Fostering Social Identity Through Translanguaging Among Manobo Indigenous Cultural Community In Southern Philippines

Translanguaging is a complex process of combining two or more languages in a single utterance in reference to the complex linguistic and semiotic repertoires of languages employed. This study aims at probing how translanguaging supports Manobo’s social identity through the fluidity of linguistic boundaries. Using purposive sampling, I chose eight respondents based on specific criteria. To gather substantial data, I employed in-depth sociolinguistic interviews and ethnography, which were video-recorded to encapsulate the precision of the respondents’ narratives and real-life language use. The transcripts were analyzed to uncover the function of translanguaging in portraying the social identity of the respondents. The findings of the study reveal that Manobo people in Lumintao, Quezon, Bukidnon have embraced a multilingual identity because they employ translanguaging, a combination of Cebuano and Binukid languages, in interacting with others at school, market, workplace. Even though they speak Cebuano, their Manobo identity is apparent because of using Binukid lexis that was smoothly and automatically combined during conversations. Aside from that, their Manobo accent is evident which is an index of belonging to the Manobo cultural community.

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