Question: what is it is what it is in spanish

title: Spanish language
text: Spanish was removed from official status in 1973 under the administration of Ferdinand Marcos , but regained its status as an official language two months later under Presidential Decree No. 155 , dated 15 March 1973 . It remained an official language until 1987 , with the ratification of the present constitution , in which it was re-designated as a voluntary and optional auxiliary language . In 2010 , President Gloria Macapagal - Arroyo encouraged the reintroduction of Spanish - language teaching in the Philippine education system . But by 2012 , the number of secondary schools at which the language was either a compulsory subject or an elective had become very limited . Today , despite government promotions of Spanish , less than 0.5 % of the population report being able to speak the language proficiently . Aside from standard Spanish , a Spanish - based creole language -- Chavacano -- developed in the southern Philippines . The number of Chavacano - speakers was estimated at 1.2 million in 1996 . However , it is not mutually intelligible with Spanish . Speakers of the Zamboangueño variety of Chavacano were numbered about 360,000 in the 2000 census . The local languages of the Philippines also retain some Spanish influence , with many words being derived from Mexican Spanish , owing to the control of the islands by Spain through Mexico City until 1821 , and then directly from Madrid until 1898 .