Cebuano language

Short description: Austronesian language of the Philippines

Cebuano

Cebuan
Bisayâ, Binisayâ, Sinugbuanong Binisayâ, Sebwano/Sinebwano

'Sinugbuanong Binisayâ' written in Badlit

Native to| Philippines
Region| Central Visayas, eastern Negros, western parts of Eastern Visayas, and most parts of Mindanao
Ethnicity| Visayans (Cebuano, Boholano, Eskaya, etc.)

Native speakers

| 28.9 million (2020)[1]

Language family

Austronesian

* Malayo-Polynesian
* Philippine
* Greater Central Philippine
* Central Philippine
* Bisayan
* Cebuano

Early forms

Old Cebuano

* Classical Cebuano
* Early Modern Cebuano

Dialects|

*     * Standard Cebuano (Cebu Island)

*     * Urban Cebuano (Metro Cebu)

*     * Negros Cebuano

*     * Bohol Cebuano

*     * Leyte Cebuano (Kanâ)

*     * Mindanao Cebuano

*     * Davao Cebuano

Writing system

* Latin (Cebuano alphabet)
* Philippine Braille
* Historically Badlit

Official status

Recognised minority
language in

Regional language in the Philippines

Regulated by|

* Visayan Academy of Arts and Letters
* Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino

Language codes
ISO 639-1| `ceb`
ISO 639-3| `ceb`
Glottolog| `cebu1242`[2]

Cebuano-speaking area in the Philippines

This article contains IPA phonetic symbols. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Unicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see Help:IPA.

Cebuano (/sɛˈbwɑːnoʊ/ seb-WAH-noh)[3][4][5] is an Austronesian language spoken in the southern Philippines . It is natively, though informally, called by its generic term Bisayâ or Binisayâ (both terms are translated into English as Visayan, though this should not be confused with other Bisayan languages)[6] and sometimes referred to in English sources as Cebuan (/sɛˈbuːən/ seb-OO-ən). It is spoken by the Visayan ethnolinguistic groups native to the islands of Cebu, Bohol, Siquijor, the eastern half of Negros, the western half of Leyte, and the northern coastal areas of Northern Mindanao and the Zamboanga Peninsula. In modern times, it has also spread to the Davao Region, Cotabato, Camiguin, parts of the Dinagat Islands, and the lowland regions of Caraga, often displacing native languages in those areas (most of which are closely related to the language).[7][8]

While Tagalog has the largest number of native speakers among the languages of the Philippines today, Cebuano had the largest native-language-speaking population in the Philippines from the 1950s until about the 1980s.[9][failed verification] It is by far the most widely spoken of the Bisayan languages.[10]

Cebuano is the lingua franca of Central Visayas, the western parts of Eastern Visayas, some western parts of Palawan and most parts of Mindanao. The name Cebuano is derived from the island of Cebu, which is the source of Standard Cebuano.[7] Cebuano is also the primary language in Western Leyte—noticeably in Ormoc. Cebuano is assigned the ISO 639-2 three-letter code ceb, but not a ISO 639-1 two-letter code.

The Commission on the Filipino Language, the Philippine government body charged with developing and promoting the national and regional languages of the country, spells the name of the language in Filipino as Sebwano.

## Contents

* 1 Nomenclature
* 2 Classification
* 3 Geographical distribution
* 4 History
* 5 Phonology
* 5.1 Vowels
* 5.2 Consonants
* 5.3 Stress
* 6 Writing System
* 6.1 Badlit
* 6.2 Latin alphabet
* 7 Vocabulary
* 8 Phrases
* 9 Dialects
* 9.1 Boholano
* 9.2 Leyte
* 9.2.1 Southern Kanâ
* 9.2.2 Northern Kanâ
* 9.3 Mindanao
* 9.3.1 Davaoeño
* 9.4 Negros
* 9.5 Luzon
* 9.6 Saksak sinagol
* 10 Examples
* 10.1 Numbers
* 10.2 Shapes
* 10.3 Colors
* 11 Loanwords
* 11.1 Sanskrit
* 11.2 Spanish
* 11.3 English
* 12 See also
* 13 Notes
* 14 References
* 15 External links

## Nomenclature

The term Cebuano derives from "Cebu"+"ano", a Latinate calque, reflective of the Philippines's Spanish colonial heritage. In common or everyday parlance, especially by those speakers from outside of the island of Cebu and in fact in Cebu the language is more often referred to as Bisayâ. However, it may become a source of confusion to non-native speakers as many other Bisayan languages may also be referred to as Bisayâ even though they are not mutually intelligible with speakers of what is referred to by linguists as Cebuano. Cebuano in this sense applies to all speakers of vernaculars mutually intelligible with the vernaculars of Cebu island, regardless of origin or location, as well as to the language they speak.[citation needed]

The term Cebuano has garnered some objections. For example, generations of Cebuano speakers in Leyte, Bohol, and Northern Mindanao (Dipolog, Dapitan, Misamis Occidental and Misamis Oriental together with coastal areas of Butuan) say that their ancestry traces back to Bisayâ speakers native to their place and not from immigrants or settlers from Cebu. Furthermore, they ethnically refer to themselves as Bisayâ and not Cebuano, and their language as Binisayâ.[11] However, there was a pushback on these objections where enthusiasts of the language insistently called it "Cebuano", resulting from the exclusivist usage of the term "Bisayâ" and "Binisayâ" among Cebuano speakers to refer their language and ethnicity, which disenfranchised the speakers of Hiligaynon and Waray from calling their language as "Binisayâ" and rather distinguish them from the "Bisayâ" (Cebuanos). During the Spanish period, the Spaniards made no distinction among speakers of Hiligaynon, Cebuano, Waray, Kinaray-a, and Aklanon as they were rather grouped as "Visaya".[12]

## Classification

Cebuano is an Austronesian language; it is generally classified as one of the five primary branches of the Bisayan languages, part of the wider genus of Philippine languages.[13]

## Geographical distribution

Cebuano is spoken in the provinces of Cebu, Bohol, Siquijor, Negros Oriental, northeastern Negros Occidental, (as well as the municipality of Hinoba-an and the cities of Kabankalan and Sipalay to a great extent, alongside Ilonggo), southern Masbate, western portions of Leyte and Biliran (to a great extent, alongside Waray), and a large portion of Mindanao, notably the urban areas of Zamboanga Peninsula, Cagayan de Oro, Davao Region, Surigao and some parts of Soccsksargen (alongside Ilonggo, Maguindanaon, indigenous Mindanaoan languages and to the lesser extent, Ilocano).

