Jamaican Songtext
von Macka B

Well it′s about time them recognize Jamaican as an official language
Known as Patois, but Patois is English that's broken
But it′s not broken, it's a language that's universally spoken

Jamaican, that a way you talk, mi bredda Jamaican
That a way you talk, sista Jamaican
That a way you talk, mi bredda Jamaican
Talk how you talk, sista

Not so long ago down in Africa
We were talking African to one another
Some wicked man come cross we border
Say we a the slave and say him a the owner
Put we pon a big ship together
Separate the mother, father, sister, and brother
Put a man from Ghana with a man from Nigeria
One a talk Ashanti, one a talk Yoruba
Try to mix we up so we don′t understand
Them forget a African invent communication
We take them English, put in we African
And touch a Arawak, Indian


And we get Jamaican, that a so we talk, mi bredda Jamaican
That a where we talk, sista Jamaican
Talk how you talk, mi bredda Jamaican
Yeah man

Everywhere me go, people waan learn Jamaican
Them love the sound, them love the vibration
Them love the grammar, the word combinations
Spoken inna Jamaica by the whole of the nation
Some people tell you say, you haffi talk the English
Them think Jamaican is a lower language
We talk the English when we want, but a listen to this
Out of the English and Jamaican, which sound the sweetest?


Look at that (Ko deh)
What for? (Fi wah?)
Go away (Gweh)
Look here (Ko yah)
Here (Yaso)
There (Geh so)
Where are you going? (A weh yah go?)
Come over here (Come yah nuh)
I see (Awoh)
What are you eating? (Weh yah nyam?)
That′s how I am (A so me tan)
Leave me alone (Lef' me nuh)
Go on (Ga long)
Fanky, funky, labba, labba
Su, su, su, su, bu, bu, yaga
Pya, pya, chaka, chaka
Ray, ray, warra, warra

Can′t forget the influence of Rasta
Give them the Ital and the Irie and the Isient Iyah
You have your language, you can chat how you waan
Nobody can't tell you say, you can′t

Jamaican, that a way you talk, mi bredda Jamaican
That a way you talk, sista Jamaican
Talk how you talk, mi bredda Jamaican
Talk how you talk, sista Jamaican
That a way you talk, mi bredda Jamaican
That a way you talk, sista Jamaican
Talk how you talk, mi bredda Jamaican
Talk how you talk, sista

Whether you call it Jamaican or you call it Patois
A the language of the people dem from Jamaica
It based upon the English, but that nuh matter
Most languages based pon another
English, it isn't old English, kind of new
Come from other languages like languages do
If you think English is English through and through
Maccabees got news for you
′Cause words like "dinghy" and "bungalow" are Bengali
"Admiral" is Arabic, also "safari"
"Noodle" and "poodle" and "swindle" and "strudel"
And "wrangle" and "snargle" come from Germany
"Hallelujah", "jubilee" are from the Hebrew
"Bandana" is from Hindi, also "shampoo"
"Manager", "propaganda", "umbrella", "influenza"
"Ghetto studio" are Italian too
"Kidnap" and "trip", they are Danish
"Sauna" is Finnish, "brick" is Flemish
"Biscuit" and "picnic" and "trophy" and "dentist" and "chauffeur"
All come from the French language
"December", "November", "October", "September"
Comes from the Latin, so does "August"
"Splinter" and "plug" and "drug", they are Dutch
You nuh see the English, it mix up?

Jamaican, that a way we talk, mi bredda Jamaican
That a way you talk, sista Jamaican
Talk how you talk, mi bredda Jamaican
Talk how you talk, sista Jamaican
That a way we talk, mi bredda Jamaican
That a way you talk, sista Jamaican
Talk how you talk, mi bredda Jamaican
Talk how you talk, sista