Despite Dutch's dominant status in Suriname, being the official language of administration since 1876 and the reported primary household language of two thirds of the population (according to the 2012 census), research into the phonetics and phonology of the Dutch spoken in Suriname is still in its infancy. While several features have been described as 'typically Surinamese,' these characterizations are largely based on impressionistic observations rather than systematic analysis. The empirical studies that are available tend to focus on isolated features and as such do not afford a comprehensive description of Surinamese Dutch. This gap pertains not only to a general overview of linguistic specificities but also to the sociolinguistic distribution of these specificities across the population, i.e. not only what the features are but who uses them and in which contexts. Furthermore, current descriptions often overlook aspects of the distinctive sociolinguistic history of Surinamese Dutch compared to the European Dutches, particularly its development through second language acquisition and its continuous exposure to language contact.

This project aims to provide an empirical foundation for further research into the sound system of the Dutch spoken in Suriname by providing a general overview of its phonetics and phonology, focusing on the following questions: (1) What are the key phonetic and phonological specificities of Surinamese Dutch? (2) What is the distribution of these specificities within the Surinamese population? (3) How, if at all, is the historical and sociological environment of Surinamese Dutch reflected in its phonetic and phonological profile?