Republic of the Philippines

CENTRAL LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY

Science City of Munoz, Nueva Ecija

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WORLD’S CRISIS: IMPLICATIONS OF

DIFFERENT TERMINOLOGIES TO THE CULTURAL, SOCIETY
AND LANGUAGE OF THE CITY OF SAN JOSE

A case study presented

to Mrs. Joan Ravago

In Partial fulfillment in the subject of

Language, Culture and Society

By:

BAJET, ROVIN P.
BALIBER, ANGELA S.
BELTRAN, RAYE ASHLEY C.
BRAVO, COLLEEN O.
CALUYA, JOY CAMILLE T.
COSME, JAMAICA ROSE C.
DELA CRUZ, DARIUS P.
MINDO, JASMINE JULIA B.
PAGADUAN, EMILLEN S.
TIMBANG, KATHRINA
BSED 1-1

December 2020
INTRODUCTION

At the heart of the community, language is a linkage between how people use it
in their day-to-day conversations or communications, and may be written or spoken. As
human beings, we use language to voice out our thoughts, and when languages do not
seem to exist, society cannot be built. This means that if people do not have a specific
language that they can use to communicate with others, then we cannot build a
relationship with an individual within our circle or society. If we can't build a
relationship, we can't build a culture. In conclusion, language is a reflection of the
culture of the individual created by the manifestation of the set of beliefs and customs
of society.

In relation to this, culture, society and languages are interrelated with each other
and it is also true within the city of San Jose.

Nested at the foot of the Caraballo Mountain Range is San Jose City – one of the
busiest business centers in the province of Nueva Ecija. San Jose city's economy is
primarily agricultural, rice and onion are the chief products. Other farm products are
corn, sorghum, mango, livestock, and poultry. In addition, according to San Jose City,
Nueva Ecija official page (2012), farming is the primary source of livelihood for the
majority of the population. At least 45,000 metric tons of palay and 35 metric tons of
onion are produced every aside from a variety of vegetables and fruits such as string
beans, squash, tomato, pepper, mango and papaya. Trading and marketing facilities
are in place with a well-developed city public market, a livestock and Bagsakan center.
Communications services are available in all points in the city. Transport facilities are
available 24 hours a day. However, San Jose is also renowned for their amazing
sceneries which are the Diamond Park and Palaspas Falls that provides people
relaxation for nature lovers with facilities for picnics and sightseeing. Also, the city
celebrates Tanduyong festival every month of April which coincides with the city fiesta.
Tanduyong is a variety of onion grown in the area.
 Additionally, as cited by the Philippine Cities (2010), the population of San Jose
City has recorded a total population of 129,424. According to San Jose City Local
Government (2016), 62.90% of the population of San Jose are in the labor which has
86,836 in number from the 2015 statistics. Also, their strategic location together with its
people made their economy boom. The people of San Jose are seen to be devoted,
honest and consistent and it can be seen in their progressive state. Their hard work,
proper political, and financial investments has lead them into the construction of various
infrastructures such as banking institutions, primary to secondary public and private
schools, college institutions, rice milling (San Jose City Local Government, 2016) and
others, as well as their chain businesses making them rank third on the income class
(Local Government Academy (n.d.). San Jose City also have a society that values
culture and makes their town enjoyable by celebrating their festivals.

Furthermore, 72.10% of the citizens use Tagalog while others use Ilocano,
Pampango, Pangasinan, Bicol and Illongo as their languages (San Jose City Local
Government, 2016).

BRIEF HISTORY OF SAN JOSE

San Jose was a wide wilderness with lots of uncleared agricultural lands. It was
called before as “Kabaritan” which derived from the Ilocano word “barit” for a plant that
belongs to the rattan family. “Kabaritan” means the place where “barit” grows in
abundance. It was part before of the barrio of the town of Puncan but before of its
nearness to Lupao, the barrio was transferred to Lupao. On March 19, 1894, the barrio
of Kabaritan became an independent town from Lupao and was renamed as San Jose.
The name was derived from the Patron Saint of the town, Saint Joseph.

The relation in between will be further introduced in this case study conducted in
the culture, society and languages within the city of San Jose.
LANGUAGE TERMINOLOGIES

Language and culture are intertwined. A particular language usually points out to
a specific group of people. You cannot understand one’s culture without accessing its
language directly. Culture is expressed through a person’s language. The intonation,
style, construction, and context is based on the culture that shaped the person. A
particular group that shares the same culture also has the same language that they
either created or pass unto them by their ancestors.

Additionally, when you interact with another language, it means you are also
interacting with the culture that speaks the language. These interactions are the
movement of society to express, give information, and to deliver their wants and needs.
From the perspective of a person-shaped by the culture, the language is then shared
with other people by communicating. Some factors that they consider are age, social
status, gender, social context, and others. These influence person’s way of talking.

