This article is about the language. For the Mauritian ethnic group, see Mauritian Creoles.
Mauritian Creole
kreol morisien, morisien
Pronunciation
[kʁeolmoʁisjɛ̃,-moʁiʃɛ̃]
Native to
Mauritius
Ethnicity
Traditionally Mauritian Creoles
Native speakers
1,090,000 (2012 UNSD)[1] 1,335,000 total speakers L2 speakers: 200,000 (2016)
Language family
French Creole
Bourbonnais Creoles
Mauritian Creole
Dialects
Agalega Chagossian Rodriguan
Writing system
Latin
Official status
Official language in
Mauritius
Regulated by
Akademi Kreol Morisien (Academy of the Mauritian Creole)
Language codes
ISO 639-3
mfe
Glottolog
mori1278
Linguasphere
51-AAC-cec
(to 51-AAC-cee)
A sign post written in Mauritian Creole.
Mauritian Creole or Morisien (formerly spelled Morisyen; native name: kreol morisien[kʁeolmoʁisjɛ̃,-moʁiʃɛ̃]) is a French-based creole language spoken in Mauritius. English words are included in the standardized version of the language. In addition, the slaves and indentured servants from cultures in Africa and Asia left a diverse legacy of language in the country. The words spoken by these groups are also incorporated into contemporary Morisien.
Mauritian Creole is the lingua franca of the Republic of Mauritius, which gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1968. Both English and French are used as alternatives to Mauritian Creole. English is spoken primarily for administration and educational purposes and French is used by the media and as a second language.
Mauritians tend to speak Mauritian Creole at home and French in the workplace. French and English are taught in schools. Though Mauritians are of numerous ethnic origins (including Indian, African, European, and Chinese) Mauritian Creole has gradually replaced the ancestral languages of most of the population to become the primary home language of the country. Today, around 1.3 million people speak the language.
MauritianCreole or Morisien (formerly spelled Morisyen; native name: kreol morisien [kʁeol moʁisjɛ̃, - moʁiʃɛ̃]) is a French-based creole language spoken...
MauritianCreoles are the people on the island of Mauritius and in the wider overseas Mauritian diaspora who trace their roots to Black Africans who were...
Mauritians (singular Mauritian; French: Mauricien; Creole: Morisien) are nationals or natives of the Republic of Mauritius and their descendants. Mauritius...
Languages portal Creole language Agalega creoleMauritiancreole Rodriguan creole Smith, Norval (1994). "26 An annotated list of creoles, pidgins and mixed...
all Mauritians is the MauritianCreole, while a minority of Indo-Mauritians still use both their ancestral language and Creole at home. Indo-Mauritian use...
Fernandino Creole peoples Haitian Creole people Affranchis Afro-Honduran Creoles Liberian Creole people Louisiana Creole people Creoles of color Mauritian Creole...
practised religion. Indo-Mauritians make up the bulk of the population with significant Creole, Sino-Mauritian and Franco-Mauritian minorities. The island's...
Agalega creole is a creole language influenced by French spoken in Agalega. It has been heavily influenced by both MauritianCreole and Seychellois Creole, as...
Mauritians of Chinese origin, also known as Sino-Mauritians or Chinese Mauritians, are Mauritians who trace their ethnic ancestry to China. Like members...
cloves. The creole cuisine is eaten by most Mauritians and has its influences from African, Indian, and French cuisine. MauritianCreole dishes typically...
Rodriguan Creole is a dialect of MauritianCreole, a French-based creole language, spoken on the island of Rodrigues in the Indian Ocean. It is spoken...
laborers. MauritianCreoles (descendants of Africans) are twenty-eight percent of the population. Today, a significant proportion of Creoles are of African...
France. The creole cuisine is eaten by every Mauritian and has its influences from African, Indian, and French cuisine. MauritianCreole dishes typically...
Creole, as the predominant island group is called the Mascarenes. There are six languages in this group: Agalega Creole Chagossian CreoleMauritian Creole...
(parliament) only. While the lingua franca is MauritianCreole, French is spoken by a majority of Mauritians while English is used in Government and education...
Roopun (MauritianCreole pronunciation: [pʁitviʁad͡ʒsiŋ ʁupʌn]) GCSK (born 24 May 1959), also known as Pradeep Singh Roopun, is a Mauritian politician...
The Mauritian rupee (sign: Re (singular) and Rs (plural); ISO code: MUR; pronounced [ʁupi]) is the currency of Mauritius. One rupee is subdivided into...
Greek, Biblical Hebrew, English, Malay, native languages of Indonesia, MauritianCreole, Tagalog, Russian, and Sinhala and Dhivehi. Tamil loanwords in Ancient...
occupation. The MauritianCreole people trace their origins to the plantation owners and slaves who worked in the sugar fields. Indo-Mauritians are descended...
(Indo-Mauritian) follow mostly Hinduism and Islam. The Franco-Mauritians, Creoles and Sino-Mauritians follow Christianity. A minority of Sino-Mauritians also...
Sino-Mauritians eventually became the dominant group within the community. The co-existence of Mauritians of Indian, African (known as MauritianCreoles)...
which are the Indo-Mauritians, Muslims, General Population and Sino-Mauritians. General Population refers to the Creoles, Franco-Mauritians as well as Christians...
national language status with English and French (in contrast to Mauritian and Réunion Creole, which lack official status in Mauritius and France). Since its...
Tamil was gradually replaced by MauritianCreole as the mother tongue of Mauritian Tamils. Nonetheless, most Tamil Mauritians can read and write Tamil as...
Port Louis (French: Port-Louis, [pɔʁ lwi] ; MauritianCreole: Polwi or Porlwi, [poːlwi]) is the capital city of Mauritius. It is mainly located in the...
Global Information
Mauritius
