Philippine National Heritage Watch

[sandwindstars]

Originally Posted by Animo

ROSES & THORNS By Alejandro R. Roces (The Philippine Star) Updated December 10, 2009 12:00 AM





















We have heard of a museum, located on the campus of De La Salle University in Dasmarinas, Cavite, that is not only preserving our history, but recreating it (specifically the ilustrado period). It is what we call a living museum.

would make it an even more invaluable educational tool. We recommend that everyone should visit the Museo to experience a piece of Philippine history.

To learn more about the Museo de La Salle please call (02) 844-7832 - (046) 416-4397.

What a beauty.

[Animo]

Erasing our heritage
by ATTY. RITA LINDA V. JIMENO

Originally Posted by Espano_Atx

Why we are a people with no sense of nationhood is largely due to our politicians. Streets are indiscriminately renamed with no regard to their historical value and the heritage they carry. The result, according to a historical researcher, is a country that is erasing its historical heritage.

Del Monte Avenue, for instance, was recently renamed FPJ avenue by the Quezon City government. It is almost a certainty that the National Historical Institute was not consulted because the institute’s guidelines in the naming of streets say that no public place should be renamed if the present name has attained a degree of historical association and has developed an importance of its own. The guidelines also mandate that no public place should be named after a person within 10 years from his death except for highly-exceptional reasons such as death by assassination in the service of his country. Other than having lived on Del Monte Avenue, what had FPJ done to merit a violation of the Historical Institute’s guidelines? The only explanation can be a desire by its proponent, a councilor, to win points with the mass voters who idolize FPJ. Who cares about history? Certainly not our politicians who are the most clueless about history and heritage.

Manila, which has the richest history among the cities of the Philippines, has lost much of its historical heritage because of the indiscriminate renaming of its streets. In an article, the chief of the Research, Publication and Heraldry Division of the National Historical Institute Augusto de Viana said old Manila streets lose their names to politicians.

Streets in Manila have historic significance and stories behind them. The name Escolta, for instance, was inspired by the Spanish word “escortar,” meaning “to escort.” The British commanding general passed through this street under heavy escort on his way to hand over Manila back to the Spaniards after Britain’s 20-month occupation of the city from 1762 to 1764. Dasmariñas, on the other hand, was named after the Spanish governor-general Luis Perez Dasmariñas who, after buying the fiefdom of Binondo, donated a site to the Dominican friars to build a church, a parish house and a hospital on what is now known as Plaza Cervantes.

Raon, which was named after a Spanish governor-general, used to be synonymous with top-of-the line electronic products but was renamed Gil Puyat St.—notwithstanding that there is also a Gil Puyat Avenue in Makati which used to be Buendia Avenue. Gandara, also named after a Spanish governor-general, was famous for where to buy motor vehicle parts and accessories but it was renamed to Sabino Padilla street. Taft, Harrison and Forbes streets were named after American governor-generals. Forbes street was renamed A.H. Lacson while Harrison was renamed President Quirino Avenue.

Azcarraga was changed to Claro M. Recto, despite the opposition of Historical Commission Board member, Juan F. Nakpil, who was later declared a National Artist. Azcarraga was the surname of two brothers of Spanish descent who were born in the Philippines and considered under the laws then as Filipinos. One of them, Marcelo, rose in distinction in Spain. He twice became a prime minister and was a minister of war.

Many streets during the Spanish Occupation were named to extol virtues. For instance, a street was named Economia, meaning thrift; another was named Trabajo, meaning industry. The names were perhaps meant to inspire those who were earning a living in those areas but Trabajo was renamed M. de la Fuente st. Other streets extolling virtues were Lealtad (loyalty), Honradez (honesty), Firmeza (firmness or strength) and Constancia (Constancy). Lealtad was renamed F. Fajardo St. while Constancia was renamed R. Cristobal Street.

