Languages
There are between 120 and 170 languages spoken in the country. Most of them have several varieties (dialects), totaling over 300 across the archipelago. Since the 1930s the government has promoted the use of the national language, Filipino, based on Tagalog. Visayan languages (also called Bisaya or Binisaya) are widely spoken throughout the Visayas, and in some parts of Mindanao. The Ilokano language is the lingua franca of the Northern Luzon.
English is considered an official language for purposes of communication and instruction. Consequently, it is widely spoken and understood. The other non-indigenous languages commonly used is Arabic language, and the Spanish.
Read more about this topic: Demographics Of The Philippines
Famous quotes containing the word languages:
“It is time for dead languages to be quiet.”
—Natalie Clifford Barney (1876–1972)
“No doubt, to a man of sense, travel offers advantages. As many languages as he has, as many friends, as many arts and trades, so many times is he a man. A foreign country is a point of comparison, wherefrom to judge his own.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“The very natural tendency to use terms derived from traditional grammar like verb, noun, adjective, passive voice, in describing languages outside of Indo-European is fraught with grave possibilities of misunderstanding.”
—Benjamin Lee Whorf (1897–1934)