.[7] Some dialects of Cebuano have different names for the language. Cebuano speakers from Cebu are mainly called "Cebuano" while those from Bohol are "Boholano" or "Bol-anon". Cebuano speakers in Leyte identify their dialect as Kanâ meaning that (Leyte Cebuano or Leyteño). Speakers in Mindanao and Luzon refer to the language simply as Binisayâ or Bisayà.[14]

## History

See also: Classical Cebuano

Cebuano was first documented in a list of vocabulary compiled by Antonio Pigafetta, an Italian explorer who was part of Ferdinand Magellan's 1521 expedition.[15] Spanish missionaries started to write in the language during the early 18th century. As a result of the eventual 333-year Spanish colonial period, Cebuano contains many words of Spanish origin.

While there is evidence of a pre-Spanish writing system for the language, its use appears to have been sporadic. Spaniards recorded the Visayan script[16] which was called Kudlit-kabadlit by the natives.[17]

The language was heavily influenced by the Spanish language during the period of Spanish rule from 1565 to 1898. With the arrival of Spanish colonists, for example, a Latin-based writing system was introduced alongside a number of Spanish loanwords.[18]

## Phonology

### Vowels

Below is the vowel system of Cebuano with their corresponding letter representation in angular brackets:[11][19][20]

Standard Cebuano vowel phonemes  | Front  | Central  | Back

|
|
|

Close  | i ⟨i⟩ |  | u ⟨u⟩
Mid  | ɛ ⟨e⟩ |  | o ⟨o⟩
Open  |  | a ⟨a⟩ |

* /a/ an open front unrounded vowel similar to English "father"
* /ɛ/ an open-mid front unrounded vowel similar to English "bed"
* /i/ a close front unrounded vowel similar to English "machine"
* /o/ a close-mid back rounded vowel similar to English "forty"
* /u/ a close back rounded vowel similar to English "flute"

Sometimes, ⟨a⟩ may also be pronounced as the open-mid back unrounded vowel /ʌ/ (as in English "gut"); ⟨e⟩ or ⟨i⟩ as the near-close near-front unrounded vowel /ɪ/ (as in English "bit"); and ⟨o⟩ or ⟨u⟩ as the open-mid back rounded vowel /ɔ/ (as in English "thought") or the near-close near-back rounded vowel /ʊ/ (as in English "hook").[11]

During the precolonial and Spanish period, Cebuano had only three vowel phonemes: /a/, /i/ and /u/. This was later expanded to five vowels with the introduction of Spanish. As a consequence, the vowels ⟨o⟩ or ⟨u⟩, as well as ⟨e⟩ or ⟨i⟩, are still mostly allophones. They can be freely switched with each other without losing their meaning (free variation); though it may sound strange to a native listener, depending on their dialect. The vowel ⟨a⟩ has no variations, though it can be pronounced subtly differently, as either /a/ or /ʌ/ (and very rarely as /ɔ/ immediately after the consonant /w/). Loanwords, however, are usually more conservative in their orthography and pronunciation (e.g. dyip, "jeepney" from English "jeep", will never be written or spoken as dyep).[11][21]

### Consonants

For Cebuano consonants, all the stops are unaspirated. The velar nasal /ŋ/ occurs in all positions, including at the beginning of a word (e.g. ngano, "why"). The glottal stop /ʔ/ is most commonly encountered in between two vowels, but can also appear in all positions.[11]

Like in Tagalog, glottal stops are usually not indicated in writing. When indicated, it is commonly written as a hyphen or an apostrophe if the glottal stop occurs in the middle of the word (e.g. tu-o or tu'o, "right"). More formally, when it occurs at the end of the word, it is indicated by a circumflex accent if both a stress and a glottal stop occurs at the final vowel (e.g. basâ, "wet"); or a grave accent if the glottal stop occurs at the final vowel, but the stress occurs at the penultimate syllable (e.g. batà, "child").[22][23][24]

Below is a chart of Cebuano consonants with their corresponding letter representation in parentheses:[11][19][20][25]

Standard Cebuano consonants  | Bilabial  | Dental  | Palatal  | Velar  | Glottal

|
|
|
|
|

Nasal |  | m ⟨m⟩ |  | n̪ ⟨n⟩ |  |  | ŋ ⟨ng⟩ |
Stop | p ⟨p⟩ | b ⟨b⟩ | t̪ ⟨t⟩ | d̪ ⟨d⟩ |  | k ⟨k⟩ | ɡ ⟨g⟩ | ʔ (see text) |
Fricative |  | s̪ ⟨s⟩ |  |  |  | h ⟨h⟩ |
Affricate |  |  |  |  |  |
Approximant
(Lateral) |  |  |  | j ⟨y⟩ |  | w ⟨w⟩ |
|  | l̪ ⟨l⟩ |  |  |
Rhotic  |  |  | ɾ̪~r̪ ⟨r⟩ |  |  |

In certain dialects, /l/ ⟨l⟩ may be interchanged with /w/ ⟨w⟩ in between vowels and vice versa depending on the following conditions:[11]

* If ⟨l⟩ is in between ⟨a⟩ and ⟨u⟩/⟨o⟩, the vowel succeeding ⟨l⟩ is usually (but not always) dropped (e.g. lalóm, "deep", becomes lawóm or lawm).
* If ⟨l⟩ is in between ⟨u⟩/⟨o⟩ and ⟨a⟩, it is the vowel that is preceding ⟨l⟩ that is instead dropped (e.g. bulan, "moon", becomes buwan or bwan)
* If ⟨l⟩ is in between two like vowels, the ⟨l⟩ may be dropped completely and the vowel lengthened. For example, dalá ("bring"), becomes da (/d̪aː/); and tulód ("push") becomes tud (/t̪uːd̪/).[11] Except if the l is in between closed syllables or is in the beginning of the penultimate syllable; in which case, the ⟨l⟩ is dropped along with one of the vowels, and no lengthening occurs. For example, kalatkat, "climb", becomes katkat (/ˈkatkat/ not /ˈkaːtkat/).