Other streets were named to identify the trades and occupations those places became known for. For instance, Anloague was once a place for carpenters; Fundidor, the place for foundry workers; Panaderos, the place for bakers, and Labanderos, the place for laundrymen. Arroceros on the south bank of the Pasig river was where the rice houses were located. Arroceros has been changed to Arsenio Lacson St., losing its historical significance. Aduana was where the Spanish customs house stood while Fumadores, which used to be a street in Binondo, was where opium joints were allowed by the Spanish authorities, legally confined only to the Chinese. Aduana is now called Andres Soriano Avenue.

Many streets were named because of their relationship or association with Jose Rizal. Blumentritt was named after the Austrian professor who was Rizal’s close friend with whom he corresponded. P. Leoncio was the parish priest who baptized Rizal while Craig was named after Austin Craig, one of his biographers. Retiro St. was inspired by his poem “Mi Retiro” which referred to his exile in Dapitan. Retiro has been changed to Amoranto St. Two streets were named after Rizal’s pen names, Laong Laan and Dimasalang.

Echague is now Carlos Palanca St., Washington Street (after an American president) is now Maceda St. and what used to be known as Dewey Boulevard is now Roxas Boulevard. Dewey Blvd. was named after Admiral George Dewey who defeated the Spanish navy in the battle of Manila Bay in 1898. There are many other streets which have significant historical value but have been changed. Morayta is now Nicanor Reyes St. while Otis is now Paz Guazon St.

The Alabang-Zapote Road used to be Calle Real while Arnaiz Avenue used to be Libertad St. (Liberty). Sampaloc Avenue was changed to Tomas Morato Avenue while Herran was changed to Pedro Gil.

At the rate street names are being changed by our politicians, the Filipino youth will soon grow up totally clueless about their colorful history which our heroes fought for. In other countries names that had a role in shaping their history are kept in the psyche of every citizen to remind them of their past. Here, we try to erase every reminder of our past. What identity or cultural heritage can we then expect our youth to nurture? No wonder we have no sense of nationhood and pride for country.

Still, I wish a very merry Christmas to all!

E-mail: ritalindaj@gmail.com Visit: www.jimenolaw.com.ph

http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/i...09/december/21

[jpb_1972]

easier said than done.....

Originally Posted by TONZI

Somebody should study how the language is evolving among the native Butuanons so that they will know who the speakers are and the population of the speakers, what frequency and what time do they use the language, and most importantly, if the language is already on the verge of deteriorating or not.

[jpb_1972]

easier said than done.....

Originally Posted by TONZI

Somebody should study how the language is evolving among the native Butuanons so that they will know who the speakers are and the population of the speakers, what frequency and what time do they use the language, and most importantly, if the language is already on the verge of deteriorating or not.

[epik ll ian]

Hayden F. Burgess' essay, "Processes of Decolonization," suggests five stages of decolonization: recovery, mourning, dreaming, commitment, and action. The first stage of decolonization involves a process of rediscovery and recovery. Burgess writes that, "this phase sets the foundation for the eventual decolonization of the society" (152). During this phase, those who have suffered the consequences of colonialism begin to question their assumed place as inferior to the dominant culture. The individual begins to rediscover their indigenous history and recovers lost aspects of their culture such as language and traditions. Burgess states that, "the natural outgrowth of the first phase is the mourning - a time when a people are able to lament their victimization" (154).

The third phase of decolonization involves the vital task of dreaming. Burgess believes that dreaming is the most crucial phase in the process of decolonization. It is the stage in which "the full panorama of possibilities are expressed, considered through debate, consultation, and building dreams on further dreams which eventually becomes the flooring for the creation of a new social order" (155). This restructuring involves reassessment of existing institutional power structures and expanding our worldviews and shifting our paradigms to make a better world for all nations. Burgess' fourth phase of decolonization involves committing to your dreams and making the decision to make them reality. The final phase of decolonization is the action phase. Burgess explains that consensus on which issues to commit to must occur in the fourth phase before the action phase can follow (158).



I'm hoping we're at least at the recovery phase, even though I can point out a few people in these forums who are just ITCHING to make the Philippines a predominately Spanish-speaking or English-speaking country for no legitimate reason reason.
Here's the website: http://www.colonialmentality.netfirms.com/CM.html
This is dedicated to Fil-Ams, but now that I think about it, this can apply to Filipinos too who degrade their own culture and like to supplant it with western culture which they find is allegedly ... superior. It's such a tragedy.

