kreol

Kreol is a term used in many Francophone regions to refer to Creole languages and, in some contexts, to the communities that speak them. As a linguistic category, Kreol encompasses languages that emerged from contact between European lexifiers—most often French, English, or Portuguese—and local substrate languages in colonial settings from the 17th century onward. While these languages share features such as simplified grammar and a lexicon derived largely from the European source, each Kreol has its own phonology, syntax, and idioms.

Major varieties commonly associated with the term include Mauritian Kreol (Kreol Morisien), Réunion Creole (Kréol Réyoné), Seychellois Creole (Kreol Seselwa), and Haitian Creole (Kreyòl Ayisyen). Kreol languages are used in daily speech, storytelling, media, and increasingly in education and literature, though the level of official recognition and institutional support varies by country. For example, Haitian Creole has official status alongside French in Haiti; other Kreol varieties often enjoy growing use in schools and public life, accompanied by standardized orthographies in some contexts.

Linguists study Kreol languages as natural products of language contact, transmission, and change, offering insight into how stable languages can arise from multilingual beginnings and become integral to cultural identity. See also Creole language, Haitian Creole, Mauritian Kreol, Réunion Creole, Seychellois Creole.