1

Hopes and Fears: Language Revitalization in San Diego’s Filipino Community

IVY DULAY

San Diego is home to approximately 114,000 Filipinos, slightly more than half of the Filipino population in

Los Angeles. The majority is bilingual in English and one of the many languages of the Philippines,

principally Tagalog/Filipino, but the significant loss of the native language in the second generation indicates

that numbers alone will not accomplish the goal of language maintenance. Efforts to reverse language shift at

the individual, family, and community level are directly affected by the status of Tagalog and its speakers,

and the extent of institutional support that the language enjoys. Its status has been eroded by colonialism and

conflicting language policies both in the Philippines and in the USA, and institutional support is limited.

Nevertheless, second generation children are enrolling in Filipino language classes in a few high schools and

colleges, attempting to revitalize the language in their families. The results of personal interviews and

questionnaires administered to students who are studying Filipino and some parents reveal not only that

language classes have successfully taught second generation children the language and the respect norms of

Filipino culture, they also have fostered greater family admiration for and involvement in the educational

system. Moreover, the impact on inter-generational relationships in the family has been profound because

family members who share Filipino are able to express their emotions completely and accurately. Because of

the group and individual rewards of bilingualism, including greater academic success, the Filipino

community is working to establish more educational opportunities to learn Tagalog in the hope of preserving

the language despite the much greater status, power, demographic concentration, and institutional support

that English enjoys.

2

Sinimulan kong isulat itong papel sa wikang Pilipino dahil gusto ko lang ipabuhayin

at pagaralan uli ang wika ng mga magulang ko, ang wika ng mga ninuno ko, ang

wikang nawawala na. Mahalaga ang wika sa pagkakaintindihan ng sarili dahil may

kaugnayan ito sa identidad at sa kultura kahit anong lahi kang pinagmulan.

[Translation: I begin writing this paper in Filipino1 because I want to reclaim the

language of my parents and my ancestors, a language that is being lost. Language is

important for understanding oneself because it is intricately linked to identity and

culture, regardless of the ethnic group to which one belongs.]

There are many challenges to preserving the Filipino language: historical, political, economic,

and personal. Since 1565, the Spanish, the Americans, and the Japanese have all changed the

society and culture of Filipinos, changing their language in the process. In the 21st century, the

members of the Filipino communities dispersed throughout the United States are losing the

ability to speak Filipino. San Diego, home to approximately 114,000 Filipinos, is a case in point.

Given the strong connection between language and culture, language has a major impact

on bonding and conflict within families, and is central to their hopes and fears. Therefore, the

questions that have guided this research are: What is the impact of the Filipino language on

intergenerational relationships in San Diego? Have efforts toward revitalization of the Filipino

language in San Diego been successful and have they had a positive impact on families? What is

the future of the Filipino language in San Diego? To answer these questions, I observed three

community sites in San Diego, attended two large local events and four meetings, surveyed three

classes consisting of 10-17 students each, and conducted 16 interviews. I also interviewed seven

1
Filipino is the adjective used to describe people or things related to the Philippines; some use “Pilipino” and
“Filipino” interchangeably. The letter ‘f’ did not exist in the original alphabet of the Philippines but was adopted
during the U.S. educational reform in the Philippines in the early 1900s. In order to emphasize the American
influence, “Filipino” will be used throughout this paper.
3

parents, four young people who were born in the Philippines but later migrated to the U.S., and

five others born in the U.S. Finally, I collected data on Filipino demographics and language use

from the 1990 and 2000 U.S. Census.2

The Socio-political Context of Filipino Language Loss

The monetary and social capital connected with knowing English in the U.S. exerts pressure on

immigrants to master English. Moreover, the variety of people coming from different countries

means that the “pressure toward linguistic assimilation is all the greater because the country has

few other elements on which to ground a sense of national identity”… and the “common use of

American English has come to acquire a singular importance as a binding tie across such a vast

territory” (Portes and Rumbaut 2001: 114). Given this reality, how can languages such as

Filipino be maintained in the US? The answer must take into consideration language history and

politics, and their effect on family language practices.

