The Asi language is a Visayan language

Visayan languages

The Visayan languages of the Philippines, along with Tagalog and Bikol, are part of the Central Philippine languages...

 spoken, along with the Romblomanon

Romblomanon language

Romblomanon is a Visayan language spoken, along with the Asi and Onhan languages, in the province of Romblon in the Philippines. The language is also called Ini, Tiyad Ini, Basi, Niromblon, Sibuyanon, and Bisaya....

 and Onhan language

Onhan language

The Onhan language is a Kinaray-a language spoken, along with the Romblomanon and Asi languages, in the province of Romblon, Philippines. The language is also known as Inunhan and Loocnon....

s, in the province of Romblon

Romblon

Romblon is an island province of the Philippines located in the MIMAROPA region. It lies south of Marinduque and Quezon, east of Mindoro, north of Aklan and Capiz, and west of Masbate. Its capital is also named Romblon....

, Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

. The language is also known as Bantoanon, Calatravanhon, Odionganon, Sibalenhon, Simaranhon, and Bisaya.

Specifically, it is spoken on the following islands within Romblon:

• Tablas
  Tablas Island
  Tablas is the largest of the islands that comprise the province of Romblon in the Philippines.Odiongan, on the west central coast of the island, is a major port and the largest municipality of Romblon in terms of population...
  
  : the municipalities
  Municipalities of the Philippines
  A municipality is a local government unit in the Philippines. Municipalities are also called towns . They are distinct from cities, which are a different category of local government unit...
  
   of Odiongan
  Odiongan, Romblon
  Odiongan is a 2nd class municipality in the province of Romblon, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 39,069 people in 8,624 households...
  
   and Calatrava
  Calatrava, Romblon
  Calatrava is a 5th class municipality in the province of Romblon, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 8,878 people in 1,674 households....
  
  , situated respectively on the western and northern parts of the island. The Odiongan dialect has more outside influences and is more widely used in literature.
• Banton
  Banton Island
  Banton Island is an island in the province of Romblon in the Philippines. It has one municipality named Banton.It is the most northerly island of the province; the surface is rugged except in the southeast; the soil is sterile and few crops are raised; the chief industry is the mining of gypsum....
  
  : the island's sole municipality of Banton
  Banton, Romblon
  Banton is a 5th class municipality in the province of Romblon, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 6,769 people in 1,478 households...
  
  . This is the prestige dialect of Bantuanon/Asi and is considered by many native speakers to be the most representative dialect of the language.
• Simara: the island's sole municipality of Corcuera
  Corcuera, Romblon
  Corcuera is a 5th class municipality in the province of Romblon, Philippines, located in the Simara Island. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 10,972 people in 2,270 households...
  
  .
• Maestre de Campo (also known as Sibale): the island's sole municipality of Concepcion
  Concepcion, Romblon
  Concepcion is a municipality in the island of Maestro de Campo or Sibale in the province of Romblon, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 4,683 people in 1,063 households.-Population of Concepcion at various times:...
  
  .

David Zorc notes that Bantuanon speakers may have been the first Visayan speakers in the Romblon

Romblon

Romblon is an island province of the Philippines located in the MIMAROPA region. It lies south of Marinduque and Quezon, east of Mindoro, north of Aklan and Capiz, and west of Masbate. Its capital is also named Romblon....

 region. He also suggests that Bantuanon may have a Cebuan substratum

Substratum

In linguistics, a stratum or strate is a language that influences, or is influenced by another through contact. A substratum is a language which has lower power or prestige than another, while a superstratum is the language that has higher power or prestige. Both substratum and superstratum...

 and that many of its words may have been influenced by the later influx of other languages such as Romblomanon

Romblomanon language

Romblomanon is a Visayan language spoken, along with the Asi and Onhan languages, in the province of Romblon in the Philippines. The language is also called Ini, Tiyad Ini, Basi, Niromblon, Sibuyanon, and Bisaya....

.

Sounds

Asi has sixteen consonants: p, t, k, b, d, g, m, n, ng, s, h, w, l, r and y. There are four vowels: a, i/e, and u/o. The vowels i and e are allophones, with i always being used when it is the beginning and sometimes end of a syllable, and e always used when it ends a syllable.The vowels u and o are allophones, with u always being used when it is the beginning and sometimes end of a syllable, and o always used when it ends a syllable. This is one of the Philippine languages which is excluded from [ɾ]-[d] allophone.

Pronouns

	Absolutive	Ergative	Oblique
1st person singular	akó	nako, ko	akò
2nd person singular	ikaw, ka	nimo, mo	imo
3rd person singular	sida	nida	ida
1st person plural inclusive	kita	nato	ato
1st person plural exclusive	kami	namo	amo
2nd person plural	kamo	ninro	inro
3rd person plural	sinra	ninra	inra

External links

• Banton language information