Sercquiais facts for kids

Sercquiais (pronounced like "ser-k-yay"), also known as Sarkese or Sark-French, is a special language. It is a type of Norman language spoken on the small Channel Island of Sark. Sark is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey.

Sercquiais comes from an older version of Jèrriais. This was the language spoken by the first families who settled on Sark in the 1500s. These families mostly came from Saint Ouen in Jersey. The island of Sark was empty before they arrived. Over time, the language was also influenced by Guernésiais, which is the language of Guernsey. Sercquiais is also similar to Auregnais, a language from Alderney that no longer exists. Many older people on Sark still speak Sercquiais. Also, most of the local place names on the island are in Sercquiais.

Writing Sercquiais

Not much Sercquiais has been written down over the years. Because of this, there isn't one agreed-upon way to write it. Some people even thought it could "never be written down." This idea was shared by Sibyl Hathaway, a famous ruler of Sark who spoke the language herself.

One of the oldest known texts written in Sercquiais is a part of the Bible. It is called the Parable of the Sower from the Gospel of Matthew. A linguist (someone who studies languages) named Prince Louis Lucien Bonaparte visited the Channel Islands in 1862. He wrote down examples of the island languages, including Sercquiais. He published them in 1863.

Here is a small part of the Parable of the Sower in Sercquiais:

This means in English:

(3) "[...] A farmer went out to sow his seed.

(4) As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.

"

Sercquiais Today

In 2022, there were only three people who spoke Sercquiais as their first language. This means it is a very endangered language. A linguist from the Czech Republic, Martin Neudörfl, is working hard to save it. He teaches Sercquiais to children on Sark. He has also made many recordings of people speaking the language. These recordings help to save how the language sounds and its rhythm. Since 2019, Sercquiais has been taught in schools on Sark.

How Sercquiais Sounds

Sercquiais has some unique sounds compared to other similar languages. For example, it does not have a "th" sound like in English "this." This sound is found in the Jèrriais spoken in Saint Ouen, where the first settlers came from.

Here are some words to show how Sercquiais is different from Jèrriais:

Sercquiais also keeps some sounds that have changed in Jèrriais. For example, the "k" and "g" sounds before "y" are kept in Sercquiais. In Jèrriais, these sounds often change to "ch" or "j" sounds.

• For "hiccup," Sercquiais says hekyet, but Jèrriais says hitchet.
• For "war," Sercquiais says gyer, but Jèrriais says dgèrre.

Another difference is with the "t" sound. In Sercquiais, the "t" sound is often kept. In Jèrriais, it can change to a "ch" sound. For example, "profession" or "trade" is meeti in Sercquiais. In Jèrriais, it is mêtchi.

Sercquiais also keeps a "j" sound where Jèrriais has a softer "zh" sound. For example, "to eat" is mãdji in Sercquiais and mangi in Jèrriais.

Sometimes, the last sound of a word in Sercquiais can be pronounced or not. For example, "cat" can be kat or ka. But when you talk about more than one cat (plural), the last sound is always dropped. So, "cats" is kaa. This shows that how long you say a vowel sound can change the meaning of a word.

Sercquiais has also kept some ending sounds that Jèrriais has completely lost. For example, the "t" sound at the end of pret (meaning "meadow") is kept in Sercquiais. In Jèrriais, it is pré, just like in French.

Verb Endings

The way verbs are used in Sercquiais shows its connection to the Saint Ouen dialect of Jèrriais. For example, when talking about what "they" or "you" did in the past, Sercquiais uses an ending like -dr. This ending is common in Saint Ouen Jèrriais but not in other parts of Jersey.

Here are some examples: