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PANGASINENSE

I am Zenaida "Zeny" Gutay Baoanan and I am a native speaker of Pangasinense

source:

(picture source:    www.clickthecity.com)

Orthography   Morphology   Story/Song   Word List   Syntax    Language Use     Dictionary

I am Zenaida Gutay Baoanan and I was born in Pangasinan.  Both of my parents were born in the same province and so are my great grandparents.  I grew up speaking the language at home and in school.  When I married with a man from different locality,  I had a shift of language into Filipino and had it spoken within our family.  My frequent encounter with former classmates in primary and secondary schools made me realize that not many of us are still using the language at home.  I seldom hear people speak the language in public places.  I believe the language is rarely spoken and is now threatened to  be lost.  This is a cause which I want to share to people,  "To keep the language vibrant and preserve the legacy  of our ancestry".

Your name (first, last)
Zenaida, Baoanan
Contact Email zbaoanan@yahoo.com
Preferred name(s) of your language Pangasinense
Alternative names Panggalatok, a slang term of Pangasinan of doubtful etymology mistakenly used by non-Pangasinans to refer to the Pangasinan language or its native speakers. (http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=Pangasinan_language)
Language classification Austronesian, Malayo-Polynesian, Philippine, Northern Luzon, Meso-Cordilleran, South-Central Cordilleran, Southern Cordilleran, West Southern Cordilleran
(http://www.ethnologue.com/language/pag)
Geographical areas where spoken Region 1, Northern Luzon, Philippines
Approximate number of monolingual speakers 1.5 million (based on 2000 census:  (http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=Pangasinan_language)
Other languages spoken in the area/country Ilocano, Filipino, English
Official language(s) in your country Filipino
Does your language have a widely accepted writing system?
 Yes
If yes, what materials are written?
 Prayer pamphlets, books, magazines, flyers
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Background of the Language

Pangasinan is spoken by people in the province of Pangasinan, in other Pangasinan communities in the Philippines, and by a significant number of Pangasinan immigrants in the United States.  The Pangasinan language belongs to the Malayo-Polynesian languages branch of the Austronesian languages family. Pangasinan is similar to the Filipino and Ilocano languages that are spoken in the Philippines, Bahasa Indonesia|Indonesian in Indonesia, Malay language|Malay in Malaysia, and Malagasy language|Malagasy in Madagascar. The Pangasinan language is very closely related to the Ibaloi language spoken in the neighboring province of Benguet and Baguio City, located north of Pangasinan. The Pangasinan language is classified under the Pangasinic group of languages.
(http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=Pangasinan_language).

Pangasinan is derived from the prefix pang, meaning "for", the root word asin, meaning "salt”, and suffix an, signifying "location" , thus the name Pang-ASIN-an means "place for salt" or "place of salt-making"(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pangasinan).

According to Anderson and Anderson (2007), most Pangasinenses speak two or three other languages: Ilocano, Filipino, and English. Many returning overseas workers speak a diasporic language as well. Currently, Pangasinan is barely the dominant language in its own province, accounting for 48 percent of the province’s population in the 2000 census. At least one-third of communities in the province are linguistically mixed between Pangasinan and Ilocano, with the result that most residents of those places are fully bilingual (Ilocano was spoken by 47 percent of the province’s population in 2000).  Major causes of attrition in numbers of Pangasinan native speakers include migration, relative cultural prestige, urbanization, interethnic marriage, and changing language use in various communicative settings. The authors proposes that while Pangasinan currently shows some of the warning signs of language endangerment, it need not remain endangered if native speakers take charge of the roles they want Pangasinan to play in their lives.

About the homepage photo: 

Bangus Festival is celebrated every April of the year just before the onset of the Pista’y Dayat.  Dagupan City has done justice to its most popular product, which is globally renowned, in a festive mood of glorifying the best tasting milkfish in the country and in the world  (http://www.pangasinan.gov.ph/2011/05/festivals/)

References:

Anderson, Victoria B. and James N. Anderson (2007). Pangasinan––An Endangered Language? Retrospect and Prospect. Philippine Studies, 55 (1), 116-144.
http://www.pangasinan.gov.ph/2011/05/festivals/.  The Official website of Province of Pangasinan.  Downloaded on April 24, 2013
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pangasinan
http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=Pangasinan_language
www.clickthecity.com

Source Reported number of speakersVitality Assessment            
www.ethnologue.com1.16m
none
www.unesco.org/culture/languages-atlas/en/atlasmap.comnone
none
www.endangeredlanguages.comnone
none
www.wikipedia.com1.5 m

http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=Pangasinan_language
1.5 m (2000 census)


I believe the census is outdated and there is not much number of people who are speaking the language in the province at recent times.  The last time I visited our place,  people in the malls and markets are already speaking Filipino instead of the native language.  Many children no longer speak Pangasinense.  Students use Filipino and English within the campus.  Intermarriage is very common and couples prefer to use Filipino or English to communicate with each other, with their children and also with their in-laws.

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