language. This means that it consists of characteristics of different languages. Tok Pisin obtained most of its vocabulary from the English language (i.e., English is its lexifier). The origin of the syntax is a matter of debate. Hymes claims that the syntax is from the substratum languages—the languages of the local peoples. Derek Bickerton's analysis of creoles, on the other hand, claims that the syntax of creoles is imposed on the grammarless pidgin by its first native speakers: the children who grow up exposed to only a pidgin rather than a more developed language such as one of the local languages or English. In this analysis, the original syntax of creoles is in some sense the default grammar humans are born with. Pidgins are less elaborated than non-Pidgin languages. Their typical characteristics found in Tok Pisin are: A smaller vocabulary which leads to metaphors to supply lexical units: Smaller vocabulary: = "election" (n) and "vote" (v) = "heavy" (adj) and "weight" (n) Metaphors: (screw of the arm) = "elbow" (screw of the leg) = "knee" (Just almost always indicates the knee. In liturgical contexts, is "kneel.") (grass of the head) = "hair" (Hall, 1966: 90f) (Most commonly just —see note on above.) Periphrases: (literally "first child of Mrs Queen") = Prince Charles. A reduced grammar: lack of copula, determiners; reduced set of prepositions, and conjunctions Less differentiated phonology: and are not distinguished in Tok Pisin (they are in free variation). The sibilants , , , , , and are also not distinguished. All of the English words fish, peach, feast, and peace would have been realised in Tok Pisin as . In fact, the Tok Pisin means "fish" (and usually has a sound closer to [], almost like the English word piss). English piss was reduplicated to keep it distinct: thus means "urine" or "to urinate". Likewise, in Tok Pisin could have represented English ship, jib, jeep, sieve, or chief. In fact, it means "ship". Vocabulary Many words in the Tok Pisin language are derived from English (with Australian influences), indigenous Melanesian languages, and German (part of the country was under German rule until 1919). Some examples: as = "bottom", "cause", "beginning" (from ass/arse). As ples bilong em = "his birthplace". As bilong diwai = "the stump of a tree". bagarap(im) = "broken", "to break down" (from bugger up). The word is commonly used, with no vulgar undertone, in Tok