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A Gullah Alphabet
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Written by Margie Clary Illustrated by Dennis Brown (A Sweet, Sweet Basket)
A celebration of the
beautiful and melodious Gullah language
The Gullah spoken in
South Joe Harold Middleton, a well-known Gullah storyteller,
made Gullah come alive to all who knew him. His
knowledge and presentation of the language through the
telling of stories brought enjoyment to all. It was
Joe who inspired this book. He died in February of 2007
while collaborating on this Gullah alphabet translation.
Review by The Times and Democrat
R iz fa
de rice dat grow ney de sea.
Y iz fa de yaad him brush frum de hous ta de road.
V iz fa de vamint en de daak we see.
W iz fa de wagin dat tote de hebby lode.
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About the Author:
MARGIE WILLIS CLARY is a retired elementary school
teacher, a professional storyteller, and a published author. She
holds a masters in education. Clary is actively involved with
the National Association of Storytellers, The International
Reading Association, The Society of Children’s Book Writers
and Illustrators, and state and local arts councils. Her other
books include
Searching the Lights, Spirits & Legends, Make It
Three: The Story of the CSS H. L. Hunley, and
A Sweet, Sweet
Basket. Clary lives in Charleston with her husband Ralph.
• Margie Clary can be contacted by email at
mwclary@juno.com.
About
the Illustrator:
DENNIS LEE BROWN is a self-taught painter. He grew up in South
Carolina and lives in Charleston. This is the second project on
which he has collaborated with Margie Clary. His beautiful pastels
in
A Sweet, Sweet Basket bring the
art and tradition of sweetgrass basketweaving to life. In A
Gullah Alphabet, Brown’s connection with the Lowcountry and the
Gullah people who inhabit the islands is obvious.
• For information on his artwork and availability, Dennis Brown can
be contacted by email at
dlbrown04@knology.net.
From the Introduction:
It is said that the Gullah language originated around
1700 among the Africans who were brought to America to work. They
came from the continent’s rice-growing region on the West Coast,
countries we now know as Senegal, Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau,
Guinea, and Liberia. With the rise in demand for rice grown on the
southern plantations, it was important to look for laborers skilled
in rice production. It was the skill of these Gullah farmers that
made rice one of the most successful industries in the colony of
Carolina.
A second group of Africans came through the ports of
Charleston and Savannah from Angola in southern Africa. Others came
from Ghana and the West Indies. It is believed by some that the word
“Gullah” was derived from “Gola,” the Africans’ pronunciation of
Angola.
Coming from over two dozen ethic backgrounds, all
speaking different languages, it was difficult for the Africans to
communicate with one another. Out of necessity, they had to develop
a means of communication. Their first efforts produced what is
called pidgin English. During the following generation they formed a
Creole language called Gullah. Gullah refers to the
spoken language. Verbs have no tense. Pronouns have no gender.
“That’s he book” can refer to a girl’s or a boy’s book.
As Gullah has, over the generations, been a spoken
language, preserving this beautiful and melodious speech in writing
has been difficult. The American Bible Society made a notable effort
with the translation of the Gospel of Luke into contemporary Gullah.
Before her death in 1994, South Carolina Gullah storyteller Tita
Heins was assisting Wycliffe Publishers in translating the Bible. De
Nyew Testament was published in 2005. Virginia Mixson Geraty of
Yonges Island, near Charleston, did much research into the Gullah
language before her death in 2006. In 1997, she published
Gulluh Fuh Oonuh (Gullah for You), A
Guide to the Gullah Language [Sandlapper Publishing Co.,
Inc.]. Joe Harold Middleton, a well-known Gullah storyteller and a
personal friend, made Gullah come alive to all who knew him. His
knowledge and presentation of the language through the telling of
stories brought enjoyment to all ages. It was Joe who inspired me to
pen this book. We were collaborating on the Gullah alphabet
translation when he died in February of this year.
A Gullah Alphabet is written to introduce children to
the beauty of the Gullah language. My hope is, it will encourage
further research and study of the language and culture. A
taste often leads to a bigger helping!
Margie Clary
Where to buy?
Our books are available at bookstores, gift shops, museums, outfitters, schools, libraries and online booksellers.
To order direct call 800-849-7263
Also, visit the Sandlapper Book Outlet at 1281 Amelia Street in Orangeburg, Monday through Thursday, 9:00-5:00.
Carolina extends from Georgetown
onto the sea islands of Charleston and Beaufort and down to Hilton Head. The gullah used
in this text is spoken on Johns Island and Wadmalaw Island
