The Origin of Pidgin and Creole: Polygenesis Versus Monogenesis Theory

Among an array of the theories of the pidgin andregarding the base language (here, letus wishfully
creole languages of the worldassumed, discussed,suppose that it is Bangla)to be the ultimate single
confirmed and dismissed by the internationalorigin of all the pidginsand creoles generated from
sociolinguists eitherthis time or the other, theBangla in distant parts of the world. Thus, the
polygenesis and monogenesis theories posemonogenesishypothesis conquers over the
counter ratificationto be behind the sociolingusticpolygenesis hypothesis to be the substantiated
phenomenon of the world observed by almost alltheory oforigin of pidgins and creoles of the world.
thesociolinguists as expressed by RonaldThe monogenesis theory of pidgin and creole
Wardhaugh (1986) in his book “Anpostulates that pidgins and creoles of theworld
Introduction tocan be traced back to a single origin like the
Sociolingustics” (72) that “Pidgins frommonogenetic theory of worldlanguage. “In
very different parts of the world exhibitlinguistics, monogenism refers to the theory that
remarkable similarities in structures even whenall languages derive froma single Proto-World
the standard languages they are associated withlanguage, as opposed to the view that language
are quitedifferent. Furthermore, pidgins andmay have evolvedindependently on more than
creoles based on the same standar language butone occasion”(Wikipedia). Therefore, “the
found in places far distant from one another mayquest to discover a common origin for pidgins and
have a high degree of intelligibility, e.g., the variouscreoles –that is the quest for a monogenesis
pidginized and creolized varieties of French foundtheory oforigin rather than a polygenesis theory
geographically as far apart as the Carribean , the–is now a serious one”(Wardhaugh
Indian Ocean ,and the South74).Likewise,there must have been a proto-pidgin
Pacific.”from which all the pidgin and creoles of the
The antonymous polygenesis and monogenesisworldare originated and distributed in different
theories of the origin of pidgins andcreoles of theparts of the world. For example, Bangla could
world are derived from the anthropological andhave been the supposed proto-pidgin for all the
linguistic concepts ofpolygenism and monogenismprobable pidginized and creolized pairs of
of races and languages of the world. TheBangla and other local languages of the distant
advocates of polygenesis theories subscribe toparts of the world.
the hypothesis of multiplicity of origins of theIn fact, beside the parallelism of the Biblical
pidginsand creoles of the world, a generatedassumption of the origin of the genesis of human
reflection of the polygenetic hypothesis ofraces and the monogenesis theory of world
themultiple origins of the languages of the worldlanguages ,the monogenesis theory ofpidgins and
.For instance, if we suppose for the timebeingcreoles of the world earns its due natural position
that Bangla has somehow got the necessitatedof the general acceptance
status of being the intermediarybasic linguistic(ensuring the disconfirmation of the polygenesis
means of trade and commerce in a number oftheory)of the sociolinguists.
disparate regions of theworld far from eachBibliography:
other, the simplified pidginized forms of it could be1.Wardhaugh, Ronald.An Introduction to
distinct fromeach other firstly because of theirSociolinguisctis.Oxford: Blackwell, 1986.
distant existences and then because of their2.Richards, J.Platt, J and Weber, H. Longman
associationwith the varied indigenous languages.Dictionary of Applied Linguistics.
However, the inevitable critical inquiry comesUK: Longman, 1985.