Oh, and here's something worth reading from El Filibusterismo:
Spanish was the concern of before (and it still is for those rebels out there who want the Filipino national language to be Spanish for no reason). You can just replace Spanish with English in this passage. By the way ... I don't agree with the incredible government part, because I do think the government is being run like hell by Filipinos, but hopefully (for those of you out there in these forums who still have optimism), it can change .



“Spanish will never be the national language because the people will never speak it. That tongue cannot express their ideas and their emotions. Each people has its own way of speaking just as it has its own way of feeling. What will you do with Spanish, the few of you who will get to speak it? You will only kill your individual personality and subject your thoughts to other minds. Instead of making yourselves free, you will only make yourselves truly slaves. Nine out of ten among you who presume to be educated are renegades to your own country.

Whoever among you speaks Spanish is so indifferent to his own language that he can neither write nor understand it. How many have I seen who pretend not to know a single word of their native tongue!

Fortunately you have a stupid Government. While Russia compels the Poles to study Russian in order to enslave them, while Germany prohibits the use of French in the provinces she has conquered from France, your Government fights to keep alive your native languages, while you, on the other hand, an extraordinary people under an incredible government, struggle to get rid of your national identity.

…as long as a people keeps its own language, it keeps a pledge of liberty, just as a man is free as long as he can think for himself. Language is a people’s way of thinking.” -J.Rizal, El Filibusterismo


If you want to talk about language, go to the respective Philippines as an ENGLISH speaking nation thread.

[bukid]

Originally Posted by epik ll ian

…as long as a people keeps its own language, it keeps a pledge of liberty, just as a man is free as long as he can think for himself. Language is a people’s way of thinking.” -J.Rizal, El Filibusterismo[/i]

...and rizal's best poems are written in spanish.

[epik ll ian]

Originally Posted by bukid

...and rizal's best poems are written in spanish.

Ironic, right? haha
He was educated in Spain ... so I guess you can't blame him. Anyways, that's not the focal point of the message. He is without regard one of the Philippines' national heroes.

[bukid]

in other words, there's nothing wrong with speaking and writing in english and cebuano. tagalog is not our native language, our main concern is how to preserve our mother tongue which had been neglected because of the imposition of tagalog in our schools.

[epik ll ian]

Originally Posted by bukid

in other words, there's nothing wrong with speaking and writing in english and cebuano. tagalog is not our native language, our main concern is how to preserve our mother tongue which had been neglected because of the imposition of tagalog in our schools.

The imposition? Call it what you want, put a victimization slant on it if you want. Filipino is the native language of the PHILIPPINES.
Oh no, we all have to learn Filipino (which is what it was called in order to make it a more universal language), so we can all communicate with each other. Besides, after Filipino (Tagalog) was declared the national language, it was open for flexibility and change by the other auxiliary regional languages. It was since then treated as such, since it has changed over time. Filipino was never an inflexible language set in stone. When it was declared the national language, there was "a strong constitutional mandate to evolve, further develop, and enrich Filipino "on the basis of existing Philippine and other languages" (Art. XIV, Sec.6, 1986 Constitution) ."Mainly, I'm seeing the bulk of the uproar in these forums coming from the Cebuanos. However, I don't know why there needs to be such a big fuss over it. If you want to sit there and come up with a hybrid Filipino language from scratch, be my guest, but Filipino can function for now.

"Tagalog is a fairly young language, not more than a thousand years old. It belongs to a “Central Philippine” group, bearing more similarities with languages in the Visayas than those of Luzon (e.g., Ilokano and Kapampangan). Linguists say the Visayan languages are older than Tagalog so we can conclude that today’s Tagalogs are descended from settlers who originally came from the Visayas. Eventually, the settlers’ Visayan-based language evolved into Tagalog, new words being coined, others borrowed from the settlers’ new neighbors, for example the Kapampangan."
http://www.seasite.niu.edu/Tagalog/e..._languages.htm
- I hope that you'd be happy to know that most of Tagalog ORIGINALLY takes root from the Visayan languages.

