What is the second language on the Philippines?leoburggilbert@yahoo.co.uk?

Well I will qualify my answer, because your question is open to interpretation, and I don't wish to give a wrong answer through misunderstanding.

Cebuano is the first tongue of around 65% of the population.

Tagalog is the national language, and is taught in all schools. It is the official language of the Philippines, because that's what is spoken in Manila.

To make a point, there is both a Tagalog and Cebuano version of the National Anthem.

English is taught in schools, and is the official second language, and the language of official, and legal documents.

The truth is most Filipinos, prefer to speak their own language first, and English second, Tagalog as a last resort. My use of Tagalog in Cebu always evokes a response in English.

Many older people cannot speak Tagalog.

Almost all younger Filipinos speak good English, and if you're out in the wilds, and want to buy something, there isn't a problem, the parents just fetch their kids, who will talk to you in English.

My daughter not yet four is tri-lingual, and can talk the hind legs off a donkey, in Cebuano, English and Tagalog. In that preferred order.

Maybe not the best answer, but I hope useful to you.

That would be Cebuano. There are 12 languages in the Philippines with more than one million speakers. Below is a list:

1. Tagalog (21,485,927) - central & south Luzon.

2. Cebuano (est. 18,000,000) - central Visayas & northern Mindanao.

3. Ilokano (6,920,760) - northern Luzon

4. Hiligaynon (est. 7,000,000) - western Visayas

5. Bikol (4,583,034) - southeastern Luzon

6. Waray-Waray (est. 3,000,000) - eastern Visayas

7. Kapampangan (2,312,870) - central Luzon

8. Pangasinan (1,362,142) - Pangasinan province

9. Kinaray-a (est. 1,051,968) - western Visayas

10. Maranao (1,035,966) - Mindanao

11. Maguindanao (1,008,424)- Mindanao

12. Tausug (1,000,000) - Sulu archipelago

GENERAL INFORMATION

The Philippines is made up of 7,107 islands covering a land area of 115,739 sq. m. (299,764 sq. km.). Main island groups are Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Capital is Manila. Time Zone is GMT + 8 hours.

CLIMATE

March to May is hot and dry. June to October is rainy, November to February is cool. Average temperatures: 78°F / 25°C to 90°F / 32°C; humidity is 77%.

POPULATION

There are a total of 76.5 million Filipinos as of the latest national census in May, 2000. Population growth is estimated at 2.36 percent annually. Luzon, the largest island group, accounts for more than half of the entire population.

LANGUAGES

Two official languages --- Filipino and English. Filipino which is based on Tagalog, is the national language. English is also widely used and is the medium of instruction in higher education.

Eight (8) major dialects spoken by majority of the Filipinos: Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilocano, Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Bicol, Waray, Pampango, and Pangasinense.

Filipino is that native language which is used nationally as the language of communication among ethnic groups. Like any living language, Filipino is in a process of development through loans from Philippine languages and non-native languages for various situations, among speakers of different social backgrounds, and for topics for conversation and scholarly discourse. There are about 76 to 78 major language groups, with more than 500 dialects.

RELIGIONS

Some 83% of Filipinos are Catholic. About 5% are Moslem. The rest are made up of smaller Christian denominations and Buddhist.

UNIT OF MEASURE

The Metric System is used in most trade and legal transactions.

ELECTRICITY

220 volts a/c is the common standard. 110 volts a/c is also used, especially in major hotels.

CURRENCY

The Philippines' monetary unit is the peso, divided into 100 centavos. Foreign currency may be exchanged at any hotels, most large department stores, banks, and authorized money changing shops accredited by the Central Bank of the Philippines. International credit cards such as Visa, Diners Club, Bank Americard, Master Card, and American Express are accepted in major establishments.

Basically, the medium of instruction in school are English and Pilipino or Tagalog.

There are 7,100 islands in the Philippines & there are many other languages used. Definitely everybody would think their language as bigger! However, I based my answer on what is commonly used in school, even in televisions and the newspapers! I think that would be the most important things to consider.

The previous guy (chris) gave a great answer.

But, I think that you have to also consider English, or Chinese, Japanese, etc for that matter.

My guess is that English is the 2nd language in the Philippines, after Tagalog.

Pilipino is the national language, which is basically a tagalog dialect. English is used in business and law. Which is why common folks are not aversed with the English language. They may understand but can hardly speak. Only college graduates have the facility to speak English with foreigners. Different tribes have their own dialects, like Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Ilocano, Kapangpangan, Waray, Maranao, Maguindanao, Tausug, etc. and also speak Pilipino.

Second Language - The Filipino English

two official languages - Filipino (based on Tagalog) and English; eight major dialects - Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilocano, Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Bicol, Waray, Pampango, and Pangasinan

oh dear. every main island has its own dialect so they will speak using that plus the "national" language,which is Tagalog. this is spoken on the biggest island where the capital,Manilla is. also they speak english because english is taught in the schools. reason ? the americans were there for about 40 years. most Philippinos think that its very uneducated if they dont speak english.so, most of the population will speak 3 languages. which puts most of us brits in the shade plus it shows that most of us are very lazy when it comes to learning another language,does'nt it ?

spanish is the second language in the philippines