Raised in Bilingualism
When it comes to being bilingual, we never think about what language we’re going to speak until the conversation has already started. With that being said, I grew up in a bilingual household where we speak both English and Kapampangan, a Filipino dialect from the city of Pampanga, Philippines. My first language was English but I slowly learned that my parents, siblings, and grandparents all spoke another language. We often traveled to the Philippines and I hated not being able to understand what was being said. It made me feel like I was being made fun of because they always laughed. As I continued to grow, I taught myself Kapampangan by listening to what was being said, asking what it meant, and repeating it. My parents were fascinated and decided to continue to use both languages while speaking to my sister’s kids and I. Recently, it has come to my attention that we all speak the languages at various times. I was fascinated when I realized that I do the same without acknowledging it. To learn more about which language was being used, I decided to conduct research based on the social circumstances that we were in whether it was based on who we were speaking to and what we were talking about.
Method
For my research, I collected data from conversations that we had on a daily basis. My parents and other family members were aware of my observations but did not change the way we interacted every day. They refused to have any videos or voice recordings because they believed that taking notes was enough. To stay on track, I took the notes at the end of each day after I arrived from work or school. In the beginning, it was challenging for me to record my notes because I did not know if there was a certain way that I needed to write them since I was also a participant. Eventually I noticed that there was no certain way needed to jot them down, I became more comfortable and continued to do so since it was for my personal use.
The people I had the most interaction with include my parents, grandfather, and my nieces Angel and Raeann. Although my nieces do not live with me, they spend much of their time at our house because they enjoy spending time with us and hearing out language. When it comes to categorizing us by generations; my grandfather is the first, my parents are second, my siblings and I are the third, and my nieces are the fourth generation. Throughout our generations, we all understand Kapampangan and English but only generations one through three are actually able to speak both languages. There are a few sentences that the fourth generation is able to pronounce but it is not understandable by my grandfather. While the fourth generation was being raised, they were not taught how to speak Kapampangan but rather how to understand due to their great-grandparents. The most important characteristic my grandparents wanted all of their grandchildren to have was to understand Kapampangan at the very least.
After collecting the data, I decided to classify the information depending on the social circumstances. It took me some time to pick the final categories because there were such a variety of choices such as ages of the participants, conversations through social media and in person, the amount of education each individual has, and so-on. However, the few different sections I finalized include generational differences, topics of conversations, and the setting of the conversations as well. I included a section of my own experience as I was also a participant while I was conducting the research. In each section, English and Kapampangan will certainly be included. I believe these sections were necessary to present the information in an adequate manner.
Data
The following data will include descriptions of the section and conversations that were collected from the observations.
Generational Differences
Knowing that there are four generations in my household, imagine the many different conversations that are held throughout each day. When my parents talk with my grandfather, it is in fluent Kapampangan. They speak very loud, as if they are yelling at each other but it is just how they communicate. For example, my parents wanted to go to the gym one day and told me to tell my grandpa they were leaving so he would not look for them. I walked over to my grandpa and said in Kapampangan, “Pa, mako la di daddy ku. Mag gym la kanu.” (Translation; “Grandpa, my parents are leaving to go to the gym.”) Confused, my grandpa goes to my dad and asks where they are going as he says, “Nokarin kayu munta?” “Mag gym kami, atin ka wari buring puntalan?” asks my dad. (Translation; “We are going to the gym, did you want to go somewhere?”) Grandpa replies with, “Awa, bisa ku sana mag lakad.” (Translation; “Yes, I wanted to walk around.”) My grandfather immediately got ready to leave and went to walk around a mall with my parents.
While my parents are speaking to me, they begin with Kapampangan. With no doubt, I can understand what they are saying but sometimes I do not respond fast enough or I just do not know how to answer them and decide not to respond at all. If they see that I have nothing to say, they will try to talk to me again in English because they think that I did not understand them the first time. An example includes when my dad asked me for my opinion on whether or not we should have curtains in our living room. In our home, we have high ceilings and need custom made curtains in order to hang them up. As I was walking up to my room, my dad stopped me and asked, “Mangabit tamu pang kortina keni o ali na?” In response, I looked at the windows and then my dad without saying anything. I was thinking about what we should do but I was too slow for him. He continued with, “Should we put curtains or not?” Which was the actual translation of the first question. I said, “I think you should put curtains because the sunlight is going to reflect onto the T.V. and you won’t be able to see anything.” The following week, he said I was right and decided to put the curtains back. My nieces who constantly sleep over started laughing and said they should not have taken them down.
