[Bilingual: English/ Tagalog] I Challenged Myself to Write in Straight Tagalog: Is the Tagalog Language Dying?/ Hinamon ko ang Aking Sarili na Magsulat sa Tuwid na Tagalog: Namamatay na ba ang Wikang Tagalog?

_{In this post, I challenged myself to write in straight Tagalog (not Taglish). And I must admit that it was really challenging. To my Pinoy readers, you are allowed to laugh at my attempt and please feel free to correct the Tagalog words that I may have mis-used.}

_{Hinamon ko ang aking sarili na magsulat sa purong Tagalog (hindi Taglish) sa sanaysay na ito. Inaamin kong ako ay lubhang nahirapan. Para sa aking mga Pinoy na mambabasa, maari nyo akong pagtawanan. Pakiusap ko na ako ay inyong itama kung mayroon man akong maling nasabi.}

_{image by congerdesign from pixabay}

Tagalog is my mother tongue but I, and most Tagalogs, find it difficult to write a straight Tagalog article. I remember when I was studying that I find it more challenging to write Tagalog essays. The Filipino subject was also the subject where I got the lowest grade.

I'm a 90's kid and being in this generation, I grew up in a time where my friends and I speak in Tagalog most of the time, and sometimes in Taglish. When I go to my home province, I sometimes catch some deeper Tagalog words that I do not know because it is too formal and would sound like Old English.

Ang Tagalog ay ang aking sariling wika ngunit ako ay nahihirapang magsulat sa purong Tagalog, tulad ng nakararamihan. Naalala ko noong ako ay nag-aaral, mas mahirap pa para sa akin na magsulat ng mga sanaysay sa wikang Tagalog. Ang asignaturang Filipino ay ang may pinakamababa kong grado.

Ako ay laking 90's. Lumaki ako at nag-aral kung saan kami ng aking mga kaklase ay naguusap sa wikang Tagalog kahit na minsan ay nagta-Taglish pa din. Minsan ay me natutunan akong malalalim na Tagalog kapag ako ay nakikipag-usap sa mga nakakatanda o kung ako man ay nasa probinsya. Sadyang hindi ko alam ang mga malalalim na salitang ito dahil napaka-pormal nitong pakinggan.

Learning or Un-Learning?

English was the main medium of instruction in most schools unless the subject was Filipino. As early as Grade 2, I remember getting punished for speaking Tagalog in class. This includes simple chats with classmates. The classroom was an English Only Zone and you can't get caught speaking a Tagalog word. If you are caught, you will get a placard with a phrase in it (I can't recall what was written, probably something like "I spoke in Tagalog") and you have to catch another classmate speaking in Tagalog so you don't have to wear that placard the entire day. There was even a class where we had to pay a peso for every Tagalog word spoken.

This training forced us to speak a foreign language at an early age. Sure enough, we got better in English early in life. Sadly, we got worse in Tagalog. Taglish has become more common and easier as well.

Pag-aaral o Pagkalimot?

Ingles ang pangunahing wikang gamit sa pagtuturo sa mga paaralan pwera na lamang kung ang asignatura ay Filipino. Noong nasa ikalawang baitang pa lamang ako ay nakakatanggap kami ng parusa kapag kami ay nagTagalog. Ang silid aralan ay isang "English Only Zone" and hindi ka maaring mag-Tagalog. Kailangan mong magsuot ng kartelon kapag nahuli ka, kung saan me nakasulat na nagsalita ka ng Tagalog. Mayroon din na ang parusa ay piso kada Tagalog na salitang iyong masasambit.

Ang pagsasanay na ito ay nakatulong na mapagaling ang pagsasalita sa Ingles sa maagang edad. Ngunit nakakalungkot na humina ang aming Tagalog at mas madali ang mag-Taglish.

Strengthening the Foreign Language, Forgetting Our Own

Recently, we were talking to a younger colleague who would stop us from time to time to ask what some Tagalog words mean. And my colleagues and I were surprised that she doesn't know the words. This is from someone who has only lived in the Philippines all her life. I wonder what the training at school, at home or her surroundings were like.

There are also some Pinoys who would reply to me in straight English even if I'm speaking to them in Tagalog or Taglish. For some, speaking in English has become a status here. I wouldn't even discuss the other type of English that college students speak which shows that they come from an elite school.

I do recognize that this strength in English, combined with cheaper labor, got us more foreign investors from call centers to different types of outsourcing companies. However, we are slowly forgetting the deeper words in our mother tongue. How many more words do we allow to be forgotten before we do something about it?

Pagpapalakas sa Wikang Banyaga, Pagkalimot sa Sariling Atin

Kamakailan lamang ay may kausap kaming nakakabatang kasamahan sa trabaho. Nakakagulat na hindi nya alam ang ibang mga salitang Tagalog na aming ginamit gayong sa Pilipinas lamang sya nakatira. Napaisip tuloy ako kung paano itinuturo ang wikang Pilipino sa mga kabataang tulad nya sa paaralan, sa tahanan o sa lipunan.