A final ⟨l⟩ can also be replaced with ⟨w⟩ in certain areas in Bohol (e.g. tambal, "medicine", becomes tambaw). In very rare cases in Cebu, ⟨l⟩ may also be replaced with ⟨y⟩ in between the vowels ⟨a⟩ and ⟨e⟩/⟨i⟩ (e.g. tingali, "maybe", becomes tingayi).[11]

In some parts of Bohol and Southern Leyte, /j/ ⟨y⟩ is also often replaced with d͡ʒ ⟨j/dy⟩ when it is in the beginning of a syllable (e.g. kalayo, "fire", becomes kalajo). It can also happen even if the ⟨y⟩ is at the final position of the syllable and the word, but only if it is moved to the initial position by the addition of the affix -a. For example, baboy ("pig") can not become baboj, but baboya can become baboja.[11]

All of the above substitutions are considered allophonic and do not change the meaning of the word.[11]

In rarer instances, the consonant ⟨d⟩ might also be replaced with ⟨r⟩ when it is in between two vowels (e.g. Boholano idô for standard Cebuano irô, "dog"), but ⟨d⟩ and ⟨r⟩ are not considered allophones,[11] though they may have been in the past.[26]

### Stress

Stress accent is phonemic, which means that words with different accent placements, such as dapít (near) and dápit (place), are considered separate. The stress is predictably on the penult when the second-to-last syllable is closed (CVC or VC). On the other hand, when the syllable is open (CV or V), the stress can be on either the penultimate or the final syllable (although there are certain grammatical conditions or categories under which the stress is predictable, such as with numbers and pronouns).[27]

## Writing System

### Badlit

Main page: Social:Baybayin

Badlit, also known as Sulát/Suwát Bisayâ is the Visayan variety of the commonly known pre-colonial Tagalog writing system known as the Baybayin. It is used for Visayan languages that are spoken throughout the Visayas and Mindanao (with the exception of Tausūg which uses the Perso-Arabic Jawi script).[28]

### Latin alphabet

Modern Cebuano uses 20 letters from the Latin alphabet and it consists of 5 vowels and 15 consonants. The letters c, f, j, q, v, x and z are also used but in foreign loanwords, while the "ñ" is used for Spanish names (e.g. Santo Niño). The "Ng" digraph is also present since it is part of the phonology of most Philippine languages (e.g. ngipon, "teeth" and ngano, "why") [29]

Majuscule | Minuscule | Majuscule | Minuscule

|
|
|

A | a | N | n
B | b | Ng | ng
K | k | O | o
D | d | P | p
E | e | R | r
G | g | S | s
H | h | T | t
I | i | U | u
L | l | W | w
M | m | Y | y

## Vocabulary

Cebuano is a member of the Philippine languages. Early trade contact resulted in a large number of older loan words from other languages being embedded in Cebuano, like Sanskrit (e.g. sangkà, "fight" and bahandì, "wealth", from Sanskrit sanka and bhānda respectively), and Arabic (e.g. salámat, "thanks"; hukóm or hukm, "judge").[30]

It has also been influenced by thousands of words from Spanish, such as kurús (cruz, "cross"), swerte (suerte, "luck"), gwapa (guapa, "beautiful"), merkado (mercado, "market") and brilyante (brillante, "brilliant"). It has several hundred loan words from English as well, which are prescriptively altered to conform to the phonemic inventory of Cebuano: brislit (bracelet), hayskul (high school), syaping (shopping), bakwit (evacuate), and drayber (driver). However, today it is more common for Cebuano speakers to spell out those words in their original English forms rather than with spelling that conforms to Cebuano standards.[citation needed]

## Phrases

A few common phrases in Cebuano include:[31]

* How are you? (used as a greeting) - Kumusta/Kamusta ka?
* Good morning - Maayong buntag
* Good afternoon (specifically from 12:00 PM to 12:59 PM) - Maayong udto
* Good afternoon (specifically from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM) - Maayong palis
* Good afternoon (specifically from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM) - Maayong hápon
* Good evening - Maayong gabii
* Goodbye
* Arí na ko (meaning: "I'll be here", casual)
* Ayo-ayo (meaning: "Take care", formal, alternative: "Ingat", borrowed from Tagalog)
* Adyós (rare, from Spanish "adiós")
* Babay (informal, from English "Bye-bye")
* Amping (meaning: "Take care", casual)
* Hangtod sa sunód nga higayón (meaning "Until next time", formal, alternative: "Sa sunód na pud", casual)
* Adto na ko ("I will go now")
* You're so beautiful - Gwapa/Maanyag/Matahóm kaayo ka
* Thanks! - Salamat
* Thank you - Salamat sa imo
* Many thanks! - Daghang salamat
* Thank you very much! - Daghan kaayong salamat
* You're welcome - Wala'y sapayán
* Do not (imperative) - Ayáw
* Don't know - Ambot or Walâ ko kabaló/kahibaló
* Yes - Oo, O
* Maybe - Basin/Tingali/Siguro
* No[32]

