Speak Out: Filipino vs. Fil/Am

[one...two...tree 2,762]

[Pineapple 0]

good job Jabberwocky i'm still proud of being a pilipino it never change1

[dbears 1]

Nice one

One thing I have been telling my kids is that they should NEVER EVER forget how to speak our Filipino language or at least the Bisayan dialect and they should never forget their roots and their heritage. Although, I believe that not being able to speak the language will not make you any less than a Filipino if you feel in your heart that you are a Filipino then you are still a Filipino.

I could understand those Filipinos who can't speak the language if they were born in the US or if they went there when they were still very very young but for those who went to the US when they are already teenagers or even adults (and have only been in the US for a matter of 1-2years) and then pretend they can't speak or have forgotten how to speak tagalog/or their native dialect anymore, I just think it is BS.

My aunts have been in the USA for 20++ years but they are still well versed in Tagalog and their Igorot dialect. My cousin who is half Filipino Igorot-half Singaporean and who was born in the US knows how to speak the igorot dialect (medium used in their home).. and one vjer friend (Lucian's girl) who have been in the US for 17 years now still knows how to speak and write Tagalog (i wouldn't have known she is Filipino if she didn't reply to one of my post before using tagalog word). I also have many other friends who have been working in the US, UK and other english speaking countries but they still speak Bisaya fluently without twang.

BTW, Steven do you encourage Jinky to teach your son her native tongue? Just curious coz I've heard of some USC who don't want their wife to teach Filipino language to their kids saying it will confuse them.

I don't know how it will confuse the kid because a child's capacity for learning is still at its peak. Here in the Philippines, most people speak 2, 3 or even more different languages/dialects. Like me, since I was born and raised in Davao, i speak Bisaya, but I also learned how to speak Filipino/Tagalog in school, as well as English... and if my father have only taken the time to teach us his native dialect (he never tried), I would have been able to speak Igorot and Ilocano dialects as well.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

BTW, Steven do you encourage Jinky to teach your son her native tongue? Just curious coz I've heard of some USC who don't want their wife to teach Filipino language to their kids saying it will confuse them.

Yes. Although, my 7 yr. old stepson, Job, has already forgotten how to speak Bisaya and he never learned Tagalog. Our plan is to have him visit his family back in Cebu as often as possible in order for him to retain the language, but honestly, I can see that it's like the saying, "if you don't use it, you lose it." Jinky talks to our 4 month old in Bisaya and I'm sure he'll grow up understanding it, but I doubt he'll be able to carry a conversation. It's the sad consequence of immigrating to the different country, but hopefully they can retain their heritage by knowing their ancestral history and having pride in being Filipino.

That video made me sad in way - as I look to my own heritage. My grandmother came from Ireland to America when she was a little girl and I really have no connection to my heritage. I think it's something that many of us Americans hunger for - a culture to really call our own. Perhaps that's why I'm really drawn to the Filipino culture. I'm proud to be married to someone whose culture is so rich. Pinoy ako, uy!

[N360 0]

I could understand those Filipinos who can't speak the language if they were born in the US or if they went there when they were still very very young but for those who went to the US when they are already teenagers or even adults (and have only been in the US for a matter of 1-2years) and then pretend they can't speak or have forgotten how to speak tagalog/or their native dialect anymore, I just think it is BS.

My aunts have been in the USA for 20++ years but they are still well versed in Tagalog and their Igorot dialect. My cousin who is half Filipino Igorot-half Singaporean and who was born in the US knows how to speak the igorot dialect (medium used in their home).. and one vjer friend (Lucian's girl) who have been in the US for 17 years now still knows how to speak and write Tagalog (i wouldn't have known she is Filipino if she didn't reply to one of my post before using tagalog word). I also have many other friends who have been working in the US, UK and other english speaking countries but they still speak Bisaya fluently without twang.

I'm a pinoy and been here in the US since 86 (22 years). And up until the last couple of years I wasnt living in a filipino community or household. But I havent forgotten how to speak tagalog. As a matter of fact, when I speak Tagalog, most people cant tell Im from the US.

My sister was 6 and my brother was 8 years old when we moved to New York City. When they speak English you cant tell they're filipinos. When they speak Tagalog you cant tell that they grew up here in the states.

Also I have many many cousins born here in the US that knows how to speak tagalog fluently.

I do agree with you that its BS. I remember meeting a Filipino once here in LA. He's been here in the US for only 2 years and claims he had forgotten how to speak Tagalog. But I dont think he realized that I've been here in the US a while and even went to College here in the US. So after conversing with him in English for about 5 minutes, he started remembering how to speak in Tagalog and gave up. :-)

My wife told me they have the exact same mentality in Philippines. She grew up in Mindanao and she says there's quite a few people from Mindanao who suddenly cannot remember how to speak Visaya after being/living in Manila for only a few years. That also is BS.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

I do agree with you that its BS. I remember meeting a Filipino once here in LA. He's been here in the US for only 2 years and claims he had forgotten how to speak Tagalog. But I dont think he realized that I've been here in the US a while and even went to College here in the US. So after conversing with him in English for about 5 minutes, he started remembering how to speak in Tagalog and gave up. :-)

My wife told me they have the exact same mentality in Philippines. She grew up in Mindanao and she says there's quite a few people from Mindanao who suddenly cannot remember how to speak Visaya after being/living in Manila for only a few years. That also is BS.

hehehe...interesting. A little off topic but one of the first things I asked stepson to teach me (back in Cebu) was how to say, "Dog?" and then I went around saying, "Komosta, Ero!" (my attempt at saying, "What up dawg!")

I think I could pick up conversational Bisaya if I were to spend enough time back in the Philippines. We are hoping to stay well connected there.