The Galibi partially maintain their original language, of which they are quite proud. Many children, however, of Galibi and non-Galibi parents, and who study only Portuguese in the schools, do not speak the Galibi language any longer, even though they understand it.

Many also speak patuá, the criollo language used in contact with other ethnic groups of the region. They speak Portuguese and use patuá in the village and in contacts outside the village. At least the elders know French since they were alphabetized and educated in this language. They undertand a little of Dutch patuá.

These days, the indigenous language is in process of being reaffirmed. Compared to the Karipuna and Galibi-Marworno, the Galibi consider themselves to be true Indians, like the Palikur, because they speak an indigenous language. They question the fact that patuá is considered a "native" language by the Indians of the Uaça, recalling that, in the school of the nuns of Saint Joseph de Cluny, in French Guiana, whoever spoke patuá was punished. There, only the indigenous languages and French were permitted.