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Introduction to Philippine English

• Pronunciation

The Philippines is home to over 100 million people spread across 7,107 islands in Southeast Asia. Among the more than 100 mostly Austronesian languages spoken in this densely populated archipelago is English, making the country one of the largest Anglophone nations in the world. 

Unlike most postcolonial nations, the Philippines did not inherit English from the British but from the Americans. When the Philippine-American War ended in 1902 and the islands officially became an unincorporated territory of the United States, the new colonial administration quickly introduced English as the primary language of government, business, and education. It established a new public school system and sent American English-language teachers all over the country. These American teachers were called Thomasites after the name of the ship they arrived in, the  USS Thomas.  

So effective were American efforts to make English the second language of the Philippines that within a few years, Filipino schoolchildren were learning it from Filipino teachers. By the 1920s Filipino writers such as Paz Marquez Benitez and Jose Garcia Villa had begun producing literary works in English. Within a few decades, English had been woven into the fabric of Philippine society, and not even independence from the United States in 1946 could unravel the threads of linguistic assimilation. 

Today, English is constitutionally named as one of the Philippines’ official languages, and it continues to be an integral part of local life and culture. English is the language of business, science, technology, government, education, and international communication. It is present in the country’s print and broadcast media, and in its vibrant artistic and literary scene. Filipino proficiency in English drives a thriving, world-leading outsourcing industry, as well as a rapidly growing education sector that is attracting increasing numbers of international students. 

The Philippine variety of English has evolved beyond the American standard, having developed distinctive features of pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and discourse determined by the native languages and culture of its Filipino speakers.   

It is clear that what once a completely foreign language has been embraced by Filipinos and made their own. It is also true that the continuing presence of English in the Philippines gives rise to a number of very thorny issues related to national and regional identity, educational policy, and language politics. But no matter how these issues are addressed, it cannot be denied that in the little over a century that it has remained in their islands, Filipinos—with their rich indigenous heritage, colourful colonial history, and multiplicity of languages—have made an indelible mark on English. As Filipino writer Gemino Abad famously put it, ‘English is ours. We have colonized it too’. 

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Vocabulary 

Philippine culture is a complex, colourful mosaic combining indigenous Asian features with varied Western influences. The country’s rich diversity is reflected in its languages, including Philippine English, whose vocabulary is abounding in words and phrases that are uniquely Pinoy. 

The first Philippine additions to the English lexicon came in the form of plant and animal names borrowed from local languages. The following are just a few of the words that can be found in the  OED  with quotations dating back to the 18 th  century, before English came to the Philippines but right when English-speaking authors began writing about the region’s flora and fauna:  

• abaca , n.  (first attested 1751) – a kind of banana plant,  Musa textilis , native to the Philippines, the petioles of which yield a strong fibre; the fibre itself, used for making paper, ropes, matting, etc.; Manila hemp. 
• taclobo , n. (1885) – A bivalve mollusc, of great size, the Giant Clam (Tridacna gigas) of the Indian and China seas.  
• tamarau,  n. (1898) – A diminutive black buffalo,  Bubalus mindorensis , peculiar to the island Mindoro, in the Philippines.    
• ylang-ylang , n. (1876) – an anonaceous tree ( Canangium odoratum ) of Malaysia, the Philippines, etc., with fragrant greenish-yellow flowers from which a perfume is distilled; hence, the perfume itself.  

However, it did not take long for even more creative coinages to make it into Philippine English vocabulary. Filipinos primarily acquire English as a second or even third language alongside local vernaculars, a situation that places English in constant contact with other languages, and makes borrowing a particularly productive means of lexical innovation. Philippine English is characterized by a host of words borrowed from a variety of linguistic sources, the main ones being Filipino, the Tagalog-based national language, and Spanish, the colonial tongue that preceded English. Loan words and loan blends such as the following form part of the everyday vocabulary of Philippine English: 