* Dilì \- for future verb negation ("will not", "does/do not", "not going to"); and negation of identity, membership, property, relation, or position ("[he/she/it/this/that] is not")
* Walâ \- for past and progressive verb negation ("have not", "did not"); and to indicate the absence of ("none", "nothing", "not have", "there is not")

* Who? - Kinsa?
* What? - Unsa?
* Where?
* Diín?/Dis-a? \- where (past)
* Hain? \- where (present), which
* Asa? \- where (future, general)
* Which? - Hain?
* When?
* Kanus-a? \- when (past)
* Anus-a? \- when (future)
* How?
* Giunsa? \- how (past)
* Unsaon? \- how (future)
* Why? - Ngano?
* This/These
* Kirí \- this/these (1st person)
* Kiní \- this/these (1st & 2nd person)
* That/Those
* Kanâ \- that/those (2nd person)
* Kadto \- that/those (3rd person)

## Dialects

The de facto Standard Cebuano dialect (sometimes referred to as General Cebuano) is derived from the conservative Sialo vernacular spoken in southeastern Cebu (also known as the Sialo dialect or the Carcar-Samboan dialect). It first gained prominence due to its adoption by the Catholic Church as the standard for written Cebuano. It retains the intervocalic /l/.[11] In contrast, the Urban Cebuano dialect spoken by people in Metro Cebu and surrounding areas is characterized by /l/ elision and heavily contracted words and phrases.[11] For example, baláy ("house"), dalan ("road"), kalahà ("pan"), and kalayo ("fire") in Standard Cebuano can become bay, dan, kahà, and kayo in Urban Cebuano respectively, while the phrase waláy problema ("no problem") in Standard Cebuano can become wa'y 'blema in Urban Cebuano.[citation needed]

Colloquialisms can also be used to determine the regional origin of the speaker. Cebuano-speaking people from Cagayan de Oro and Dumaguete, for example, say chada or tsada/patsada (roughly translated to the English colloquialism "awesome")[33] and people from Davao City say atchup which also translated to the same English context;[34] meanwhile Cebuanos from Cebu on the other hand say nindot or, sometimes, aníndot. However, this word is also commonly used in the same context in other Cebuano-speaking regions, in effect making this word not only limited in use to Cebu.[citation needed]

There is no standardized orthography for Cebuano, but spelling in print usually follow the pronunciation of Standard Cebuano, regardless of how it is actually spoken by the speaker. For example, baláy ("house") is pronounced /baˈl̪aɪ/ in Standard Cebuano and is thus spelled "baláy", even in Urban Cebuano where it is actually pronounced /ˈbaɪ/.[11]

Cebuano is spoken natively over a large area of the Philippines and thus has numerous regional dialects. It can vary significantly in terms of lexicon and phonology depending on where it is spoken.[11] Increasing usage of spoken English (being the primary language of commerce and education in the Philippines) has also led to the introduction of new pronunciations and spellings of old Cebuano words. Code-switching forms of English and Bisaya (Bislish) are also common among the educated younger generations.[35][36]

There are four main dialectal groups within Cebuano aside from Standard Cebuano and Urban Cebuano. They are as follows:[37][38][39][40]

### Boholano

The Boholano dialect of Bohol shares many similarities with the southern form of Standard Cebuano.[clarification needed] It is also spoken in some parts of Siquijor. Boholano, especially as spoken in central Bohol, can be distinguished from other Cebuano variants by a few phonetic changes:

* The semivowel y is pronounced [dʒ]: iya is pronounced [iˈdʒa];
* Akó is pronounced as [aˈho];
* Intervocalic l is occasionally pronounced as [w] when following u or o: kulang is pronounced as [ˈkuwaŋ] (the same as Metro Cebu dialect).

### Leyte

#### Southern Kanâ

Southern Kanâ is a dialect of both southern Leyte and Southern Leyte provinces; it is closest to the Mindanao Cebuano dialect at the southern area and northern Cebu dialect at the northern boundaries. Both North and South Kana are subgroups of Leyteño dialect. Both of these dialects are spoken in western and central Leyte and in the southern province, but Boholano is more concentrated in Maasin City.

#### Northern Kanâ

Northern Kanâ (found in the northern part of Leyte), is closest to the variety of the language spoken in northern part of Leyte, and shows significant influence from Waray-Waray, quite notably in its pace which speakers from Cebu find very fast, and its more mellow tone (compared to the urban Cebu City dialect, which Kana speakers find "rough"). A distinguishing feature of this dialect is the reduction of /A/ prominent, but an often unnoticed feature of this dialect is the labialisation of /n/ and /ŋ/ into /m/, when these phonemes come before /p/, /b/ and /m/, velarisation of /m/ and /n/ into /ŋ/ before /k/, /ɡ/ and /ŋ/, and the dentalisation of /ŋ/ and /m/ into /n/ before /t/, /d/ and /n/ and sometimes, before vowels and other consonants as well.

Sugbu  | Kana  | Waray  | English

|
|
|

kan-on  | lutò  | lutò  | cooked rice/maize
kiní/kirí  | kirí/kiní  | iní  | this
kan  | karâ/kanâ  | itón  | that
dinhí/dirí  | arí/dinhí/dirí  | didí/ngadí/aadi/dinhi  | here
dihâ/dinhâ  | dirâ/dihâ/dinhâ  | didâ/ngadâ/aadâ  | there
bas/balás  | bas/balás  | barás  | soil/sand
alsa  | arsa  | alsa  | to lift
bulsa  | bursa  | bulsa  | pocket

### Mindanao

This is the variety of Cebuano spoken throughout most of Mindanao, and it is the standard dialect of Cebuano in Northern Mindanao.