Filipino in the Philippines

The Philippines is a country comprised of many cultures and over 100 languages. The

diverse indigenous Filipino cultures were influenced by the colonialism of the Spaniards from

1565-1898, American occupation from 1899-1946, and an interruption of this occupation by the

Japanese invasion from 1941-1942. Although the country was granted independence in 1946,

neocolonialism persists, as thousands of U.S. troops remain stationed in the Philippines. The

combination of many languages and hundreds of years of colonialism has made the Philippines a

linguistically complex nation. For example, during the American occupation, English was

2
I am indebted to Professor April Linton for her help with the Census data, and to Professor Ana Celia Zentella for
the analysis, organization, and editing.
4

declared the national language and the Thomasites3, as the new American teachers were called,

arrived to educate the Filipino people in their new language. Changes in national leadership

frequently resulted in the development of new language policies. Beginning in 1937, “Tagalog”

was declared the national language. Independence was achieved in 1946, and the national

language was changed to “Pilipino” in 1961, in an attempt to incorporate aspects of the many

other languages. In 1973, the “F” from the American alphabet changed the name to Filipino, and

in 1987 the Philippine Constitution officially declared Filipino the national language. Many

people still refer interchangeably to the language as Filipino or Tagalog and I follow that

practice. Currently, three major languages, Tagalog/Filipino, Visayan, and Ilocano, are spoken

throughout the Philippines, but Tagalog is the most widely spoken.

The most recent language struggle began in 2006, around a proposed national policy

entitled “Strengthening and Enhancing the Use of English in the Schools in the Philippines,” also

known as House Bill 4701 or the “Gullas Bill”; it favored an English-only policy in the

educational system. Its implementation would further devalue Filipino and lionize English, and

its reception reflects the way languages and the language question remain colonized in the

Philippines. Reactions to House Bill 4701 varied. The principal supporters of this pro-English

only bill were from regions where Filipino is not the main language; its creators were primarily

from Cebu, where Cebuano is spoken. They prefer monolingualism in the former colonizers’

language instead of a bilingual system that includes an indigenous language that is not their own.

In contrast, many Filipinos in the U.S. did not support the legislation, because they fear and

oppose English monolingualism in the Philippines. Several hundred people in the San Diego

3
The term Thomasites refers to newly arrived American teachers in the Philippines at the beginning of the U.S.
colonial occupation.
5

region signed a petition to block the Gullas bill; their motivations include the fact that many

signers have personally experienced the negative effects of language loss in their families.

Filipino in the United States

English has been the primary language of instruction in the Philippine educational system

for many decades. As a result, a majority of those who emigrate from the Philippines to the US

are English speakers, but most Filipinos also speak their native language. According to the US

Census, Filipino ranks 4th in languages other than English that are spoken at home in the United

States.4 Slightly more than half of the Filipino speaking population in the U.S. (51% =626,395)

are located in California, which makes Filipino the 3rd most commonly spoken language in the

state, following English and Spanish. In both the 1990 and 2000 Censuses, over 90% of

California’s Filipino speakers reported that they speak English “very well” or “well”, indicating

a high level of bilingualism.

Upon arrival in America, jobs and education are primary concerns and failure can be

devastating; immigrants from the Philippines soon learn that their success depends on how well

they speak English. Therefore, many families avoid speaking Filipino languages if they know

English because of the misplaced fear that holding on to the home language may hinder their

success and that of their children. Cordova (2003) documents the different experiences of

assimilation among the increasing number of Filipinos now residing in the United States,

particularly differences related to the “generation of immigration; class; regional and language

backgrounds; interracial marriage; urban, suburban, or rural experiences; and other complex

factors” (2003: 338). These factors, in turn, affect attitudes towards language maintenance in the

Filipino community, and towards Filipino identity. For example, some people from the

4
The Filipino population in San Diego totals 2,116,478 residents, 58% of whom are speakers age five and over who
reported they spoke a language other than English at home; most of them also speak English well or very well.
6

Mindanao region of the Philippines do not identify themselves as “Filipinos.” They claim that

since they are not considered Filipinos in the Philippines and speak languages that differ greatly

from the national Filipino language, they see no need to select Filipino as their ethnicity on the

census.

Other factors, such as the transmission of cultural values, cut across the community and

their interactions with others. For example, pakikisama, or the ability to ensure smooth

interpersonal relations, is central to communication among Filipinos, especially in

interracial/interethnic families. Those who honor pakikisama resort to speaking the shared

language of English in the presence of a non-Filipino speaking member of the family.

Consequently, as families begin to rely more and more on English for their communication, they

sacrifice their Filipino language.

Filipino in San Diego

To know your culture, you gotta know your language. You gots to be culturally

aware [sic]. I’ve always admired the Mexican culture. All my Mexican friends are

bilingual and I’m like “Damn. It sucks for us, we’re only one-sided.’ Being a

Filipino activist, I tried learning the language. It’s kinda hard. I’m trying to

understand the culture and I know some of my culture can’t translate into English.

