Hiligaynon language
Encyclopedia
Hiligaynon, often referred to as Ilonggo, is an Austronesian language spoken in the Western Visayas
region of the Philippines
.
Hiligaynon is concentrated in the provinces of Iloilo
, Negros Occidental
and Capiz
but is also spoken in the other provinces of the Panay Island
group, including Antique
, Aklan, Guimaras
, and in many parts of Mindanao
including Koronadal City
, South Cotabato
, Sultan Kudarat and parts of North Cotabato. Further, it is spoken as a second language by Karay-a
speakers in Antique, Aklanon and Malaynon in Aklan, and Capiznon
in Capiz.
There are approximately 7,000,000 people in and outside the Philippines who are native speakers of Hiligaynon, and an additional 4,000,000 who are capable of speaking it with a substantial degree of proficiency.
It is a member of the Visayan language
family. It is distinctive from most Filipino languages for its sing-song intonation, much like Italian, particularly in the Bacolodnon dialect
, a characteristic that is derived from the large number of mestizos de sangley (Chinese mestizo
s) in the region.
The language is referred to as "Ilonggo" (Spanish: ilongo) in Iloilo and in Negros Occidental. Many argue, however, that this is an incorrect usage of the word "Ilonggo." In precise usage, "Ilonggo" should only be used in relation to the ethnolinguistic group that are native inhabitants of Iloilo
and the culture associated with native Hiligaynon speakers, they argue. The disagreement over the usage of "Ilonggo" to refer to the language extends to Philippine language specialists and native laymen.
The core alphabet consists of 20 letters used for expressing consonants and vowels in Hiligaynon, each of which comes in an upper case and lower case variety.
, ergative
, and oblique
. These types in turn are divided into personal, that have to do with names of people and impersonal, that deal with everything else, and further into singular
and plural types, though the plural impersonal case markers are just the singular impersonal case markers + mga, a particle used to denote plurality in Hiligaynon.
(*)The articles
sing and sing mga means the following noun is indefinite
, while sang tells of a definite noun, like the use of a in English as opposed to the, however, it is not as common in modern speech, being replace by sang. It appears in conservative translations of the Bible into Hiligaynon and in traditional or formal speech
(**)The plural personal case markers are not used very often and not even by all speakers. Again, this is an example of a case marker that has fallen largely into disuse, but is still occasionally used when speaking a more traditional form of Hiligaynon, using less Spanish loan words.
The case markers do not determine which noun is the subject
and which is the object
; rather, the affix of the verb determines this, though the ang-marked noun is always the topic.
In addition to this, there are two verbal deictics, karí, meaning come to speaker, and kadto, meaning to go yonder.
Examples:
"Si Inday ay maganda" (Tagalog)
"Si Inday matahum" (Hiligaynon) = "Inday is beautiful."
"Inday is beautiful" (English)
There is no direct translation for the English copula "to be" in Hiligaynon. However, the prefixes mangin- and nangin- may be used to mean will be and became, respectively.
Example:
Manámî mangin manggaranon
"It is nice to become rich"
The Spanish copula "estar" (to be) has also become a part of the Hiligaynon lexicon. Its meaning and pronunciation have become corrupted. In Hiligaynon it is pronounced as "istar" and means "to live (in)/location"(Compare with the Hiligaynon word "puyo").
Example:
Nagaistar ako sa tabuc suba
"I live in tabuc suba"
"tabuc suba" translates to "other side of the river" and is also a barangay in Jaro, Iloilo.
Example:
May idô (a)ko
"I have a dog"
Example:
Itom nga ido
Black dog
Sometimes, if the linker is preceded by a word that ends in a vowel, glottal stop or the letter N, it becomes acceptable to contract it into -ng, as in Filipino. This is often used to make the words sound more poetic or to reduce the number of syllables. Sometimes the meaning may change as in maayo nga aga and maayong aga. The first meaning: (the) good morning; while the other is the greeting for 'good morning'.
The linker ka is used if a number modifies a noun.
Example:
Anum ka ido
six dogs
Diin means where.
Example:
Diin ka na subong?
"Where are you now?"
A derivation of diin, tagadiin, is used to inquire the birthplace or hometown of the listener.
Example:
Tagadiin ka?
