Philippine E-Journals

Filipinos’ Framed Faces: Comparative Study of the Filipino Stereotypes as Perceived by the Cebuano and Waray Students of an Agricultural State University in Baybay City, Leyte, Philippines

Leslie Anne L. Liwanag | Romeo Toring | Mary Grace Enaya | Hilda Pedrera | Precious Elaine Tubigan

Discipline: Cultural Studies

 

Abstract:

Visayas State University (VSU) is a leading agricultural state university in Eastern Visayas region of the Philippines. It is a multi-ethnic and multicultural institution where most of its student population belongs to two major ethnolinguistic groups, namely the Cebuano and Waray. This paper is a comparative study of the perception of these two ethnolinguistic groups about Filipino stereotypes using the modified Katz and Braly (1933) trait checklist. With the purpose of providing baseline data for ethnolinguistic stereotypes of a melting-pot institution in this specific region in the Philippines, the researchers hope that this study will eventually help build a more united population of VSU, citizens of the City of Baybay, and those living in the Province of Leyte (Toring et al., 2019). The ultimate aim of this paper is to preliminarily present some dimensions of ethnolinguistic stereotypes of Cebuano and Waray Leyteños, not in a sense of exposing the respondents or the University to social discrimination, but to suggest some aspects which can help cultural studies scholars and local studies centers in discerning the dynamics among the said ethnolinguistic groups. This paper is also significant in giving a benchmark paper that can be useful to other multicultural institutions and locations in the Philippines. This research sheds light on how students in the peripheral region of the archipelago participate in the crafting of the “Filipino” identity.