When it comes to conversations between my parents and my nieces, I find myself laughing more than I should because I know when my nieces can’t understand what my parents are saying to them. My parents will automatically start talking to them in English because my nieces do not speak Kapampangan. However, there are times where my parents will talk to them in Kapampangan because they do not know how to word their question or sentence in English. My favorite conversations between my mom and my nieces include her waking them up for school in the morning. My mom will come into my room and say, “Paynawa na kayu, oras na!” (Translation; “You guys rest, it’s time to get up.”) Half awake, Angel will say, “What?” I’ll start laughing as her older sister will say, “I don’t know but we need to get up, it’s 7.” I’ll translate for them and tell them to get ready so I can drop them to school.
Topics of Conversations
In all honesty, my family’s daily conversations included food. Whether my parents asked me if I wanted to eat or what my nieces wanted for breakfast, it was the one topic we all connected with. My parents ask me every day, “Mengan na ka? Nang buri mu kanan?” (Translation; “Did you eat yet? What do you want to eat?”) I’ll laugh and say anything. My dad and my grandpa ask the same exact question throughout the day as well, whether it is to me or to each other. Considering that this question is asked at least 10 times a day, it is important to always have a full stomach no matter the mood or given situation.
When it came to conversations between my mom and I, it was always topics such as how I was doing in work or school. There was one day where I came home from work early because I had a migraine and couldn’t stop vomiting. She came into my room to massage my temples and put Katinko (Filipino version of Vicks) onto my forehead. She said, “Ok kamo? Magobra kang magobra ampo magaral ka pa, ala kang paynawa.” (Translation; “Are you okay? You’re always working and still go to school, you have no rest.”) I kept my eyes closed and didn’t say a word because I was too drained. This was also her hinting that I did not need to work so much and to focus on school because she knows that school has always been my most important priority. When it comes to these kinds of conversations, I talk very fast to move on to the next conversation. With that being said, I speak to her in English even if she is speaking to me in Kapampangan because there are some words that I forget while speaking.
Setting of Conversations
Almost all of the conversations were held at home, in our house. I was often at work or school and did not go out with my family unless it was planned at the last minute. However, the amount of how much each language was spoken actually made a difference due to the fact that we are in our most comfortable state while being at home. For example, my mom had an interview with my boss at the time to be her nanny. On the way to the interview, my mom and I were speaking to each other as she spoke in Kapampangan and I replied in English, for her to know what to say during her interview. She would ask questions such as, “Nanung sabyan ku istung kutang na nung mag stay ku keng bale na?” (Translation; “What do I say if she asks me if I can stay at her house?”) I told her to say whatever she wanted, if she preferred to stay at her house or if she could bring her kids to our house. However, when we got to my boss’ house, we only continued to speak to each other in English for everybody to be more comfortable. My boss obviously could not understand our language and we did not want anybody to be uncomfortable.
Another example includes a time that my father had to go to the Emergency Room unexpectedly. He was taking medication for an infection and had a negative reaction because he believed the medicine was too strong. At the time that he needed to go, my mom and I were actually grocery shopping. My sister texted me and asked where we were because my dad had called her to take him to the hospital. My mom was nowhere to be found and I decided to call her saying, “Mom atiu kanu hospital i daddy” (Translation; Mom, dad is in the hospital.) She said, “Puntalan te potang ka yari tamu keni.” (Translation; “We’ll go see him after we’re done here.”) When we got to the hospital, my dad told us what had happened. My sister on the other hand, pulled me aside and said she thinks that they had to go to the hospital because he was having a panic attack and did not know what to do. We were speaking in English and I told her she could go home if she wanted but she decided to stay. My parents continued to talk in Kapampangan but switched to English when the doctor came into the room to talk about what my dad could do to feel better. This was similar to the example above, where we speak English when others are around to make sure that nobody feels uncomfortable.
My Personal Experience
Despite the fact that I am able to speak both English and Kapampangan, it is safe to say that I speak more English because I spend the majority of my time outside of our home. When it comes to interacting with my managers and professors, I only speak in English. My boyfriend speaks another Filipino dialect called Visayan which means we also speak to each other in English because I do not speak Tagalog like he does. Our friends also speak Tagalog, Kapampangan, Ilocano, and Visayan. We basically have all the dialects from the Philippines in our friend group but I still speak to them in English because I have what they call an American accent. While I am fluent in English, they speak to each other in Tagalog. I have realized that I only ever speak Kapampangan at home, with my family.