"Where are you from?"
San-o means when
Example:
San-o inâ?
"When is that?"
Sin-o means who
Example:
Sin-o imo abyan?
"Who is your friend?"
Nga-a means why
Example:
Nga-a indi ka magkadto?
"Why won't you go?"
Kamusta means how, as in "How are you?"
Example:
Kamusta ang tindahan?
"How is the store?"
Ano means what
Example:
Ano ang imo ginabasa?
"What are you reading?"
A derivative of ano, paano, means how, as in "How do I do that?"
Example:
Paano ko makapulî?
"How can I get home?"
A derivative of paano is paanoano an archaic phrase which can be compared with kamusta
Example:
Paanoano ikaw?
"How art thou?"
Pila means how much/how many
Example:
Pila ang maupod sa imo?
"How many are with you?"
A derivative of pila, ikapila, asks the numerical order of the person, as in, "What place were you born in your family?"(first-born, second-born, etc.) This word is notoriously difficult to translate into English, as English has no equivalent.
Example:
Ikapila ka sa inyo pamilya?
"What place were you born into your family?"
A derivative of pila, tagpila, asks the monetary value of something, as in, "How much is this beef?"
Example:
Tagpila ini nga karne sang baka?
"How much is this beef?"
Furthermore, active and passive grammatical constructions can be used in English to place focus on the actor or object as the subject:
In contrast, sentence focus in Philippine languages is built into the construction by grammatical elements. Focus is marked by verbal affixes and a special particle prior to the noun in focus. Consider the following Hiligaynon translations of the above sentences:
, the repetition of a root or stem of a word or part of a word for grammatical or semantic purposes. Reduplication in Hiligaynon tends to be limited to roots instead of affixes, as the only inflectional or derivational morpheme that seems to reduplicate is -pa-. Root reduplication suggests 'non-perfectiveness' or 'non-telicity'. Used nominally, reduplication of roots indicate particulars which are not fully actualized members of their class. Note the following examples.
Reduplication of verb
al roots suggests a process lacking a focus or decisive goal. The following examples describe events which have no apparent end, in the sense of lacking purpose or completion. A lack of seriousness may also be implied. Similarly, reduplication can suggest a background process in the midst of a foreground activity, as shown in (5).
When used with adjectival
roots, non-telicity may suggest a gradualness of the quality, such as the comparison in (6). In comparative constructions the final syllables of each occurrence of the reduplicated root are accented. If the stress of the second occurrence is shifted to the first syllable, then the reduplicated root suggests a superlative degree, as in (7). Note that superlatives can also be created through prefixation of pinaka- to the root, as in pinaka-dakô. While non-telicity can suggest augmentation, as shown in (7), it can also indicate diminishment as in shown in (9), in contrast with (8) (note the stress contrast). In (8b), maàyoáyo, accented in the superlative pattern, suggests a trajectory of improvement that has not been fully achieved. In (9b), maàyoayó suggests a trajectory of decline when accented in the comparative pattern. The reduplicated áyo implies sub-optimal situations in both cases; full goodness/wellness is not achieved.
s, with [i] in the beginning and middle and sometimes final syllables and [ɛ] in final syllables. The vowels [ʊ] and [o] are also allophones, with [ʊ] always being used when it is the beginning of a syllable, and [o] always used when it ends a syllable. Consonants [d] and [ɾ] were once allophones but cannot interchange as in other Philippine languages: patawaron (to forgive) [from patawad, forgiveness] but not patawadon, and tagadiín (from where) [from diín, where] but not tagariín.
Spanish verbs used in Hiligaynon often remain unconjugated (have the verb endings -ar, -er or -ir) which in Filipino would almost always be conjugated in the 'vos
' form, e.g., komparar, mandar, pasar, tener, disponer, mantener, and asistir.
Pagdayawon ang imo ngalan
Umabot sa amon ang imo ginharian
Matuman ang imo buot
Diri sa duta subong sang sa langit
Hatagan mo kami nian sing kan-on namon
Sa matag-adlaw
Kag ipatawad mo ang mga sala namon
Subong nga ginapatawad namon ang nakasala sa amon
Kag dili mo kami nga ipagpadaug sa mga panulay
Gino-o luwason mo kami sa kalaut
Amen.
