TWO SCHOLARS of the national language advocated for a more inclusive and customary usage of the Filipino language during “Diyalogo: Ang Papel ng Wika sa Pagkakakilanlang Pilipino.”

Scholars John Teodoro and Virgilio Almario, PhD spoke at Diyalogo, a forum hosted by Baybayin held on August 17 at the Rizal Library Study Area.

Baybayin is an unaccredited organization that aims to foster a better understanding of Filipino culture and identity.

Teodoro is the chairperson of the Miriam College Filipino Department and a prominent writer in the languages of English, Filipino, Hiligaynon, and Kinaray-a, while Almario is the chair of the Commission on the Filipino Language (CFL) and was proclaimed a National Artist for Literature in 2003.

The CFL is the government agency tasked to standardize and develop the use of the Filipino language.

Teodoro acknowledged the crucial role of Filipino’s inclusive dialects in his formation as a scholar.

“Naging ganito ako dahil sa mga wika ko (I am who I am today because of my different languages),” he said.

Almario, on the other hand, said that “tunay na marami sa atin ang hindi nakakakilala sa [wikang] Filipino (Many of us do not recognize the Filipino language).”

He cited the need to increase efforts in raising awareness and encouraging the use of the national language.

Development of the Filipino language

During the lecture, Almario presented the orthography of the Filipino language and its development through the centuries.

He stressed the importance of knowing the history of the Philippine’s national language.

“Para maunawaan mo kung ano ang [wikang] Filipino ay kailangan malaman mo ang kasaysayan nito (For you to comprehend what the Filipino language is, you must know its history),” Almario added.

He explained that the first language of the Philippines was the Baybayin of the indigenous Filipinos.

Almario said that the variants of Baybayin in Tagalog, Visaya, Ilonggo, Pangasinense, and Kapampangan were compiled by Filipino historian Trinidad Pardo de Tavera in 1884.

He also cited how the Spaniards’ introduction of the Roman alphabet was difficult to reconcile with existing Baybayin conventions.

Moreover, Almario credited national hero Jose Rizal for introducing reforms to the Filipino language in 1890 that addressed the Baybayin’s discrepancies with the Spanish language.

Rizal presented a new 20-letter alphabet based on the Baybayin in his piece “Sobre la Nueva Ortografia de la Lengua Tagala (On the New Spelling of the Tagalog Language),” which was published in the liberal newspaper La Solidaridad.

Almario noted that it was this alphabet that laid the foundation for modern Tagalog, which was then used as the primary basis for the national language.

Filipino: Of multiple dialects

According to Teodoro and Almario, Filipino is a melting pot of multiple native tongues.

Teodoro noted that conversing in these varied tongues can lead to national unity, citing his research paper wherein he tackled how Filipinos curse more in their native language.

Teodoro explained that the idea for the paper came from a humorous encounter in Northern Samar, wherein two pili nut vendors were endlessly cursing at one another while fighting over customers.

For him, the encounter teaches “na tayong mga Filipino ay [may] napakaraming wika, na magkarugtong ang mga wika natin, na maari tayong mag-effort na pag-aralan ang wika ng bawat isa (That we Filipinos have many native languages, that our languages are intertwined, and that we can take effort in studying each other’s languages).”

On the other hand, Almario said that the CFL is currently exerting efforts to make the Filipino language inclusive of all dialects in the motherland.

“‘Yung ating wika ngayon ay nagsisikap na maging national in scope (Our language is trying to be national in its scope),” Almario added.

Reviving relevance

Despite efforts targeted at developing the use of Filipino, psychology sophomore Casey Lumagbas still perceives the Filipino language as “dying.”

Psychology freshman Diana Uy-Tuazon admitted that she does not speak Filipino as often since “most of my friends speak English.”

Lumagbas believes that to restore the language’s relevance, art and music written in Filipino should be promoted alongside its verbal use.

On the other hand, political science sophomore Jose Medriano said that Filipino should be used in the academic setting more often.

“[Dapat] mas gamitin [ang Filipino] sa intelektwal na diskurso para mapayabong ito (Filipino should be used more in intellectual conversations to enrich it),” Medriano added.

For Baybayin Director for Cultural Immersions Diana Breboneria, the Filipino language should be developed even beyond the classroom setting.

“Hindi lang siya isang medium of instruction, hindi lang siya isang disiplina, kundi isa siyang pamamaraan ng pamumuhay (Filipino is not only a medium of instruction or a discipline, but also a way of life),” Breboneria said.