Results
I believe the results are what I expected them to be. I learned that I spend too much time outside of our home and do not really interact with my family as much as I used to. As a growing individual, I kept myself busy for time to go by faster whether I was at work or at school. Small conversations with my family here and there showed me that they actually miss spending time with me. I realized that they asked me if I had already eaten so many times because they wanted to talk to me while I was eating or they wanted to eat with me. I also learned that I need to spend more time learning about our language instead of only using what I have learned from everyday conversations.
Discussion
Now that I have completed this study, there are a few things that I would like to change or focus on if I was to ever repeat it. I’d spend more time at home to take more detailed notes and to have longer, more interesting conversations with my parents instead of going straight to my room. I would also focus on other topics such as conversations through social media because of things that could be used such as google translate. Using more than just Kapampangan would be a great idea as well, Tagalog would be a great language to include. Otherwise, this would be a great study to do if anyone is interested to learn about what languages are used based on their interpretations.
Conclusion
Overall, I enjoyed this study and was highly excited to do it. I was able to focus on the two main languages that I use in my daily life, English and Kapampangan. I learned that my parents and my last living grandparent will always communicate in Kapampangan no matter the social circumstance while I will probably reply in English every now and then. As for my nieces, I hope they decide to learn how to speak our language because it is important to always remember our roots. This concludes my paper, have a great summer.
Appendix
Tuesday 02/11
- I was at school from 8AM – 3:45PM
- When I got home, I went straight to bed and did not talk to anyone.
- I was at work from 8PM – 5PM
- While at work, my friend spoke to me in Tagalog and English depending on what he was trying to say.
- If he could not say what he wanted to in English, he would automatically speak in Tagalog.
- When I got home, I asked my mom if she was interested in being a nanny for my boss.
- She replied, saying yes and asked a few questions as to what the duties would be in Kapampangan.
- My dad asked if I was hungry. He said, “Mengan na ka?” Translation: Did you eat yet?
- I said no and he told me that we had food that was already made in the kitchen.
- I went ahead and ate with my grandpa.
- After dinner, my grandpa had asked me to turn his tv on for him because he does not know how.
- He said, “Sinjan me ing TV ku.”
- I replied saying, “Wa sige pa.” Translation: Okay grandpa.
- I was at school from 8AM – 6:45PM
- When I got home, my dad had asked about what my opinion was for our curtains because we have high ceilings. He asked me this question in Kapampangan and English.
- I told him that we needed curtains because when the sun shines through the windows, it is very difficult to see.
- Him and my mom continued to talk about what they should do with the ceiling in Kapampangan.
- My grandpa asked me to turn his TV on. He said, “Sinjan me ing TV ku.”
- I replied saying, “Wa sige pa.” Translation: Okay grandpa.
- I had asked my grandpa if he had dinner yet and said, “Mengan naka pa?”
- He said, “Ali pa, nanu wari ing pamangan?” Translation: Not yet, what food do we have?
- We went downstairs together and he said he wanted to order takeout.
- Mom had texted me in the early morning to say Happy Valentine’s Day.
- I was scheduled to work a 12 hour shift. She said, “Magobra naka nanaman? Ala ka pang paynawa.” Translation: You’re going to work again? You do not have any rest.
- I said I had to go to work and left.
- When I got home, she asked if I had eaten yet and told me what food we had. She said, “Mengan na ka?” Translation: Did you eat yet?
- My nieces slept over and my mom spoke to them in complete English.
- She asked if they had already eaten and if they wanted her to cook anything.
- They both said no and went upstairs to my room.
- I had dinner and then played monopoly with the kids.
- We always communicate with each other in English.
- My mom had asked for what I wanted to eat for breakfast in Kapampangan. She said, “Nang buri mu kanan?” but I said I had an eye doctor appointment and I had to go. I reminded her of her interview at 4 pm.
- Around 3 pm, I called my mom on the phone to remind her again and that we were to go together.
- While driving to her interview, I helped her prepare for what she was going to say. Although she spoke to me in Kapampangan, I replied in English throughout the entire conversation.
- After her interview, she was very happy to get the job.
- She did not want to share the news with anybody yet.
- When we got home, I went straight to my room to rest.
- Again, I had worked a 12 hour shift and only saw my parents after I had gotten home at night.
- When I got home, my mom had asked if I ate yet in Kapampangan.
- My parents discussed that they were going to go on vacation for two weeks during the first week of March.
- When I got home from school, my mom had asked if I ate yet and said she was going to the gym with my dad in Kapampangan.
- My dad told me to tell my grandpa that they were leaving.
- I went to my grandpa and said, “Pa, mako la di daddy ku. Mag gym la kanu.”
- My grandpa went downstairs asked where they were going in Kapampangan, “Nokarin kayu munta?”
