Language attitudes in the Filipino community in Singapore towards Tagalog and English

• Main Author: Yang, Faith
• Other Authors: Francesco Paolo Cavallaro
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2012
• Subjects: DRNTU::Humanities::Linguistics::Sociolinguistics
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/50851
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Previous studies exploring the attitudes Filipinos in the Philippines have towards Tagalog and English found that attitudes towards both languages are generally positive, and display little difference. This study examines the attitudes of two groups of 30 Filipino nationals currently living in Singapore towards Tagalog and English through survey research. The present study also explores the effects of education level, income level and permanence of stay in Singapore on language attitudes. The two groups (A and B) differ in the respondents’ level of education, type of occupation (specialized vs. non-specialized), and permanence of stay in Singapore (permanent vs. transient). Results were in line with what has been found previously, that attitudes towards both languages are generally positive. The factors of education level, income level and permanence of stay in Singapore appear to have an impact on the attitudes towards the languages between Group A and Group B. Group A has shown a more positive attitude towards English than Group B, while Group B has shown a more positive attitude towards Tagalog than Group A. The discussion explores how respondents view English as a language of upward social mobility, while Tagalog represents their religion, culture and who they essentially are.