–Michael

San Diego is an ideal site to study the challenges to Filipino languages in the United

States because of the large population of Filipino immigrants in the region, and their many

second-generation children. Filipino emigration to San Diego County started slowly after U.S.

occupation in 1899. The first wave (1903-1934) included Filipinos who arrived in San Diego

during the early 1900s as U.S. government-sponsored students known as pensionados. However,
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the U.S. passed regulations creating barriers to Filipino immigration, e.g. the Tydings-McDuffie

Act (1934) limited migration to fifty people per year, while the Repatriation Act (1935)

encouraged Filipinos to return to the Philippines. Racism against Filipinos before WWII in San

Diego was rampant, e.g. Filipinos could not own property unless they were married to

Americans (Espiritu 1995). The second wave of Filipino immigrants (1945-1965) included “war

brides” who joined their American soldier husbands after World War II and Filipino men who

had worked as stewards in the U.S. Navy (many live in South Bay communities). The third wave

(1965-present) is comprised of professionals – many nurses and teachers – who left the

Philippines for better opportunities; most are fluent English speakers and many live in North

County (cf Espiritu 1995 for case studies).

Despite proficiency in English, Filipino is spoken in the majority of Filipino homes in

San Diego; in 2000, 90% of Filipinos in the county spoke either Filipino or English at home (the

remaining 10% spoke another language), and of this group 64% spoke Filipino and 46% spoke

English.5 As Figure 1 indicates, there are seven communities in San Diego where speakers of

Filipino constitute between 5%-17% of the total population, and in two of them, Mira Mesa and

National City, they constitute approximately one third of all those who speak a language other

than English in the community. Because residents who speak Filipino at home make up more

than 14% of the population of National City, Mira Mesa, and Otay Mesa, my interviews were

conducted with residents of these areas. Furthermore, all of these areas offer Filipino heritage

language programs in some high schools and elementary schools, an aspect of revitalization

efforts that I address below. 6

5
Of the 113,466 Filipinos above the age of five in San Diego, 10% spoke a language other than English or Filipino
at home. In this chapter, we focus on the 90% who speak either English or Filipino, but encourage future research on
other Filipino languages.
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Figure 1: Filipino speakers in San Diego: US Census 2000 Data (mla.org)

Location Total # of English Speakers of Filipino % spkrs of % of total

and Zip residents speakers langs. other Speakers Filipino pop. that
Code than Eng. amg spkrs speaks
combined of langs. Filipino
other than
Eng.
National 153,198 68,331 83,867 25,922 31% 17%
City
92114
92139
91950
Mira Mesa 69,272 39,840 29,432 10,560 36% 15.2%
92126
Otay Mesa 41,832 25,411 1,421 6,139 4% 14.7%
92154
Ranchos 43,633 29,488 14,145 4,223 3% 10%
Penasquitos
92129
Spring 52,000 35,579 16,421 2,575 2% 4.95%
Valley
91977
Chula Vista 142,439 65,906 76,533 6,753 9% 4.74%
91910
91911
91915
Imperial 24,497 14,932 9,565 1,148 12% 4.69%
Beach
91932

The Census reveals that the social background factors that determine Filipino language

knowledge and use in San Diego are age, gender, education, income, and birthplace. Several of

these are interrelated. For example, whereas 91% of the Filipinos in San Diego who are non-

citizens speak Filipino at home, as do 86% of naturalized Filipinos, only 17% of the U.S. born

speak Filipino at home. This is linked to age, since older residents are more likely to have been

born in the Philippines. As the age categories increase, so does the likelihood that Filipino is

spoken at home. Approximately 90% of those between the ages of 41-90 speak Filipino at home,

but only 78% of the 5-12 year olds do. Education is also implicated and linked to age; only 35%

of those enrolled in school speak Filipino at home, but between 69%-85% of those with high
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school and higher education diplomas do.7 Higher levels of education result in higher income,

which is also positively correlated with speaking Filipino. In 2000, those who spoke English at

home earned $18,400, while those who spoke Filipino earned $19,050. These data all indicate

that the Filipino language enjoys linguistic capital because of its link to higher education and

income. Since the great majority are fluent bilinguals, Filipinos enjoy a “bicultural identity”

(Cordova 19: 347). Of all the people who spoke Filipino at home in San Diego in 2000, 93%

reported speaking English well or very well. Evidently, Filipinos are choosing to speak Filipino

at home even though their English ability is high.

Gender deserves special mention because of its relevance to family problems, discussed

below. Not surprisingly, given the traditional role of females in child rearing and language

transmission, Filipino females are more likely to speak Filipino at home than Filipino males,

although both genders report speaking less English than Filipino. Approximately 8% more of the

Filipino females, when compared to the males (68.5% vs. 61%), speak Filipino at home, and it

may be that this difference between genders regarding language maintenance exerts pressure on

the Filipino females of the second generation. We return to this issue after discussing the relevant

literature.

