Languages of the Philippines Languages in the Philippines number more than 170 and almost all of them belong to the Western Malayo-Polynesian languages. The official languages are Filipino and English. While Filipino is the national language, both Filipino and English are considered official languages of the country according to the constitution. Both are used extensively in government, education, and commerce. Filipino with English, serves as the lingua franca for Filipinos among the islands, provinces and abroad. Despite this multiplicity of languages, the Philippines has one of the highest literacy rates in the East Asian and Pacific area. About 90% of the population 10 years of age and older are literate. Filipinos are completely bilingual. Native Languages A total of one hundred seventy-two native languages and dialects are spoken, all belonging to the Austronesian linguistic family. There are twelve Philippine languages with at least one million native speakers: Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilokano, Hiligaynon, Bikol, Waray-Waray, Kapampangan, Pangasinan, Kinaray-a, Maranao, Maguindanao, and Tausug. These are spoken natively by almost 90% of the population. As in The Americas, the Spanish missionaries preached the natives in local languages. Filipino is both the national language and an official language. It is based on Tagalog. Tagalog is the dominant native language in the Philippines with Cebuano, a subgroup of Visayan, in a close second place. Since 1939, in an effort to develop national unity, the government has promoted the use of the official national language, Filipino. Filipino is taught in all schools and is gaining acceptance, particularly as a second language for a linguistically diverse population. Pilipino is a more native word or pronunciation for Filipino, just like Nippongo or Nihongo is to Japanese, or Français to French. There is no f sound in the original pre-Spanish Tagalog. Languages including other minor languages: The languages below are spoken in the Northern part of Luzon Island. The lingua franca or most significant language is Ilocano. Ibanag Itawit Malaweg Gaddang Itawis Agta Atta Yogad Isneg For languages spoken in the central region of the Philippines or Visayan region. See Visayan languages for a complete list. The lingua franca or most significant language is Cebuano. Ilonggo is also widely spoken. Southern languages: Chavacano- also known as Chabacano, is a Spanish creole language. Major Foreign Languages Arabic Arabic is used by some members of the Muslim population, especially in the south. Chinese The islanders have been trading with China and Japan since the early 10th or 11th century. Mandarin Chinese is the medium of instruction in Chinese schools and lingua franca of the mainland and overseas Chinese. Hokkien Chinese is the language of the majority the Chinese in the Philippines, who immigrated from the Fujian (pronounced locally as Fookien or Hokkien) province in China. English Main Article: Philippine English English is an official language in the Philippines, imposed on by Americans during U.S. colonization after the Philippine-American War. The Americans gradually succeeded in taking control of urban and coastal areas by the end of 1903 and began to aggressively promote English as a universal language. Although the first exposure to English was in 1762, when the British invaded Manila, English from that era never had any lasting influence. English was assimilated when the United States took over the government. Nowadays, English is the dominant language in business, government, the legal system, medicine, the sciences and education. The native languages are often heard in colloquial settings. Filipinos would much rather have their text books like calculus, physics, chemistry, biology, etc. written in English rather than Filipino. At home with family and friends however, most use their vernaculars. When English is used, there is an air or atmosphere of formality such as in school, government, ceremonies. A large percentage of the media such as television, newspapers and entertainment are also in English. Since Filipinos are very well oriented with English, a large influx of English words is expected to be assimilated into Tagalog and the other native languages. It is customary to substitute English words even if the word exists in the original vernacular. See Taglish. Hindi, Urdu, Sindhi and Tamil Since pre-Spanish times, there have been small Indian communities in the Philippines. Indians tend to be able to speak Tagalog and the other native languages, and are often fluent in English. Among themselves, Hindi, Urdu, Sindhi, Tamil and are used. Japanese There is a small Japanese community and a school for Japanese in Metro Manila due to the number of Japanese companies. Also there is a community of Japanese and Japanese descendants in the Davao region. In 1920, there were about 20,000 Japanese in the Davao region. Spanish Main Article: Spanish in the Philippines Spanish began to be the first language in archipelago from 1565, when the Basque explorer Miguel López de Legaspi founded the first Spanish settlement on Cebu. In 1593, the first printing press was founded. A great portion of the colonial history of the Philippines is written in Spanish. Many land titles, contracts, newspapers and literature are still written in Spanish. There are approximately 4,000 Spanish words in Tagalog, and around 6,000 Spanish words in Visayan and other dialects. The Spanish counting system, calendar, time, etc is still in use with slight modifications. After World War II and during the Marcos regime, many of the old Spanish-speaking families in Philippines migrated to Europe or the Americas. There were 6 million Spanish speakers in the Philippines in 1940. The 1950 Census stated that the Spanish-speaking Filipinos made up 6% of the population. Spanish ceased to be an official language and a required subject in college in 1987 during the Cory Aquino Administration. A Spanish creole has evolved in Zamboangga and various parts of the countries. Many legal and historic documents are still in Spanish. See also Black Legend Culture of the Philippines History of the Spanish language Kapang syndrome Latin Union List of official languages Philippine English Spanish in the Philippines Visayan languages References "Literatura hispanofilipina: siglos XVII al XX", by Edmundo Farolan Romero, with a pretty Philippine poetry anthology in Spanish. Ethnologue on Philippines Most Popular Articles: Music    Musical Instruments    Guitar    Classical Music    History    Music Definition    Country Music    Rock Music    Pop Music    Hip Hop    Rap    DJ    Video Games    Casino Games    Poker    Blackjack    Casinos    Real Estate    Loan    Auction    eBay    Marketing    Search Engine Optimization    File Sharing    MP3    Music Industry    Kazaa    Internet    Supermodel    Fashion    Fashion Designers    Erotica    Modeling    Clothing    Boots    Shoes    Diamond Engagement Rings    Diamond    Rugs    Gospel Music    Affiliate    E-Commerce    Radio This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License at http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html You may copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license. You must provide a link to http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html for use of this content. To view or edit this article at Wikipedia go to http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_the_Philippines