- My dad replied and said, “Mag gym kami, atin ka wari buring puntalan?”
- Translation, “We are going to the gym, did you want to go somewhere?”
- My grandpa said, “Awa, bisa ku sana mag lakad.”
- Translation, “Yes, I wanted to walk around.”
- Later in the day--
- When I walked into our home, my mom had asked me if I ate dinner yet.
- Mom: Mengan na ka? (Kapampangan) Translation: Did you eat yet?
- Me: No, but I will after I take a shower (I responded in English).
- After I took a shower, I went downstairs to eat. Moments later, she asked me what I was eating in English.
Tuesday 02/18
- I was at school from 8AM – 3:45PM
- When I got home, I went straight to bed and did not talk to anyone.
- I was at work from 9AM – 5PM
- While at work, my friend spoke to me in Tagalog whenever he was unable to say what he needed in English.
- While working with our client, he asks for advice on what to do such as what to do if our client brings up his mom. His mom is a huge trigger to his behavior and we try to avoid talking about her at all costs.
- I respond in English because my first instinct is to always respond in English.
- My mom came into my room and asked if I was going to school and how I was doing in Kapampangan because I did not get up at the time that I was supposed to.
- I told her that I had to go to school because I had a presentation but I did not get up earlier because I did not feel good.
- My dad came into my room and asked if he could borrow my car to go to church.
- I said yes.
- As I was getting ready to go to school, my mom asked if I found my keys and I left for school.
- While at school I asked my mom to pick up my contacts and glasses for me because I didn’t get out of school until 7PM.
- My mom said okay and asked if I wanted pizza or a hotdog from Costco.
- I said I wanted pizza and that I would see her later.
- When we were both home, I said thank you for doing me a favor and for the food.
- My mom tried on some clothes that she bought in my room and asked me how she looked.
- My niece was sleeping over again and my mom had asked her to take a shower so she doesn’t have to shower tomorrow.
- My mom came into my room to wake up my niece for school.
- I went to work from 9AM to 7PM.
- When I got home, I could not stop vomiting because I had a migraine
- My mom came into my room and put Katinko on my forehead and massaged my temples because she thought that it would help.
- She asked me if I was okay in Kapampangan and told me that I had to rest because I spend too much time at work or school.
- My mom came into my room in the morning to check on me, I was still in bed and I didn’t want to do much.
- She asked my nieces if they ate breakfast yet in Kapampangan and they responded in English, saying yes.
- I wanted to eat pho (a type of soup) because I thought that it would help me feel better.
- While speaking in English, I asked my nieces to get ready to go out to eat
- My cousin picked us up and took us to the restaurant
- We also ended up going to the mall to look for new shoes for my niece
- My sister met us at the mall to buy the shoes for my niece
- My sister spoke to me in Kapampangan, asked what we did for the day
- We said our goodbyes
- My cousin and I went home to my house, my mom asked if we ate yet in Kapampangan but my cousin did not understand
- My mom asked if he wanted to eat in Tagalog because that’s the only language he speaks
- I dyed my hair black
- My mom came with me to the saloon because she didn’t want to stay home
- My sister texted me while I was under the dyer and told me that she was bringing my dad to the emergency room because he was not feeling well (English)
- I called my mom and said we had to go to the hospital because my dad was in the ER (Kapampangan), “Mom atiu kanu hospital e daddy.”
- She said okay and we went after buying groceries at Costco
- When we got to the hospital, my mom and I were talking about why my dad was not feeling well
- When we finally saw him, he said he felt very weak because of the antibiotics he was taking for his infection in his prostate (Kapampangan)
- I had to bring the groceries home so I told my dad that I would be right back
- While I was putting the groceries away, my mom was eating dinner
- She asked if I wanted to eat in Kapampangan, “Bisa kang mangan?”
- I said no and we went back to the hospital after she was finished eating
- When we got back, my dad told us that it was time for him to discharge in Kapampangan, he also said they would give him a call regarding his blood tests. “Pwede naku kanu muli, awsan da naku mu keng resulta na ning daya ku”,
- I stayed in my room for most of the day because I was not feeling good.
- I went downstairs to eat but went right back to sleep afterwards.
- When I woke up, I stayed in bed only talked to my mom whenever she went into my room
- She kept asking if I was okay or if I wanted anything to eat in Kapampangan
- I was at school from 8AM – 3:45PM
- When I got home, I took a nap
- When I woke up around 6, I asked my grandpa if he had dinner yet
- He said no and asked me what I wanted to eat in Kapampangan
- We got panda for take-out and ate dinner together
- After we ate dinner, my grandpa asked me to help him turn his tv on in Kapampangan. “Sinjan me pa ing tv ku,” he said.