Espiritu and Wolf (2001) argue that the children of Filipino immigrants in San Diego

become interested in their Filipino culture as they grow up, although this is not necessarily linked

to the Filipino language. Using data from the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study (Portes

and Rumbaut 2001) as well as surveys, focus groups, and interviews, Espiritu and Wolf analyzed

the relationship between immigration and assimilation. They claim that “second-generation

Filipinos move toward an ethnic rather than an American identity over time, but also conform to

7
In 2000, 73% of those with high school diplomas, 81% of those with a Bachelor’s degree, 69% of those with a
Master’s degree, and 85% of those holding doctorates spoke Filipino at home.
10

forces of assimilation because they believe in the American dream and prefer English to their

parents’ native language” (Espiritu and Wolf 2001:182). In contrast, my research indicates that

whereas some members of the second generation perpetuate language loss by choosing English

over Filipino, others support language revitalization by attempting to connect with their Filipino

identity through learning the Filipino language. Because their “home language and culture [are

regarded] as deficits rather than strengths” in the USA (Cordova 2003: 345), it is easy to

understand why many second-generation Filipinos are raised speaking only English and show

little interest in learning Filipino. Nevertheless, some young people see their native language as a

symbol of identity and a reservoir of strength linked to their hopes and dreams, thus important to

preserve. In order to predict the future of the Filipino languages in the United States, we need to

understand the reasons for the sometimes conflicting language perspectives of children and their

families, including “the relationship between language maintenance and educational

achievement” (Cordova: 347).

Most important are the significant connections between language and psychosocial

adjustment found by Portes and Rumbaut (2001). Their surveys and interviews with 819 Filipino

adolescents and 359 parents in San Diego indicated that levels of bilingualism can strongly affect

self-esteem and intergenerational communication. According to their data, fluent bilinguals are

the least embarrassed by their parents, have the least conflictive relationship with them, and are

most prone to maintain friendships with co-ethnic children (Portes and Rumbaut 2001: 134). On

the other hand, the rapid loss of parental languages unaccompanied by English fluency is

associated with negative consequences, including poor self-esteem and a more common sense of

shame re their parents’ culture” (2001: 133). For English-dominant children, there is greater

likelihood to be embarrassed by parents, while limited bilingual Filipinos are more likely to clash
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with their parents (2001: 133). Sadly, of all the Southeast Asians surveyed in San Diego, Filipino

youth rank the lowest in knowing their parental language, and the highest in preferring to speak

English. In other words, in Filipino families in San Diego, “children do not communicate with

their parents in their native tongues” (2001: 125), and this is due to the pressures of assimilation

and to the language the parents used during child-rearing – English in the U.S. Additionally, as is

the case for all Asians, the mother tongues are “exclusively [spoken] at home, but suffer from

lack of external support” (2001: 126). Portes and Rumbaut argue that “losing a language is also

losing part of one’s self that is linked to one’s identity and cultural heritage” (op cit: 144). Thus,

the shift towards monolingualism in English contributes to a growing distance from their

parents’ bilingual culture, even though they may know English, and results in harmful

“dissonant acculturation” (op cit: 126).

The impact on young Filipina women is of major concern. About the academic and

cultural pressures on females, Wolf and Espiritu conclude that “young Filipinas have higher

educational aspirations, higher grades, and more academic demands on them from parents than

do Filipino males, however Filipinas also end up accepting less and aiming downwards” (2001:

178). In general terms, Filipinas experience more family conflict, more depression, and lower

self-esteem than do males because of the fear of gossip and their sensitivity to the “importance of

family cohesion, unity, and loyalty” (2001: 179). But the role of language may be a critical

antidote. Since females are more sheltered and more likely to stay at home, they are “hence more

likely to retain their parents’ language” than males (2001: 140). Wolf and Espiritu found that

knowing the Filipino language results in improved self-esteem, giving fluent bilinguals a

“stronger sense of self” (2001: 181). This is extremely important because in both genders,

depression and low self-esteem are inversely related to one’s cultural assimilation. Wolf and
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Espiritu also discovered that a low GPA is related to higher depression rates and parent-child

conflicts. Their research proves that middle class socioeconomic status does not necessarily

translate into personal contentment for Filipino youth, especially when language loss leads to

conflict with parents.