Local historical sources found in Cagayan de Oro indicates the early presence of Cebuano Visayans in the Misamis-Agusan coastal areas and their contacts with the Lumads and peoples of the Rajahnate of Butuan. Lumads refer to these Visayan groups as Dumagat ("people of the sea") as they came in the area seaborne. It became the lingua franca of precolonial Visayan settlers and native Lumads of the area, and particularly of the ancient Rajahnate of Butuan where Butuanon, a Southern Visayan language, was also spoken. Cebuano influence in Lumad languages around the highlands of Misamis Oriental and Bukidnon was furthered with the influx of Cebuano Visayan laborers and conscripts of the Spaniards from Cebuano areas of Visayas (particularly from Bohol) during the colonial period around the present-day region of Northern Mindanao. It has spread west towards the Zamboanga Peninsula, east towards Caraga, and south towards Bukidnon, Cotabato and the Davao Region in the final years of Spanish colonial rule and even during the American colonial rule which continued until the Philippine independence. Cebuano becomes a lingua franca in Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao along with Tagalog, especially among Tausug people who speaks a language which is 1 of the Visayan languages.[citation needed]

Similar to the Sialo dialect of southeastern Cebu, it is distinctive in retaining /l/ sounds, long since considered archaic in Urban Cebuano. For example: bulan instead of buwan ("moon" or "month"), dalunggan instead of dunggan (ear), and halang instead of hang ("spicy").[citation needed]

Due to the influx of migrants (mostly from Western Visayas and Leyte) during the promotion of settlement in the highlands of Central Mindanao in the 1930s, vocabulary from other Visayan languages (predominantly Hiligaynon and Waray-Waray) have also been incorporated into Mindanao Cebuano. For example, the Hiligaynon sabát ("reply") is commonly used alongside Cebuano tubág, bulig alongside tábang ("help"), and Waray lutò alongside kan-on ("cooked rice"). Though, these influences are only limited to the speakers along the port area and Hiligaynon-speaking communities.[citation needed]

#### Davaoeño

A branch of Mindanaoan Cebuano in Davao is also known as Davaoeño (not to be confused with the Davao variant of Chavacano which is called "Castellano Abakay"). Like the Cebuano of Luzon, it contains some Tagalog vocabulary, which speakers may use even more frequently than in Luzon Cebuano. Its grammar is similar to that of other varieties; however, current speakers exhibit uniquely strong Tagalog influence in their speech by substituting most Cebuano words with Tagalog ones. This is because the older generations speak Tagalog to their children in home settings, and Cebuano is spoken in other everyday settings, making Tagalog the secondary lingua franca. One characteristic of this dialect is the practice of saying atà, derived from Tagalog yatà, to denote uncertainty in a speaker's aforementioned statements. For instance, a Davaoeño might say "Tuá man atà sa baláy si Manuel" instead of "Tuá man tingáli sa baláy si Manuel". The word atà does exist in Cebuano, though it means 'squid ink' in contrast to Tagalog (e.g. atà sa nukos).[citation needed]

Other examples include: Nibabâ ko sa jeep sa kanto, tapos niulî ko sa among baláy ("I got off the jeepney at the street corner, and then I went home") instead of Ninaog ko sa jeep sa eskina, dayon niulî ko sa among baláy. The words babâ and naog mean "to disembark" or "to go down", kanto and eskina mean "street corner", while tapos and dayon mean "then"; in these cases, the former word is Tagalog, and the latter is Cebuano. Davaoeño speakers may also sometimes add Bagobo or Mansakan vocabulary to their speech, as in "Madayawng adlaw, amigo, kumusta ka?" ("Good day, friend, how are you?", literally "Good morning/afternoon") rather than "Maayong adlaw, amigo, kumusta ka?" The words madayaw and maayo both mean 'good', though the former is Bagobo and the latter Cebuano.[citation needed]

### Negros

The Cebuano dialect in Negros is somewhat similar to Standard Cebuano (spoken by the majority of the provincial areas of Cebu), with distinct Hiligaynon influences. It is distinctive in retaining /l/ sounds and longer word forms as well. It is the primary dialectal language of the entire province of Negros Oriental and northeastern parts of Negros Occidental (while the majority of the latter province and its bordered areas speaks Hiligaynon/Ilonggo), as well as some parts of Siquijor. Examples of Negrense Cebuano's distinction from other Cebuano dialects is the usage of the word maot instead of batî ("ugly"), alálay, kalálag instead of kalag-kalag (Halloween), kabaló/kahibaló and kaágo/kaantígo instead of kabawó/kahíbawó ("know").[citation needed]

### Luzon

There is no specific Luzonian dialect of Cebuano, as speakers of Cebuano in Luzon come from many different regions in Central Visayas and Mindanao. Cebuano-speaking people from Luzon can be easily recognized in the Visayas primarily by their vocabulary, which incorporates Tagalog words. Their accents and some aspects of their grammar can also sometimes exhibit Tagalog influence. Such Tagalog-influenced Cebuano dialects are sometimes colloquially known as "Bisalog" (a portmanteau of Tagalog and Bisaya).[citation needed]

### Saksak sinagol

The term saksak sinagol in context means "a collection of miscellaneous things" or literally "inserted mixture", thus the few other Cebuano-influenced regions that have a variety of regional languages use this term to refer to their dialects with considerable incorporated Cebuano words. Examples of these regions can be found in places like Masbate.[citation needed]

## Examples

### Numbers

Main page: Cebuano numbers

Cebuano uses two numeral systems. Currently, the native system is mostly used in counting the number of things, animate and inanimate, e.g. the number of horses or houses. The Spanish-derived system, on the other hand, is exclusively applied in monetary and chronological terminology and is also commonly used in counting from 11 and above.

