A SECRET AFRICAN-AMERICAN LANGUAGE

A secret language of enslaved Africans in the United States has survived since the 18th century. Tutnese, also known as Tut, was developed in order to teach literacy during the era of chattel slavery. In linguistic genealogy, it is referred to as ‘cant,’ a family of languages designed intentionally to exclude or mislead observers, in this case, White-settler colonialists, enslavers and their acolytes. It was for this reason that the Tut language remained clandestine.

Throughout the United States, harshly enforced anti-literacy laws targeting enslaved, and sometimes free, African-descendants remained on the books for well over a century (between 1740 and 1867). Why? Effective, widespread and cohesive communication and literacy skills among African people meant increased chances of organised rebellion against the status quo - precisely what White society feared. In effect, Tutnese was developed as a means of communication and education to ensure the safety of Black people from their enemies (and, hopefully, successful rebellions against tyranny). Even up until the 1970s, many Black families were encouraged to keep the language a secret.

Teaching Tutnese publicly is heavily discouraged due to its historical development. It is unknown how many people actually speak the language today. However, researchers have found Tutnese spoken among African-descendant people in Canada, Mexico and even West Asia.

When it comes to the traditions of African people, do you believe that more gatekeeping is necessary? Or do you believe in a culture of mass organisation with closed-door secrecy among ourselves to move forward?