Parang! Parang!

Two controversies constantly surface whenever there is a discussion on Trinidad parang (From Spanish parranda: its origin, and whether the language of the traditional songs is Spanish or a 'broken dialect'. One theory is that parang can be traced directly back to the period of Spanish occupation (1498-1797). Daphne Pawan Taylor posited that the Spaniards, especially the missionaries, introduced their music into Trinidad, and that modern parang evolved from that original music. Others adhere to the belief that parang was brought to Trinidad from Spain via Venezuela. Francisca Allard (The Evolution of Parang,) notes that there is no evidence of music repertories that were distinctly Spanish/Trinidadian rather than Venezuelan/Trinidadian.

On the other hand, it is clear that in the nineteenth and early twentierh centuries, Venezuelan immigrants did bring into Trinidad their folk songs and music which are still in vogue today, and whcih are popularly referred to as parang. Most of these immigrants were rural agricultiural workers employed in cacao estates. They were subsequently referred to as cocoa panyols. Many wonder whether the language of the traditional Trinidad parang is authentic Spanish or a 'broken' variety. At a seminar on parang a participant once lamented that parang was being "taken away from the peasant" and associated with the culture of the "intellectuals". This person thought that just as it was unlikely that someone from rural Toco in northeast Trinidad would speak the same kind of English as a professional residing in west Port of Spain, similarly the structure of the Spanish spoken by rural folk whould have differed from the Spanish articulated by those of a higher socioeconomic level. Consquently it was felt that the language of parang was not Spanish but a local patois , very much like our Trinidadian English based Creole and French Patois. The Trinidadian Hispanic septuagenarians who were the subjects of my researcch forty years ago did not sound like graduates from the Universidad Central of Caracas, or the Universidad de Oriente in Venezuela. However, they did indeed speak Spanish; the sturcture of their language was essentially the same as that of the most prestigious varieties spoken anywhere; but the intonation pattern and vocabulary were closer to the speech of the rural inhabitants of Eastern Venezuela. Nevertheless, as time went buy the children and grandchildren of those Hispanic Trinidadians became less competent in the language of their forefathers. In some cases the younger people understood but did not produce the language or they did so with difficulty. THey were semi-speakers of Spanish exhibiting illformed structures, limited vocabulary and lack of fluency.

So Spanish rapidly disappeared as a native first language of the local peasant or cocoa panyol. While the language languished, the music of the cocoa panyol flourished among the younger generations and across ethnic groups. Since the songs continued to be sung in Spanish, it became a challenge for non speakers to sing in a language which they did not masterm and learn songs that were only transmitted orally. The older members of the famiily and community taught the lyrics to the younger ones who did not fully comprehend their meaning. In many instances teacher and student were equally incompetent in Spanish. Words and phrases were often learned inaccurately, and some sounds were imitated incorrectly. The less audible words were omitted altogether, with the result that in several cases the Spanish of the new parang songs differed significantly from the original. The result was what Abdelkader Marquez termed a 'Parang Spanish':words distorted through the confusion o misundrstood consonants and vowels, change in stress pattern, final vowels not combined with the first vowels of the following word (that is, lack of synaloepha), misinterpretation, lack of meaning.
Examples of these phenomena can be seen in verses transcibed below.

The first two appear on the jacket of a vinyl record, the third is of more recent vintage and is printed for a compact disc recording:
Sample 1. Que bonita muchachita Si la madre me diera Bañaba y la pañaba Mi bonita si pusera Lines 3 and 4 are an approximation of the following: La bañaba y la peinaba muy bonita la pusiera

Sample 2. Después de la Anuncio
De el Gran impadrono
Gabrael hue a Egypto
Y Dios su nombre al trono
Lines 1 and 4 should read:
Después del Anuncio
...................
y dio su nombre al trono

Sample 3. Yo canto de las mujeres del gamuza están nacidas
Porque causa una muerte yo música me dio
Yo canto de las mujeres del gamuza están nacidas
Porque toda una mujer se dio se da me dio
Pascuales de hoy en día se cómo o va se corrido
No pueden llevar un plato si llaman como marido
Pascuales de hoy en día se cómo o va se corrido
No pueden llevar un plato llamar como marido
Un corazón de moderna tengo tema da la ser
En siempre en mi patencia y se paloma experien
Un corazón de piedra tengo tema da la ser
En siempre en mi patencia se paloma se experien

The transcription is evidence of a lack of comprehension. The suspicion that the Spanish of the parang and of the cocoa panyol is not truly Spanish is supported by this kind of misinterpretation of the original verses.

Sample 1. In the transcription new meaningless words are created (peinaba becomes pañaba),
Sample 2. Phrases are misinterpreted: dio su nombre (gave his name) is written as Dios su nombre (God his name)which is meaningless in the context.
Sample 3. The entire text is incomprehensible. According to my Venezuelan colleague. "It makes no sense at all!!" My colleague further stated that it was very daring on the part of the parranderos to actually put those words in print! Especially seeing that I had advised them not to do so!!