On September 30, at the Laborie market, Saint Lucia kicked off its Kwéyòl Heritage Month. Jounen Kwéyòl 2026 will take place on October 25 in three villages. But one issue looms large over the celebration: how to pass the language on to children.
At the Laborie Market, a language speaks out
On Wednesday, September 30, in the late afternoon, the Laborie Market will host the launch of the Mwa Ewitaj Kwéyòl. The event is organized by the Folk Research Centre (FRC), in partnership with the government and the Events Company of Saint Lucia. The program features folk dance and music. Monsignor Patrick Anthony, founder of the FRC, takes the floor. “Kwéyòl is our culture, kwéyòl is our identity, and every Saint Lucian should understand that if I don’t know my language, I’m missing out on a lot about myself,” he said (translation of remarks made in English). He adds that “we created it, we shaped it, we formed it,” and that it is “the foundation of everything that is Saint Lucian.”
FRC Executive Director Melchoir Henry declared the month open and announced the three host communities for Jounen Kwéyòl. This year’s theme can be summed up in one sentence: “Kwéyòl-la Sé Sa Nou Tout”: Kwéyòl belongs to everyone.
Jounen Kwéyòl 2026: Three Villages and a Sunday at 5 a.m.
The big event is scheduled for Sunday, October 25. The festivities begin at 5 a.m. at three locations. La Clery, in North Castries; Level Grounds, in La Caye (Dennery); and the Vieux Fort Recreation Park. In Dennery, the festival’s theme is “From the Field to the People.”
The month has its highlights. A dawn walk, Douvan Jou, connects Belle Vue to Choiseul on October 5. The Wènn Kwéyòl, the election of the Creole queen, is held on October 10 at the National Cultural Centre. On the 28th, International Creole Day, a conference wraps up the month’s events. On the 25th, people wear madras. They eat green figs with salted cod, accras, and callaloo. You can hear drums, shak-shaks, a banjo, a cuatro, and a violin.
Nearly fifteen hours of radio, then a village
It all began in 1983, under the banner of Bannzil Kréyòl, a coalition of Creole-speaking islands. In Saint Lucia, the first International Creole Day was celebrated on the radio. Radio St. Lucia broadcast nearly fifteen hours of Kwéyòl, starting at 8 a.m., including a two-hour live link with Dominica. In Laborie, a public debate drew a crowd. At the Fond Assau school, a morning assembly kicked off a cultural program.
The following year, in 1984, the festival opened its doors to the entire community. In Mon Repos, the day began with a Mass in Kwéyòl led by Father Patrick Anthony. Sesenne Descartes, a figure in Saint Lucian folklore, was honored. Creole meals were served, walaba was played, and folk groups performed. According to the Saint Lucia Star, hundreds more people attended than expected.
More than forty years later, the FRC describes Jounen Kwéyòl as the country’s largest cultural event. Communities, schools, churches, businesses, and government agencies all participate. The FRC hopes this will lead to a greater appreciation of the value of Kwéyòl, the connections between social classes, and the local economic benefits. Last year, our article on Mwa éwitaj Kwéyòl 2025 already highlighted how deeply rooted the initiative is in communities.
A Language in Decline Among Children
According to the FRC, Kwéyòl emerged from the interaction between speakers of French and West African languages in plantation society. It remains present in conversations, proverbs, and songs. English is the island’s official language. Linguist Hubert Devonish documented this decline in 2022. In 1980, he explained, the majority of children entered school with Kwéyòl as their first language. By then, that number had fallen to less than 20 percent. He warned that schools could become “the graveyard of the language” if families stopped using it at home (Global Voices, translation by RK).
Schools have nonetheless begun to respond. Since the 2024–2025 school year, Kwéyòl has been taught in fifteen pilot schools. Education Minister Shawn Edward announced the initiative on September 4, 2024, after four decades of advocacy. Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre had promised it on Emancipation Day in August 2022. The announcements do not specify which grade levels are involved or what the initial results are.
What Jounen Kwéyòl 2026 Means for Saint Lucia
In the face of this decline, the festival plays a specific role. The FRC has set three goals for it: to demonstrate the strength of the language, to bridge the gap between social classes, and to create economic opportunities based on cultural resources. It also connects Saint Lucia with other territories. On October 28, International Creole Day brings together, according to the FRC, nine Creole-speaking territories, Saint Lucia included, among them Haiti, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Dominica, French Guiana, Mauritius, the Seychelles, and Réunion. Each retains its own language and history.
The theme for 2026 emphasizes the word “everything.” Kwéyòl belongs neither to a single generation nor to a single village. For Minister John Paul Estephan, it is a matter of responsibility. “If Kwéyòl belongs to us, its future belongs to us as well,” he said at the launch, according to the St. Lucia Times. On October 25, three villages will respond in their own way. Ten years from now, what will the children of these three villages be speaking?
Photo credit: © Travel Saint Lucia.
Frequently Asked Questions
Jounen Kwéyòl 2026 takes place on Sunday, October 25, starting at 5 a.m. It will be held in La Clery (North Castries), at Level Grounds (La Caye, Dennery), and in Vieux Fort. The event is part of Kwéyòl Heritage Month, which kicked off on September 30 in Laborie.
According to the Folk Research Centre, it was created to highlight the strength and value of Kwéyòl. It began in 1983 as a radio program centered around International Creole Day on October 28, before evolving into a community festival in Mon Repos in 1984.
No, English is the official language of Saint Lucia. Kwéyòl, a French-based Creole, remains widely used in everyday life and has been taught in fifteen pilot schools since the 2024–2025 school year.
