Incorrect ISO language code for "Filipino"

[techmagus]

Steps to Reproduce

In the web version (I can't check the Andaoid version since there's no APK release for 1.96.5 as of this post), the language "Tagalog" was renamed to "Filipino" but the ISO language code was not updated.

• Tagalog language ISO code: tl or tgl
• Filipino language ISO code: fil
• Philippine languages (catch-all) ISO code: phi

The "Tagalog" and "Filipino" languages are two separate languages, also codified in the Philippine Constitution as such, as well as in ISO and other standards bodies. And that is without going into a detailed difference between the two. But to give one example, there are 6 vowels in the "Filipino" language but only 5 vowels in the "Tagalog" language.

In addition, if you plan on adding other Philippine languages there are things to consider.

By Philippine law, there are 8 Major Languages

1. Bikolano (bik)
2. Cebuano (ceb)
3. Hiligaynon (hil)
4. Iloko (ilo)
5. Kapampangan (pam)
6. Pangasinense (pag)
7. Tagalog (tl or tgl)
8. Waray (war)

Of the listed, Cebuano (ceb) is one of the highly requested language other than Tagalog in social networks, forums, and similar. I wouldn't be surprise if someone will request to add support for it in the future (or maybe someone already did).

Consideration №.1: If you'll add, for example, Cebuano (ceb) then it is approprriate to rename "Filipino" back to "Tagalog" (tl), as it makes more sense and is the logical action.

However, if you plan on just using a catch-all for Philippine languages, there are two choices:

1. "Filipino" with the ISO lang code fil
2. "Philippine" with the ISO lang code phi

The problem is, a week ago, I found that there are spammers using the lang fil. I am not sure if their automated too is the culprit, or the ATproto system is automatically tagging their posts as fil.

Consideration №.2: Using "Filipino" fil is not an option since it is being used to categorized spam posts. 🤦🏽

What should be used then is, "Philippines" or "Pilipinas" (the local name of the country) with the correct ISO language code phi.

Optional workaround: "Filipino" (phi)

Though, it'll be out-of-place to label the catch-all language as "Philippines" or "Pilipinas". I think an exception can be made to use "Filipino" (phi) (considering the abuse/incorrect use of fil as explained earlier).

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Personally, renaming it back to "Tagalog" and retaining the ISO lang code tl is the best option. There's a higher chance that the other 7 major languages will receive a request, in particular, Cebuano (ceb) and Hiligaynon (hil).

Think of it as the "Chinese" language. There are separate ISO language codes for Mandarin, Cantonese, Hakka, Hokkien/Fukien. Or, Bahasa, Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia have two separate ISO lang codes.

In conclusion, either use:

• Tagalog (tl) = if you plan supporting the other major languages if requests for it pours in, or
• Filipino (phi) = as a catch-all for all Philippine languages, with the proper ISO language code and not tl.

Lastly, while ISO language codes may not matter much for regular people, it does for accessibility and other technologies.

Thank you for your consideration.

Attachments

No response

What platform(s) does this occur on?

Web (Mobile)

Device Info

Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 Lite

What version of the app are you using?

1.96.5

Additional Information

No response

[auroursa]

I’m not entirely sure, but currently the corresponding ISO code I found in the code seems correct.

{code3: 'tgl', code2: 'tl', name: 'Tagalog'},
{code3: 'fil', code2: '', name: 'Filipino; Pilipino'},

I think this might be related to #6207. After that PR, language names should be localized by Intl.DisplayNames. Hopefully someone who knows what’s going on will take a look at it later.

[techmagus]

I think this might be related to #6207. After that PR, language names should be localized by Intl.DisplayNames. Hopefully someone who knows what’s going on will take a look at it later.

It might exactly be that, so far it's observable via the web browser version only. Sadly, that feature can cause confusion for others. It may good for French, but does not mean it's good for everyone.

For example, if we suddenly see the language list localised in a Philippine language, it will be very confusing because we "very rarely" use the local names of languages. "German" is "Alemanya" but I haven't seen nor heard "Alemanya" for almost 30 years now. "Japanese" is "Hapon", "Chinese" is "Intsik", for these two it's not natural for us to look for those in a language list. Of course, this is assuming the browser or app a user is using provided localised language names as per Intl.DisplayNames.

Secondly, the language list is not sorting correctly. In the web browser version, "Filipino" is still listed amongst the "T" languages.

Third, it lacks consistency. Is it "Tagalog" or is it "Filipino"? This is bad for user experience.

Anyway, thank you for the information! I guess this is for #6207 to address and fix. It is much better to revert it. ^_^