, the story has been translated to Hiligaynon by Genevieve L. Asenjo and illustrated with new art by Beaulah Pedregosa Taguiwalo drawn from the landscapes of the Philippines.
The publisher is Mother Tongue Publishing Inc.http://mothertonguepublishinginc.wordpress.com/, a new publishing company based in Manila, Philippines formed in November 2006 by Mario and Beaulah Taguiwalo. Their mission is to publish books in as many languages as possible. They are inspired by the words of science fiction writer Ursula K. Le Guin: “Literature takes shape and life in the body, in the wombs of the mother tongue.” They also agree with neuro-scientist Elkhonon Goldberg
who refers to mother tongues as “an extremely adaptive and powerful device for modeling not only what is, but also what will be, what could be, and what we want and do not want to be.”
Dictionaries
Learning Resources
Writing System (Baybayin)
Primary Texts
Secondary Literature
Western Visayas
Western Visayas, one of the regions of the Philippines, is designated as Region VI. It consists of six provinces; Aklan, Antique, Negros Occidental, Capiz, Guimaras and Iloilo and 16 cities making it the region with the highest number of cities. Iloilo City is the regional center...
region of the 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...
.
Hiligaynon is concentrated in the provinces of Iloilo
Iloilo
Iloilo is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Iloilo occupies the southeast portion of Panay Island and is bordered by Antique Province to the west and Capiz Province and the Jintotolo Channel to the north. Just off Iloilo's southeast coast is Guimaras Province,...
, Negros Occidental
Negros Occidental
Negros Occidental is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is Bacolod City and it occupies the northwestern half of Negros Island; Negros Oriental is at the southeastern half...
and Capiz
Capiz
Capiz is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is Roxas City and is located at the northeastern portion of Panay Island, bordering Aklan and Antique to the west, and Iloilo to the south. Capiz faces the Sibuyan Sea to the north...
but is also spoken in the other provinces of the Panay Island
Panay Island
Panay is an island in the Philippines located in the western part of the Visayas. Politically, it is divided into five provinces: Aklan, Antique, Capiz, and Iloilo, all in the Western Visayas Region. It is located southeast of the island of Mindoro and northwest of Negros, separated by the...
group, including Antique
Antique province
Antique is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is San Jose and is located at the western portion of Panay Island, bordering Aklan, Capiz, and Iloilo to the east. Antique faces the Sulu Sea to the west....
, Aklan, Guimaras
Guimaras
Guimaras is an island province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Among the smallest provinces, its capital is Jordan. The island is located in the Panay Gulf, between the islands of Panay and Negros...
, and in many parts of Mindanao
Mindanao
Mindanao is the second largest and easternmost island in the Philippines. It is also the name of one of the three island groups in the country, which consists of the island of Mindanao and smaller surrounding islands. The other two are Luzon and the Visayas. The island of Mindanao is called The...
including Koronadal City
Koronadal City
Koronadal, also known as Marbel is a 1st class city in the Philippines. It is the capital of South Cotabato province and regional center of region 12. According to the 2009 census, it had a population of 184,573....
, South Cotabato
South Cotabato
South Cotabato is a province of the Philippines located in the SOCCSKSARGEN region in Mindanao. Its capital is Koronadal City, and it borders Sultan Kudarat to the north and west, Sarangani to the south and east, and Davao del Sur to the east...
, Sultan Kudarat and parts of North Cotabato. Further, it is spoken as a second language by Karay-a
Karay-a
The Karay-a, are part of the wider Visayan ethnolinguistic group, which constitute the largest Filipino ethnolinguistic group. The name of this group was derived from the word iraya, which means "upstream". Karay-a people speak Kinaray-a language...
speakers in Antique, Aklanon and Malaynon in Aklan, and Capiznon
Capiznon
Capiznon is an Austronesian language spoken in Western Visayas in the Philippines. Capiznon is concentrated in the province of Capiz in the northeast of Panay Island....
in Capiz.
There are approximately 7,000,000 people in and outside the Philippines who are native speakers of Hiligaynon, and an additional 4,000,000 who are capable of speaking it with a substantial degree of proficiency.