Number  | Native Cebuano  | Spanish-derived

|
|

0  | walâ  | nulo, sero
1  | usá  | uno
2  | duhá  | dos
3  | tuló  | tres
4  | upát  | kwatro
5  | limá  | singko
6  | unóm  | séys
7  | pitó  | siyete
8  | waló  | otso
9  | siyám  | nwebe
10  | napulò, pulò  | diyés
11  | napúlog usá  | onse
12  | napúlog duhá  | dose
13  | napúlog tuló  | trese
14  | napúlog upát  | katórse
15  | napúlog limá  | kinse
16  | napúlog unóm  | diyesiséys
17  | napúlog pitó  | diyesisiyete
18  | napúlog waló  | diyesiyotso
19  | napúlog siyám  | diyesinwebe
20  | kaluháan (kaduháan)  | beynte
21  | kaluháag usá  | beyntiwuno
22  | kaluháag duhá  | beyntidos
23  | kaluháag tuló  | beyntitres
24  | kaluháag upát  | beyntikwatro
25  | kaluháag limá  | beyntisingko
30  | katlóan (katulóan)  | treynta
40  | kap-atan (kaupátan)  | kwarénta
50  | kalím-an (kalimáan)  | sinkwénta
60  | kan-uman (kaunóman)  | sesenta
70  | kapitóan  | seténta
80  | kawalóan  | otsénta
90  | kasiyáman  | nobénta
100  | usá ka gatós  | siyén, siyento
200  | duhá ka gatós  | dosiyéntos
300  | tuló ka gatós  | tresiyéntos
400  | upát ka gatós  | kwatrosiyéntos
500  | limá ka gatós  | kiniyéntos
1,000  | usá ka libo  | mil
5,000  | limá ka libo  | singko mil
10,000  | usá ka laksà, napulò ka libo  | diyes mil
50,000  | limá ka laksà, kalím-an ka libo  | singkwenta mil
100,000  | usá ka yaba, usá ka gatós ka líbo  | siyén mil
1,000,000  | usá ka yukót  | milyón
1,000,000,000  | usá ka wakát  | bilyón (mil milyones)

### Shapes

English  | Common Cebuano  | Classical Cebuano

|
|

square  | kwadrado  | laro, lado
triangle  | trayanggulo  | sinug-ang, bilid, binalso, gitlò
rectangle  | rektanggulo  | gipat
circle  | lingin  | alirong, alilong, sirkulo
oval  | initlog  | alipid, alibid

### Colors

English  | Native Cebuano

|

black  | itóm
white  | putî
red  | pulá
orange  | kahíl
yellow  | dalág, duláw
green  | lunhaw, berde
blue  | bughaw, pughaw, asul
indigo  | tagóm
purple  | tapól
pink  | puláng-luspad, limbahon
gray  | dagtom, abohón
brown  | ilom, suilom, tabonon

## Loanwords

### Sanskrit

Sanskrit, an ancient Indian language, loanwords in Cebuano-Bisayan language are given below. In Javanese, Malayan and Cebuano-Bisayan languages, the long vowels of sanskrit are shortened, sometimes frontal or back vowels of sanskrit are eliminated, or glottal stops are inserted. The loanwords are as follows (format: Cebuano words from xyz Sanskrit word):[41][better source needed]

* Bisayâ from Sri Vijaya the Hindu king or "Bidaya" (knowledge or education) or vaíśya (वैश्य) the Indian traders.
* Bathalà (god or almighty, from Batara Guru an incarnation of Hindu god shiva) from bhattara (noble lord)
* Balahala (deity) from bhattara (noble lord), free Spanish and prehistoric Filipinos worship the deity called belahala based on the Hindu deity, when Legaspi return to 1565 he found that the newly converted to catholicism native Filipinos had stopped observing the strict catholicism and had restarted worshiping the native deities.[41]

* Bahin (share) & pagbahin (to share) from Sanskrit word bhagin (share in).

* Bahandì (property or wealth) from bhanda (goods)

* Bála (to piggyback carry a person) from bhara (load)

* Balitâ (news, report) from vrtta (an incident)

* Bansà (state) from vamsa (lineage, descent, race)

* Bansagon (familyname) from vamsa (lineage, descent, race)

* Banyagà (scoundrel) from vanija (merchant)

* Basa / Pagbása (to read) from vaca (sacred words)

* Baya (word for warning of danger, also a word for emphasis) from bhaya (danger)

* Budhì / Pagbudhì (to betray) from buddhi (intellect)

* Diwà / Diwata (spirits) from deva & devata (deity, deities) in sanskrit

* Gansâ / Hansa (goose) from hamsa (goose)

* Gapas (cotton) from karpasa (cotton)

* Hayag (bright) / Kahayag (brightness) from chaya (shade, luster, reflection of an image)

* Labáw (increase, difference, more) from labha (profit)
* Labi (more) from labha
* Labas (to buy and sell) from labha
* Pangilabà (to ask a favor) from labha

* Labú (mealy, meaning saquash and root crops) from alabu (gourd)
* Labu-labu (mealy complexion) from alabu

* Laksa (ten thousand) from Sanskrit lakṣa ("लक्ष", hundred thousand”).

* Lalá / La (venom from sting of animal or serpent) from lala (saliva)
* Laway (sting) from lala (saliva)

* Lasuna (onion) from lacsuna (garlic) in sanskrit.

* Laxuna (garlic, presently Spanish loanword ajos for garlic is more than use) from lacsuna (garlic) in sanskrit.

* Lila (pale purple color or lilac flower) from ultimately from Sanskrit nīlā (नीला, dark blue).

* Mahál (beloved, expensive, precious, noble/royal) from maha (great)

* Malakoko (jasmimum grandiflorum) from Malati (jasmimum grandiflorum)

* Malisa (black pepper) from Sanskrit marica (मरिच, black pepper).