- I was at work from 9AM – 5PM
- I was grading papers for my internship and my mom started talking to me about being a teacher
- I was showing her what I was grading and she said she is very excited for me to be a teacher
- I told her that
- I was at school from 8AM – 6:45PM
- When I got home, I rested before I went to my friend’s new apartment
- My friends and I celebrated the fact that they got a new place
- I spoke to all of them in English but some of them spoke to me in Kapampangan with little phrases while showing me around the apartment
- My other friends spoke Tagalog to each other while playing an online game called Dota.
- I was at work from 12PM – 9PM
- When I got home, my mom asked if I had eaten dinner yet, Bisa kang mangan?”
- I said no and told her I was just going to rest and go to bed.
- I was at work from 9AM-9PM
- When I got home, my mom asked if I wanted to eat dinner, “Bisa kang mangan?”
- My mom asked me if I wanted to go to the mall with her in Kapampangan but I said no because I wanted to study
- My nephew came over because he wanted to spend time with me
- My sister told him to be good while he was with me and to make sure that he listens in English
- My sister told me to call her or to bring her son home if he doesn’t listen in Kapampangan, “Ausan muku istung ali ya makiramdam e Alec or uli mu nemu.”
- I brought my nephew to Walmart and bought him some toys, he did not give me a hard time at all
- When I brought him home, my sister told me a story of her friend who is in the process of getting a divorce in Kapampangan.
- When I got home, I asked my dad if he ate dinner yet. He said yes and asked if I wanted to eat or buy something to eat in Kapampangan.
- My mom asked me what time I was going to leave the house in Kapampangan, “Nanu ka oras mako”
- I said I was not sure but I had class at 4PM
- Without letting me know, they borrowed my car
- I called my mom and asked where she was because I needed my car
- She said, “Muli na kami potang yari na kami mag grocery, balami mi kasi pota ka pamu mako.” – We’ll be home after we buy groceries, we thought that you weren’t going to leave the house until later
- When they got home, they asked if I ate. “Mengan naka?”
- I said yes and that I would be home around 5:30, after class.
- When I got home my mom told me to eat, she said “Mangan naka”
- After I ate, I told her that I was going to my friend’s house and she said “ali mu paka bengi”. – Don’t come home too late.
- I was in training with the state of Alaska from 9:30 AM – 3:30 PM
- I told my parents that I was going to help my cousin buy jackets for his wife and daughter
- My cousin spoke Kapampangan to me the whole time that we were walking around, while looking for jackets
- I responded in English and told him my opinion for each jacket
- We also got new cell phones for his wife and daughter but I spoke to the representative because he doesn’t know how to speak English very well
- When we got home, my cousin and I ate
- I went back to GCI with my dad to get a free firecube for having our internet service
- We had a family dinner at my house for my grandmother’s 4th death anniversary.
- All of my cousins, nieces, nephews, and my aunt and uncle attended
- All conversations were in Kapampangan
- We shared our memories about our grandma
- Whenever somebody
- We prayed the rosary in English because none of the kids know it in Kapampangan
- Everybody said their good-byes
- I was at school from 8 AM to 7PM and when I got home, I did a little bit of homework and stayed in my room for the rest of the night because of how tired I was.
- Unfortunately, I worked a 12hr shift at work again.
- When I got home, my mom asked if I ate, she said “Mengan na ka? Nang buri mung kanan?” I kindly said I wasn’t too hungry and just wanted to rest because it was a rough day.
- It was my niece’s birthday and we did not do anything
- I didn’t spend much of the day at home, I was hanging out with my friends and we drove around town
- My friends speak Tagalog to each other but speak to me in English
- I worked a 12hour shift at work
- When I got home, my mom asked if I had eaten yet and made me dinner
- I got ready for bed when I shared with my mom about how unhappy and uncomfortable I was with my job
- My mom talked to me about it and said I need to stop working immediately for my own safety
- I quit my job and decided to go to Seattle for the week
- I asked my parents if they could help me out with my ticket and they said of course
- I did a few errands before I started packing
- While packing, my parents told me to always be safe and to be careful of what I eat while in Seattle. They said, “Palagi kang mimingat ampo lalawen mu ing kakanan mu pota sakit ka atchan.”
- I flew to Seattle, Washington for Spring Break at 5 AM and arrived a little over 9 AM
MONICA TUNGUL graduated in May 2020 with a Baccalaureate of Arts in English and a minor in psychology. Selected by Professor Bowie.