It is a member of the Visayan language
Visayan languages
The Visayan languages of the Philippines, along with Tagalog and Bikol, are part of the Central Philippine languages...
family. It is distinctive from most Filipino languages for its sing-song intonation, much like Italian, particularly in the Bacolodnon dialect
Bacolodnon dialect
Bacolodnon is a modern Hiligaynon dialect spoken in the province of Negros Occidental in the Philippines specifically in the City of BacolodBacolodnon is noted for its endearing, sing-song accent and having low or soft spoken tone that may differ from other Hiligaynon regions . It differs from...
, a characteristic that is derived from the large number of mestizos de sangley (Chinese mestizo
Mestizo
Mestizo is a term traditionally used in Latin America, Philippines and Spain for people of mixed European and Native American heritage or descent...
s) in the region.
The language is referred to as "Ilonggo" (Spanish: ilongo) in Iloilo and in Negros Occidental. Many argue, however, that this is an incorrect usage of the word "Ilonggo." In precise usage, "Ilonggo" should only be used in relation to the ethnolinguistic group that are native inhabitants of Iloilo
Iloilo
Iloilo is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Iloilo occupies the southeast portion of Panay Island and is bordered by Antique Province to the west and Capiz Province and the Jintotolo Channel to the north. Just off Iloilo's southeast coast is Guimaras Province,...
and the culture associated with native Hiligaynon speakers, they argue. The disagreement over the usage of "Ilonggo" to refer to the language extends to Philippine language specialists and native laymen.
Writing system
Until the second half of the 20th century, Hiligaynon was widely written based on Spanish orthography consisting of 32 letters called ABECEDARIO:The core alphabet consists of 20 letters used for expressing consonants and vowels in Hiligaynon, each of which comes in an upper case and lower case variety.
Alphabet
| The 1st to 10th letters | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Symbol | A a | B b | K k | D d | E e | G g | H h | I i | L l | M m | |||
| Name | a | ba | ka | da | e | ga | ha | i | la | ma | |||
| Pronunciation International Phonetic Alphabet The International Phonetic Alphabet "The acronym 'IPA' strictly refers [...] to the 'International Phonetic Association'. But it is now such a common practice to use the acronym also to refer to the alphabet itself that resistance seems pedantic... |
[a/ə] | [aw] | [aj] | [b] | [k] | [d] | [ɛ/e] | [g] | [h] | [I/i] | [IO] | [l] | [m] |
| in context | a | aw/ao | ay | b | k | d | e | g | h | i | iw/io | l | m |
| The 11th to 20th letters | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Symbol | N n | Ng ng | O o | P p | R r | S s | T t | U u | W w | Y y | |||
| Name | na | nga | o | pa | ra | sa | ta | u | wa | ya | |||
| Pronunciation International Phonetic Alphabet The International Phonetic Alphabet "The acronym 'IPA' strictly refers [...] to the 'International Phonetic Association'. But it is now such a common practice to use the acronym also to refer to the alphabet itself that resistance seems pedantic... |
[n] | [ŋ] | [ɔ/o] | [oj] | [p] | [r] | [s] | [ʃʲ] | [t] | [ʊ/u] | [w] | [w] | [j] |
| in context | n | ng | o | oy | p | r | s | sy | t | u | ua | w | y |
Additional symbols
The apostrophe(') and dash(-) also appear in Hiligaynon writing, and might be considered letters. In addition, some English letters may be used in borrowed words.Determiners
Hiligaynon has three types of case markers: absolutiveAbsolutive case
The absolutive case is the unmarked grammatical case of a core argument of a verb which is used as the citation form of a noun.-In ergative languages:...
, ergative
Ergative case
The ergative case is the grammatical case that identifies the subject of a transitive verb in ergative-absolutive languages.-Characteristics:...
, and oblique
Oblique case
An oblique case in linguistics is a noun case of synthetic languages that is used generally when a noun is the object of a verb or a preposition...
