Datapoint Bahamian Creole/Predicative locative phrases

Copula occurrence is variable with predicative locative phrases. In general, the form of choice is is, with am and are seldom appearing. Shilling (1978: 59) indicates, however, that "more important in +LOC environment than the few examples of is are substantial numbers of sentences with de, be, does ... be, and, in the past, bin." De, however, is exclusively basilectal and occurs mostly on the so-called Out Islands rather than in Nassau (cf. Shilling 1978: 60); even in the basilect, however, its frequency is low, and speakers "far more frequently have zero + LOC". For other conditioning factors, cf. Feature 74 "Predicative adjectives".

Values

Variable copula

Example 12-181:
I de here every night.
I
1sg.sbj
de
cop
here
loc
every
every
night.
night
I’m here every night.

Source: Shilling 1978: 60

Example 12-182:
[...] his wife is a pastor. I forget what they church name. They church in Freeport. She's a pastor in Freeport.
They
3pl.poss
church
church
in
in
Freeport.
Freeport
[I can’t remember the name of their church.] Their church is in Freeport.
Example 12-183:
I think he over in the other garden.
[...]
[...]
he
3sg.sbj
over
loc
in
prep
the
det
other
other
garden.
garden
[I think] he’s in the other garden.

Source: Shilling 1978: 87

Example 12-184:
I only have four home now [...] Only two does be home.
Only
only
two
two
does
hab
be
cop
home.
loc
[I only have four [children] at home now [...]]. Only two are at home.

Source: Shilling 1978: 72

Confidence:
Very certain