Promoting Spanish language in the Philippines: Politics, representations, and discourses

Abstract

Over 150 languages are spoken in the Philippines. Considering that only English and Filipino are the official national languages, this is a contentious arena in the Philippines. In this context, the Spanish government has been promoting the Spanish language, adding another layer of political meaning, bringing to the present some of the old colonial discourses. This article explores Spain's promotion of the Spanish language in the Philippines. Following a semiotic approach, it analyses Spanish official discourses on language and the way that they are represented in several Spanish official exhibitions about the Philippines. This work argues that the Spanish language is portrayed in terms of symbolic power. Furthermore, focusing on Pierre Bourdieu´s concepts, the politics of the Spanish language promotion are analysed in the midst of those language policies at play in the Philippines.