. These types in turn are divided into personal, that have to do with names of people and impersonal, that deal with everything else, and further into singular
Grammatical number
In linguistics, grammatical number is a grammatical category of nouns, pronouns, and adjective and verb agreement that expresses count distinctions ....
and plural types, though the plural impersonal case markers are just the singular impersonal case markers + mga, a particle used to denote plurality in Hiligaynon.
| Absolutive Absolutive case The absolutive case is the unmarked grammatical case of a core argument of a verb which is used as the citation form of a noun.-In ergative languages:... |
Ergative Ergative case The ergative case is the grammatical case that identifies the subject of a transitive verb in ergative-absolutive languages.-Characteristics:... |
Oblique Oblique case An oblique case in linguistics is a noun case of synthetic languages that is used generally when a noun is the object of a verb or a preposition... |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| singular impersonal | ang | sang, sing* | sa |
| plural impersonal | ang mga | sang mga, sing mga* | sa mga |
| singular personal | si | ni | kay |
| plural personal** | sanday | nanday | kanday |
(*)The articles
Article (grammar)
An article is a word that combines with a noun to indicate the type of reference being made by the noun. Articles specify the grammatical definiteness of the noun, in some languages extending to volume or numerical scope. The articles in the English language are the and a/an, and some...
sing and sing mga means the following noun is indefinite
Definiteness
In grammatical theory, definiteness is a feature of noun phrases, distinguishing between entities which are specific and identifiable in a given context and entities which are not ....
, while sang tells of a definite noun, like the use of a in English as opposed to the, however, it is not as common in modern speech, being replace by sang. It appears in conservative translations of the Bible into Hiligaynon and in traditional or formal speech
(**)The plural personal case markers are not used very often and not even by all speakers. Again, this is an example of a case marker that has fallen largely into disuse, but is still occasionally used when speaking a more traditional form of Hiligaynon, using less Spanish loan words.
The case markers do not determine which noun is the subject
Subject (grammar)
The subject is one of the two main constituents of a clause, according to a tradition that can be tracked back to Aristotle and that is associated with phrase structure grammars; the other constituent is the predicate. According to another tradition, i.e...
and which is the object
Object (grammar)
An object in grammar is part of a sentence, and often part of the predicate. It denotes somebody or something involved in the subject's "performance" of the verb. Basically, it is what or whom the verb is acting upon...
; rather, the affix of the verb determines this, though the ang-marked noun is always the topic.
| Ang lalaki nagkaon sang tinapay. | ≈ | Ang tinapay ginkaon sang lalaki. |
| "The man ate the bread" | "The bread was eaten by the man" (literal) |
Personal pronouns
| Absolutive Absolutive case The absolutive case is the unmarked grammatical case of a core argument of a verb which is used as the citation form of a noun.-In ergative languages:... |
Ergative Ergative case The ergative case is the grammatical case that identifies the subject of a transitive verb in ergative-absolutive languages.-Characteristics:... ₁ (Postposed) |
Ergative₂ (Preposed) |
Oblique Oblique case An oblique case in linguistics is a noun case of synthetic languages that is used generally when a noun is the object of a verb or a preposition... |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st person singular | ako, ko | nakon, ko | akon | sa akon |
| 2nd person singular | ikaw, ka | nimo, mo | imo | sa imo |
| 3rd person singular | siya | niya | iya | sa iya |
| 1st person plural inclusive | kita | naton, ta | aton | sa aton |
| 1st person plural exclusive | kami | namon | amon | sa amon |
| 2nd person plural | kamo | ninyo | inyo | sa inyo |
| 3rd person plural | sila | nila | ila | sa ila |
Demonstrative pronouns
| Absolutive Absolutive case The absolutive case is the unmarked grammatical case of a core argument of a verb which is used as the citation form of a noun.-In ergative languages:... |
Ergative Ergative case The ergative case is the grammatical case that identifies the subject of a transitive verb in ergative-absolutive languages.-Characteristics:... /Oblique Oblique case An oblique case in linguistics is a noun case of synthetic languages that is used generally when a noun is the object of a verb or a preposition... |
Locative Locative case Locative is a grammatical case which indicates a location. It corresponds vaguely to the English prepositions "in", "on", "at", and "by"... |
Existential | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nearest to speaker (this, here) * | iní | siní | dirí | (y)ári |
| Near to addressee or closely removed from speaker and addressee (that, there) | inâ | sinâ | dirâ | (y)ára' |
| Remote (yon, yonder) | ató | sadtó | didtó | (y)á(d)to |
In addition to this, there are two verbal deictics, karí, meaning come to speaker, and kadto, meaning to go yonder.
