English → Jamaican Patois
| Modern English | Jamaican Patois |
|---|---|
| What’s going on? | Wah gwaan? |
| Where are you? | Weh yuh deh? |
| I’ll be there soon. | Mi soon come. |
| Don’t worry yourself. | Nuh worry yuhself. |
| I’m not going. | Mi nah go. |
| See you later. | Likkle more. |
About Jamaican Patois
Jamaican Patois, also called Patwa or Jamaican Creole, is an English-based creole with deep West African roots. It grew out of the colonial era and slavery, and today most Jamaicans speak it alongside English, as do communities in the UK, Canada and the US.
It has its own grammar. “Mi” can mean I, me or my; “deh” means to be somewhere (“mi deh yah”, I am here); and “a” marks an action in progress (“mi a go”, I am going). Spelling is not standardized: linguists use the Cassidy–JLU writing system, while everyday writers spell it as it sounds. This tool uses everyday spelling.
Use it respectfully
Patois is not a joke accent. The translator is built to write it naturally rather than as a caricature, but it is still an approximation. For anything important, such as a tattoo, a sign or a message to someone you care about, ask a Jamaican speaker.
Patois words and phrases
- wah gwaan
- what’s up, what’s going on
- mi
- I, me, my
- yuh
- you, your
- deh
- to be (somewhere); there
- nuh
- don’t, not
- likkle
- little
- pickney
- child
- yaad
- home (also: Jamaica)
- irie
- good, at peace
- soon come
- coming soon, be there soon