Identified! NY - Young Boy Who Only Speaks Creole Found In Midtown Manhattan, 2019 - n/a

[KatzEye]

Unidentified Young Boy Who Only Speaks Creole Found In Midtown, Police Say

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Police in Manhattan need the public’s help identifying a young boy found in Midtown Wednesday morning.

Officers were called to a building on Eighth Avenue between 36th and 37th Streets after the boy was found on the alone on the ninth floor.

Investigators believe the child is between nine and 12 years-old and speaks creole.

(Credit: NYPD)

Officers took the boy to Bellevue Hospital where he was listed in stable condition.

Anyone with information should call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782), logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com, on Twitter @NYPDTips or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577.

 

[LaborDayRN]

How sad. It looks like he may have been abandoned or perhaps something happened to his parents?

 

[KatzEye]

Getting a lot of mixed results when looking up Creole language. Is it a Haitian language ? Common in that area ?

 

[LaborDayRN]

Getting a lot of mixed results when looking up Creole language. Is it a Haitian language ? Common in that area ?

Apparently Creole is simply a mix of two languages and there are many different forms of Creole.

creole, is a stable natural language that develops from the simplifying and mixing of different languages at a fairly sudden point in time: often, a pidgin transitioned into a full-fledged language. While the concept is similar to that of a mixed or hybrid language, a creole is often additionally defined as being highly simplified when compared to its parent languages. However, a creole is still complex enough that it has a consistent system of grammar, possesses a large stable vocabulary, and is acquired by children as their native language, all of which distinguishes a creole language from a pidgin.

The precise number of creole languages is not known, particularly as many are poorly attested or documented. About one hundred creole languages have arisen since 1500.

Creole language - Wikipedia

 

[LaborDayRN]

This will make your head spin! (why is my font so big? haha)
List of creole languages
List of creole languages - Wikipedia

 

[LaborDayRN]

These seem to be the US Creole languages but there are many, many from nearby Islands, Africa and South America

Louisiana Creole French, spoken in Louisiana

Gullah language, spoken in the coastal region of the US states of North and South Carolina, Georgia and northeast Florida

 

[Maljako]

I think the best guess here is Haitian Creole, since it has quite a lot of speakers and is often referred to as 'Creole'. It would be very unlikely to see Jamaican Creole, for example, referred to like that.

A strange story. Hopefully the boy will now have someone to care about him.

 

[ADKGemini]

MIDTOWN SOUTH — Police are hoping the public can help identify a child who was discovered inside a midtown Manhattan building Wednesday morning and doesn’t understand English.

Police said the boy, who is between 9 and 12 years old and only understands Creole, was found Wednesday around 9:14 a.m., on the 9th floor of a commercial building located at 520 8th Ave.

Authorities said the child was brought EMS to Bellevue Hospital Center, where he remains as of Wednesday night.

Police describe the boy as about 5 feet tall and weighing about 110 lbs., with black hair, and brown eyes. They have released the above photo of the child.

Unidentified boy who doesn’t speak English found in midtown: police

 

[Spicynoodle]

I just read that his family was found and has been reunited with him. They live in New Jersey. I wonder how the heck their boy ended up in NY alone. Glad he's safe & back with his family.

Boy found in midtown building reunited with family

 

[Earth]

Is it possible that he is a refugee from somewhere?

 

[meanmaryjean]

Surely to goodness they have a LanguageLine at that hospital. It's a three-way telephone and you can get virtually any language translated. Creole (I'm assuming Haitian) should not be that hard.

Heck, I once did a three-way convo English > Spanish > Romanian. Good times!

 

[LadyL]

I just read that his family was found and has been reunited with him. They live in New Jersey. I wonder how the heck their boy ended up in NY alone. Glad he's safe & back with his family.

Boy found in midtown building reunited with family

so he's 15 ... I thought he looked older than the estimated 9-12

 

[Triss]

His family has been located.

 

[Spicynoodle]

so he's 15 ... I thought he looked older than the estimated 9-12

I totally overlooked his updated age. I can see how a 15 year old boy could end up in NY alone, makes a little more sense. I was using public transportation, & even flying alone when I was 15. His eyes look so sad & stressed though, so I wonder what the rest of his story is.

 

[LadyL]

Surely to goodness they have a LanguageLine at that hospital. It's a three-way telephone and you can get virtually any language translated. Creole (I'm assuming Haitian) should not be that hard.

Heck, I once did a three-way convo English > Spanish > Romanian. Good times!

interesting
didn't know that

 

[LadyL]

I totally overlooked his updated age. I can see how a 15 year old boy could end up in NY alone, makes a little more sense. I was using public transportation, & even flying alone when I was 15. His eyes look so sad & stressed though, so I wonder what the rest of his story is.

[bbm]

yes I too travelled to a different country at that age, although adults met me at both ends
and yes I hope he is ok ...

 

[MimosaMornings]

Lives in NJ, 15 years old, doesn’t speak any English. Wonder if recent refugee or homeschooled?

 

[oceanstarryeyes]

I totally overlooked his updated age. I can see how a 15 year old boy could end up in NY alone, makes a little more sense. I was using public transportation, & even flying alone when I was 15. His eyes look so sad & stressed though, so I wonder what the rest of his story is.

“His eyes look so sad & stressed though, so I wonder what the rest of his story is.”
It would be great if there was someone to follow up on his story but that’s not how life works. He looks very Sad.

 

[Spicynoodle]

“His eyes look so sad & stressed though, so I wonder what the rest of his story is.”
It would be great if there was someone to follow up on his story but that’s not how life works. He looks very Sad.

This is true! Life definitely doesn't work how we want it to. I hope he is safe though. There is pain in those eyes. Makes me sad.

 

[Bayou-Boudreaux]

These seem to be the US Creole languages but there are many, many from nearby Islands, Africa and South America

Louisiana Creole French, spoken in Louisiana

Gullah language, spoken in the coastal region of the US states of North and South Carolina, Georgia and northeast Florida

If only I had been an active member when this thread was started- As a southwest Louisiana native & being Cajun(we also have Cajun French spoken around here too) I may assisted with info on the creole language down here. Glad to hear he found family. IMO, it’s more likely he’s Haitian.