Copula
Hiligaynon lacks the marker of sentence inversion "ay" of Tagalog/Filipino or "hay" of Akeanon. Instead sentences in SV form (Filipino: Di karaniwang anyo) are written without any marker or copula.Examples:
"Si Inday ay maganda" (Tagalog)
"Si Inday matahum" (Hiligaynon) = "Inday is beautiful."
"Inday is beautiful" (English)
There is no direct translation for the English copula "to be" in Hiligaynon. However, the prefixes mangin- and nangin- may be used to mean will be and became, respectively.
Example:
Manámî mangin manggaranon
"It is nice to become rich"
The Spanish copula "estar" (to be) has also become a part of the Hiligaynon lexicon. Its meaning and pronunciation have become corrupted. In Hiligaynon it is pronounced as "istar" and means "to live (in)/location"(Compare with the Hiligaynon word "puyo").
Example:
Nagaistar ako sa tabuc suba
"I live in tabuc suba"
"tabuc suba" translates to "other side of the river" and is also a barangay in Jaro, Iloilo.
Existential
To indicate the existence of an object, the word may is used.Example:
May idô (a)ko
"I have a dog"
Hiligaynon Linkers
When an adjective modifies a noun, the linker nga links the two.Example:
Itom nga ido
Black dog
Sometimes, if the linker is preceded by a word that ends in a vowel, glottal stop or the letter N, it becomes acceptable to contract it into -ng, as in Filipino. This is often used to make the words sound more poetic or to reduce the number of syllables. Sometimes the meaning may change as in maayo nga aga and maayong aga. The first meaning: (the) good morning; while the other is the greeting for 'good morning'.
The linker ka is used if a number modifies a noun.
Example:
Anum ka ido
six dogs
Interrogative words
The interrogative words of Hiligaynon are as follows: diin, san-o, sin-o, nga-a, kamusta, ano, and pilaDiin means where.
Example:
Diin ka na subong?
"Where are you now?"
A derivation of diin, tagadiin, is used to inquire the birthplace or hometown of the listener.
Example:
Tagadiin ka?
"Where are you from?"
San-o means when
Example:
San-o inâ?
"When is that?"
Sin-o means who
Example:
Sin-o imo abyan?
"Who is your friend?"
Nga-a means why
Example:
Nga-a indi ka magkadto?
"Why won't you go?"
Kamusta means how, as in "How are you?"
Example:
Kamusta ang tindahan?
"How is the store?"
Ano means what
Example:
Ano ang imo ginabasa?
"What are you reading?"
A derivative of ano, paano, means how, as in "How do I do that?"
Example:
Paano ko makapulî?
"How can I get home?"
A derivative of paano is paanoano an archaic phrase which can be compared with kamusta
Example:
Paanoano ikaw?
"How art thou?"
Pila means how much/how many
Example:
Pila ang maupod sa imo?
"How many are with you?"
A derivative of pila, ikapila, asks the numerical order of the person, as in, "What place were you born in your family?"(first-born, second-born, etc.) This word is notoriously difficult to translate into English, as English has no equivalent.
Example:
Ikapila ka sa inyo pamilya?
"What place were you born into your family?"
A derivative of pila, tagpila, asks the monetary value of something, as in, "How much is this beef?"
Example:
Tagpila ini nga karne sang baka?
"How much is this beef?"
Focus
As it is essential for sentence structure and meaning, focus is a key concept in Hiligaynon and other Philippine languages. In English, in order to emphasize a part of a sentence, variation in intonation is usually employed – the voice is stronger or louder on the part emphasized. For example:- The man is stealing rice from the market for his sister.
- The man is stealing rice from the market for his sister.
- The man is stealing rice from the market for his sister.
- The man is stealing rice from the market for his sister.
- The man is stealing rice from the market for his sister with his hands.
Furthermore, active and passive grammatical constructions can be used in English to place focus on the actor or object as the subject:
- The man stole the rice. vs. The rice was stolen by the man.
In contrast, sentence focus in Philippine languages is built into the construction by grammatical elements. Focus is marked by verbal affixes and a special particle prior to the noun in focus. Consider the following Hiligaynon translations of the above sentences:
- Nagakawat ang lalaki sang bugas sa tinda para sa iya utod.
