According to its etymology, the word chabacano comes from the Spanish adjective chabacano which means " common, vulgar ". During the colony, it was considered as a language that was used by the people of the street or "kitchen language". They did this to distinguish it from the language that was spoken by the wealthy class of the time, the so-called "educated, cultured", even so, several of the first to speak this dialect were from parents of different origin, for example Chinese immigrants or of Spanish officers.
Historically, the chabacano dialect has an extensive tradition in the Philippines, due to its Hispanic legacy, product of the relationship that existed between the Zamboangueños inhabitants and the Spanish speakers. Generally, in the Chabacano language most of the words are derived from Spanish, however, the Filipino language and the local languages present a relevant function in the structure of the sentences and grammar, initially the few people who spoke Spanish and who came to live in remote Mindanao were forced to communicate with the indigenous people who spoke countless dialects, which were very difficult to learn all at the same time.
It is important to note that this language does not belong exclusively to the Philippines, since there is a small population north of Sabah in Malaysia where Chabacano is spoken. Currently there are approximately 600,000 inhabitants of this dialect in the Philippines, where most are located in Zamboangan and Basilan, likewise, in these cities television and radio are broadcast in apricot.
