Linguistic Expressions of Anger: A Study on Angry Registers in Northern Catanduanes

Abstract

The Angry Register (AR) is a linguistic phenomenon in which specific nouns, adjectives, and verbs are substituted when a speaker expresses anger. This register is typologically rare and appears to be confined to the Greater Central Philippine subgroup. In angry registers, lexical items from the standard register are replaced with synonymous words—excluding profanity and vulgar expressions—while maintaining the same syntactic and morphological structure as normal speech. To investigate this distinct linguistic feature found in select Philippine languages, the study utilized Hymes’ SPEAKING model as an analytical framework. Data were gathered through observation sheets and interviews, focusing on the factors influencing the use of ARs among Catanduanganon speakers. A total of 90 participants from high school, college, and graduate/professional levels were selected from the Northern municipalities of Catanduanes. Findings indicated that the use of ARs is shaped by factors such as setting, gender, relationships, and age differences between the speaker and the recipient.