You guys treat the Philippines like its some special case. If you haven't noticed, there are other countries out there that operate under a single native language even though there are MULTIPLE other regional languages being spoken. Would you like me to tell you how many languages China puts up with!?!? They have a million more languages than Filipinos do, there's over a billion Chinese people, and yet you don't see them complaining NEARLY as much as you guys do because they have to learn Mandarin. They manage to speak their regional language and the national language. Put your problems into perspective here. The decision for Filipino to become the national language was made long ago in the 1930s, it's not a current hot topic decision that affects anyone personally and emotionally and physically now, and it doesn't need to be treated as such. There are MUCH bigger problems that the Philippines has to put up with right now. Let's pick our battles.

[bukid]

Originally Posted by epik ll ian

Imposition? So be it. Filipino is the native language of the PHILIPPINES.
Oh no, we all have to learn Filipino (which is what it was called in order to make it a more universal language), so we can all communicate with each other. Besides, after Filipino (Tagalog) was declared the national language, it was open for flexibility and change by the other auxiliary regional languages. It was since then treated as such, since it has changed over time. Filipino was never an inflexible language set in stone. When it was declared the national language, there was "a strong constitutional mandate to evolve, further develop, and enrich Filipino "on the basis of existing Philippine and other languages" (Art. XIV, Sec.6, 1986 Constitution) ."Mainly, I'm seeing the bulk of the uproar in these forums coming from the Cebuanos. However, I don't know why there needs to be such a big fuss over it. If you want to sit there and come up with a hybrid Filipino language from scratch, be my guest, but Filipino can function for now.

"Tagalog is a fairly young language, not more than a thousand years old. It belongs to a “Central Philippine” group, bearing more similarities with languages in the Visayas than those of Luzon (e.g., Ilokano and Kapampangan). Linguists say the Visayan languages are older than Tagalog so we can conclude that today’s Tagalogs are descended from settlers who originally came from the Visayas. Eventually, the settlers’ Visayan-based language evolved into Tagalog, new words being coined, others borrowed from the settlers’ new neighbors, for example the Kapampangan."
http://www.seasite.niu.edu/Tagalog/e..._languages.htm
- I hope that you'd be happy to know that most of Tagalog stems from the Visayan languages.

You guys treat the Philippines like its some special case. If you haven't noticed, there are other countries out there that operate under a single native language even though there are MULTIPLE other regional languages being spoken. Would you like me to tell you how many languages China puts up with!?!? They have a million more languages than Filipinos do, there's over a billion Chinese people, and yet you don't see them complaining NEARLY as much as you guys do because they have to learn Mandarin. They manage to speak their regional language and the national language. Put your problems in perspective here. The decision for Filipino to become the national language was made long ago in the 1930s, it's not a current hot topic decision that affects anyone personally and emotionally and physically now, and it doesn't need to be treated as such. There are MUCH bigger problems that the Philippines has to put up with right now. Let's pick our battles.

switzerland is an examples of country with several official languages. but its citizens never lose the pride of being citizens of their country. the french continue to be french swiss, the italians continue to be italian swiss, the germanic swiss, continue to be germanic. i dont see any problem with cebuano being proud cebuanos and still filipinos even without the "national" language. you're probably too young to understand that people can be of many different races, colors and cultures speaking different languages and yet can be one and proud of being members of one humanity whose one home is called Earth. having a 1 national language only artificial. the real unity and pride in one's nationhood is in the heart of each individual, a collective pride in the achievements of each group that though different yet one in their goal as nation to mold a national character, wherein people live with integrity, compassion and love towards their neighbors.

