End of 'Philippines?' A call to use only Filipinas for the country

What's in a name, especially if you only change a letter?

Plenty it seems, if it's a country's name. Then history, politics, national angst about identity, and the cost of changing a nation's seals and currency all end up in a stew of controversy.

Many Filipinos reacted strongly, albeit belatedly, after the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino (KWF) issued a resolution last April to use "Filipinas" instead of "Pilipinas," saying the new term recognizes the country's history and development as a nation.

National Artist and KWF president Virgilio Almario, a leading advocate of the change, has urged the country to also lose the name "Philippines," a vestige of American colonialism. Others, however, point out that even "Filipinas" is rooted in Spanish colonialism, and when searched on Google yields dating sites for foreign men looking for brown-skinned wives.

According to the KWF resolution, new organizations should use “Filipinas” instead of “Pilipinas” in their names.

The change is not required for previously existing institutions, especially those formed before the letter “F” was included in the Filipino alphabet.

The idea of changing “Pilipinas” to “Filipinas” began much earlier. A 1992 article by Almario – a signatory to the resolution – argued that the existence of three names for the country is a symptom of national confusion.

First was “Filipinas,” given when the country became a Spanish colony in the 16th century, – "Islas Filipinas," or "the islands of Philip," after Philip II, king of Spain.

Second was “Philippines” (and “Philippine Islands”), given when the country became an American colony in 1898.

Third was "Pilipinas,” the Tagalog version of "Filipinas," and was based on the original letters of the old alphabet.




For 'Filipinas'

Almario's article, entitled "Patayin ang Pilipinas" and published in the now defunct broadsheet Diyaryo Filipino, said that "Philippines" should be the first to go. "Tatak ito ng patuloy na pag-iral sa ating utak ng pananakop ng Amerikano. Hindi nila ito nagawa sa Puerto Rico, Cuba, Mexico, Chile, at ibang dating kolonya ng Espanya. Bukod pa, may mga bansang nakapagpipilit ng kanilang sariling pangalan sa UNO sa kabila ng lningles na tawag sa kanila," Almario said.

He argued that "Filipinas" was the original term: It was the name given to the country by Capt. Ruy Lopez de Villalobos who led the Spanish expedition in 1543, and used by Legazpi in 1565.

This was also the name by which the country was recognized for three centuries, and the name used when the nation proclaimed its independence in 1898.

"Higit nating maiintindihan ang ating kasaysayan mula sa watak-watak na pula tungo sa isang pinag-isang kapuluan sa pamamagitan ng pangalang 'Filipinas,'" he said.

Almario also noted that "Filipino" is used to refer to the country's language, as the modern alphabet includes the letter F. "Sagisag ng diwa ng modernisasyon at pagiging pambansa ng wika ang pagbabago ng unang titik mula sa 'P' tungo sa 'F.' Kaya’t sagisag din ng patuloy nating pagdadalawang-isip at pagbabantulot palaganapin nang puspusan ang 'Filipino' ang patuloy pa nating paggamit sa 'Pilipinas,'" he said.

Replacing "Pilipinas" with "Filipinas" will also make it easier to teach the correct spelling of terms, he said, while admitting that the change will be costly, and not easy.

"Medyo makaaasiwa ring bigkasin ang magiging inisyals ng 'University of Filipinas.' Kaya’t dapat maging sistematiko’t unti-unti ang pagbabago," Almario said.

Richard Gappi, editor of Angono Rizal News Online, welcomed the resolution, saying the letter "F" is endemic to Filipino culture.

"Sa una lang yan masagwa tingnan pero kapag nasanay na tayo, parang bagong tsinelas yan na magagamay, malambot sa dila, at magiging komportable tayo," he said, adding that the proposal to use "Filipinas" does not signify a preference for Spain.

"Higit sa lahat, kinakatawan ng 'F' ang mapangyakap, pangkalahatan at kontra-Imperyalismong Maynila/Tagalog na pagdidikta sa nagpapanibago, modernisado, at yumayabong na wika natin. Ang pagpatay sa ‘Pilipinas’ ay pagbuhay sa wikang Filipino," Gappi wrote.

