I recently had an encounter with a girl who speaks in that dreadful "kolehiyala speak." Uhh… what is "kolehiyala speak." Kolehiyalas are women from private girls' schools who speak in an irritating and ridiculous mix of English and Tagalog coupled with an annoying, trying-to-be-cute tone of voice – this is "kolehiyala speak." (Hmmm… don’t know if I described it clearly. Maybe some of you out there can help me describe it.)
Now, since Filipinos are bilingual (multilingual even), using English and Tagalog in one sentence is not uncommon and does not immediately qualify one as a "kolehiyala speaker." The manner of speaking and the tone of the voice actually make it "kolehiyala." This kind/manner of speaking is seen by some (unenlightened ones) as a status symbol (i.e., you're from a posh private school). Of course, social climbers or those who fancy themselves as "sosyal" (classy) try their best to mimic the real "kolehiyalas." Men from private schools also have their version of "kolehiyala speak." Yes, they do speak in the same irritating way.
Anyway, I was trying to make small talk with this girl and was turned off immediately when I heard her doing "kolehiyala speak." I was dumbfounded. The last time I encountered someone of her kind was back in college when I had to deal with my coño (another term used to refer to snobbish rich kids) classmates in UP (University of the Philippines) and that bunch of coñitos (a variation of the term coño) who hang out at the AS Lobby, feeling smug and superior in their designer clothes.
Since I started doing work for non-profit organizations, I have not spoken with anyone who speaks in this way. So you can just imagine my surprise and well…disdain... when she opened her mouth and spoke in this irritating way. Oh my god! What is this girl doing in my world – my circle of socially aware middle class intellectuals, human rights advocates, and grassroots activists who certainly do not speak in this way? Oh well, she seems nice. Hope she realizes soon enough that she needs to outgrow her manner of speaking lest she irritates the hell out of all of us. Why can't they just speak like normal people do? Why do people have to be so pretentious?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 License.
2 comments:
I am smiling now as i comment because I can just imagine your face dumbfounded. You were probably successful in controlling the shooting up of the eyebrows and just gave her that look with your head to your side unmoving, eyes dancing with incredulity, trying to believe if the thing happening before you is real, before you dismiss her with your head altogether...and looked back at her to give her a second chance, or to choke her.
Ahhh... I think 've already learned a new face for this sort of encounter - the poker face (as if nothing is wrong). Then, as soon as I'm alone, I puke.
Kidding aside, she seems nice. I'm an optimist about people. I'm sure she'll learn.
Post a Comment