Easier to say 'Whatever'

CEBU, Philippines - There is a difference between ug and og in the conversational Cebuano. There is even a proper way to spell the equivalent of star. Is it bituon or bitoon?

It took me a while to figure out what these meant in the Cebuano language. What's worse is the absence of people who could teach me the proper way to say things. I get confused with how Cebuano words are spelled and spoken. No wonder it is more comfortable to speak the lingua franca.

The spoken Cebuano language is rarely praised for its beauty. I walk downtown and see products labeled with Chinese characters. The road signs are in English. The songs blasting from the videoke players are inTagalog. Where has the identity of the Cebuanos gone?

Long ago, we were well-versed in poetry and literature. I am studying Cebuano literature in college and I am amazed by the creativity of our forefathers. Entertainment long ago was not composed of a big screen and popcorn. Their entertainment revolved solely around their ability to create verses about their simple life.

There were poems intended for the gods (harito), riddles (tigmo), and a poem for a lonely sailor out at sea (saloma). What kept them awake during funerals were verse contests, not mahjong or tong-its.

All my life, I have been speaking a language which we do not really own. The wonders of Cebuano were kept from me even in childhood. I grew up to be an English-speaking child. At home or in school, I was required to speak in English. If not, I was subject to punishment.

I felt like I was robbed of my true identity. I was born and raised in Cebu, without even knowing what makes a Cebuana. Or worse, how tospeak in Cebuano. It was only in college when I was introduced to Cebuano, and the proper way of speaking and writing it. For 16 years prior to college, I found myself submitting to western culture. I grew up shunning anything native.

I am not alone in this plight. Majority of the youth these days do not know the mere difference between ug and og. Why would it matter? It is so easy to say "and" or "a" in English. More so, it is easier to say "whatever" than find the right words.

But the language is part of our culture. No matter how hard we try to eradicate our words from our own vocabularies, Cebuano blood runs through us. There is a gap that needs to be filled otherwise it will be totally lost.

The Cebuano language is in decline. We are trying so hard to speak Englishwhen we do have our own language. No, Cebuano is not bakya or baduy. It is an indicator that you know who you really are, and not trying to be someone else.

We have too much of a colonial mentality when we can move forward with our own. Our only hope lies in continuing to search for the pieces that would fill the gap missing in Cebuano culture in this generation.

By the way, we say ug for "and" and og for "a" or "an". 

**Published in the Freeman newspaper on September 18, 2012