- Ginakawat sang lalaki ang bugas sa tinda para sa iya utod.
- Ginakawatan sang lalaki sang bugas ang tinda para sa iya utod.
- Ginakawatan sang lalaki sang bugas sa tinda ang iya utod.
- Ikawat sang lalaki sang bugas sa tinda para sa iya utod ang iya kamot.
Summary
| TRIGGER | ASPECT | MODE | |||||||
| Neutral | Purposive | Durative | Causative | Distributive | Cooperative | Dubitative | |||
| Agent | Goal | Unreal | -on | pag—on | paga—on | pa—on | pang—on | pakig—on | iga—on |
| Real | gin- | gin- | gina- | ginpa- | ginpang- | ginpakig- | ø | ||
| Referent | Unreal | -an | pag—an | paga—an | pa—an | pang—an | pakig—an | iga—an | |
| Real | gin—an | gin—an | gina—an | ginpa—an | ginpang—an | ginpakig—an | ø | ||
| Accessory | Unreal | i- | ipag- | ipaga- | ipa- | ipang- | ipakig- | iga- | |
| Real | gin- | gin- | gina- | ginpa- | ginpang- | ginpakig- | ø | ||
| Actor | Unreal | -um- | mag- | maga- | ø | mang- | makig- | ø | |
| Real | -um- | nag- | naga- | ø | nang- | nakig- | ø | ||
| Patient | Actor | Unreal | maka- | makapag- | makapaga- | makapa- | makapang- | mapapakig- | ø |
| Real | naka- | nakapag- | nakapaga- | nakapa- | nakapang- | napapakig- | ø | ||
| Goal | Unreal | ma- | mapag- | mapaga- | mapa- | mapang- | mapakig- | ø | |
| Real | na- | napag- | napaga- | napa- | napang- | napakig- | ø | ||
Reduplication
Hiligaynon, like other Philippine languages, employs reduplicationReduplication
Reduplication in linguistics is a morphological process in which the root or stem of a word is repeated exactly or with a slight change....
, the repetition of a root or stem of a word or part of a word for grammatical or semantic purposes. Reduplication in Hiligaynon tends to be limited to roots instead of affixes, as the only inflectional or derivational morpheme that seems to reduplicate is -pa-. Root reduplication suggests 'non-perfectiveness' or 'non-telicity'. Used nominally, reduplication of roots indicate particulars which are not fully actualized members of their class. Note the following examples.
| (1) | balày-bálay |
| house-house | |
| toy-house, playhouse |
| (2) | maèstra-maéstra |
| teacher-teacher | |
| make-believe teacher |
Reduplication of verb
Verb
A verb, from the Latin verbum meaning word, is a word that in syntax conveys an action , or a state of being . In the usual description of English, the basic form, with or without the particle to, is the infinitive...
al roots suggests a process lacking a focus or decisive goal. The following examples describe events which have no apparent end, in the sense of lacking purpose or completion. A lack of seriousness may also be implied. Similarly, reduplication can suggest a background process in the midst of a foreground activity, as shown in (5).
| (3) | Nag-a- | hìbî-híbî | ang | bátâ. |
| NAG-IMP- | cry-cry | FOC | child | |
| The child has been crying and crying. | ||||
| (4) | Nag-a- | tìnlo-tínlo | akò | sang | lamésa |
| NAG-IMP- | clean-clean | 1SG.FOC | UNFOC | table | |
| I'm just cleaning off the table (casually). | |||||
| (5) | Nag-a- | kàon-káon | gid | silá | sang | mag-abót | ang | íla | bisíta. |
| NAG-IMP- | eat-eat | just | 3PL.FOC | UNFOC | MAG-arrive | FOC | 3PL.UNFOC | visitor | |
| They were just eating when their visitor arrived. | |||||||||
When used with adjectival
Adjective
In grammar, an adjective is a 'describing' word; the main syntactic role of which is to qualify a noun or noun phrase, giving more information about the object signified....
