There's nothing derogatory about the term "pidgin". Originally, it was thought of as a corruption of two or more languages. Really, it's just a creative development that occurs when two incompatible languages meet. To quote a simplistic web definitition:
>>>Pidgin is a contact language developed and used by people who do not share a common language in a given geographical area. It is used in a limited way and the structure is very simplistic. Since they serve a single simplistic purpose, they usually die out. However, if the pidgin is used long enough, it begins to evolve into a more rich language with a more complex structure and richer vocabulary. Once the pidgin has evolved and has acquired native speakers ( the children learn the pidgin as their first language), it is then called a Creole. An example of this is the Creole above from Papua New Guinea, Tok Pisin, which has become a National language.<<< In other words, Neomelanesian or Tok Pisin originated as a Pidigin, developed into a Creole and then became formalized. To consider the term "pidgin" an insult depends upon your point of view... One view is that it is a sublime example of intelligent people bridging a difficult communications gap by finding and creating commonalities. It only becomes an "insult" if you take a well established languaged and call it "pidgin". Since Tok Pisin is an infant language, it hardly bears getting into a huff when someone describes it as a pidgin language (which it was until fairly recently). As an aside, I speak a pidgin (of sorts) all the time. It's called "Spanglish".
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