|
A
study conducted in 1979 revealed that the majority of Filipino respondents
believed that their ability to communicate in English had made their
integration to North American society relatively easy.1
Ability to speak, read, and write in English helped them in getting
jobs, finding a place to live, making friends, driving a car, continuing
their education and generally understand what is going on around
them, to mention a few of the uses of language in social adjustment.
Most
of the Filipino ethnic newspapers in Canada and in the United States
bear Filipino names but contain very little, if any, news or write-ups
in the Filipino Heritage Language. Minutes and proceedings of various
Filipino organizations in Canada or in the United States are recorded
in English.
Oral
testimonies on immigration experiences gathered from Filipino immigrants
residing in the Metro Toronto area for the Multicultural History
Society of Ontario were all taped in English. Souvenir programmes
for Philippine Independence Day and those of other Filipino celebrations
hardly, if ever, contain lines in the Filipino Language.
In
a place like Ontario, wherein even the education system tolerates
and encourages to some extent the development of heritage languages
of the various cultural groups in its society, one is apt to wonder
why the Filipino-Canadians do not seem to exert any effort to promote
the use of their heritage language.
Before
we try to find the answers to this problem, one question has to
be answered: is there a Filipino Heritage Language? Opinions amongst
Filipinos in the Philippines as well as those in Canada and in other
parts of the world on this question are varied.
There
are more than one hundred languages and dialects in the Philippines.
Eight of these may be considered major languages. Studies show that
these are sister-languages that all came from one parent-stock,
the Austronesians or Malayo-Polynesian languages.
The
lexicon of these Philippine languages contain roots or derivations
that are unquestionably Malayan. In 1935, the urgent need for a
native national language was recognized by the Filipinos as a part
of the preparation for Philippine independence from the United States
of America.
Filipino
leaders pointed out that a national language would bring about unity
among the Filipinos. Consequently, the delegates to the constitutional
convention directed the National Assembly "to take steps toward
the development and adoption of a common language based on one of
the existing native languages."
After
a serious and exhaustive study of the language situation which took
two years, Tagalog, one of the major languages, was proclaimed the
basis of the Filipino National Language. An institute was established
with the task of developing the national language, incorporating
words and expressions from the other languages of the country.
Legally
speaking therefore, the Philippines has an official national language
called Pilipino, based on one of its major languages, Tagalog. Foreign
students of Philippine languages agree that Tagalog is the richest
among them.
more info...(48k)
A seventeenth
century Spanish writer, Father Pedro Chirino, who visited the Philippines
at that time recorded: "I found in this language [Tagalog] qualities
of the four greatest languages of the world - the mysticism and
difficulties of Hebrew; the distinctive terms of the Greek not only
in the common but also in the proper names; the fullness and elegance
of Latin and the civility and courtesy of Spanish." Pre-colonial
Filipinos used a syllabary of seventeen symbols which appeared to
be of Sanskrit or Arabic origin.
This
was replaced by the Spanish alphabet. From the Spanish alphabet
evolved the present Filipino alphabet with twenty letters. The Philippines
is very rich in folk literature, both oral and written not only
in Tagalog but also in the other major languages.
They
are in the form of maxims, sayings, riddles, street songs, boat
songs, songs of revelry, war songs, love songs, dirges, lullabies,
bridal songs, songs of mourning, household songs, and couplets recited
by the blind. There are recitations and songs for almost every occasion.
During
the Spanish colonization, Filipinos developed the "Pasyon," an account
of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, which is sung
up to the present time in different melodies by region of origin,
during the Lenten Season. Lives of heroes, mythical and real, in
the centuries of the fight for independence from colonists, were
written in verses, recited and sung.
Lovers
do their wooing, up to the present time, in rural areas, in verses
and in songs. When Filipinos wish to express their deepest emotions,
they always express them in their own languages.
Observers
in Seton Park, East York, Metro Toronto, where thousands of Filipino-Canadians
congregate once every year, on the Saturday closest to, or on June
12, would be able to note that the groups chat in Pilipino (Tagalog),
make announcements of the numbers in the program in both English
and Pilipino, sing Filipino songs, recite Filipino poems, make speeches
in English and sometimes speak in Taglish, a corruption of Tagalog
and English.
top
|
There
is the danger, however, that second and future generations of Filipino-Canadians
may not be able to speak their heritage language. Parents and grandparents
interviewed for this paper observe that their children speak in
English most of the time at home.
