2025 - Center-funded Haitian Creole textbook published - UF Center for Latin American Studies UF Center for Latin American Studies UF Center for Latin American Studies About Our History Governance Faculty Resources Contributing to the Center People Center-Based Faculty Affiliate Faculty MALAS Students Center Staff Visiting & Research Scholars Faculty Advisory Council History of Directors Charles Wood Thesis Award Winners Academics Why LAS? Graduate Programs Undergraduate Programs LAS Specializations LAS Courses Student Funding Academic & Funding Forms Study Abroad Florida-Brazil Linkage Institute (FBLI) Outreach K-16 Professional Development Teacher Resources Virtual Exchange Library Travel Grants Cultural Events Language & Careers Program Highlights Latin American and Caribbean Collection Latin American Business Environment (LABE) International Ethnography Lab Master's in Development Practice Tropical Conservation & Development News & Events Calendar of events Event support request form Annual conference Stories from the Center The Latinamericanist Sign up for our email newsletters Alumni Alumni profiles LAS Alumni Awards Alumni update form LAS Alumni Board Alumni roll call Make a donation! Make a Gift! Academic Programs Prospective Students Directory Calendar of Events Blog Welcome to UF-LAS Welcome to UF-LAS Prospective Students Current Students Alumni Center-funded Haitian Creole textbook published Kreyòl pale, practical Haitian Creole for beginners, available for free online July 18, 2025 The Haitian Creole textbook Kreyòl pale (Creole is Spoken), funded by Title VI funding from the UF Center for Latin American Studies, was recently published by LibraryPress@UF, an imprint of University Press of Florida. A free PDF version is also available online “Our textbook heavily emphasizes a communicative model, so the activities and images are designed to encourage conversation, debate, and deep learning in and outside the classroom,” Dr. Hebblethwaite explains. With extensive full-color imagery, each chapter offers in-depth lessons on Haitian culture and society, including English glosses and questions that stimulate discussion and debate. Cultural notes include topics such as Haitian music, architecture, art, literature, and philosophy. Kreyòl pale translates literally as ‘Creole is being spoken,’ and it is often used in a popular proverb, Kreyòl pale, kreyòl konprann , ‘Kreyòl speaks, kreyòl understands,’ to express the idea that Haitian Creole is unambiguously the language that all Haitians speak and understand,” Drs. Hebbelthwaite and Tézil note in the textbook’s introduction. “ Kreyòl pale embodies the notion that Haitian Creole facilitates not only the understanding, but also the inclusion and advancement of everyone in Haiti and its diaspora. Our goal, too, is the expansion of knowledge about Haitian Creole and its speakers, as well as the promotion of this awesome language of national and international unity.” The textbook project is over nine years in the making; it was originally encouraged by former Center Director Philip Williams in 2017. In addition to Title VI funding from the Center, Kreyòl pale received support from the Center for the Humanities and the Public Sphere and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. After encountering roadblocks working with an academic press, Drs. Hebblethwaite and Tézil turned to LibraryPress@UF for publishing, fostering strong collaboration among UF on the project. “Thanks to LibraryPress@UF and generous funding from the Center for Latin American Studies at UF, we were able to develop an editorial partnership that facilitated a task that was too challenging for the original press,” Dr. Hebblethwaite says. “We hired the talented UF undergraduate Brielle Jean Baptiste as our photo editor and book designer, and she worked for nearly a year on layout. Some big jobs are better left to ambitious and energetic editors!” Congratulations to Dr. Hebblethwaite, Dr. Tézil, Brielle and team on putting together such a comprehensive, engaging, and practicable textbook! Buy the print edition here View and download the free online PDF here Share this story Apply Now Make A Gift Events University of Florida University of Florida Gainesville, FL 32611 UF Operator: (352) 392-3261 Resources UF Home ONE.UF Webmail MyUFL E-Learning Directory Campus Weather Campus Map Student Tours Academic Calendar Campus Events Disability Services Quick Links Apply to the Program LAS Faculty Directory Student Funding LAS Courses