That link opened the old web version of JaLingo. This is in the app now. Continue in the app.
Kingston, First Day
Walk Kingston. Talk Patwa.
Every conversation is a way in.
Captured in the native development build. Draft Patwa awaits review by Jamaican speakers.
Keep the conversation going
Join the beta
The native app is in beta. Choose your platform.
iPhone
Join the iPhone beta (TestFlight)Install TestFlight from the App Store first, then tap the link above.
Please keep JaLingo installed for 14 days: that is how long testers need to stay in before the app can open to everyone.
About JaLingo
A game about finding your way in.
The Patwa is a draft still awaiting review by Jamaican speakers. A synthetic computer voice is off by default.
The hero is an actual frame from the native development build. It is a preview, with a short conversation available in the browser.
What you do in the app
- Walk Kingston in real time.Devon drops you downtown. Miss Hyacinth, Maas Bertie and Miss Merlene are on the street, and the people you meet remember how you treated them.
- Travel all 14 parishes.Pick a parish on the island map, meet the people there, and earn a stamp for your passport.
- Learn by talking.Answer in Patwa, tap English to see what a line means, and meet the phrases again in daily practice.
Phrases you will hear on the street
Tap a phrase to see what it means. Each one comes from a conversation in the game.
small up yuhselfWhat does it mean?
make room for someone else
The standing request on a shared route taxi when it needs one more passenger to fit.
More on this phraseOne stop, driva!What does it mean?
One stop, driver!
Called out to signal the driver to pull over — nobody stops for silence.
More on this phrase
Fill your passport, parish by parish
Finish a parish in the app and it stamps your passport. There are 14 to collect.
Kingston
St. Andrew
St. Thomas
Portland
St. Mary
St. Ann
Trelawny
St. James
Hanover
Westmoreland
St. Elizabeth
Manchester
Clarendon
St. Catherine
Stamp credits
- Kingston stamp: photo by yonolatengo (CC BY 2.0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kingston_street,_Jamaica.jpg)
- St. Andrew stamp: photo by Matthew.kowal (CC BY-SA 4.0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image; this stamp is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fog_hangs_over_the_village_of_Section_in_the_Blue_Mountains_of_Portland_Parish,_Jamaica.jpg)
- St. Thomas stamp: photo by pismay (CC BY-SA 3.0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image; this stamp is shared under CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:For_those_who_know_-_panoramio.jpg)
- Portland stamp: photo by Fritz Rudolf Loewa (CC BY-SA 3.0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image; this stamp is shared under CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jamaica,_Rio_Grande1.JPG)
- St. Mary stamp: photo by CaptJayRuffins (CC BY-SA 4.0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image; this stamp is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Port_Maria_seafront.jpg)
- St. Ann stamp: photo by Patricia Edwards (CC BY-SA 3.0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image; this stamp is shared under CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Town_of_Ocho_Rios.JPG)
- Trelawny stamp: photo by Fabian Tompsett (CC BY-SA 3.0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image; this stamp is shared under CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cockpit_Country.jpg)
- St. James stamp: photo by andreyss (CC BY 3.0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Montego_Bay_-_Sam_Sharpe_(National_Hero)_Monument_-_panoramio.jpg)
- Hanover stamp: photo by Cuban Boy (CC0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Church_Street-Willy_Delisser_Boulevard.jpg)
- Westmoreland stamp: photo by Oleg Yunakov (CC BY-SA 4.0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image; this stamp is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jamaica_-_Negril_-_048.jpg)
- St. Elizabeth stamp: photo by ingostrutz (CC BY-SA 3.0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image; this stamp is shared under CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Black_River_%E2%80%93_Boot_mit_Safari-G%C3%A4sten_auf_dem_Black_River_(1998).jpg)
- Manchester stamp: photo by Nigel20 (CC BY-SA 2.0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image; this stamp is shared under CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mile_Gully_Mountain,_Manchester.jpg)
- Clarendon stamp: illustration, no photograph; AI-generated (gemini-3-pro-image) from the parish's relief colors
- St. Catherine stamp: photo by Not home (CC BY-SA 3.0); adapted: AI-generated stamp illustration derived from the photograph with gemini-3-pro-image; this stamp is shared under CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St.-Jago-de-la-Vega.JPG)
Played on the web before?
The web version of the game has moved into the app. If you signed in, your progress is saved in your account. On the account page you can sign in to keep this browser's progress with your account, download a copy, or delete your account.