December 1, 2006
Thanks for “Pangasinense”
Van S. de Leon
1 Dec 2006I am very proud of Sunday Punch staff members. There is a frequent usage of the word Pangasinense in all your news articles. Indeed, People from Pangasinan are called Pangasinense: NOT Pangalatok or Pangalatot. We have been taught academically in schools that people from Pangasinan are called Pangasinense. Pangasinense is what is in the books ‘NOT Pangalatok which is a street slang word of offensive connotation-”Pangasinense Sira Toktok”. I have silently protested these slang words Pangalatok or Pangalatot since I was young. Now that we have this internet we can correct this error. Even most Pangasinense themselves seem to be comfortable of these slang words. I hate when I say “I am from Pangasinan” and then there is a follow up statement” So you are Pangalatok” or “So you are Pangalatot’. People even use Pangalatik or Pangalatit to refer to the Pangasinan dialect; very sad confusing scenario. The dialect of course is called Pangasinan. I would someday request the Pangasinan Provincial Board to pass a resolution affirming that people from Pangasinan are called Pangasinense: NOT Pangalatok. This resolution must be in conjunction with the Dept. of Education. This is one way to correct this confusion. SUNDAY PUNCH has started the process of correcting this error in the history of Pangasinan. Fellow Pangasinenses, your feedback is appreciated.
