Sranan Tongo, a local English-based creole language, is the most widely used vernacular language in daily life and business. Together with Dutch, it is considered to be the one of the two principal languages of Surinamese diglossia. Both are further influenced by other spoken languages which are spoken primarily within ethnic communities. Sranan Tongo is often used interchangeably with Dutch depending on the formality of the setting; Dutch is seen as a prestige dialect and Sranan Tongo the common vernacular.