How do you come to terms with the thick Filipino accent ...

Everything FILIPINO!

 · 

Following

Answered by 

Michelle Jones

... when speaking English compared to many Tagalog people making fun of thick Visayan accent when speaking Tagalog?

On Speaking Tagalog/Visayan

As someone who has spent time in different parts of the Philippines, it’s straight up impossible to get every accent right.

Not to diss the Tagalogs, but they do have a tendency to point out or make fun of Visayans when they try to speak Tagalog. A lot of Visayans already prefer speaking English over Tagalog, and people making fun of them doesn’t help. Especially when they don’t speak a lick of Visayan themselves.

What people should realize is that we are all multilingual. We have our accents. We can correct each other, but in a nice way.

On speaking English

I love it when we stick to our natural accents when speaking English. When I say natural, I mean however you speak it when you are alone in the shower.

I hate it when we consciously change our accents to sound more Americanized.

Conclusion

Just speak as naturally and clearly as possible. Stop caring about accents. It’s not worth it, at all.

What is the difference between "Cebuano" and "Visayan"?

 

Michelle Jones

Professional Matchmaking Consultant for CebuWomen.com

336 followers

95 following

Cebuano and Visayan can mean both the language and the people.

THE PEOPLE

The people living in Cebu, Philippines are called Cebuanos, but are locally referred to as Sugbuanon.

Visayas is the central island group of the country, which consists of 16 provinces, one of which is Cebu. Visayan is what you call the group of people that live in this area.

Think of it this way:

All Cebuanos are Visayans, but not all Visayans are Cebuano.

THE DIALECT

There are different variations of the Visayan language, or Bisaya, one of which is the Cebuano language. Depending on the region, they more or less are similar when it comes to grammar.

The syntax, however, may change slightly across regions. Visayan in West Visayas leans more towards the Tagalog Language, while Visayan in East Visayas remains true to the classic Visayan syntax.

Cebuanos (like me) speak in our own variation of Visayan which is what we currently know as the Cebuano dialect. We often shorten words by taking out letters or syllables to make them easier on the tongue and quicker to say.

For example, the Visayan phrase “ayaw ug” (“do not” in English) is spoken as “Ay’g” in Cebuano. This is quite similar to how the English language contracts “do not” to “don’t”. Here are a few Visayan words and their Cebuano variations:

Dalan = Daan (street)

Kalas = Kas (wasteful)

Pahibalo = Pahibawo (inform)

balumbong = bumbong (roof)

kalakat = katkat (climb)

Cebuanos often speak quite fast so there are really instances where we don’t say words completely. This eventually led us to adapt to the current Cebuano dialect that’s full of syllabic truncation and portmanteaus.

Is being fluent in the Filipino language still significant in this day and age?

Michelle Jones

Professional Matchmaking Consultant for CebuWomen.com

International Dating Coach and Matchmaking Consultant for Cebu Women

 with years of professional experience in the industry.

The real question is who is it significant for?

1. To be globally competent, being fluent in English is more important.

2. For visitors/tourists to the Philippines, being fluent isn’t a requirement.

So here are instances where I feel fluency in Filipino is a requirement:

1. The classical arts. If you are interested in deeply understanding, studying, and performing Filipino classical arts (singing, literature, etc.), you will need some degree of fluency.

2. If you like to travel around the Philippines. If you’re from Cebu, and you want to travel to Tacloban where they speak Waray, you’re better off speaking in Filipino (Tagalog). If you’re clearly a native Filipino and you speak English to your fellow Filipino in an informal setting, that’s a no-no.

3. When it’s your job. If you’re a Filipino historian, public speaker, or politician, your Filipino has to be tip-top.