I've started on the research into my Philippine heritage and ancestry, and it proves to be just as hard as any subject matter delved into seriously and with sensitivity. It has always been hard; as an undergraduate I wrote my thesis paper on a subject matter very close to this but with a completely different approach (my thesis paper was titled: On Emergent Technosubjectivities: Fragmented Identities in the Era of Globalization. It was a very abstract paper, and as I enter into a more structured study into this part of my life, this subject matter of nationhood and cultural identity, it is proving to require the same amount of research and thought as an academic essay, and I've realized that something like this has to be handled as more than a simple hobby.
This morning, I attempted to post something for social media regarding the nature of language in the Philippines. After posting, I asked my aunt and my mother (both Filipinos, now Filipino-Americans as they have earned their citizenship here in the United States) what they thought of it. While my aunt thought my commentary was "very good" (which it might have well been!), my mom was more concerned about how I approach writing about this topic, with an emphasis on doing the necessary reading of scholarly literature before sounding off my own educated guesses on the matter.
The post, which has since been deleted, included this photo, which I found unsourced on Pinterest (usually a place to get into trouble with anything that requires sufficient context):
Such a beautiful sounding word. I wanted to share it with everyone as a way to share this Filipino word with the world, so it could go on it's way to become something like "Mahalo!" (Hawaiian) or "Gutentag!" (German), or "Arigato" (Japanese), or "Bon Apetit" (French), or "Bellisimo!" (Italian), or "Tak" (Polish)... you get the picture. The famous one I do know from the Philippines is "Ma Buhay!" - but I'll write more about that later.
What I got right: kalinaw is a word from one of the many dialects in the Philippines. It is a word that originated on the island of Cebu (there are 7,107 islands in the Philippines, FYI). The word is thus part of the Cebuano dialect, and indeed does mean serenity and tranquility, and is also, correctly a noun.
When a word like this is simply put on a Pinterest board as one of the most beautiful words spoken in the Philippines, I am concerned about the lack of complexity given in its caption, particularly the need to provide the proper context.
Cebuano is not the official language in the Philippines. The Philippines has two official languages: Filipino (commonly referred to as Tagalog) as well as English, which is what the Filipino government uses, mostly. In Tagalog, the word kalinaw is also used, but the meaning of it is almost completely changed. Usually, when someone uses the word kalinaw in Tagalog, it is used to say something like: clear, concise, precise, understandable. It is used more to say something like: that person spoke very clear to me. Or, what that person said was crystal clear; erudite, even. Direct. Whereas in Cebuano, kalinaw's meaning more about a state of being, of a place, or person. Though describing this to you in English might seem like this word is an adjective, in both Cebuano and Tagalog, it is a noun.
My aunt was the one who informed me that kalinaw is *not* a Tagalog word, but a Cebuano word. My mom was the one who told me that kalinaw, though not normally associated with Tagalog, is still used in Tagalog speech. I'll need further research to say anything more.
Another concern my mother had was my use of the term The Philippine Islands. I love using that term for a few reasons. One, to denote that the country is a group of thousands of islands. Two, I think it sounds official. Three, I'm not too comfortable with the idea that the Philippines is actually only named the Philippines because of the old King of Spain: King Philip II. Actually Las Islas Filipinas (Spanish) was it's given Spanish name which almost exactly translates as The Philippine Islands... which I like.
However.
On the phone this morning, my mom said, "Felicia, no one uses the term The Philippine Islands anymore. Only the colonizers liked to use that term. The Philippines gained their independence already, and since then everyone just says the Philippines." OK. So I didn't know! But fair enough. I learn something new everyday (yes, even from you, Mom). I'm not sure what the reason is for this, but it seems to be some sign of unity. Just the Philippines. All together. As a whole. According to Wikipedia (I know, I'm only in the very initial stages of reading about all this), the official title is actually The Republic Of The Philippines which signifies - even more - that the nation is a whole comprised of multiple parts.
Another question my mom asked was: "Why are you so interested in all of this?" As in, opposed to other concepts?
For me, culture can be pared down to these basic components (I think this might be similar philosophy to Anthropology or Sociology): art, orally transmitted stories/folklore, traditional rituals, clothing, food, and language (basic communication).
History and written literature come later - at least in my study of it. What I'm finding out at this point is there is common universality in the idea of an indigenous culture native to the Philippines. Who claims this as their own? And who claims the idea of the colonizer as part of Filipino identity? And is there any way to peacefully merge these two forms together as a way to develop Filipino heritage and culture? Are they already merged? Are they split? And thus I delve into the terrifying abyss of politics.
- F