* Manol / Marol (jasmimum sambac flower) from madhura (jasmimum sambac)

* Mantala / Pagmantala (to announce) from Mantra (sacred verse in Hindu scriptures, formula, charm)
* Mantalaan (newspaper) from Mantra (sacred verse in Hindu scriptures, formula, charm)

* Mutyà (gem or pearl) from mutya (pearl)

* Pánday (carpenter, blacksmith) from pandya (learned or wise person)

* Parakúl (an axe) from parasu (an axe)

* Pasung / Pasong (manger, stable) from pasu (cattle)

* Pasungán / Pasongan (stable) from pasu (cattle)

* Patola (luffa made from gourd) from patola (a type of gourd)

* Pu'asa (fast) from upavasa (fast, a day of fasting)

* Putlì (virgin, pure) from putri (daughter)

* Rajah (king) from Sanskrit rājan (राजन्, king, prince)

* Sadyà (cheerful, merry) from sajja (ready)

* Saksi from sakshi (witness)

* Sala (living room) from shala (living room)

* Salampatì (dove) from parapati (turtle dove)

* Sampaka (jasmine flower) from champaka (jasmine flower)

* Sama (same, equal, like) from sama (same, equal, like)

* Sanga (an associate in gambling) from samga (throng, multitude, corporation)

* Sangkà (fight, battle) from sanka (fight, battle)

* Sekma & pagsekma (to blow nose) from slesman (mucus)

* Suka (vinegar, vomit, puke, reveal secret) ultimately from Sanskrit cukrā (चुक्रा, sour tamarind tree)

* Sumatra (largest island in Indonesia) from Sanskrit samudra (समुद्र, sea)

* Sungkà (mancala game played with cowrie shells) from shanka (counch shell)

* Tagna / Pagtagnà (foretell, to guess) from lagna (horoscope)
* Manalagnà (fortune teller) from lagna (horoscope)

* Talikala (shackles) from srnkhala (chain)

* Tampoy / Tambis / Lumboy (eugenia jambu fruit) from jambu (eugenia jambu fruit)

* Tumbaga (copper) from Tamra

* Yati (an expression of surprise or annoyance) from jati

### Spanish

Thousands of words from Spanish, such as

* kurús (cruz, "cross")
* swerte (suerte, "luck")
* gwapa (guapa, "beautiful")
* merkado (mercado, "market")
* brilyante (brillante, "brilliant")

### English

English words prescriptively altered to conform to the phonemic inventory of Cebuano:

* bakwit (evacuate)
* brislit (bracelet)
* drayber (driver)
* hayskul (high school)
* syaping (shopping)

## See also

* Boholano dialect
* Cebuano grammar
* Cebuano literature
* Cebuano people
* Classical Cebuano
* Hiligaynon language
* Jacinto Alcos
* Languages of the Philippines

