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The Philippines: Celebrating Diversity
Most Americans, and some Filipinos as well, probably do not fully appreciate the great diversity of peoples, cultures and languages in the Philippines. With 7,109 islands, and cultural influences from many sources, it's not surprising that different parts of the Philippines have maintained diverse languages and cultures.
It is estimated that there are 171 native languages spoken in the Philippines. While most Filipinos refer to these languages as "dialects", most are significantly different from each other to preclude mutual intelligibility. So native speakers of Cebuano, Ilocano, and Kapampangan need to find a common language to communicate with each other.
English is certainly one possible common language, since it serves as a language of instruction in schools in the Philippines. In this issue of the newsletter below, we discuss Filipino, the national language of the Philippines.
The Philippines: Celebrating Diversity
Most Americans, and some Filipinos as well, probably do not fully appreciate the great diversity of peoples, cultures and languages in the Philippines. With 7,109 islands, and cultural influences from many sources, it's not surprising that different parts of the Philippines have maintained diverse languages and cultures.
It is estimated that there are 171 native languages spoken in the Philippines. While most Filipinos refer to these languages as "dialects", most are significantly different from each other to preclude mutual intelligibility. So native speakers of Cebuano, Ilocano, and Kapampangan need to find a common language to communicate with each other.
English is certainly one possible common language, since it serves as a language of instruction in schools in the Philippines. In this issue of the newsletter below, we discuss Filipino, the national language of the Philippines.