Pro-'Pilipinas'

On the other hand, Danny Arao, who teaches journalism at the University of the Philippines, said he preferred "Pilipinas" and "Pilipino," despite the terms' bearing the country's colonial past. "Pero kumpara sa terminong Filipinas, masasabing inangkin natin ang dayuhang bansag noon sa pamamagitan ng mas komportable nating pagbigkas ng P. Sa madaling salita, ang Filipinas ay naging Pilipinas dahil gusto nating magkaroon ng sariling identidad na bagama’t kapansin-pansin ang kolonyal na nakaraan ay may malawak pa ring pagtanggap sa kasalukuyan," he wrote.

Lazaroans, if not for Lapu Lapu

Over the years, other proposals have been made to change the country's name, as the US-based commentator Rodel Rodis wrote in 2008.

Rodis pointed out that before Villalobos gave the islands the collective name "Filipinas" in 1543, Ferdinand Magellan named them the "Archipelago de San Lazaro" in 1521. "We would have been called Lazaroans, if Magellan had survived the Battle of Mactan against Lapu Lapu on April 27, 1521," Rodis wrote in an essay in the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Instead, the country's people are called Filipinos, after King Felipe II, who Rodis noted was a mass murderer who burned his opponents at the stake.

Like KWF, Rodis was for changing the Philippines' name, but not in favor of Filipinas. Likewise, Andres Bonifacio refused to use the term, instead referring to Filipinos as Tagalog and to the Philippines as Katagalugan.

"Others objected on the grounds that Pilipinas sounded too much like Alipinas (land of slaves). Some have proposed Kapatiran (brotherhood) or Katipunan. Others have suggested Luzviminda, a reference to the country’s three major group of islands," Rodis wrote.

Marcos and Maharlika

In 1978, dictator Ferdinand Marcos supported Sen. Eddie Ilarde's bill which sought to change the country's name to Maharlika.

Ilarde argued that Maharlika is the country's ancient heritage, meaning "nobly created." It was, perhaps uncoincidentally, also the name of Marcos' guerrilla unit which he claimed fought the Japanese invaders, though this was later exposed as a hoax, Queenie Palafox wrote in "Filipinos to be called 'Rizalines.'"

The proposal was not adopted, like other suggested name changes. Palafox mentioned Solimania (after Raja Soliman), Luzvimin (from the three major islands Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao), and Perlas ng Silangan (from Rizal's "Perlas del mar del oriente").

Ricarte's Rizalines

In 1913, Gen. Artemio Ricarte drafted the Rizal Constitution, an act against American colonization. "When the forces of Aguinaldo were defeated by the Americans, Ricarte was among the revolutionary leaders who refused to take the oath of allegiance to the US government. In contrast with other revolutionists, Ricarte dreamed of freeing the Philippines from foreign invaders," Palafox wrote.

Under the Rizal Constitution, the country would be called "Rizaline Islands" and its citizens "Rizalines," after national hero Jose Rizal.

"Jose Rizal aficionados strongly favor the name Rizalinas for they believe that Jose Rizal is the pride of the Filipino race and epitome of Filipino nationalism," Palafox wrote, adding that Bolivia was named after Simon Bolivar, a leader who was instrumental in the Latin America’s revolution against Spain.

According to historian Celedonio O. Resurreccion's paper “Why We Should Change the Name Philippines,” changing the colonial name is a world tradition: Nueva España was changed to Mexico, Formosa to Taiwan, Malaya to Malaysia, Dutch East Indies to Indonesia, Ceylon to Sri Lanka, and many others, Palafox wrote.

The debate is far from over, although the matter has not been raised with President Aquino, according to his spokesperson Abigail Valte in a radio interview.

“It makes for a very interesting discussion... Busy po ang Pangulo doon sa ibang mga priorities. But we’ll raise that whenever it’s possible,” Valte said on Sunday.

PNoy may yet become leader of a people called Finoys. – BM/HS/ELR, GMA News