Fortunately, in their research and interviews, Wolf and Espiritu discovered the “rapid

growth of reactive ethnic consciousness among young Filipino Americans in San Diego”

(Espiritu and Wolf 2001: 174). In order to explore this topic in San Diego’s Filipino community,

I administered three surveys to 18 individuals, both males and females, from different

immigration generations. Interviewees include seven first-generation Filipinos who immigrated

here as adults to pursue more opportunities, four members of the 1.5 generation (those with some

prior schooling in the Philippines), two 1.75 generation (individuals born in the Philippines, but

schooled entirely in America), and five second–generation, U.S. born and raised Filipinos who

have reclaimed their culture through language. (See Figure 2). Their experiences have helped me

document the positive impact of learning Filipino.

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Figure 2: Interviewee Characteristics

Name Birth Age at Residence Gender Age Occupation Father’s Mother’s Fluent In
place Arrival Language Language

1st Gener
ation
Joanne P 22 North County F 49 White I I E, I, T
Collar
Nora P 31 South County F 61 White T T T, E
Collar
Jeff’s mom P 30 Imperial Beach F 58 White I I I, T, E
Collar
Geraldine P 25 North County F 56 White K K K, T
Collar
Bryan’s P 36 South County F 61 White I I E, I, T
mom Collar
Lina P 21 South Country F 44 White I I E, I, T
Collar
Mark P 23 South County M 67 Blue Collar V V T, V, E

1.5 Gener
ation
Katherine P 7 South County F 22 Student T T E
Christina P 14 National City F 21 Student T T T
Eric P 13 North County M 29 Student T T T, E
Joseph P 17 South County M 33 Blue Collar T T T, B

1.75 Gener
ation
Bryan P 1 South County M 25 Student I I, T E
Michael P 5 South County M 22 Student T T E
2nd Gener
ation
Marie USA NA South County F 33 White T T E
Collar
Kayla USA NA South County F 21 Student T T E
Jeff USA NA South County M 22 Student I I E
Dan USA NA North County M 35 White T T E
Collar
Erica USA NA South County F 28 White T T E
Collar

*Most interviewees used the term “Tagalog” instead of “Filipino,”but some used both terms.

P = Philippines V = Visayan B = Bicol

E = English K = Kapangpangan
T = Tagalog I = Ilocano
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Parental choices and their linguistic repercussions

Language loss is rampant in the Filipino community in San Diego. As noted above, the debates

over language in the Philippines, compounded by the fear of ridicule, desire for acceptance, and

the prestige and power of English in the USA, made many parents decide to not pass down their

heritage language; some even enforced an English-only policy at home for the children. Many

parents interviewed had experienced difficulty assimilating, and they feared their children would

experience the same discrimination unless they spoke English only. One first-generation parent,

Geraldine, justified her generation’s reasons for not teaching their children Filipino, i.e., “not

because they’re not proud. They don’t want their children to suffer the way they did.” In her

opinion, the “white environment” contributed to her decision. Even parents who could not speak

it fluently stressed English at home. Joanne, another mother, mentioned that given her limited

English, she sometimes has to “run out [of English] and go to Tagalog” but her children

understand little, and reply in English. She lamented the fact that her daughter had not learned

the language as a child; now it’s too late. Ruefully looking back, she said, “It would have been

nice if they could understand [sic].”

Sadly, few parents understood that being fluent in Tagalog need not occur at the expense

of learning English well. Despite this lack of information and the pressures that stifle the

transmission of Filipino, other interviews revealed that teaching Filipino has not completely

disappeared from child rearing in San Diego. This is evident in the case of Jeffrey’s mom. She

tried teaching her first-born daughter both “Tagalog and Ilocano,” although she stopped after six

years, when other children were born: “We saw the difficulty with the first child and started

talking to them in English.” This was a common occurrence and resulted in widespread passive

bilingualism, i.e. typically, second-generation interviewees said they could understand their
15

parents’ language but did not necessarily respond in the same language. These non-reciprocal

conversations contribute to language loss because the children get no practice in speaking

Tagalog. However, Jeffrey’s mother’s relationship with her children began to change when her

youngest son enrolled in a Filipino class. She said that they converse more since he started

practicing the language. Making long car rides more enjoyable, the mother and son are able to

connect by sharing their interest in the Filipino language. In this family and others, Filipino helps

foster intimate family relationships.

The few families that help children speak their heritage language at home mention the

importance of fostering family unity in the US and the homeland. For example, Joseph, a new

father, is teaching his children both Filipino and Bicol, because he wants his children to speak

and understand his family’s Filipino languages. Although he is fluent in English, he prefers to

use the Filipino languages to make sure that his daughter can communicate with relatives, and

because she is learning English outside the home and at school. Another bilingual father, Mark, a

former steward in the US Navy, also recognized that a special effort has to be made in order for a

child to acquire the family language in an English speaking world: “to become successful you

have to speak English,” but “there’s no problem for [children] to learn English kasi lahat na

makikita nila ngayon [ay] nasa English” (‘because all that they see now is in English’). In his

view, parents should help children learn Filipino because it is “more advantageous to learn your

own origin [at home].”

