Pidgin Needs Your Help!

Many old time Pidgin words are being lost. This was the impetus for well-known Pidgin writer and activist Lee A. Tonouchi author/creator of Hybolics Magazine and Living Pidgin: Contemplations on Pidgin Culture to begin the community Pidgin dictionary project, Da Kine Dictionary with The Bess Press. Tonouchi, more commonly known as the ‘Pidgin Guerrilla” appears in dozens of publications throughout the state of Hawai'i and is fast becoming an authority on Pidgin language. Most recently, Lee Tonouchi’s Da Word collection of his own short stories won the 2002 Ka Palapala Po`okela Award from the Hawai'i Book Publishers Association. With many entries to date from Hawai'i’s community; both young and old are welcomed to submit Pidgin phrases for Da Kine Dictionary, to preserve as well as perpetuate this ever changing language.

Your assistance is requested! Here is what we need:

• The word of phrase with its definition written in Pidgin
• The word of phrase used in a sentence in Pidgin
• The origin of the word of phrase (optional)
• Provide your name, what high school you graduated from, the year you graduated, or the year you are expected to graduate (if submission is chosen, this information will appear in the book)
• Your current place of residence

The goal of the dictionary will be to learn the Pidgin language as told from those who use it the most! Compiled with the collaboration of generations of Hawai'i islanders, the dictionary will aid in documenting this Hawai'i Creole English with its ever evolving meanings and sound, passed on from one generation to the next. We seek your help in celebrating the Pidgin culture in Hawai'i. Don’t let the Pidgin die out!

Those who submit and are chosen for inclusion in the book will receive a complimentary copy upon publication. Please send word proposals to www.dakinedictinary.com where submissions can be directly emailed, or the form can be printed out and returned via mail to The Bess Press Attn: Cara @ 3565 Harding Avenue Honolulu, HI 96816. Please phone (808) 734-7159 ext. 21 for a form to be sent to your address, or visit us at The Bess Pres offices. For additional inquires, please contact Bess Press at 734-7159 ext. 21 or info@besspress.com.