Creolisation and Hybridization

Process of cultural change in the Caribbean- acculturation, plural society;

Creolisation as agued by Edward Kama Braithwaite, douglarisation,
hybridization and erasure, retention and renewal of cultural practices
Creolisation_ refers to any kind of fusion of
CREOLISATION AND
people, ideas, customs, culture and beliefs to
HYBRIDIZATION
create a different form or likeness which may
In the modern society of
or may not be very similar to the original. today ,Caribbean Societies are
( creole tends to take on different forms characterized by a high
which can appear to be similar or different to degree of the hybridization
and Creolisation which is
the original but they always differ in essence classified to be more difficult
nature and context) (a result of hybridization) than that of the times of
Social Strafication.

Hybridization- refers to processes of

cultural and ethnic mixing to produce new or
‘creole’ forms( as a form of result of
European Colonisation
There are a number of theories concerning society, culture and change and
how each concept intervene at different times.
 Enculturation is a process of socialization whereby a person becomes part
of another’s culture.

 Assimilation occurs when a dominant group makes a bid to enculturate

another by attempting to supplant all aspects of its culture and make it
over into the image of the dominant group.

 Transculturation describes the process whereby a culture changes

drastically, actually overcoming itself and translating into something new

 Interculturation refers to the mixing of cultures that goes on between

groups who share a space.

Cultural Changes in the Caribbean

 Acculturation_ means socialization into another, more dominant culture,
whether it be the culture of a colonial power, or that of a migrant’s host
country

 Plural Society_ is the existence of separate and distinct ethic or racial

communities within society which may come together for a number of
common functions such as work or recreation but which preserves their own
societal institutions, especially language, the family and religion.

 Douglarization_ refers to the mixing of cultures occurring between the two

groups, Afro-Trinidadians and East Indians, which has not always been
harmonious. That being said, there is quite a noticeable presence of
‘Douglas’ in the society today. Their presence suggests that the apparently
deep polarization between the two major ethnic groups in Trinidad and
Tobago is a complex phenomenon that cannot be easily explained or
described. There are discernible ‘pockets’ of mixing and mingling that go on
despite historical attitudes and prejudices that are still dominant.

Terms Of The Process

One of the major exponents of Creolisation is Edward
Kama Braithwaite. According to Braithwaite, Caribbean
society ‘began’ on the slave ships and the plantations
through the processes of seasoning into life in the New
World. This Creolisation thesis recognizes the multiple
and unending variations between and among Caribbean
peoples and their cultures and subcultures and
emphasizes the creativity that comes out of the clash
between cultures, with some groups being in a dominant
or hegemonic position. It rejects western views of
acculturation and introduces us to the complexity of
cultural mixing in the Caribbean.

Creolisation Argued by Edward.K.

Braithwaite