. the sun is at its brightest.
Another long string of rope Gather your family and be
is tied in the knotted center In the past few years, kite a part of this colorful Aru-
and bundled up, used to flying has become a sport ban tradition in celebration
steer the kite as it flies in the in which groups of people of our King Willem-Alexan-
air. Decorating the kite was would battle against each der’s birthday!
especially important, and other to see whose kite is
children would use paint to the biggest, the prettiest, *Mondi: Aruban woods.q