• balikbayan box , n. (1984) – a carton shipped or brought to the Philippines from another country by a Filipino who has been living overseas, typically containing items such as food, clothing, toys, and household products. 
• barangay,  n.  (1840) – a village, suburb, or other demarcated neighbourhood; a small territorial and administrative district forming the most local level of government; from Tagalog. 
• barkada,  n.  (1965) – a group of friends; from Tagalog, ultimately from Spanish  barcada  ‘boat-load’. 
• despedida party,  n. (1929) – a social event honouring someone who is about to depart on a journey or leave an organization; a going-away party; a blend of Spanish and English. 
• estafa,  n. (1903) – criminal deception, fraud; dishonest dealing; from Spanish.  
• kikay kit , n.  (2002) – a soft case in which a woman’s toiletries and cosmetics are stored; blend of Tagalog and English. 
• pan de sal , n.  (1910) – a yeast-raised bread roll made of flour, eggs, sugar and salt, widely consumed in the Philippines, especially for breakfast; partly from Tagalog, partly from Spanish.    
• pasalubong,  n. (1933) – a gift or souvenir given to a friend or relative by a person who has returned from a trip or arrived for a visit; from Tagalog. 
• sari-sari store,  n.  (1925) – a small neighbourhood store selling a variety of goods; blend of Tagalog and English. 
• sisig,  n. (1987) – a dish consisting of chopped pork, onions, and chillies; from Kapampangan. 
• suki,  n. (1941) – a buyer or seller involved in an arrangement whereby a customer regularly purchases products or services from the same provider in exchange for favourable treatment; also the arrangement itself; from Tagalog.    

Aside from direct borrowing, Filipinos employ a range of other methods to create new words, such as adding derivational affixes, creating new compounds, shortening and blending of words, inventing new initialisms: 

• batchmate , n. (1918) – a member of the same graduation class as another; a classmate; formed by combining  batch , n. with  mate , n. 
• KKB,  int. (and adj.)  (1987) – ‘ Kaniya-kaniyang bayad ’, lit. ‘each one pays their own’, used esp. to indicate that the cost of a meal is to be shared. 
• mani-pedi , n. (1972) – a beauty treatment comprising both a manicure and a pedicure; formed by clipping and blending the words  manicure,  n.   and  pedicure , n. 
• presidentiable , n.  (1840) – a person who is a likely or confirmed candidate for president; formed by adding the – able  suffix to  president , n. 

Philippine English speakers also translate directly from their other languages, change the function of words, coin neologisms based on analogy with existing English formations, maintain words that have fallen out of use in American English, and even totally transform the meaning of words:  

• carnapper,  n. (1945) – a person who steals a motor vehicle; a car thief; formed following the model of  kidnapper,  n.  
• comfort room,  n. (1886) – a toilet; an old-fashioned American euphemism that continues to be widely used in the Philippines. 
• high blood , adj.  (1997) – angry, agitated (e.g., I am so  high blood  because of this traffic jam!); use of a noun phrase as an adjective. 
• to go down,  phrasal v. (1993) – to alight from a vehicle; to get off a bus, train, etc., esp. at a specified stop; a translation of the Filipino verb  bumaba . 
• salvage,  v.  (1980) – to apprehend and execute (a suspected criminal) without trial; complete semantic change from the original English meaning ‘to rescue’. 

Grammar 

Some of the grammatical features peculiar to Philippine English include:  

Use of the plural verb form with a singular subject, especially when a phrase comes in between the subject and the verb 

• One of my friends  live  here. 

Use of the present perfect tense in cases where the simple past is expected  

• I  have done  it last week.  

Use of the past perfect in sentences that usually call for the present perfect  

• They  had already  left. 

The use of the present continuous instead of the simple present to express habitual aspect 

• She  is driving  to work every day. 

Article usage  

• He is going to United Kingdom to study at the Oxford University.  

Intransitive use of typically transitive verbs  

• We will  enjoy . 
• They cannot afford.  
• Do you like?  

Some of the characteristics that we describe here as grammatical features of Philippine English may seem like simple grammatical errors, of the type that English teachers try to drill out of their students. Indeed, these features have developed thanks in large part to imperfect learning of the morphological and syntactic principles of English by Filipinos, the majority of whom do not acquire the language at home but in the classroom. 

This does not mean that Filipino speakers of English who do not always adhere to the prescribed rules of standard British or American English are careless, unconscientious, and simply unable to completely master the language. In fact, having to learn English as a second or even third or fourth language in school makes Filipinos even more aware of grammar, as the learning process they go through requires a lot of conscious linguistic analysis. Their acquisition of English is dependent on the adherence to established precepts and patterns, and often their grammatical innovations result from their attempts to rationalize English and fit new structures into templates they have previously learned. 

This tendency can be easily observed in the junction between lexis and grammar, such as in the use of particle verbs. The complementation of verbs in English is highly arbitrary, and learning which verb goes with what poses difficulties that second-language speakers try to overcome through analogy. Filipinos, for instance, say  cope up with  instead of  cope with , because it follows the pattern of  keep up with.  Filipinos also generally opt for  result to  instead of  result in , given that other verbs that introduce an outcome go with the preposition  to  (e.g.,  lead to, give rise to ). If you must  ask for  things, Filipinos reason, then surely you must also  demand for  and  request for  them, instead of just  demanding  and  requesting.  

