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Bisaya is perhaps the most prevalent language spoken by Pinoys aside from Filipino. Bisayans, or Pinoys who speak this language, are often ( if not always ) derided for their peculiar accent when talking in English. For example, Bisayans are known for pronouncing the word "battle" as "bah-tol" or the word "apple" as "ah-pol". Pinoys regard the Bisayan accent in spoken English as irrepressibly comical, so much so that numerous jokes allude to how Bisayans end up in hilarious situations because of their perceived mispronunciation of English words. Thus, we would hear jokes where Bisayans say "Amen" and the listener understands it as "Hey man!", among other contrived anecdotes.
Among Pinoys, a person who speaks English with a marked Bisayan accent is an object of mockery. To talk in English with this accent places a stigma on the speaker as someone who belongs to the maleducated class, an individual of "low breeding" or "second-rate" social standing. Precisely why Pinoys poke fun at such persons. The Bisayan accent of spoken English, in short, is one of the most undesirable traits a Pinoy could have, especially when a Pinoy seeks legitimate recognition as a "person of breeding".
Pinoys would prefer that fellow Pinoys speak English with an American accent. If you are Pinoy and you sound like an American when talking in English, you are accorded a higher and more admired status.
The question begs to be asked, however, whether speaking English with a Bisayan accent ought to lessen one's respect for the speaker. Should we Pinoys constantly mock and decry the accent as "second-rate" and "unacceptable"? Even the most recognizable Pinoy in the planet today, the extraordinarily talented boxer Manny Pacquiao, is often taunted about how he speaks English with his "Bisaya" phonetics. Shouldn't Pinoys be proud of their own unique accent when speaking English, whether it is Bisayan or not?
Americans perpetually poke fun at how Indians mangle their pronunciation of English. The British, in turn ( from whom the English language originated ), also regard the American accent with contempt as being improper. Even among native English speakers, there is disagreement as to what the proper accent should be.
And yet, Indians themselves don't see their own accent of spoken English as hilarious. The Americans are proud of their accent, even if the Texans have a twang that defies belief ( just listen to former US President George Bush ). The Australians, who pronounce "today" as "to die", are perfectly comfortable with their own accent.
Shouldn't we Pinoys also be proud of our Bisayan accent in English? Shouldn't we regard our peculiar accent as part of our identity, something we can unabashedly display to everybody?
Or, conversely, should the Bisayan accent be forever imputed with its less than favorable reputation?
...should the Bisayan accent be forever imputed with its less than favorable reputation?"
ReplyDeletewag naman give them a fair go. most important thing is they can communicate. aanhin mo ang perfect american or english accent kung di ka naman maiintindihan? ang mga kiwis (new zealanders) ganito sila...
desk (la mesa) - disk
ten (sampu) - tin
arrest (huli ka!) - arrist
jennifer (pangalan) - ginifir
Bisayans have their own culture of modifying english words. Bastardization? Not really. it's just the status quo, norms and shared by everyone - until they go to Manila and they experienced belittling!
ReplyDeleteIt's just one of our attitude problems.
mula pa kc noon panahon may concept na tayo ng "alila". ang may pera, magandang mag english.
ang mga hindi kaya hanggang copy na lang, mali pa. most often afraid to show originality. Sa eskwela walang nagtuturo how to build confidence
nasan ang mga magagaling na teachers? private schools. sinong nasa public? mahirap na sa bulsa, mahirap pang mag english, much more mag pronounce ng tama.
Pero hindi lang naman bisaya ang matigas mag pronounce ng english. People from the north, excuse me, walang personalan.
I'd say, we need to overhaul our attitude.
Fellow bisayans, speak up.
I first had my conscious encounter with a Visayan teacher in Ms. Jerusalem who directed our Kindergarten Christmas play. She told me I was a "sheepird", something I argued with my parents was correct because my role was to tend to sheep. In high school, I had a spat with my P.E. teacher who gave me a grade which, according to her, was "sibenti-siben". Then in college, it was in an inter-major debate that I heard one debater claim to have all the "eebidens".
ReplyDeleteWell, this is not a morally debatable issue unless, of course, noticing the speech anomaly is the result of regional racism.
It's a reality lying in the "dipthong" of their dialect and not really because "matigas ang dila nila".
I'd say the laughter and the teasing is borne more out of the innate Filipino quality of self-degrading humor. Where ever in the world do you find a people that laughs at their problems or stirs up a storm of condescending jokes about themselves -- even in times of personal tragedies, sickness or mourning?
Methinks Visayans have a ticklish bone for jokes about their English diction. They're mostly game and don't feel inferiority. Otherwise, they wouldn't speak with such force and volume. That's diction with conviction. Now, who can beat that?
kataw-anan man gud...
ReplyDeletejoey ayala
i can distinctly recall a certain jeepney ride i took on one of my commutes. it was a pretty long trip, and the driver was all too eager to play his radio deafeningly loud, perhaps in order to drown out the tedium. during that commute i witnessed the double standard of fellow Pinoys regarding the bisayan accent.
ReplyDeletethe radio station was broadcasting promotional "stingers" or sound bytes which were apparently meant to make the listeners laugh. most of them were the typical "bisayan tries to speak english" jokes. curiously enough, some passengers were reacting with laughter, however much of it they stifled.
what followed these sound bytes were reggae songs, since the radio program at that time was all about ska and reggae music. most of the bands being granted airplay were singing in the "bob marley style", meaning that the songs were in english, but the accent was jamaican.
now, one of the songs played was a reggae remake of "message in a bottle" by the police. the singer was mangling the pronunciation of the lyrics of the song, and i could clearly hear the words "message in a bottle" ( as contained in the song's chorus ) being pronounced as "meesidge in eh batohl".
i mean, the vocalist was singing in the "bob marley" jamaican-reggae accent, but no one among the passengers seemed to be laughing--or even trying to stifle some laughter.
clearly, PInoys have to examine themselves why they would laugh at the bisayan accent, and then at the same time think that the "bob marley" accent is "coooolll!!!"
hmmmm.