Even
when spoken to in Pilipino they often reply in English. Since most
Filipino-Canadian parents understand and can speak fluently in English,
the need to use the heritage language is not felt. In the Metropolitan
Separate School Board there were eleven Saturday classes in the
Filipino Heritage classes in the last school year with an attendance
of roughly 300 elementary level students.
This
is such a small percentage considering that there were 1701 students
of Filipino-Canadian origin in this Board in 1986-1987. Filipino-Canadian
teachers are exerting effort to encourage more parents to register
their children in these heritage classes but they don't seem to
be gaining much ground.
A survey
of reasons for poor turn-out of enrollees in Filipino Heritage Classes
reveals apathy rather than real insurmountable barriers to attendance
in these sessions. The most common reason cited was the difficulty
of waking children up on Saturday to be in time for the classes.
The
second most cited reason seemed to contradict the first; children
prefer to go to hockey classes, dancing, skating, swimming and so
forth. There were also some responses to the effect that parents
as well as students felt that they were not profiting much in attending
the heritage language class.
The
root cause of the problem, from this writer's point of view, is
the question of attitude which the Filipino immigrants brought with
them from the country of origin. Divided by bodies of water, mountain
ranges, languages, and religion, a great number of Filipinos tried
to rise from poverty through education.
Statistics
show that Filipino immigrants to this country have the highest levels
of schooling. College and university education in the Philippines
are all in English. The Filipino student has been oriented to the
idea that ability to speak, read, and write fluently in English
is a passport to success.
Half
a century of American education in the Philippines had brought about
this way of thinking. This ability has indeed helped most Filipino
immigrants in their integration to the Canadian way of life. Why
wouldn't they wish the same for their children?
The
nationalistic dream of Filipino leaders who have envisioned a country
united by a bond of a common native language has not gained much
attention and acceptance among a people whose primary preoccupation
in life, in the past as well as at present, is economic advancement.
Beautiful,
lyrical and rich as it is, the Filipino Language has not yet developed
to be a language of science, business and technology. First generation
Filipino- Canadians find their heritage language convenient and
a comfortable vehicle of expression with familiar and long-time
friends, but not as a means for achieving their main objective of
a better life in this new land. It is the language of their hearts
but not of their minds.
There
are signs, however, that this stage in the life of Filipino immigrants
to Canada will pass and a new interest in the heritage language
will grow and develop. A group of Filipino-Canadian students at
York University have recently banded themselves together and are
seeking for ways to have Pilipino taught to them.
They
are starting to question their elders about their roots. In a survey
of problems of Filipino-Canadian youth conducted during the International
Youth Year ( 1985) one of the issues raised is the need to know
more about the Philippines and Filipino culture.
Several
Filipino-Canadian organizations have undertaken projects to promote
the development of the heritage language through reading of the
"Pasyon" during the Lenten Season, presentation of short plays and
skits during Filipino celebrations, conducting sing-alongs of Filipino
folk songs and starting small libraries in Filipino literature.
One
Catholic church in Metro Toronto regularly celebrates one mass in
Pilipino on Sundays. Attempts had been made by Filipino ethnic newspapers
to provide columns written in Pilipino but there were not enough
contributions from the community to keep the columns going. Filipinos
find their heritage language more useful for oral than for written
communication.
Jose
Rizal, considered the greatest Filipino hero, wrote in one of his
poems: Ang hindi magmahal sa kanyang salita Mahigit sa hayop at
malansang isda . . . (Anyone who does not love his language Is worse
than a beast and a slimy fish) Most first generation Filipino-Canadians
know these lines by heart.
They
may have buried them deep down but they are there. Once the preoccupation
for the material trappings in life ease, that love for one's own
heritage language will find better expression.
NOTES
1.
R. E. Bustamente, The Role of Culture and Previous Education in
the Adjustment of Filipinos in Metropolitan Toronto (OISE, 1979).
|
