It may be of great nostalgia to remind young professors teaching English grammar today that there was once a simple primer book entitled Pepe and Pilar in the 1950s designed specifically for pupils beginning to learn the language of Uncle Sam. It’s fascinating to reminisce that the pet dog named Bantay barking “bowowow” made that book so pretty interesting for little kids, similar but not exactly like the talking dog by the name of Fulgoso in the telenovela Mari Mar in this wonderful age of scientific development.

Since this article is intended for the “Buwan ng Wika” that is August, it would be of academic interest for the people of the Philippines to discuss why Tagalog—the basis of our Filipino National Language—is given special attention only in the month of August. Perhaps the answer, aside from the fact that August is former Philippine President Manuel L. Quezon’s birth month, could probably be found in the wonderful science of numerology? Let us investigate via the magic of numbers...

The month of August is the eighth month of the year. The word national has eight letters; language has eight letters as well and, to my surprise, Filipino has eight letters, too. The first Commonwealth President, Manuel Luis Quezon y Molina, the man who would make Filipino our national language, was born on August 19, 1878. Try to notice that 19 is read as: 9 minus 1 equals 8, and the year 1878 has two 8s after odd numbers 1 and 7; if we add 1 and 7, the sum is 8. If we write the President’s first two initials and add his surname—“M. L. Quezon”—we get eight letters. Magnificent!

The Americans might have been disgusted when President Quezon initiated the official use of Tagalog in the Philippines, since he issued a proclamation on December 30, 1937, making Tagalog the basis of the national language, which was first introduced as a medium in public high schools in the 1940s (Medina, 1979). It had become more popular for its use in magazines, komiks, theater, radio and television. Just imagine how the provincianos then and now uttered their first-ever Tagalog lines when they visited Manila. It could have been difficult, but it’s the only way to learn the language.

There were people who questioned the legality of Tagalog as the people’s national language. The Court, through Justice Jesus P. Morfe, ruled that “Tagalog is the basis of the national language and is in fact the official language sanctioned by Commonwealth Act No. 570, since July 4, 1946” (Gonzalez, 1980), the day the US recognized our June 12, 1898, Proclamation of Philippine Independence from Spain.

The legal opinion (1970) of the Supreme Court stated that Filipino as the National Language is based on Tagalog and could be traced to the case of Ferrer vs. Surian ng Wikang Pambansa (Medina, 1979). Introducing a language to be spoken by people throughout the Philippine islands took time and effort. It did not spread in an instant like an epidemic. Twenty-two years after Quezon’s initiative, on August 13, 1959, during the incumbency of President Carlos P. Garcia, the national language was officially called “Pilipino.” Yet, our people and the foreigners persisted in referring to Tagalog as our language.

Let us scrutinize the words of Señor Don Jose Protacio Mercado Rizal y Alonso Realonda, nicknamed “Pepe,” as to how he called the people of the Philippines. It must be noted that the Spaniards called the natives as indios even if the country was named Filipinas. Those indios who intermarried with the Chinese begat children to be known as mestizos or simply Filipinos. In his article “Kundiman,” reprinted in the newspaper El Dia Filipino (December 30, 1921, p.15), Rizal wrote: “Datapuwat muling sisikat ang araw, pilit maliligtas ang inaping bayan, magbabalik-mandin at muling iiral, ang ngalang Tagalog sa sandaigdigan.” There was no concept yet of the word “Filipino” to mean an “indio” in his poem. The Tagalogs were indeed being interpreted as the people living in the Philippines. The Spaniards called the people living beside the Pasig river as Taga-ilog (Joaquin, 1990). These “indios” spoke the same language which later became Tagalog.

Speaking of love of one’s native land, Andres Bonifacio penned a poem called “Pag-ibig sa Tinubuang Bayan.” He wrote these lines: “Nasaan ang dangal ng mga Tagalog / Nasaan ang dugong dapat ibuhos? / Baya’y inaapi bakit di kumilos / At natitilihang ito’y mapanood.” He was referring to the natives who ought to offer their lives to defend the oppressed people of the Philippines. We could say that he had his own style of expressing nationalism, not by pen but by arms. Scholars believe that the traces of the pen are immortal and have lasting effect, but the wounds created by the sword could be healed by the passage of time. Most of Ka Andres’ writings were in Tagalog, though he could speak good Spanish.

