[LINK] "N.B. doctors get Acadian French dictionary"

[rfmcdonald]

Acadian French is a unique dialect of Canadian French, having developed in isolation from the Canadiens who went on to dominate Québec and settle areas to the west of the Ottawa River. Vocabularly and pronunciation are quite different from Canadian and international standards. But this variant?

Two linguists from l'Universite de Moncton have put together a dictionary for doctors and doctors-in-training to help them communicate better with their Acadian patients.

The dictionary lists French and Chiac words that are unique to New Brunswick Acadians. Chiac is the dialect spoken by Acadians in southern New Brunswick.

Lise Rodrique and Gisele Chevalier put together the dictionary called Les Mots Pour Parler des Maux or The Words to talk about Aches.

Rodrique said doctors-in-training at the university were having trouble understanding their patients who speak Acadian French.

"I wasn't really surprised because the linguistic situation in Moncton is very particular with the Chiac and also with the older people who still have old Acadian words in their vocabulary," she said Thursday.

"So, when you mix both of them together it can be a bit confusing for people who are not used to hearing that terminology."

Examples in the dictionary include using the word "cholera" to describe "diarrhea," or in the Chiac section, using the word "barfe" for "vomiting."