[epik ll ian]

Originally Posted by bukid

switzerland is an examples of country with several official languages. but its citizens never lose the pride of being citizens of their country. the french continue to be french swiss, the italians continue to be italian swiss, the germanic swiss, continue to be germanic. i dont see any problem with cebuano being proud cebuanos and still filipinos even without the "national" language. you're probably too young to understand that people can be of many different races, colors and cultures speaking different languages and yet can be one and proud of being members of one humanity whose one home is called Earth. having a 1 national language only artificial. the real unity and pride in one's nationhood is in the heart of each individual, a collective pride in the achievements of each group that though different yet one in their goal as nation to mold a national character, wherein people live with integrity, compassion and love towards their neighbors.

I'm not too young to misunderstand the concept of race. Race isn't the basis of my argument, and it's not the basis of discussion either. What you're talking about isn't relevant to this. Allow me to re-introduce the point of what I'm saying: Many use their regional language too strongly as the basis for their pride and patriotism, and they subconsciously use it as a means of escaping from the reality of the central government by saying that "I am not Filipino, I am Cebuano." I used Cebu as an example. This applies to all regions. Wow, that must make you a lot cooler than the rest of the Filipinos, right? A lot of people hate admitting they're Filipinos now. They'll just say that they're Cebuano or Ilocano or Bicolano etc. I bet if the Philippines was in a lot better shape, they'd instead be saying, "I am a Filipino who comes from Cebu." This then leads to those who get lofty misguided ideas of creating new countries like The Nation of Bicol, The Nation of Pampanga, and The Republic of the Visayas. Secession is such a waste of time and effort, and in the end you're not going to get as much as you hoped for. You think these areas will be able to sustain themselves fully, and become huge economic influences in the world? The honest truth is: No. No they won't. Most of these areas divided up are too small, most lack enough resources to sustain themselves, and they'll soon all have import-priority economies. There's a bigger and better goal we can achieve together instead of dividing and seceding, and here it is: if Filipinos would finally unite as Filipinos, we'd probably be able to solve the mess that our country is in right now. Instead, everyone remains so divided and hostile from other regions that it's so easy for the government to control and manipulate these different subgroups of Filipinos. The phrase "United we stand, divided we fall" fits our situation to a TEE. Hey, that's how Caesar took dominated his lands that he annexed to the Roman empire right - Divide and Conquer? If you haven't noticed, the Philippines is divided. We've already started diverting our energy away from the real problems of our country that we start wasting our time complaining about the imposed language we have to learn that could actually bind us all together.

The Philippines can branch off and become different countries. However, these little subcountries will never be as strong as they could be if they all united as the Philippines. For those of you out there who believe in the Federal Republic of the Visayas, take this into account: imagine if the Visayas broke up. All of these islands are already divided as they are. Each one is different from the other. Eventually they'd start finding differences in each other ... reasons for further dividing up the Visayas? What would you do about those areas on the southern border of Luzon who can speak a Visayan language ... what about those living on the northern border of Mindanao who can speak a Visayan language? There are also over 30 languages spoken in the Visayas. Which one will become the national language of the Visayas? Will Visayas further fight on what will become the national language? Theoretically, all of Visayas could break up. Does this seem politically and econmically feasible? Is secession really practical? Let's use some common sense and do what's good for ALL Filipinos. How far must the Philippines be divided until everyone's satisfied? Truth is, it's unrealistic. The Philippines can be strong if it stays as one. It also needs to better work together to accommodate the needs of all its peoples.

I never said there was anything wrong with Cebuanos being proud of being Cebuanos. I think everybody should be proud of which region they come from. It comes down to where your priorities lie. Cebuanos should be proud of where they're from, and how they've contributed to the detailed fabric of Filipino culture. I also believe people should be able to speak their regional language AND the national language. I believe all the aspects of Filipino culture - each region - is very delicate, and everything unique to us should be preserved and not thrown away or supplanted by another culture. However, there should be a very strong importance on the national language because that is what BINDS all Filipinos together - that is how everyone communicates. Care for the national language is deteriorating. People put way to much priority on their own regional language, and they don't even want to bother learning the "imperialistically imposed Filipino national language." Some even want to adopt another language that isn't even theirs to begin with. I too often see a lot of people complaining about how Tagalog was "imposed" on them unfairly as if some great injustice has just caused a wrinkle in the time of history.

