Kreyol Ayisyen
Haitian Creole
- Global speakers: 7,613,800
- Glottocode: hait1244
- ISO 639-3: hat
Haiti experienced despotic rule and economic despair in the latter half of the 20th century, leading tens of thousands of Haitians to move to the United States. New York became home to the densest concentration of Haitians outside Haiti, a heterogenous mix including educated elites, members of the middle class, and poorer communities forced to sail to Florida before heading northbound. Originally on the Upper West Side and in Harlem, the Haitian epicenter of the city can now be found between Flatbush and Canarsie: Haitian grocery stores, restaurants, churches, barber shops, and bars line Nostrand, Flatbush and Church Avenues with signs in both English and Haitian Creole. Communities have also grown up in a large area of eastern Queens and elsewhere throughout the five boroughs and the region. In addition to the estimated 106,000 Haitian Creole speakers in New York, 2015-2019 American Community Survey data estimates that 7,401 French speakers were born in Haiti, many of whom may speak Haitian Creole as well.
Sites
NYC neighborhoods or towns in the metro region where the language community has a significant site, marked by a point on the map:
Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Queens
Rockland
Manhattan
Additional neighborhoods (NYC only)
- Flatlands
- Mill Basin
- Flatbush
- Prospect Lefferts Gardens
- Cambria Heights
- Laurelton
- Springfield Gardens
- Rosedale