Creole-Speaking Countries 2024

Jamaica

The Caribbean island nation of Jamaica is one of the more fluent creole-speaking countries. Although it isn't the native tongue, a whopping 94% of the Jamaican population can speak Creole.

Guyana

The people of Guyana are no strangers to speaking Creole. An impressive 96% of those in the South American country of Guyana can speak Creole.

Bahamas

In the Bahamas, Creole isn't an unfamiliar tongue. A reported 89% of the people who live in this Caribbean nation are Creole speaking.

Among all the countries that have a high number of creole-speaking citizens, no other country has more than the Caribbean country of Grenada. In fact, 100% of the people who call Grenada home also speak Creole.

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Another Caribbean nation, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, also speak Creole. An eye-popping 99% of the people in Saint Vincent can use the language.

Costa Rica

While Creole has found a home and popularity in many cultures, it hasn't caught on everywhere. While the country of Costa Rica in Central America speaks Creole, that applies to only 2% of the population.

Antigua and Barbuda

Another Caribbean nation where Creole is a familiar and common tongue is Antiqua and Barbuda. It is estimated that 95% of those in Antiqua can speak Creole.

Dominica

Although Creole isn't the language of the country, in Dominica 100% of the population can speak Creole. That also gives Dominica something in common with other Caribbean nations.

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Not to be outdone, the Caribbean nation of Saint Kitts and Nevis are also creole-speaking people. To be precise, 100% of the people in Saint Kitts and Nevis have the ability to speak this unique language.

Colombia

While the language of Creole isn't a popular one in Colombia, it is a language that may be occasionally heard in this South American country.

Trinidad and Tobago

The Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago are also places where Creole is rarely spoken. In fact, less than 3% of the population speak Creole here.

Honduras

The Central American country of Honduras also has some slight familiarity with Creole, although less than 1% of the people here use the language.

Although the language of Creole is the national language of none, it is spoken by many. Creole is also a very distinctive sound, and it is undoubtedly a unique language. And if you are in the right place, it may also be a fairly common language too.

Linguistically, creole languages are "in-between" languages that appear in regions where people groups who speak separate primary languages need to communicate, so a blended "creole" language develops over time. Due to this unique method of origin, creole languages are rarely an official country language even in countries where some form of creole is widely spoken.

45 countries

Country	Creole Variant(s) Spoken	Subregion	Distribution	# of Native Speakers
Liberia	Liberian Kreyol	Western Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	-
Sri Lanka	Creole-Portuguese	Southern Asia, South Central Asia	-
Guinea Bissau	Creole-Portuguese	Western Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	36.4%	766,000
Equatorial Guinea	Creole-Portuguese	Middle Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	-
Cape Verde	Creole-Portuguese	Western Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	90%	534,000
Sao Tome and Principe	Creole-Portuguese	Middle Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	-
Brazil	Creole-French	South America, Latin America	-
Haiti	Creole-French	Caribbean	100%	10,000,000
Reunion	Creole-French	Eastern Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	91.5%	810,000
French Guiana	Creole-French	South America, Latin America	64.3%	190,000
Cameroon	Creole-English-French-Cameroonian	Middle Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	-
Malaysia	Creole-English, Creole-Portuguese	South-Eastern Asia	-
Grenada	Creole-English, Creole-French	Caribbean	100%	125,000
Dominica	Creole-English, Creole-French	Caribbean	100%	73,000
Guyana	Creole-English, Creole-Dutch	South America, Latin America	96.4%	780,000
United States	Creole-English	Northern America	-
Nigeria	Creole-English	Western Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	-
Japan	Creole-English	Eastern Asia	-
United Kingdom	Creole-English	Northern Europe	-
Colombia	Creole-English	South America, Latin America	0.1%	52,000
Australia	Creole-English	Australia and New Zealand	-
Papua New Guinea	Creole-English	Melanesia	-
Sierra Leone	Creole-English	Western Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	-
Singapore	Creole-English	South-Eastern Asia	-
Costa Rica	Creole-English	Central America, Latin America	2%	104,000
Jamaica	Creole-English	Caribbean	94.2%	2,663,000
Trinidad and Tobago	Creole-English	Caribbean	2.9%	44,000
Suriname	Creole-English	South America, Latin America	-
Belize	Creole-English	Central America, Latin America	32.9%	133,000
Bahamas	Creole-English	Caribbean	89.7%	368,000
Vanuatu	Creole-English	Melanesia	-
Barbados	Creole-English	Caribbean	-
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Creole-English	Caribbean	99.1%	103,000
Antigua and Barbuda	Creole-English	Caribbean	95.7%	90,000
Saint Kitts and Nevis	Creole-English	Caribbean	100%	48,000
Kenya	Creole-Arabic	Eastern Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	-
Uganda	Creole-Arabic	Eastern Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	-
South Sudan	Creole-Arabic	Middle Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	-
India	Creole, Creole-Portuguese	Southern Asia, South Central Asia	-	30,000
Mauritius	Creole, Creole-French	Eastern Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	86.5%	1,092,000
Seychelles	Creole, Creole-French	Eastern Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa	89.1%	89,000
Nicaragua	Creole	Central America, Latin America	0.5%	35,000
Panama	Creole	Central America, Latin America	8.2%	362,000
Sint Maarten	Creole	Caribbean	29%	13,000
Saint Martin	Creole	Caribbean, Latin America	39%	12,000

How many countries speak Creole?

No single nation uses Creole officially. However, 12 countries in and around the Caribbean Sea speak Creole.