Mayroon din akong mga nakakausap na sasagutin ako sa wikang Ingles kahit na nakikipag usap ako sa Tagalog o Taglish. Napansin ko na ang pangi-Ingles ay naging simbulo na ng estado sa buhay para sa iba. Hindi ko na lang ilalahad dito kung paano magsalita ang mga taga kolehiyo ngayon.

Ang ating abilidad sa Ingles at mababang sahod ay nakapagdala sa ating bansa ng mga dayuhang negosyante. Hindi ko ikinaiilang nakatulong sa atin ito. Ngunit patuloy nating binabalewala ang ating sariling wika. Ilang malalalim na salita pa ang kailangang makalimutan upang tayo ay may gawin tungkol dito?

Tagalog is no longer a priority

I have observed that some younger parents now speak to their kids in English only. I understand that they wanted their kids to be fluent in English when they go to school. But what's sad is, they are even proud that their kids do not know Tagalog but are very fluent in English! I understand the importance of learning in English but why compromise our mother tongue especially when the kids are living in this country. Not to mention the importance of the mother tongue in learning. Good news is that this was already given attention by the Department of Education

Hindi na inuuna ang Tagalog

Napansin ko na ang mga magulang sa henerasyong ito ay nakikipag-usap lamang sa wikang Ingles sa kanilang mga anak. Ito ay para madali silang matutong mag-Ingles at naiintindihan ko iyon ngunit nakakalungkot na ipinagmamalaki pa nila na hindi magaling sa Tagalog ang kanilang mga anak. Importanteng matuto ng Ingles, ngunit bakit kailangang pabayaan na hindi sila matutong mag-Tagalog lalo na't dito pa din sila sa Pilipinas nakatira. Mahalaga ang matuto ang mga bata sa sariling wika at nakakatuwang malaman na binigyang pansin na ito ng Kagawaran ng Edukasyon

Is it Dying or just Evolving?

Let's set aside those who do not speak Tagalog (or any Filipino dialect) at all, pop culture has made a way to make Tagalog and even other Filipino dialects attractive to the younger generation. For instance, Beki Language or Gay Speak has become common and is something widely spoken not just by the gay community but by anyone because it's fun and playful. Pak ganern! A play in Tumpak (precisely) + ganoon (so).

There are also words that are used differently now like hugot which would literally mean" to pull out" but is now more used in the context of emotions and pulling some deep feelings from within. Google the word hugot and you'll see the popular romantic pick up lines and heartbreaking romantic movies related to this. But these new forms of the Filipino language are all too complex and deserves to be discussed separately.

Some may not agree because these are not pure Tagalog but somehow they have saved the Filipino language from being forgotten especially by the younger generation.

Namamatay na o Nagbabago lamang?

Isangtabi na natin ang mga hindi ngsasalita sa wiking Pilipino. Kahit paano ay nakatulong ang kulturang popular para maengganyo ang mga kabataang magsalita ng wikang Pilipino. Isang halimbawa ay ang salitang Beki. Ito ay sumikat hindi lamang sa mga madlang kabaklaan ngunit kahit na sino ay natutuwang gamitin ito. Pak ganern? Kung san ay pinaglaruan ang salitang tumpak at ganoon.

Mayroon ding mga salitang sumikat at naiba ang paggamit katulad ng salitang hugot. Ngayon ay mas ginagamit na natin ito sa konteksto ng malalim na emosyon at hindi sa paghugot ng mga literal na bagay. Kapag hinanap mo ang salitang ito sa Google ay lalabas ang iba't ibang klaseng banat o romantikong pelikula na mayroong hugot. Ngunit malawak ang mga paksang ito at nangangailangan ng hiwalay na sanaysay para dito.

Maaring mayroong di sumang-ayon sa mga bago at popular na wikang ito. Ngunit kahit papano'y nakatulong sila na hindi talikuran ng kabataan at ating wika.

I'll end this post with the words from our national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal or Herminigildo Cruz or Gabriel Beato Francisco (Note: it is still unknown who wrote the poem Sa Aking Mga Kabata/ To My Childhood Companions where these lines are from).

He who loves not his own language is worse than an animal and a stinky fish.

Tatapusin ko ang artikulong ito gamit ang mga salita ng ating pambansang bayani na si Dr. Jose Rizal o Herminigildo Cruz o Gabriel Beato Francisco. (Hindi pa natutukoy kung sino ang nagsulat ng tulang sa Aking Mga Kabatakung saan nanggaling ang linyang ito).

"Ang hindi magmahal sa sariling wika, daig pa ang hayop at malansang isda".