[Mercato]

Our Philippine identity
ROSES & THORNS By Alejandro R. Roces (The Philippine Star) Updated December 22, 2009 12:00 AM

The past is the present, isn’t it? It’s the future, too. We all tried to lie out of that but life won’t let us.” — Eugene O’Neill

Filipinos are undergoing an identity crisis. Every cultural trait is being subjected to the question: “Is it Filipino?” We are still looking for an answer. The answer to “What is Filipino?” lies in the prejudicial question, “What is culture?” It is culture that makes a Filipino a Filipino and not a Malaysian or Indonesian.

Culture has been defined as “that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, custom and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society.” To be human is to belong to a culture. Four elements present in all cultures are: technology, institutions, language and arts. These can change in only two ways: by invention or by borrowing. Things invented are part of the indigenous culture of the society which brought them forth; things adopted, or adapted, became part of our indigenous cultures; Spanish and English, part of our national culture.

The “real Filipino” had been defined as a “decolonized Filipino.” We take exception to this on two grounds. First, it totally disregards the positive aspects of colonialism. It is true that the Spaniards failed to integrate themselves with the natives. As a matter of fact, they couldn’t even identify with the Philippine-born Spaniards or with the Spanish mestizos. But Spain had more advanced techniques and a much higher degree of civilization than this archipelago. In the process of colonization, they did diffuse their culture and created a new synthesis and a new unity that was richer and more varied than what existed in the islands before.

Second, to decolonize means to bring to a pre-colonial status. To reduce nationalism to colonialism spelled backwards is to emulate the Mediterranean sailors who guarded themselves against the fatal sirenical songs by singing them in reverse. To decolonize the national language would mean the purging of thousands of Spanish words that have been assimilated into Filipino and the abandonment of the Roman alphabet for the syllabic script. If there is anything more reactionary than going back to colonialism, it is going back to pre-colonialism. Prehistoric Philippines was not a Garden of Eden from which our forefathers were expelled because they ate of the tree of colonialism. In every stage of his formation, the Filipino was himself plus his circumstances. He lives in his culture as his culture lived in him. What is needed is redirection. The future is alterable, the past is not. The objective should not be a decolonized Filipino, but a supra-colonial Filipino.

Progress is not a natural law. The wheel was 46 centuries old when Spain introduced it in the Philippines. What one generation gains may be lost by the succeeding ones. Aside from the fact that culture is acquired, shared, transmitted and gratifying to human needs, culture gravitates towards integration. It was Spanish acculturation that homogenized Philippine society. After the initial resistance to Spanish conquest (the Spanish Army in 1590 was composed of 400 men) and the inertia that blocked urbanization had been overcome, the Filipinos were very receptive to Christian acculturation. Some people ridicule the mass baptisms during the initial period of Christianization, but France, England and other major Christian nations were converted in much the same way. There were uprisings against forced labor, feudalistic monopoly, friar abuses, but not against the technological, institutional, linguistic and artistic benefits of Christian civilization.

By the last decade of the 19th century, the descendants of the diverse barangays could already think of themselves as one people with a growing sense of unity and nationhood. They became the first Asians to declare their independence from colonial rule. The Revolution, indeed, signaled the birth of a nation. The placenta was Spain’s. With the American occupation, the mother got buried along with the afterbirth. The Tagalogs have a saying: “Ang hindi marunong lumingon sa pinanggalingan, ay hindi makararating sa paroroonan.” It is their folk way of saying that nations without a past have no future.

[epik ll ian]

I agree with the supra-colonial Filipino idea. Maybe that's what the authors were going for. My idea of de-colonizing though, is realizing that America and Spain are gone, and we must now do things the Filipino way. I'm looking for a halt on the colonial mentality. A halt for all things Spanish and American are the best (even though they're both great countries on their own), and a halt on borrowing ideas from their cultures in spite of the fact that they're long gone from the Philippines. In history, they already took us on a diversion along their paths, but now that they put us back on our path, I prefer we stay on our path instead of trying to catch up to someone else's shadow.