Reversing language loss

Parents may choose not to pass down the language, but some of their second-generation children

are enrolling in Filipino language classes and reversing language shift in their families. Portes
16

and Rumbaut acknowledge that the decision to study Filipino “even when not required to do so

reveals higher motivation” (Portes and Rumbaut 2001: 131); Cordova refers to such students as

“born again Filipinos.” My survey of nine Filipino females and seven males studying Filipino at

a local community college revealed that they felt their efforts were well rewarded, at home and

outside the home. The majority of the students (11/16) were fulfilling a college requirement, but

all of them had additional, more personal reasons for enrolling in the course. Katherine, for

example, who experienced discrimination upon arrival in America, said, “It felt like I was unsafe

and unable to speak a language so freely unlike when I was a little girl in the Philippines.” In

high school, although Filipino classes were offered, she chose Spanish instead. Once in college,

she realized she needed to understand more about her culture and enrolled in a Tagalog class.

She had expected to “get a better command of the language, relearn it, improve speaking,

writing, and reading,” but there were unexpected benefits, such as a “better sense of myself by

knowing the language more.” Katherine explained, “I somehow felt more connected to the

Philippines and the community. It was part of my identity.” She now attempts to speak Filipino

at home, which encourages her younger sisters and brothers because “if I make mistakes it makes

[my siblings] more comfortable.” Learning Filipino reopened communication between parents

and children. “When I spoke to them in Tagalog after classes, they wouldn’t act surprised even

though I haven’t spoken in Tagalog in so many years.”

Like Katherine, the majority of the students surveyed believed the course had a profound

impact on their relationship with their parents. These respondents wrote, “They take pride in

seeing me learn my culture,” “we talk more at home,” “because I connect with their Filipino

roots,” and “I feel like I can relate better to them.” Overall, the desire to learn the heritage

language creates a closer connection and fosters shared understandings between second and first
17

generation Filipinos. The revitalization of the language also strengthens respectful transnational

ties between the Philippines and US migrants, which is another source of pride. When describing

a recent visit to the Philippines, Katherine recalled, “I think [knowing Filipino] totally changed

their perception of me. My aunt even said, ‘It’s like you grew up here. You retained our culture

and our values.” They knew I wasn’t fluent but because I was trying they would encourage me.

Just seeing me try to retain [the language] gave them some pride.” The following section details

the three leading benefits that result from reversing language loss, as experienced by most of the

students:

1. Learning the Filipino language in public school settings encourages respect for the

educational system and greater intergenerational involvement in the students’ academic

life.

Marie found that external support was critical for the maintenance of Filipino. Growing

up, her parents were so busy at work that she was left to take care of herself and her little sister.

Being Filipina only meant eating in a Filipino restaurant in National City. In junior high, she was

surprised to learn that language was another aspect of Filipino culture, and one respected by the

school: “I saw my language being expressed and being taught in a school system.” Encouraged

by the school’s support, Marie became part of the very first Filipino class offered in San Diego at

Bell Junior High School. At home, after she began to talk to her parents more and asked for help

with her Filipino homework, she noticed that they no longer merely ensured that her homework

was completed, but became more engaged with her work. The enhanced communication

benefited other areas and activities.

In another example, Kayla did not take her first class in Filipino until college, but she too

found that the more she learned about the language and culture, the more her parents became
18

supportive as a result: “When I had questions about the language they were willing to help.

[During class] I learned a lot about culture [like] the Passion of Christ. Then, when Easter came

around, they [her parents] told me stories and we bonded.” A particularly important role is

played by the teachers of the Filipino language, who serve as a bridge connecting the first and

second generations.

2. Communication in the Filipino language allows parents and other native Filipino

speakers to express their emotions completely and accurately.

My interviewees corroborate what Portes and Rumbaut found, i.e., the immigrant families

with bilingual children have fewer communication conflicts and problems. Obviously, if family

members speak different languages, open and effective communication is hampered; family

members feel less well understood and less effective, which creates more, and more intense,

conflict. However, if the second-generation children know the Filipino language, the parents are

able to communicate more easily in their mother tongue, contributing to a greater sense of

comfort in the family. This allows the parents to exert their parental authority in the most relaxed

way, instead of relying on their English speaking skills – which connote distance and outsider

status.

