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There are many theories on the formation of the Haitian Creole language.

One theory estimates that Haitian Creole developed between 1680 and 1740. During the 16th and 17th centuries, French and Spanish colonizers produced tobacco, cotton, and sugar on the island. Throughout this period, the population was made up of roughly equal numbers of engagés (employed whites), gens de couleur and slaves. Singler estimates the economy shifted into sugar production in 1690, just prior to the official formation of the French colony of Saint-Domingue in 1697. The sugar crops required a much larger labor force which lead to an increase in slave importation. In the 18th century an estimated 800,000 West-African individuals were enslaved and brought to Saint-Domingue. As the slave population increased, interactions between French-speaking colonists and slaves decreased.

Role in society[edit]

Although both French and Haitian Creole are official languages in Haiti, French is often considered more prestigious. This ideology stems from the French colonial period; French was the spoken and written language of the European elite and Haitian Creole was the oral language of the slave population.

Valdman explains that in Haiti today, only a small group of elites are bilingual in Haitian French Creole and French. Several scholars estimate that between 3% - 5% of the Haitian population are literate in French while the majority of the population living in rural locations have limited exposure to French. For this minority of Haitian population that are bilingual, the relationship between French and Haitian Creole can be described as diglossic. The use of these two languages largely depends on the social context: generally, French is used in formal situations (government, business, education) whereas Haitian Creole is used on a daily basis for communicative purposes.

For the majority of the Haitian population, Haitian Creole is used in formal and informal settings:

French plays no role in the very formal situation of a Haitian peasant (more than 80% of the population make a living from agriculture) presiding at a family gathering after the death of a member, or at the worship of the family lwa or voodoo spirits, or contacting a Catholic priest for a church baptism, marriage, or solemn mass, or consulting a physician, nurse, or dentist, or going to a civil officer to declare a death or birth.

— Yves Dejean

Use in educational system[edit]

Historically, the Haitian educational system has been French-dominant. During the period of French rule, the colony of Saint-Domingue had few educational institutions. Many children of wealthy families were sent to France to receive their education. Haitian Creole developed as an oral language with no association to the written practices of French society.

In 1979, Haitian Creole was officially granted acceptance into the Haitian educational system. The Bernard Reform of 1979 decreed that Haitian Creole would be an educational tool and that it would be a subject in school. This legislation proposed that the first four years of primary school would be instructed in Haitian Creole mixed with spoken French. In the following six years of school, Haitian Creole would be taught separately as a subject.

The implementation of the Bernard Reform has not been very successful and the use of Haitian Creole in the educational sphere has grown in a very limited way. The government is still trying to expand the use of Haitian Creole and improve the school system. French is still designated as the primary language of instruction in schools but outside of elite schools, due to a lack of resources and training, Haitian Creole is spoken instead.

The use of Haitian Creole in the classroom has been found to have positive effects on learning. In 2010, the National Science Foundation funded the first project of reading, writing, mathematics and science books in Haitian Creole at Lèkol Kominotè Matènwa (LKM) in Matènwa, La Gonâve. Primary students wrote books and practiced math through interactive technology in Haitian Creole. The LKM students using Haitian Creole course materials demonstrated higher levels of scholastic achievement in comparison to students at neighbouring schools.