MANILA, Philippines – At least 15 Filipino words including names of local food are among the 500 new words, phrases, and senses added in the latest update of the Oxford English Dictionary (OED).
Balut, kare-kare, leche flan, lechon, pancit and puto were included in a September 2016 update released by the OED.
Other Filipino words in the latest update include bayanihan, lola, lolo, tabo, tita, tito and yaya.
Also listed were Aling and Mang, which were defined as “a title of courtesy or respect prefixed to the first name” of an older woman or man, respectively.
Except lechon, which was identified as a cuisine in both the Philippines and Latin America, the rest were identified as “Philippine English” words borrowed from Tagalog, with many tracing its etymology to the Spanish.
Updated quarterly, the OED compiles the meaning, history, and pronunciation of over 600,000 words, senses and compounds – both past and present – from across the English-speaking world.
Unlike other dictionaries which generally focus on modern English and its present uses, the OED “is a historical dictionary and it forms a record of all the core words and meanings in English over more than 1,000 years, from Old English to the present day, and including many obsolete and historical terms.”
Over the years, dozens of Filipino words have made it to the OED, including terms such as barkada, barangay, halo-halo, balikbayan and utang na loob.
In order for a word to be included, the OED requires several independent examples of the word being used and evidence that it has been in use for a reasonable amount of time.
“We also look for the word to reach a level of general currency where it is unselfconsciously used with the expectation of being understood: that is, we look for examples of uses of a word that are not immediately followed by an explanation of its meaning for the benefit of the reader,” the OED said.
“We have a large range of words under constant review, and as items are assessed for inclusion in the dictionary, words which have not yet accumulated enough evidence are kept on file, so that we can refer back to them if further evidence comes to light,” it added.
Some other words that were in the latest update include the acronym YOLO (you only live once), clickbait, slacktivism, uh-oh and witching hour.