## Notes

1. ↑ "Housing Characteristics in the Philippines (2020 Census of Population and Housing)" (in en). https://psa.gov.ph/content/housing-characteristics-philippines-2020-census-population-and-housing.
2. ↑ Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds (2017). "Cebuano". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History. http://glottolog.org/resource/languoid/id/cebu1242.
3. ↑ Cebuano on Merriam-Webster.com
4. ↑ Cebu on Merriam-Webster.com
5. ↑ Columbia Encyclopedia
6. ↑ Reference to the language as Binisayâ is discouraged by many linguists, in light of the many languages within the Visayan language group that might be confounded with the term.
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Wolff 1972
8. ↑ "Cebuano" (in en). https://www.ethnologue.com/language/ceb.
9. ↑ Ammon, Ulrich; Dittmar, Norbert; Mattheier, Klaus J.; Trudgill, Peter (2006) (in en). Sociolinguistics: An International Handbook of the Science of Language and Society. 3. Walter de Gruyter. p. 2018. ISBN 9783110184181. https://books.google.com/books?id=LMZm0w0k1c4C.
10. ↑ "Language Specific Peculiarities Document for Cebuano as Spoken in the Philippines". January 12, 2020. https://catalog.ldc.upenn.edu/docs/LDC2018S07/LSP_301_final.pdf.
11. ↑ 11.00 11.01 11.02 11.03 11.04 11.05 11.06 11.07 11.08 11.09 11.10 11.11 11.12 11.13 11.14 11.15 Endriga 2010
12. ↑ González Fernández, Ramón (1877). Anuario Filipino para 1877; Segunda Edición del Manual del Viajero en Filipinas. Manila: Establecimiento tipográfico de Plana y Ca.. p. 37. https://ustdigitallibrary.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/section5/id/59673. Retrieved June 11, 2023.
13. ↑ Zorc, David Paul (1977). The Bisayan Dialects of the Philippines: Subgrouping and Reconstruction. Pacific Linguistics Series C - No. 44. Canberra, Australia: Dept. of Linguistics, Research School of Pacific Studies, Australian National University. doi:10.15144/PL-C44. ISBN 0858831570. https://archive.org/details/bisayandialectso0044zorc.
14. ↑ Pangan, John Kingsley (2016). Church of the Far East. Makati: St. Pauls. pp. 19. https://archive.org/details/ChurchOfTheFarEastPreview.
15. ↑ "Cebuano language, alphabet and pronunciation". http://www.omniglot.com/writing/cebuano.htm.
16. ↑ "Alphabets Des Philippines" (JPG). https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/4e/af/c8/4eafc8e5f572d9a7bf7668bd35de9270.jpg.
17. ↑ Eleanor, Maria (16 July 2011). "Finding the "Aginid"". http://www.philstar.com/cebu-lifestyle/706409/finding-aginid.
18. ↑ "Cebuano". https://www.alsintl.com/resources/languages/Cebuano/.
19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 "Cebuano Phonetics and Orthography". Dila. http://dila.ph/cebuano phonetics and orthography.pdf.
20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Thompson, Irene (11 July 2013). "Cebuano". About World Languages. http://aboutworldlanguages.com/cebuano.
21. ↑ Steinkrüger, Patrick O. (2008). "Hispanisation processes in the Philippines". in Stolz, Thomas. Hispanisation: The Impact of Spanish on the Lexicon and Grammar of the Indigenous Languages of Austronesia and the Americas. Walter de Gruyter. pp. 203-236. ISBN 9783110207231. https://books.google.com/books?id=4kacyicU4BgC&pg=PA203.
22. ↑ Morrow, Paul (16 March 2011). "The basics of Filipino pronunciation: Part 2 of 3 • accent marks". Pilipino Express. http://www.pilipino-express.com/history-a-culture/in-other-words/1180-basics-of-filipino-pronunciation-part-2.html.
23. ↑ Nolasco, Ricardo M.D.. Grammar notes on the national language. http://fhl.digitalsolutions.ph/sites/default/files/grammar-notes.pdf. [yes|permanent dead link|dead link}}]
24. ↑ Schoellner, Joan, ed (2007). Tagalog Reading Booklet. Simon & Schister's Pimsleur. pp. 5–6. http://www.supadu.com/images/ckfinder/26/pdfs/PIMSLEUR/Tagalog_Phase1-Bklt.pdf. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
25. ↑ Bollas, Abigail A. (2013), Comparative Analysis on the Phonology of Tagalog, Cebuano, and Itawis, University of the Philippines - Diliman, https://www.academia.edu/4427395
26. ↑ Verstraelen, Eugene (1961). "Some further remarks about the L-feature". Philippine Studies 9 (1): 72-77. http://philippinestudies.net/ojs/index.php/ps/article/download/2806/5450.
27. ↑ Newton, Brian (December 1991). "The Cebuano Language and Generative Phonology". Philippine Quarterly of Culture and Society 19 (4): 253–263. https://www.jstor.org/stable/29792064.
28. ↑ "Badlit script". July 14, 2021. https://www.omniglot.com/writing/badlit.htm.
29. ↑ "Cebuano (Binisaya)". April 23, 2021. https://www.omniglot.com/writing/badlit.htm.
30. ↑ Kuizon, Jose G. (1964). "The Sanskrit Loan-Words in the Cebuano-Bisayan Language". Asian Folklore Studies 23 (1): 111–158. doi:10.2307/1177640. https://nirc.nanzan-u.ac.jp/nfile/646.
31. ↑ "Useful Cebuano phrases". Omniglot. http://www.omniglot.com/language/phrases/cebuano.php.
32. ↑ Curtis D. McFarland (2008). "Linguistic diversity and English in the Philippines". in Maria Lourdes S. Bautista & Kingsley Bolton. Philippine English: Linguistic and Literary. Hong Kong University Press. p. 137-138. ISBN 9789622099470. https://books.google.com/books?id=YnUgBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA138.
33. ↑ "10 Fun Facts about Cagayan de Oro" (in en-US). 5 February 2016. http://aboutcagayandeoro.com/10-fun-facts-about-cagayan-de-oro/.
34. ↑ "Atchup Boulevard Explained". http://www.ilovedavao.com/2015/01/what-do-you-mean-by-atchup-boulevard.html.
35. ↑ Nissan, Ephraim (2012). "Asia at Both Ends: An Introduction to Etymythology, with a Response to Chapter Nine". in Zuckermann, Ghil‘ad. Burning Issues in Afro-Asiatic Linguistics. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 299. ISBN 9781443864626. https://books.google.com/books?id=rdcxBwAAQBAJ&q=BISLISH&pg=PA299.
36. ↑ Meierkord, Christiane (2012). Interactions Across Englishes: Linguistic Choices in Local and International Contact Situations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 209. ISBN 9780521192286. https://books.google.com/books?id=W5cXvmMg4_cC&q=BISLISH&pg=PA209.
37. ↑ "Cebuano". Ethnologue. https://www.ethnologue.com/language/ceb.
38. ↑ Dingwall, Alastair (1994). Traveller's Literary Companion to South-East Asia. In Print Publishing, Limited. p. 372. ISBN 9781873047255.
39. ↑ Blake, Frank R. (1905). "The Bisayan Dialects". Journal of the American Oriental Society 26 (1905): 120–136. doi:10.2307/592885.
40. ↑ Gonzalez, Andrew (1991). "Cebuano and Tagalog: Ethnic Rivalry Redivivus". in Dow, James R.. Focus on Language and Ethnicity. 2. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing. p. 115-116. ISBN 9789027220813. https://books.google.com/books?id=tm4T59MWHNUC.
41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 JG Kuizon, 1964, The Sanskrit Loan-Words in the Cebuano-Bisayan Language, Asian folklore studies (Asian Ethnology), Nanzan University, Nagoya, Japan, pp.111-159.

## References

* Endriga, Divine Angeli (2010). "The Dialectology of Cebuano: Bohol, Cebu and Davao". 1st Philippine Conference Workshop on Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education held from 18–20 February 2010. Capitol University, Cagayan de Oro. https://mlephil.wordpress.com/2012/04/04/the-dialectology-of-cebuano/.
* Bunye, Maria V. R.; Yap, Elsa P. (1971a). Cebuano for Beginners. University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 9780824879778. https://books.google.com/books?id=v1nGDwAAQBAJ.
* Bunye, Maria V. R.; Yap, Elsa P. (1971b). Cebuano Grammar Notes. University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 9780824881306. https://books.google.com/books?id=HVrGDwAAQBAJ.
* Wolff, John U. (1972). A Dictionary of Cebuano Visayan. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University, Southeast Asia Program and Linguistic Society of the Philippines. http://www.gutenberg.ph/previews/wolff/WCED-complete.pdf. Retrieved 7 May 2017.

## External links

|  Cebuano edition of Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

|

| Wikivoyage has a phrasebook for Cebuano.

|

* Cebuano Dictionary
* Cebuano English Searchable Dictionary
* John U. Wolff, A Dictionary of Cebuano Visayan: Volume I, Volume II, searchable interface, Downloadable text at Project Gutenberg
* Ang Dila Natong Bisaya
* Lagda Sa Espeling Rules of Spelling (Cebuano)
* Language Links.org - Philippine Languages to the world - Cebuano Lessons
* Online E-book of Spanish-Cebuano Dictionary, published in 1898 by Fr. Felix Guillén
* Cebuano dictionary
* Online bible, video and audio files, publications and other bible study material in Cebuano language [1]

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