Hybrid Compound Formation in Classical and Modern Papiamentu

Papiamentu is a creole language lexified by Portuguese and Spanish. In addition to its Iberian foundational lexicon, it has been influenced by Dutch and English. This study analyzes hybrid compound formation in Classical Papiamentu (CP) and Modern Papiamentu (MP), with a focus on the distribution of etymological sources and morphosyntactic structure. A corpus of 100 hybrid compounds is analyzed according to the etymology of internal components, the distribution of components within the structure of the compound, and their internal grammatical structure. While CP compounds are predominantly headed by Iberian etyma, MP compounds show increased Dutch and English lexical influence, while retaining syntactic properties drawn from Iberian lexifiers, such as a prevalence of prepositional compounds linked by the grammaticalized particle di. This study sheds light on the complex processes of language contact, morphosyntactic formation, and lexical innovation by examining how lexical loanwords from distinct donor languages interact in compound formation across two historical stages. It contributes to the broader understanding of morphosyntactic hybridity and the role of compounding in creole lexical development.