swardspeak

n. a cant spoken by Filipino gay and transvestite men. Subjects: Philippines, Sex & Sexuality

Editorial Note: Swardspeak is a mix of Tagalog (Pilipino), Spanish, English, and other languages spoken in the Philippines and dates back to at least as early as the 1970s. Swardspeak is pronounced by Filipinos similar to swards-PEH-ahk.

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Citations: 1990 Donn V. Hart, Harriet Hart Crossroads “Visayan Swardspeak: The language of a gay community in the Philippines” vol. 5, no. 2, p. 27: (title) 1995 Anjie Blardony Ureta BusinessWorld (Philippines) (Oct. 12) “Agot’s Got It” p. 24: It would help if Ms. Isidro toned down on the swardspeak. It can get a little disconcerting coming from such a pretty face. 1996 Emily Noelle Ignacio Contemporary Sociology (Jan.) “Social Hierarchies” vol. 25, no. 1, p. 41: Marginalization is further described in Martin Manalansan’s ethnography of baklas (loosely translated, male transvestites) in Manhattan. Here, he describes how the appropriation of Spanish, Tagalog, and English into swardspeak (the bakla language) illustrates that the bakla are neither on the “inside” nor “outside.“ 2003 Jana Evans Braziel Theorizing Diaspora (Jan. 1) p. 220: The swardspeak term ladlad ng kapa (which literally means “unfurling the cape” and has been unproblematically translated as “coming out”) belies how identity is something “worn” and not always “declared.“ 2005 Bakla. Bakla. Baket Ka Ginawa? (May 13) “Gay Speaks On “Swardspeak””: Isa pa marahil sa naging dahilan ng pagkalat ng swardspeak “nung sixties at seventies eh ang pagpapatungkol nito sa isang luluki na feeling ng “swardspeaker” eh bading din pero hindi aminado: kamiembro ng federasyon, kafatid sa fananampalataya, among others na learn naman nating hanggang ngayon eh No. 1 hobby pa ren ng mga “out” na bading. Ito ang nagpapatunay sa kung gano kahalaga ang “self-identification” o paglantad sa mga vading. 2005 Ayn Veronica L. de Jesus Manila Times (Philippines) (Aug. 1) “The ‘jologsification’ of Shakespeare”: Set in the slums of Barangay Verona, Manila where the jologs culture thrives, the production takes a totally fresh look at the romance of the star-crossed lovers and their warring households, dressed in the latest ukay fashion, uttering sonnets peppered with Filipino “swardspeak.”

Posted 23 Aug 05 | Permalink | Tell a Friend

Reader comments:

i hope i will be updated po sa bakla language because my gender is babaing bakla though i am married…vielen dank sa may concept nito and i like it po

by joan bluemmel 18 Jul 06, 0944 GMT

I had been looking for some related articles about swardaspeak coz i’m thinking of conducting a study ‘bout this for my masters thesis. Hope you can update me.I don’t know why this topic really interests me.

by nelly Solacito 19 Sep 07, 1232 GMT