[mao rong]

Originally Posted by bukid

in other words, there's nothing wrong with speaking and writing in english and cebuano. tagalog is not our native language, our main concern is how to preserve our mother tongue which had been neglected because of the imposition of tagalog in our schools.

agree...

[epik ll ian]

Originally Posted by bukid

in other words, there's nothing wrong with speaking and writing in english and cebuano. tagalog is not our native language, our main concern is how to preserve our mother tongue which had been neglected because of the imposition of tagalog in our schools.

Go to the English forums and read what's been said before saying anymore. Your questions were answered and your arguments were replied to in what has been said there.

I'll just tell you the solution right now.
Life gives you choices, and sometimes you don't have to always pick one.

Here's the solution: Have schools teach both a Cebuano class AND a Tagalog class.

That's how you can LEARN Tagalog and preserve your mother tongue.
Not. that. hard.

[habagatcentral1]

Originally Posted by epik ll ian

I agree with the supra-colonial Filipino idea. Maybe that's what the authors were going for. My idea of de-colonizing though, is realizing that America and Spain are gone, and we must now do things the Filipino way. I'm looking for a halt on the colonial mentality. A halt for all things Spanish and American are the best (even though they're both great countries on their own), and a halt on borrowing ideas from their cultures in spite of the fact that they're long gone from the Philippines. In history, they already took us on a diversion along their paths, but now that they put us back on our path, I prefer we stay on our path instead of trying to catch up to someone else's shadow.

The question for the bold caption: How? Impose a-la juche or a totalitarian idea? What's your proposal in removing anything American or Spanish in our culture? Do you think it'll be feasible? Are we required to renounce our Catholic or Christian faith? Are we required not to speak English? Are we required not to learn about world history? Refuse to believe that the so-called "Filipino culture" has been influenced by outside forces? What's your idea about it? What is your proposal for such drastic move in the current Filipino society?

I'm just curious. Thanks!

[epik ll ian]

Originally Posted by habagatcentral1

The question for the bold caption: How? Impose a-la juche or a totalitarian idea? What's your proposal in removing anything American or Spanish in our culture? Do you think it'll be feasible? Are we required to renounce our Catholic or Christian faith? Are we required not to speak English? Are we required not to learn about world history? Refuse to believe that the so-called "Filipino culture" has been influenced by outside forces? What's your idea about it? What is your proposal for such drastic move in the current Filipino society?

I'm just curious. Thanks!

Not as much of a removal as it is a halt for wanting to draw in more aspects of Spanish and American culture that are not ours. Filipino culture functions as it is, and it can be enriched further for our descendants. Many people here want to see the Filipino national language replaced with English or Spanish. They think it's prettier/better. Are these remnants of our colonized attitude? Possibly. Truth: English is the language of business. It's important that we know it, and I'm glad a majority have a relatively decent grasp on it. However, that doesn't mean we need to replace the Filipino national language with English. This is largely unnecessary because Tagalog can function as a language. I don't want to see more aspects of Filipino culture washed away and forgotten because we value our former colonizers culture more than our own. It's already sad that I never see Bahay na Bato houses constructed or Filipino architectural elements being taken into account in modern construction projects anymore. Lately, these new neighborhood developments and condos look more like California malibu beach conds and Spanish Vineyard Villas than edifices you'd find in a foreign country with a rich and exotic culture - such as the Philippines. We're slowly losing our identity, and lots of people are not wanting to visit the Philippines as much as they would visit - Vietnam - for example, because they feel like they aren't getting the full cultural experience when they come to the Philippines. In fact, we have a very rich culture, we just have seem to buried it over time. For example, I know the Spanish replaced our former writing system, Baybayin, a long time ago, but still having our own writing system (like how the Thai kept theirs) I feel would make us feel more proudly Pinoy. You know? Just a thought though.

