Personally, I've never really felt culturally isolated from the rest of Southeast Asia. Although of course I don't discount the experiences of those who do - I'm always cognizant of the fact that my experiences are only ever my own and I can't speak for anyone other than myself. But I spent a lot of time traveling amongst the ASEAN countries as a teen and young adult in my early 20s (because of course all those destinations are visa-free haha) and I also read Southeast Asian authors widely, and I think that helped me see and appreciate hundreds of tiny little similarities. One of my favorite things ever is when a post went viral pointing out that Southeast Asians all post online in a similar way - starting out their sentences in English and then trailing off in their respective native languages. And of course all the cultural similarities you mention here as well. I really, really, really loved reading this post!
Maraming salamat sa binasa at sa komento mo. Masaya ko kasi hindi mo ang maramdaman na naka-isolated tayo sa kapitbahay namin!
I’m glad that what I’ve written resonated with you, and the fact that you’ve had the opportunity to travel to other ASEAN countries just goes to show that you know what I’m talking about. As someone who also traveled to neighboring countries (needed a visa kasi may US passport ako lalo sa Vietnam at sa Cambodia), sa isip ko, yung pinakamagaling phrase sa ilarawan ng relasyon tungo sa kapitbahay natin ay “same same but different”. This phrase is something I heard when I visited Singapore and Malaysia and I think it’s so true when talking about our culture and theirs. Like I’d have a dish in Thailand or in Vietnam that has a Filipino equivalent pero may isang o konti ng sangkap sa pagkain nila that makes it medyo different.
I’ve also even to Mexico and I’ll say oo naman may similarities din pero overall hindi tayo Latino, tapos sobrang different ng lahi at lipunan niya. To me mas European ng impluwensya sa kultura nila kasi mag-espanyol nila whereas di tayo ganito, also hinahalo niya ang lahi niya sa mananakop pero sa atin, halos wala yan.
I’ll even say that code switching that we do is so similar to how Malay people do it!
I’ve met (diasporic) Filipinos in California who introduce themselves as “part Spanish” to seem more exotic. Only 1 of them actually have a great grandparent who was full Spanish. All the others were just assuming it from history. It was a li’l odd introducing yourself by adding your colonizer. 🤔 Also, even if they really did have Spanish blood, it’s not something out of the ordinary since it’s only been about 100 years (at the time of these conversations) or about 3 generations since Spanish colonization ended (at least on paper).
Thanks for sharing all the info (I love the map with the different ethnic groups). We do have a lot in common with Mexico (especially because of the trade) and we also have a lot in common with Southeast Asian countries. I think hanging on to the Spanish and I would say also American influences is partially rooted in the trauma of colonization (like what you said), which plays out as aligning oneself to what is Eurocentric.
Thanks for reading! I certainly agree that hanging on, or at least, heavily relying on colonial influence leads to aligning with Eurocentric values. It's why I like to write about this, because I am sure that there are so many Filipinos, and probably so many other Asians, that want to do away from relying on Eurocentric narratives.
I do find it odd when someone brings up that they have a Spanish ancestor. Sadly, its not only Filipinos that do this, I have seen a Vietnamese creator on TikTok take an ancestry test who was so sure she had French ancestry (she even wore a beret lol) and no French DNA came up for her. Needless to say she got humbled. I think a better use of time whenever we are bringing up the Spanish, or any Western power, was that instead of them just merely colonizing us and giving us their DNA (which they hardly did!), we can view those periods as times of continued resistance. This way we can give respect to revolutionaries who fought hard to free us and liberate us from colonialism.
Such a wonderful introduction to the dilemmas surrounding the Filipino identity.
Personally, I've never really felt culturally isolated from the rest of Southeast Asia. Although of course I don't discount the experiences of those who do - I'm always cognizant of the fact that my experiences are only ever my own and I can't speak for anyone other than myself. But I spent a lot of time traveling amongst the ASEAN countries as a teen and young adult in my early 20s (because of course all those destinations are visa-free haha) and I also read Southeast Asian authors widely, and I think that helped me see and appreciate hundreds of tiny little similarities. One of my favorite things ever is when a post went viral pointing out that Southeast Asians all post online in a similar way - starting out their sentences in English and then trailing off in their respective native languages. And of course all the cultural similarities you mention here as well. I really, really, really loved reading this post!
I actually wrote something similar to this, although it's a lot more in my feelings and less rooted in evidence the way your post is haha. https://oatmilklatteboutique.substack.com/p/what-being-southeast-asian-means
Subscribed! I can't wait to read more from you!
Hi Kate,
Maraming salamat sa binasa at sa komento mo. Masaya ko kasi hindi mo ang maramdaman na naka-isolated tayo sa kapitbahay namin!
I’m glad that what I’ve written resonated with you, and the fact that you’ve had the opportunity to travel to other ASEAN countries just goes to show that you know what I’m talking about. As someone who also traveled to neighboring countries (needed a visa kasi may US passport ako lalo sa Vietnam at sa Cambodia), sa isip ko, yung pinakamagaling phrase sa ilarawan ng relasyon tungo sa kapitbahay natin ay “same same but different”. This phrase is something I heard when I visited Singapore and Malaysia and I think it’s so true when talking about our culture and theirs. Like I’d have a dish in Thailand or in Vietnam that has a Filipino equivalent pero may isang o konti ng sangkap sa pagkain nila that makes it medyo different.
I’ve also even to Mexico and I’ll say oo naman may similarities din pero overall hindi tayo Latino, tapos sobrang different ng lahi at lipunan niya. To me mas European ng impluwensya sa kultura nila kasi mag-espanyol nila whereas di tayo ganito, also hinahalo niya ang lahi niya sa mananakop pero sa atin, halos wala yan.
I’ll even say that code switching that we do is so similar to how Malay people do it!
I’ve met (diasporic) Filipinos in California who introduce themselves as “part Spanish” to seem more exotic. Only 1 of them actually have a great grandparent who was full Spanish. All the others were just assuming it from history. It was a li’l odd introducing yourself by adding your colonizer. 🤔 Also, even if they really did have Spanish blood, it’s not something out of the ordinary since it’s only been about 100 years (at the time of these conversations) or about 3 generations since Spanish colonization ended (at least on paper).
Thanks for sharing all the info (I love the map with the different ethnic groups). We do have a lot in common with Mexico (especially because of the trade) and we also have a lot in common with Southeast Asian countries. I think hanging on to the Spanish and I would say also American influences is partially rooted in the trauma of colonization (like what you said), which plays out as aligning oneself to what is Eurocentric.
Thanks for reading! I certainly agree that hanging on, or at least, heavily relying on colonial influence leads to aligning with Eurocentric values. It's why I like to write about this, because I am sure that there are so many Filipinos, and probably so many other Asians, that want to do away from relying on Eurocentric narratives.
I do find it odd when someone brings up that they have a Spanish ancestor. Sadly, its not only Filipinos that do this, I have seen a Vietnamese creator on TikTok take an ancestry test who was so sure she had French ancestry (she even wore a beret lol) and no French DNA came up for her. Needless to say she got humbled. I think a better use of time whenever we are bringing up the Spanish, or any Western power, was that instead of them just merely colonizing us and giving us their DNA (which they hardly did!), we can view those periods as times of continued resistance. This way we can give respect to revolutionaries who fought hard to free us and liberate us from colonialism.
You might be interested in this joining this. So far it looks like I'm gonna be the only Filipino https://seapunk.asia/ksw