New grammatical features in Philippine English can also result from second-language speakers’ efforts to simplify particularly complex aspects of English grammar. One good example is the modal  would.  The system of modals in English is complicated in terms of both syntax and semantics: the verbs  will, would, can, could, may, might, shall ,   and  should  can be used to express permission as well as possibility, and the choice between present and past forms are not only important for tense harmony but also for conveying varying degrees of politeness or certainty.  

In the case of  would,  Filipinos are usually taught this verb as the past form of  will  in reported speech, as part of polite formulas such as  I would like to , and as the modal used in the unreal or hypothetical conditional of the type  If I were … I would.  Being accustomed to the use of  would  in contexts that require indirectness, politeness, and tentativeness, Filipinos habitually turn to this modal every time they wish to come across as courteous, formal, or unsure, even in cases where a British or American speaker would choose a different verb form. They tend to construct sentences like:  

• I  would  visit you tomorrow. (instead of I  may  visit you tomorrow   to express uncertain future) 
• Classes  would  be suspended next week.   (instead of Classes  will  be suspended next week   to make a formal announcement) 

This more generalized use of  would  could also be fulfilling an expressive need in Filipino speakers to sound less assertive, especially when stating personal opinions, intentions, and suggestions: 

• I think that due to global warming, there  would  come a time that the world would not experience snow anymore.   (instead of There  will/may  come a time…the world  will/may  not experience snow   to convey personal opinion) 
• She  would  be a teacher after graduation.   (instead of She  will  be a teacher… to express intention) 
• We  would  have to leave early.   (instead of We  will  have to leave early to make a suggestion) 

Some grammatical tendencies in Philippine English also reflect the type of English that Filipinos are usually exposed to. Filipino speech and writing tend to emulate the conventions of the formal, academic English Filipinos are used to hearing. This can be seen in the regular use of such redundant constructions as  I will be the one who will go  instead of simply  I will go , or of the formal relative adverb  wherein  even in informal speech. 

These examples of grammatical features of Philippine English reveal how differences in grammar, just like those in vocabulary, grow out of second-language speakers’ need to change and adapt English according to how they learn the language and use it to communicate. 

Pronunciation 

View the OED’s pronunciation model and key to pronunciation for Philippine English. 

Author: Danica Salazar, OED World English Editor

The opinions and other information contained in the OED articles do not necessarily reflect the opinions or positions of Oxford University Press.

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Philippine English (2020)

2020, The Handbook of Asian Englishes

In this chapter, I approach English in the Philippines not as one language, but as several varieties that are used in a wide range of situations and contexts. English arrived in the country as a language transported through colonialism. Its spread was facilitated by a public education system led by young Americans who were deployed as teachers to far‐flung regions of the archipelago. The American English varieties that these teachers spoke came into contact with various Philippine languages, resulting in the indigenization or nativization of English in the Philippines. This nativized variety, often referred to as “standard” or “educated” Philippine English, is the object of study of many language scholars. As English spread throughout the country, the language acquired new forms, features, and functions. It has also developed into a language of aspiration for many Filipinos. Language policies, largely disjointed and inchoate, have struggled to address the competing demands of the local and the global. In most cases, language policies persisted in promoting the “standard” English variety. What most studies and policies on English in the Philippines have continued to neglect is the fact that there are a variety of Englishes that multilingual Filipinos constantly use in a variety of situations and contexts. In this chapter, I refer to these Englishes as Pinoylish – Philippine Englishes in constant flux, in continuous construction, always fluid, occupying various points in a cline of centrality and peripherality, drawing from a repertoire of local languages, including English as a Philippine mother tongue, as well as other modes of communication that shape what is meaningful to the Filipino.

Related Papers

Isabel Pefianco Martin

In this paper, I argue that the Three Circles Model of Kachru, a profoundly influential and instructive model for approaching the varieties of Englishes across the world, might be re-examined in the context of the Philippines, in order to better capture the sociolinguistic realities of Outer Circle speakers of English. Using the Philippines as an example, I hope to demonstrate that within the Outer Circle that is the Philippines, there are circles of English as well. While some educated Filipino scholars have rejected the dominance of American English in the Philippines, others remain ambivalent about the place of Philippine English in such domains such as English language teaching. And for a majority of the Filipinos, to whom English of whatever variety remains elusive and inaccessible, English is irrelevant. Thus, the situation for the Philippines is that there is an Inner Circle, an Outer Circle, and an Expanding circle of English. By presenting the Philippine experience of English through this framework of ‘circles within circles,’ I hope to offer a more nuanced position on the acceptability of Philippine English among Filipino users of the language.

