August is "Buwan ng Wika" (Language Month) in the Philippines. It is a month-long celebration of the Filipino language. The first thing that comes to mind when this month arrives is the Balagtasan, which is a form of debate with two sides of a topic being contested. However, rather than just being a battle of wits, it is also an art form by itself as the delivery is similar with reading a poem with the presentors wearing a local costume, which is usually the barong for the boys and the baro't saya for the girls.
The word "Balagtasan" comes from the name of Francisco Balagtas, a famous Filipino poet in the 1800s. His work, Florante at Laura, is a topic of discussion in the Filipino subject in high school.
BarkadahaNZ will be coming up with some activities to coincide with Buwan ng Wika, albeit a bit belated. Understandably there won't be a Balagtasan, nonetheless we will have activities for the kids that will enable them to practice using Filipino. The target date is in the afternoon of Sunday, 9 September at the Johnsonville area. Contact us if you would like to join the group and share in this activity. Free to join.
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