If the Tagalog language is attacked by people other than the residents of the Philippines, Rizal gave all his wisdom to defend it (Alejandrino, 1949). When he was only eight years old, he might truly have wondered why he was being taught to speak Latin, while he already knew Spanish and could speak Tagalog in casual conversations at home. The answer to this was the desire of wealthy parents to give their child the best education during the formative years, so that when he matured and spoke languages other than his own, he would earn the admiration and respect of the educated class or “ilustrados.” Because of this predicament, he wrote the poem “Sa Aking Mga Kabata” (1869): “Ang hindi magmahal sa kanyang salita / Mahigit sa hayop at malansang isda / Kaya ang marapat pagyamaning kusa / na tulad sa inang tunay na nagpala” (De la Cruz, et al., 1995).

In that “kabata” poem, Rizal literally said that we have to “love our language.” Of course if one must love a particular language, one should know how to speak it. Customarily, Rizal did casually speak Tagalog in his hometown of Calamba in the province of Laguna. However, he did not emphasize in his poem “Ang hindi magsalita ng Tagalog”; rather he emphasized “Ang hindi magmahal sa kanyang salita.” It is a matter of fact that Rizal’s two major literary works, Noli Me Tangere (though the title is in Latin) and El Filibusterismo were written in ilustrado Español, not in indio Tagalog. Rizal did not have the mastery of Tagalog, unlike that of the hero from the province of Bulacan, Señor Don Marcelo Hilario del Pilar, who could write and speak it fluently.

I just really wonder if “Pepe” and del Pilar during their time recognized the idea that we Filipinos don’t even have a Tagalog horoscope, complete with zodiac signs. What we have are the Chinese and Greek versions—say, “Year of the Pig” or “born under the sign of Pisces.” I suggested to my students that we could enrich our warehouse of literary pieces if we invent our own Tagalog horoscope. Why don’t we have the tropical animals and insects that are easily found in our humid country to guide our economy at the turn of every year or to have a glimpse of the future of our kids? For instance, “Taon ng Bangaw,” “Agila,” “Surot,” “Kalabaw,” “Garapata,” “Unggoy,” “Ipis,” “Tamaraw,” “Biik.” Only here can we simply identify ourselves as one simple agricultural nation with one big dream—that of being a highly industrialized republic in Southeast Asia. Is this a deal or no big deal?

References:

Alejandrino, Jose M. Gen. The Price of Freedom. Translated into English by Atty. Jose M.

Alejandrino, 1949. Reprinted: Filipiniana Series under Renato Constantino,

Series Director. Manila: Solar Publishing Corp., 1987, 236 pp.

Dela Cruz, Virsely M. et al. Rizal: Buhay at mga Kaisipan, Manila: National Book

Store, 1995, 271pp.

Delos Santos, Epifanio. “Marcelo H. Del Pilar.” Philippine Review, Vol. III, No. 12, Dec. 1918.

De Ocampo, Esteban A. Rizalist. Manila: Supreme Council, Knights of Rizal, 1969, 219 pp.

Gonzales, Lydia F. et al. Sining ng Pakikipagtalastasan (Pangkolehiyo). Manila: Rex

Book Store, 1980, 312pp.

Joaquin, Nick. Manila My Manila: A History for the Young. Manila, Vera-Reyes,

Inc., 1990, 115 pp.

Landau, Sidney I. (ed. in chief). The International Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary of the English

Language. International Encyclopedic Edition. Florida, USA: Trident Press International,

2000, 1070 pp.

Medina, B. S. Tatlong Panahon ng Panitikan. Manila: National Book Store, 1979.

Ocampo, Ambeth R. Looking Back. QC: Anvil Publishing, Inc. 1990, 215 pp.

Rivera, Juan F. Quezon: Thoughts and Anecdotes about Him and His Fights. QC: Kayumanggi

Press, Inc., 1979, 657pp.

Rizal, Jose P. “Kundiman.” El Dia Filipino. December 30, 1921 issue, p.21.

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