Effects of Jejemon

Recently, someone tagged me in a weird photo in facebook showing Jejemon…I never knew that freakin word and didn’t care until I saw on the news what they are, what it means and why the hell it’s being aired everywhere. Well, at least in Phil. This hub is all about Jejemon.

What is Jejemon really? It was derived from two words jeje (from “hehe” means laughter) and mon (a Japanese-influenced suffix in Pokemon) Jejemons are the people who laugh “Jejejeje” instead of “heheheh” in Pinoy SMS.

Jejemons has multiplied through chatrooms, online games, social networks and widely in mobile texting. They became a popular subculture because they make their own rules of spelling, punctuation and grammar. They type words in the virtual world by alternating capital and small letters, adding H, Z etc. So weird that only their group could understand.

dHeY tYpe wOrdz lYk diZs

**To view their website visit Jejemon.com

Jejemon became so controversial and often, it creates debates discussing the advantages and disadvantages of Jejemon.

Good Effects of Jejemon

• Gives pleasure to a social group. Jejemons became a tribe, so if you are one of them, you tend to enjoy like them. I can’t object and I’m not against them but I know every gang or sorority brings pleasure to anyone in a way he feels he belongs…

• Secret codes. If you’re a Jejemon, you definitely know how to speak and how to communicate with them. Only you and your folks can understand each other pretty well. So maybe, in times of secrecy, you can converse using your special terms.

• The feeling of freedom. If you’re a proud Jejemon, it also means you don’t care about anti-Jejemon critics. It’s a sign that you are liberated from what others would think.

Bad Effects of Jejemon

• You forget your main language. Whatever it is, English or Filipino, if you’re a Jejemon, you always speak with it, so you get used to it. Your other dialects are set aside. Oftentimes, it will let you forget the right spelling or grammar in English or Filipino.

• Jologs status. (Ok Jejemons don’t freak out) Jologs, just like Jejemon, is a term used to denote low class group who are majority from the province towns, often times termed as “tambay” Jologs is a label of no-care to the world of etiquette or whatever is prim and proper for that matter.

• Outcast. Jejemons unfortunately are not widely accepted in the nation so if someone sort of suspects he’s talking to one, he won’t talk with him again or be a friend with him. A perfect example would be what I’ve read from a site that says, “OMG you’re a Jejemon! Bye!” Because of it, Jejemon has been a big social issue.

• Difficult to read. All would agree it’s freaking hard to read Jejemon words.

DepEd (Department of Education) discourage everyone using such grammar because of the obvious effects. A lot of groups have grown also to combat Jejemons, they are Jejebusters, Anti-jeje, GOTTA KILL ‘EM ALL JEJEMON and many more.

Surprisingly, the term “Jejemon” won the word of the year in Sawikaan 2010 over nine other entries, by the University of the Philippines academic group in Diliman, Quezon City organized by the Filipinas Institute of Translation.

I have no problem with Jejemons and they don’t annoy me at all because I don’t talk/text to anyone of their kind.