For this cultural and social reason, every culture produces particular
languages that can be directly identified to them. It also resulted in gender-specific
languages that determine the differences between a male and female when talking or
using words.

Culture specific language refers to a particular cultural group. All this means that
learning and teaching another language is essential for international communication
and cooperation. The knowledge of other languages facilitates knowledge of other
countries and the specific cultures of each one. Culture-specific language is a product
produced in various cultures. These are words distinct and often used by them. These
language or terminologies identifies the particular culture of the speakers.

On the other hand, gender-specific language is words, phrases, and expressions

that unnecessarily differentiate between men and women. Linguistically, females and
males are distinct in languages. Likewise, the people in San Jose City have different
words they have mostly spoken.

Table 1. Determined Culture and Gender specific languages and terminologies

CULTURE-SPECIFIC GENDER-SPECIFIC
I n t h e t a b l e
Male Female
and Tagalog Tagalog Tagalog
Ilocano English English
kitde Ilocano Ilocano
eka Taglish Taglish
Ngay slang conyo terms
Ditse werpa slang
Dikong lodi bes
Kuyang petmalu bhi/be
Ay bro / bruhh char
garod/ngarod pre /par arjud
urong bola bitch
  tol salitang kanto
  erpat/ ermat real talk
  arep kainis
  G luh asa ka
  aports awit
  sakalam yatap
    gesi
    ghosting
    baks

gender-specific.

CULTURE-SPECIFIC

The culture-specific languages of the people in San Jose are mostly Ilocano and
Tagalog because most people speak Ilocano and San Jose City Nueva Ecija is located in
Ilocano Region. For these reasons, other culture-specific terminologies are based on
their most-used language which is Ilocano. The terms “kitde”, “eka”, “ngay”, “ay”,
“ngarod/garod” are formulated and are often used by the citizens of San Jose and it is
actually unique to them. Most of the people outside the Nueva Ecija are often asking
what does ngarod or garod mean. Even many Ilocano people are using that specific
term, the meaning is still a puzzle to them. “Ngarod/garud” is usually used or said after
a word or sentences and its meaning can vary from the usage. Sometimes it is used by
the speaker to sound sweet, respectful or soft. Sometimes it can also be translated into
“nga” in Tagalog terms. Awan ngarod is an Ilocano sentence that uses “ngarod” term
and it can be translated into Tagalog as “wala nga”.

Other times it can be translated as “then” in the English language. For instance
“paalam na ngarod” can be translated into “goodbye then” in English. Thus despite this
personal and theoretical meaning, only the natives of Ilocano users can define the term.

Additionally, there are terms like “kitde” or it can be translated to already , “eka”
or said, then “kuyang”, “dikong” and “ditse” to address the siblings. Aside from kuyang,
the other terms are influenced by other dialects in referring to siblings.

GENDER-SPECIFIC

Furthermore, males and females have similarities in language use. Frequently

they use Tagalog, Ilocano, and English languages in their everyday communication.
They are also influenced by the use of slang words like be, bes, bessy for females call
sign and tol, pre are commonly used by males.

They are influences by reversing terms such as yatap, gesi, werpa, and other
terms. They only differ in the words they use. The females use words that are
considered feminine such as the use of conyo terms or words because it is often spoken
with feminine or high rising intonation and it is the same true with the use of gay
lingua.

Meanwhile, male uses words which sound masculine and terms referring to males
like bro, par, tol. Others include bola meaning to play basketball which is considered a
masculine sport by society before.
 All in all, the language that culture and gender use is interrelated and influence
by outside factors mostly the use of social media

FINDINGS

On the basis of the study, the researchers will discuss the answer of the
respondents in terms of culture, society and language.

SOCIETY
Language is a social phenomenon that is an indispensable instrument of society,
language plays an important role in society because through language, we can express
our thoughts, ideas, communicate, and socialize with others. Society itself plays a huge
role when it comes to language diversity because through the society we get to
socialize with other people that sometimes lead us to be influenced by the language
that they are using, just like what the San Josenians respondents answer in question
number 4. What influence/s you to learn other terminologies or languages? Most of the
respondents answered that they are being influenced by their family, and friends
because they are often with them and somehow picked some terminologies that they
are using when they are with them, and they also said that social media is also a huge
part when it comes in influencing them to learn new terminologies because for it’s in
the trend, terminologies like real talk (sa totoo lang), awit (a combination of aww and
sakit), umay (fed-up), gesi (sige), vro (bro or can be Very Rare Only), bhie (a call sign
when you are referring to a friend), rn (Right now), g (Game or let’s go/do it), arat
(let’s go), ghost/ghosting (where teenagers nowadays use when the one that they are
talking with left them hanging), etc. are the example that the respondents picked up
just because of society.
CULTURE
Culture is the total socially acquired life-way or life-style of a group of people. It
consists of the pattern repetitive ways of thinking, feeling, and acting that are
characteristics of the members of a particular society or segment of society. (M. Harris,
cited by Miller, 2005)
Culture is essential to language, language relates to common story of
experiences and backgrounds, and histories that create words that are specific to our
culture, language isn't only just about words, it is also about the tone, pronunciations,
and particular dialects, which are shaped by culture. Culture is a mirror of language, the
evolution of their language is a great impact on their culture. Based on the analysis of
the given data, San Josenians is actually influenced by the culture of Ilocano which
enhanced their fluency in speaking Ilocano and Tagalog. This data proves that the
culture of everyone is diverse and manifested by other cultures which complete how we
see San Josenians today.

