Buwan ng Wika: A month for language that actually started as a week-long celebration

August is fast approaching and the country is once again ready to celebrate Buwan ng Wika or National Language Month.

But what we know of as a month-long celebration of the National Language, actually started as a humble week-long tribute. And instead of August it was originally held from the last week of March to the first week of April.

As the country was still recovering from World War II in 1946, the government was looking for ways to further advance and promote the use of the National Language. One measure was the designation of National Language Week through the signing of Proclamation No. 35 by President Sergio Osmeña.

The proclamation stated that National Language week would be celebrated during the seven days preceding the birth anniversary on 2 April of national poet Francisco “Balagtas” Baltazar, who wrote the immortal Florante at Laura. It enjoined various sectors of the Philippines to “demonstrate their enthusiasm” through activities beneficial to the advancement of the national language.

A major change for National Language Week happened in 1955 when President Ramon Magsaysay signed Proclamation 186 moving the celebration from March to April to 13–19 August. This was a gesture in honor of President Manuel L. Quezon, whose birth anniversary falls on 19 August and is known as the Father of the National Language.

1997 would be the last year National Language Week was celebrated with the theme Wika ng Rebolusyon: Noon at Ngayon (Language of Revolution: Now and Then). It also paid tribute to the death centennial of Andres Bonifacio and the then incoming Philippine Centennial, 1898–1998.

Buwan ng Wika was celebrated for the first time in 1998 by virtue of Proclamation No. 1041. Although the proclamation was officially signed by President Fidel V. Ramos in 1997, its inaugural celebration was observed under the first year of President Joseph Ejercito Estrada.

With the theme “Wikang Filipino: Tugon sa Ika-21 Siglo” (Filipino Language: Answer to the 21st Century), the month-long celebration, led by the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino (KWF),  featured an opening program in PUP Manila, colloquium and forum on language, the KWF foundation day, and an awarding ceremony that served as a closing program.

Now 28 years young, with a rich history rooted eight decades deep, Buwan ng Wika for 2026 recognizes the disruption stemming from artificial intelligence (AI). This is articulated upon by the theme: “Wikang Filipino at AI: Kasangkapan sa Pananaliksik at Tulay sa Yaman ng Impormasyon: (Filipino Language and AI: Tools for Research and Bridges to Rich Information).

This August, the KWF, together with its partner institutions across the Philippines, has prepared numerous programs and activities to further advance the lively use of the Filipino language while promoting discourse on the responsible use of AI.

What started as a short week-long campaign for a National Language still finding its footing is now a widespread month-long celebration of the Filipino language. Its history is a reflection of Filipino’s continuous development as a living national language for Filipinos to address current realities and imagine their futures.