This is evident in the case of Christina, whose father died two years after she arrived in

America as a teenager, leaving her non-English-speaking mother to take care of her and her

brother. Her mother was unable to find a job because of her low proficiency in English, so family

members in the Philippines told Christina, “Come back to the Philippines. You’re hopeless now

[since you’re left] just with your mom” (interview). Christina learned the economic value of

English and the role it played in diminishing the authority of the parents, ignoring the strength

and unity that Tagalog provided for her distraught family unit. In another example, Dan’s case
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proves that the loss of the home language can have very sad and damaging psychosocial

repercussions. Dan’s parents favored an English-only policy in the household, and the children

were English monolinguals, without even passive knowledge of Tagalog. When his mother was

attacked by Alzheimer’s, she unconsciously reverted to her native tongue and her children could

not communicate with her. Dan made the effort to learn Filipino so that his mom could more

easily express herself and he could provide more comfort for her, replying in Filipino. Being able

to speak Filipino also allowed children to help their elders with English in a non-threatening

way. Eric, a former Navy man fluent in Filipino, remembers that when English-speaking

Filipinos corrected the English of their elders, the elders would get upset. But when John

corrected their English using Filipino language, they were receptive, because the in-group

language communicates less hostility and superiority.

3. Communication in the Filipino language teaches respect norms expected in Filipino

Culture.

Because language communicates the deep and unspoken values of a culture, children who

learn Filipino also learn to be Filipino in ways that reduce intergenerational tension and foster

family cohesion. The very structure of Tagalog communicates the centrality of respect for elders,

in its prescriptive rules of speaking regarding the way in which adults are addressed. Those who

are older are addressed with forms that reflect the honor they deserve. Specifically, the honorifics

“po” and “ho” are only inserted in sentences when addressing elders or strangers. Integral to

Filipino culture, this is taught within the first week of Filipino classes. I observed some students

who consciously addressed their Filipino language teachers using the prescribed rules, by asking

questions like “Ano po ba ang homework namin bukas?” (What is our homework for tomorrow?)

The two-letter word “po” implies respect when communicating between generations. Mark, the
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ex Navy father mentioned earlier, tells of growing up in the Visayas region of the Philippines,

where these honorifics are not used in colloquial speech. When courting his future wife who was

from another area, Mario forgot to insert the “po” when addressing her parents and was

immediately corrected.

Since Filipino itself reflects important cultural rules, speaking the language

communicates respect, which is well received by the adult community. One young man found

that learning Filipino improved his dating relationships because he uses the Filipino languages to

ease the pressure of meeting his girlfriends’ parents. Parents are impressed by his ability to speak

Filipino, understanding that “[he] wasn’t showing off but giving respect to the parents.” The role

of language in the transmission of respect and traditions was often mentioned by students who

were studying Tagalog.

The Filipino Language and Filipino Identity

Efforts at revitalization raise questions about the link between the Filipino language and Filipino

identity: Does one need to speak Filipino to be Filipino? The majority of first-generation parents

responded in the affirmative, but they also said, contradictorily, that it was not a requirement.

The second-generation respondents were more likely to disagree. Even Katherine, who

championed the fact that learning the Filipino language helped her connect with her identity,

didn’t consider it a requirement in order to be Filipino. In her view, although not speaking

Tagalog does reflect a loss, it is often not the fault of those who didn’t learn it. She argues that,

“There are different sources of pressures encouraging someone not to speak [Filipino]. A part of

their identity is missing because of those things. You can’t tell how much of those outside factors

play a role.” Another interviewee, Bryan, was adamant about the lack of a definitive link
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between language and culture: “We’ve seen some white people speak Tagalog fluently, but

they’re not Filipino. It’s up to the individual to judge if they’re Filipino.” On the other hand,

parents claim “If you’re a Filipino family, you should know at least minimal Filipino language.”

The Filipino revitalization movement eases the division between generations on this issue

by offering a practical way to join in the community, especially for Filipinos who feel little

connection with their background. One teacher felt she provided a safe haven for Filipino gang

members through inclusion and belonging in her Filipino language classes, replacing conflict

with community. She helped them recognize the power of language to transform their behavior

and way of thinking. For this teacher and several other first-generation immigrants in education

and health fields, knowledge of the Filipino language gave them a job that involves and accepts

their culture, and allows them to extend that acceptance to others. In these cases, language has

done more than teach vocabulary or fulfill a requirement. It has improved relationships among

and between generations, and created a positive sense of belonging to a worthwhile community.

The Future of Filipino in San Diego

“There are already fourth generation Filipinos who are very hungry [to learn] about their Filipino

language and culture.”

