Help with Rasta lingo

[visionist]

I'm about to begin my 40 page dissertation screenplay and one main character is a Jamaican. I'm not well versed in even the differences between Creole/Patois let alone a fluent grasp of the language. Is there anybody here who could help me translate phrases from plain English into something akin to Little Jacob's dialect in IV? To begin in the following weeks and months.

 

Cheers.

[Ziggy455]

I'm about to begin my 40 page dissertation screenplay and one main character is a Jamaican. I'm not well versed in even the differences between Creole/Patois let alone a fluent grasp of the language. Is there anybody here who could help me translate phrases from plain English into something akin to Little Jacob's dialect in IV? To begin in the following weeks and months.

 

Cheers.

Give me a starter line, I'll see what I can do.

[Omnia sunt Communia]

Give me a starter line, I'll see what I can do.

I don't think he wants you to write his dissertation for him, he wants some advice.

 

There is no right or wrong way to write accents in dialogue. The easiest way for me has always been to write what you hear. Listen to someone with a Jamaican accent speak and try to copy down what they say. You can be as phonetic as you want. Once you've got a few lines down start to look over it and pick out commonly used words, phrases, slang and any noticeable accent. Then you can start to apply that to your dialogue.

 

I would suggest writing your character's dialogue in plain English first and then adapting it to sound more Jamaican afterwards.

 

A good place to start might be GTA IV (if you have it). Watch the cut scenes that involve Little Jacob and Real Badman with the subtitles on and start to pick up on what they're saying and how they say it.

 

Alternatively, online How-to guides are a goldmine of information. eHow's guide on How to Speak With a Jamaican Accent is full of useful tips. Just apply the same steps to your writing. Also this page will give you an introduction to the Jamaican alphabet so you can start to imagine how your character might pronounce different words and phrases.

 

Hope that helped.

[Spaghetti Cat]

give this a shot...

 

I lived in the islands for about a year when I was a kid, was able to pick up a few things, but I may be a bit rusty...but I'll give it a try anyways.

 

So I guess the first thing to consider is that what is considered "Rasta" or "Island" is actually three different languages rolled into one. You have English, French, and Spanish all combined together. Where you are depends on which one is more pronounced. For example, hati or the DR has a french accent, Jamaica and the VI is more english, while Cuba and the islands southward are more spanish flavor. Since were just talking about Jamaica we'll stick with the english accent.

 

A good place to start is the links Jacky provided (good to see you around btw). It's more of the tourist version of how to talk, but it's a good starting point. Although I'd try and stay away from overusing 'mon' a whole lot, it's kinda cliche. It's good every once and a while, but not everything is "hey mon" this or "yo mon" that. Just FYI.

 

Compound words:

 

Islanders have a hard time saying words with 'th' or 'ch' in it. So, for example, 'the' would sound like 'de'. The number 'three' would be 'tree'. Names like 'Chris' would be 'ish' or 'fish'. So anytime you'd have any compounds like this you'd need to change the dialog to fit. Also silent letters, like 'Knife', wouldn't have that silent letter accented. ("Twas stabbed by a 'nife")

 

You can use words like 'Ras' 'Cha' or 'Bumbaclot' but I'd start looking these up. Jacky provided you with two links, and I believe that the wiki has a rastafarian page. These would be good resources as far as diction.

 

One final thing, islanders are very superstitious. Now this isn't limited to people who practice voodoo, even good christians are wary of things that can bring bad luck. Dead bodies, black cats, and other superstitions would be something that your character would avoid (or have as a good plot point).

 

Hope that helps