LANGUAGE
Language is the principal method of human communication, consisting of words
used in a structured and conventional way and conveyed by speech, writing, or gesture.
(Oxford Languages) Using any of the many forms of language can help humans to
comprehend and express whatever they hear or see. As for the San Josenians, the
terminologies they used are influenced by the society they are moving in. Most of the
time, the language they used is based on the culture they have but as the world
evolves into technological revolution, the society also changes and has brought effects
into the languages.
               It is evident in the younger citizens of San Jose City that their common
terminologies used are affected by social media. It made surf with the trend in the
present to communicate with people of their age and to be considered “in” in society.
For this, reason, the traditional way of speaking is evolving too and it causes problems
such as the limit to the extinction and proper usage of Ilocano and Tagalog languages
in San Jose City. It also creates gaps between older people and the younger ones
causing them to have a misunderstanding that affects their communication negatively.
With this stated, we can infer that language used for communication affect the
comprehension and analysis of the interlocutor.
               Altogether, culture is shown through language but as the society moves and
people interact, the language is also affected as people adjust and acquire new words.

For the development, retention, and transfer of culture to future generations,

communication skills are considered highly necessary, and integrate the complicated
relationship between language and culture. From time to time, distinct colloquial
expressions or languages have cropped up; for people with distinct backgrounds, it
often causes misunderstanding. Here are several explanations to elaborate further:

Culture Specific Language

1. The prominent usage of the terms “garod”, “kitde”, “eka”, “ngay” and “dine”,
which originates in the province of Nueva Ecija. These terms have been causing
some misunderstanding for some other people who are visiting the province
where in, they are not familiar with the terms. In some other cases, some
constituents of the province are also having difficulties in explaining these
terminologies, because of the fact that some of these terms doesn’t have
meaning or definition.

2. The Iloco dialect which has been different from the other dialect of Nueva Ecija.
Iloco dialect also causes misunderstanding for the people of Nueva Ecija since
the province is quite diverse. Some of the parts of Nueva Ecija is familiar with
the dialect while other parts of the province continuously practice the usage of
the Filipino or tagalog language.

Gender Specific Language

1. For males, there are terms that has been used through times, these
terminologies are composed of different words such as, “tol”, “bruh”, “erp”
(reversed spelling of the term “pre” short for pare), “ssob” (reversed spelling of
the term boss”), “boi”, and “aports” (reversed spelling for “tropa”). These words
have no problems at all, instead, these words help them to communicate easier
because sometimes, there words is distinctly made for men.

2. On the other hand, for women, fancy and unfamiliar words are used differently
such as, “bhie”, “ghorl”, “sis”, “mars”, “baks”, “beh”, “bes”, “te”, “beshy”, and
“arjud”. These words have been causing confusion or misunderstanding for some
other girls. For example, the word “arjud” which means grooming for girls, when
this word is misused to other girls, it might be taken as fussy.

3. In general, there are terms used to communicate in Nueva Ecija, for example,
“lodi”, “master”, “ghosting”, “werpa”, “petmalu”, and “erpats/ermats”. These
terminologies have been causing misinterpretation to other people especially on
adults or old people. For some instance, these words are just casual for us, Gen-
Z, but when used to communicate with older people, this may occur some
misunderstanding because of how it is used and how new these are for older
people.
ELECTRONIC REFERENCES

Chapel, L. and Madison, E. (2003). How Language reflects culture and affects
meaning. Retrieved on December 22, 2020. Retrieved on
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%20boundaries%20can%20include%20censorship.

City Government of San Jose City, Nueva Ecija. (2020). Code of Ethics of City
Government of San Jose City, Nueva Ecija. Retrieved from www.sjc.gov.ph/page.php?
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City of San Jose, Nueva Ecija. (2011). Code of Ethics of City of San Jose, Nueva Ecija.
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