Indigenous Language, Migration, and Sedentism of the Migrant Mamanwa in Southern Leyte, Philippines
Angelie Genotiva and Bethlehem Ponce
Abstract
As with many of world Indigenous languages, many languages in the Philippines are disappearing. Previous studies describe these indigenous languages as endangered. One such language is the language Minamanwa of the migrant Mamanwa into Southern Leyte, Philippines. The Minamanwa migrated and developed adoptive mechanisms, class distinctions and differentiations, and language socialization.
This study discusses the language socialization of the Minamanwa, demonstrating that language has become an adaptive mechanism for migration. Mobility and social interaction with the host society has resulted in a new Minamanwa variation, i.e., the heritage language mixed with the Waray language. Sedentism has resulted in socialization into local and institutionalized languages. Across three generations, language socialization and competency vary depending on the dominant linguistic domains, the degree of social interactions with locals, and exposure to institutionalized languages. Due to the structural changes in the language (Headland 2003) and language socialization resulting in bilingualism / multilingualism (Jourdan and Tuite, 2006), the Minamanwa language among the Mamanwa in Southern Leyte is possibly endangered.
Keywords: Indigenous language, Indigenous people migration, Mamanwa, language contact and change, linguistic anthropology