Some of our fellow Pangasinenses are discussing in the web about the eradication of the word “pangalatok” as refering to the people . According to them it is a slang word that is demeaning and derogatory. They claimed that “pangalatok” means “Pangasinense sira tuktok”. They are instigating us to join them and completely remove the wrong usage of the word in any conversation.
What’s the big deal? My friends called me “pangalatok” because I speak the language. They don’t even know the “… tuktok” as some claimed to be. In the eyes of the people outside our province, most of them know nothing about “…sira tuktok” but of the language spoken by us.
Here’s a conversation in a chatroom
Jill: Where are you from?
Jack: Pangasinan
Jill: Pangalatok ka?
Jack: No, Ilocano ako
Jill: I thought all of you in Pangasinan speak Pangalatok.
The common knowledge of the people outside Pangasinan is that “Pangalatok” is a language. Jill thought that Pangasinenses speak only one language. They might often used “Pangalatok” as to the people but without derision or malice.
Which came first? I don’t have any historical sources on the origin of the the word “pangalatok”. But it is common sense to say that “pangalatok the language” existed first before somebody gives the meaning “pangalatok as … tuktok”. That means pangalatok is not coined from “Pangasinense sira toktok”. With these statements, Pangalatok that refers to the people is neither offensive nor insulting nor derogatory at all though it is misused by many.
It is wiseful to tell that “… tuktok” is not the meaning of Pangalatok.What if we change it to “Pangasinenses magaganda buhok”?
4 responses so far ↓
Ricardo // Dec 3, 2006 at 7:22 pm
Pangalatok is short for PANGALA-TALK.So it refers to talking or the language not tuktok or whatever.
Anonymous // Dec 17, 2006 at 11:48 pm
Pangasinenses are the people from Pangasinan and Pangalatok is the dialect that they speak. What other simplier explanation can you think?
pay4tot // Dec 31, 2006 at 5:22 pm
Pangalatok (from what i gathered…) was coined because the people were speaking like something was crackling (i dont know th right term in english but lumalagutok in tagalog) that is why they taught that the name of the dialect in Pangasinan is Pangalatok as in Pangasinanang Lumalagutok…
I don’t think that Pangalatok is the right name of the dialect. Pangasinan is the province name, its people and the dialect they use. although not all Pangasinense are able to speak or understand the dialect because of the influence and migration of other neighboring provinces like La Union and Ilocos which are Ilokano-based province.
this is just my comment….
Anonymous // Apr 13, 2007 at 9:32 am
I agree. Pangasinan should stand for the people, the province and the language. regardless of what pangalatok is short for or why it was coined in the first place, it is not a name by which we pangasinan want to be called by.
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