I also feel like this also branches off from why Filipinos don't buy Pinoy products (and why Filipino industry is so little/nonexistent in comparison to other countries). Is it because of the deterioration of Filipino pride? I know there are political aspects behind this like corruption ... but I'm talking in the long run. We practically worship overseas exports and hold little regard for our own products or capability of making our own. I want to see Filipino industry grow immensely someday like how it just recently blossomed in South Korea. It would be nice to be sitting in the living room one day watching my TV knowing it was crafted with Filipino ingenuity. It would be nice getting out of the living room to go out to the store in my car knowing it was made with clever Filipino engineering. This is what I yearn for!

Some people have mixed feelings about the Bagong-Lipunan. But, I just want to see Filipinos going back to what's innately Filipino - or Asian at least (since a lot do view Western culture as superior) - and being Filipino and not somebody else. We've already been through a long period of colonization. It would be nice to see old aspects of our culture resurface (not necessarily replace ... it can replace, but not on a big degree like erasing Catholicism and forks haha ... even though using chopsticks would be cool) - be Filipino - walk on our own paths. This shouldn't be too difficult since our culture was never largely Spanish or American. We did adopt some Spanish words, we did adopt some English words. We did start to use some Spanish cooking ingredients and styles. We were forced to adopt Spanish last names. We adopted Catholicism (however Christianity isn't an oddity ... it's a blessing ... even South Korea is turning to be largely Christian). However, we were still always Filipino. Spanish rarely intermarried Filipino blood is still only ... 3% Spanish by composition. Filipino culture throughout all of its regions is very rich. It be nice for us to preserve this and carry on the tradition.

I hope I answered your question

[Ang_Bantayanon]

Originally Posted by epik ll ian

My idea of de-colonizing though, is realizing that America and Spain are gone, and we must now do things the Filipino way. I'm looking for a halt on the colonial mentality. A halt for all things Spanish and American are the best (even though they're both great countries on their own), and a halt on borrowing ideas from their cultures in spite of the fact that they're long gone from the Philippines. In history, they already took us on a diversion along their paths, but now that they put us back on our path, I prefer we stay on our path instead of trying to catch up to someone else's shadow.

How do we undo what has been done?

Can we just shake off our Spanish and American influences overnight? How do you propose that we should do this?

I admire your concept of de-colonizing but does that mean we have to go hunting and gathering again? Or live in tree houses and wear bark clothes? Or perhaps tattoo our bodies and chew betel nut? Or wage wars with other tribes and behead all our enemies?

How can we not thread on someone else's shadow? Shall we abandon everything? Won't that be misplaced ultra-nationalism?

[epik ll ian]

Originally Posted by Ang_Bantayanon

How do we undo what has been done?

Can we just shake off our Spanish and American influences overnight? How do you propose that we should do this?

I admire your concept of de-colonizing but does that mean we have to go hunting and gathering again? Or live in tree houses and wear bark clothes? Or perhaps tattoo our bodies and chew betel nut? Or wage wars with other tribes and behead all our enemies?

How can we not thread on someone else's shadow? Shall we abandon everything? Won't that be misplaced ultra-nationalism?

No, no. Read what I just wrote above ....
We don't have to shake all of them off, but we can at least stop following their paths and instead take our own (like I've said before ... so cliche haha). I just want us to stop ignoring what's innately Filipino for other aspects of American culture and Spanish culture that we still cling to. We can revert to old Filipino things ... like having the Filipino alphabet re-introduced etc. But we are where we are now. I just want us to follow through the Pinoy way and not any other way - a no-longer-colonized (de-colonized) mentality.

[Ang_Bantayanon]

Originally Posted by epik ll ian

No, no. Read what I just wrote above ....
We don't have to shake all of them off, but we can at least stop following their paths and instead take our own (like I've said before ... so cliche haha). I just want us to stop ignoring what's innately Filipino for other aspects of American culture and Spanish culture that we still cling to.

Thanks. But who told you we are ignoring "what's innately Filipino" in us? Now, that's a sweeping generalization. IMO, by being Filipino is balancing the native with the Spanish and American influence. Calling oneself Filipino alone is already anachronistic. Perhaps you really want to call yourself Taga-ilog and not Filipino.