–Salvador Idos, recently retired Filipino teacher

Given the individual, family, and community benefits of having fluent Tagalog and

English speaking bilinguals in the second and third generation, the importance of ensuring the

vitality of Filipino in San Diego is obvious. Language vitality is dependent on three principal

factors: (1) Demography (2) Status and (3) Institutional support (Giles, Bourhis and Taylor

1977). The census data make clear that the Filipino community in San Diego is large,
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continuously growing, and effectively multi-lingual in the majority. But the loss of language in

the second generation indicates that numbers alone will not accomplish the goal of language

maintenance, unless immediate steps are taken to reverse language shift. Those efforts, at the

individual, family, and community level, are directly affected by the status of the language and

its speakers. The status of the Filipino language has been eroded by colonialism and conflicting

language policies in the Philippines, and in the US, its status is further eroded by powerful

nativist movements that discourage immigrants from teaching their children any language but

English, and which eliminated bilingual education programs in California in 1998. Raising

children in English only and teaching children in English only – in the Philippines and in the US-

- diminishes the status of Filipino and fosters language loss, with consequent negative

repercussions for the self-esteem of Filipinos and for effective inter-generational and

transnational communication. The Philippine government must support the Filipino language in

order for Filipino to be perceived as important overseas, and the Filipino communities in San

Diego should offer after school or Saturday courses in Filipino. Parents are more than willing to

send their children, but economic pressures stymie the creation of such schools and widespread

participation.

Filipino cannot survive without both “intergenerational resilience” (Portes and Rumbaut

2001: 141) and external institutional support. The revitalization of the language is a community

effort, in which the role of the schools and other powerful institutions is critical. In 2005, there

were 13 high schools and three junior high schools that offered Filipino as a second language

option in San Diego County; several hundred students availed themselves of these courses.

Teachers say they cannot keep up with the growing number of students interested in the Filipino

language, but very few teachers are being trained to do the job. Four universities and four
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community colleges in San Diego also offer Filipino courses, but the University of California at

San Diego is the only one that offers an undergraduate degree in Filipino (under the title of

Language Studies: Tagalog). A new Master’s in Education with a Specialization in Filipino was

launched at Alliant International University in 2006; a complementary program is in process at

San Diego State University. Also heartening are the efforts of the Filipino American Educators

Association of San Diego County, which organized the Filipino Language Movement in 2004

and successfully petitioned the state Commission on Teacher Credentialing to establish a

California Subject Matter Examination for Teachers of the Filipino language.

Religious institutions can also help reverse language loss, especially because many

Filipinos are very religious; most are Catholic. In San Diego, however, it is rare to find any

churches that provide services in Filipino, and most are infrequent. St. Michael’s Catholic

Church in National City offers mass in Filipino on the first Sunday of every month, and Our

Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church has one annual tri-lingual service of English, Spanish, and

Tagalog on Good Friday. A Protestant church, Grace Alliance, in National City, offers bible

studies in the Filipino language. Another invaluable institution that can support literacy in the

Filipino language is the public library; branches in Mira Mesa, Otay Mesa, Paradise Hills,

Rancho Peñasquitos, Skyline Hills, and Rancho Bernardo offer “Tagalog” sections, albeit

limited. These libraries should be encouraged to offer children’s stories in Tagalog, as well as

films for adolescents, but budget cuts make such efforts unlikely. Finally, another indicator of

external, institutional support for the Filipino language is the county government’s voting

material in Tagalog/Filipino, available in several communities for the first time in 2004. Despite

these efforts, the road to revitalizing Tagalog in San Diego is a long uphill struggle.
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Conclusion: Language Revitalization to realize hopes and diminish fears

Because of its rich history and diverse language background, the Philippines has

experienced a complex language history and conflicting policies which affect Filipinos around

the world. In San Diego, the emphasis on English by Philippine families can cause conflicting

attitudes and the loss of Tagalog, despite the academic, social, and psychological benefits of

fluent bilingualism. This situation has triggered an interest in revitalization among the second

generation, who are eager to learn more about their Filipino culture through its language. But

many parents fear their children will face the discrimination they suffered, so they adopt an

English-only policy as protection, inadvertently contributing to family stress and children’s poor

self-esteem, which affects their adaptation to Filipino culture and to the dominant society.

However, parents are not solely responsible; they react logically to the message sent by the state

English-only language policy, the elimination of bilingual education, and anti-immigrant

violence. By working together to reap the benefits of bilingualism, San Diego’s families,

schools, and community institutions can bridge the gap between generations and ethnic groups,

promoting cultural sensitivity to improve the quality of life for all of its citizens, realizing their

hopes and diminishing their fears. Filipinos are eager to do their share.
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