Ruanni Tupas

John Cabansag

The evolution of the Philippine English started from the American occupation in 1898 and continued its linguistic development in Philippine standards through the present times. The ability to speak English among Filipinos ranges from a smattering of words and phrases through passive comprehension to near-native mastery. When the English language arrived in the islands through western colonialism, its linguistic characteristics have become unique. Its development was coupled by the patterns of regional uniqueness as a result of indigenous cultures in the country. It is therefore the premise of reviewing thematic studies that deal with culture in the evolution of Philippine English as a language.

Safary Wa-Mbaleka , Janice Lloren , Wenwan Duan

The Philippines is a nation with a rich culture and heritage that reflects the indigenous diversity of the islands. Its present identity and unique features are not whimsical. They are mainly the result of a combination of events throughout its history. Its linguistic diversity and cultural uniqueness— e.g., being the only Asian Christian country—are clear evidence of several colonial influences (Hechanova, 2012; Miller, 2014). Using an ethnographic approach, this paper examines English, Taglish, and pragmatic aspects in a suburb and a metropolitan area of the Philippines. This study reveals that socioeconomic status, educational attainment and background go hand in hand with the level of exposure and usage of the English language. It also shows that the interactional and speech acts that nine participants demonstrated during the interviews, together with the artifacts found on the research sites, are reflections of their culture. The study also led to the conclusion that code-switching or Taglish is common among English-speaking Filipinos. Finally, more English proficiency was evidenced with people who had attended private schools more than those who attended public education.

Dana Osborne

This article describes and analyzes the form and function of the term 'nosebleed' as it is used by speakers in the contemporary Philippine linguistic scene. 'Nosebleed' operates as a metapragmatic, semiotic stance marking device used to bracket various kinds language/s in relation to concepts of high sociocultural value in the archipelago: local concepts of the commensurability of language-and person-types, and culturally-enregistered joking styles that mitigate hiya, or 'shame' in interaction. This analysis draws from popular discourses to outline the ideological foundations of the term and goes on to examine its social and linguistic effects to theorize the ways that homegrown metapragmatic tools such as 'nosebleed' can shape varieties of language over time.

The Politics of English in Asia: Language Policy and Cultural Expression in South and Southeast Asia

Beatriz Lorente

The grip of English in the Philippines signifies an enduring and flawed image of national development that is monocentric with an English-dominant core. It traces the trajectory of this dominance of English in the Philippines from its introduction as the de facto medium of instruction in the public school system during the American colonial era to its incorporation as the indispensable competitive edge of Filipinos in the current era of globalization. This privileged position of English in the country’s linguistic economy has been reinforced by the Filipino elite’s symbolic struggles over power in the wake of post-colonialism and the country’s structural insertion at the margins of the global economy as a source of cheap, English-speaking migrant labor. The grip of English in the country may be mitigated by the introduction of mother tongue based multilingual education (MTBLE). The framework of MTBLE appears to conceive of national development in terms of widening access to valuable material and symbolic resources such as literacy and higher levels of formal education. As the MTBLE is still in its infancy, the extent to which it can live up to its promise remains to be seen

English World-Wide, vol. 33, no. 2, 2012

James D'Angelo

Jessie Grace Rubrico

Asian Englishes

Wilkinson Daniel Wong Gonzales

After outlining recent developments and surveying various perspectives, I argue that scholars should adopt the notion of Philippine ‘Englishes’ to acknowledge all substrate-influenced ‘regional’ (e.g. Iloilo English), social, and hybrid varieties (e.g. Hokaglish). Beginning with a brief overview of the current situation, I examine literature hinting for the invalidation of a standard Philippine English, identifying some evidence of variation due to (socio)linguistic factors through a concise survey of local Englishes. The study asserts that the Philippine Englishes model is more encompassing and forward-looking; it also shows some evidence that Philippine English is at the dawn of stage 5 (differentiation) of Schneider’s dynamic model. Although this model might raise more questions, it hopes to challenge researchers to embark on new-wave investigations on local Englishes while encouraging them to utilize existing research and frameworks. Ultimately, what this study hopes to provide is a fresh perspective on the preponderance of literature on Philippine English by introducing the said model.

Journal of Sociolinguistics

David Deterding

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