roots, non-telicity may suggest a gradualness of the quality, such as the comparison in (6). In comparative constructions the final syllables of each occurrence of the reduplicated root are accented. If the stress of the second occurrence is shifted to the first syllable, then the reduplicated root suggests a superlative degree, as in (7). Note that superlatives can also be created through prefixation of pinaka- to the root, as in pinaka-dakô. While non-telicity can suggest augmentation, as shown in (7), it can also indicate diminishment as in shown in (9), in contrast with (8) (note the stress contrast). In (8b), maàyoáyo, accented in the superlative pattern, suggests a trajectory of improvement that has not been fully achieved. In (9b), maàyoayó suggests a trajectory of decline when accented in the comparative pattern. The reduplicated áyo implies sub-optimal situations in both cases; full goodness/wellness is not achieved.
| (6) | Iní | nga | kwárto | ma-dulùm-dulúm | sang | sa | sinâ |
| this.FOC | LINK | room | MA-dark-dark | UNFOC | OBL | that.UNFOC | |
| This room is darker than that one. | |||||||
| (7) | (a) | dakô-dakô |
| big-big | ||
| bigger | ||
| (b) | dakô-dákô (gid) | |
| big-big (really) | ||
| biggest |
| (8) | (a) | Ma-áyo | ang | reló. |
| MA-good | FOC | watch | ||
| The watch is good/functional. | ||||
| (b) | Ma-àyo-áyo | na | ang | reló. |
| MA-good-good | now | FOC | watch | |
| The watch is semi-fixed. | ||||
| (9) | (a) | Ma-áyo | akó. |
| MA-good | 1SG.FOC | ||
| I'm well. | |||
| (b) | Ma-àyo-ayó | na | akó. |
| MA-good-good | now | 1SG.FOC | |
| I'm so so. | |||
Sounds
Hiligaynon has sixteen consonants: /p t k b d ɡ m n ŋ s h w l ɾ j/. There are three main vowels: /a/, /ɛ ~ i/, and /o ~ ʊ/. [i] and [ɛ] (both spelled i) are allophoneAllophone
In phonology, an allophone is one of a set of multiple possible spoken sounds used to pronounce a single phoneme. For example, and are allophones for the phoneme in the English language...
s, with [i] in the beginning and middle and sometimes final syllables and [ɛ] in final syllables. The vowels [ʊ] and [o] are also allophones, with [ʊ] always being used when it is the beginning of a syllable, and [o] always used when it ends a syllable. Consonants [d] and [ɾ] were once allophones but cannot interchange as in other Philippine languages: patawaron (to forgive) [from patawad, forgiveness] but not patawadon, and tagadiín (from where) [from diín, where] but not tagariín.
Loan words
Hiligaynon has a large number of words that derive from Spanish words including nouns (e.g., santo from santo, saint), adjectives (e.g., berde from verde, green), prepositions (e.g., antes from antes, before), and conjunctions (e.g., pero from pero, but). Moreover, Spanish provides the Ilonggo base for items introduced by Spain, e.g., barko (barco, ship), sapatos (zapatos, shoes), kutsilyo (cuchillo, knife), kutsara (cuchara, spoon), tenedor (fork), plato (plate), kamiseta (camiseta, shirt), and kambiyo (cambio, change).Spanish verbs used in Hiligaynon often remain unconjugated (have the verb endings -ar, -er or -ir) which in Filipino would almost always be conjugated in the 'vos
Voseo
Voseo is the use of the second person singular pronoun vos in many dialects of Spanish. In dialects that have it, it is used either instead of tú, or alongside it....
' form, e.g., komparar, mandar, pasar, tener, disponer, mantener, and asistir.
Numbers
| Number | Hiligaynon |
|---|---|
| 1 | Isá |
| 2 | Duhá |
| 3 | Tatlo |
| 4 | Apat |
| 5 | Limá |
| 6 | Anum |
| 7 | Pitó |
| 8 | Waló |
| 9 | Siyám |
| 10 | Púlô |
| 100 | Gatús |
| 1000 | Libó |
| First | Tig-una |
| Second | Ika-duhá |
| Third | Ikatlo / Ika-tatlo |
| Fourth | Ikap-at / ika-apat |
| Fifth | Ika-limá |
| Sixth | Ikan-um / ika-anum |
| Seventh | Ika-pitó |
| Eighth | Ika-waló |
| Ninth | Ika-siyám |
| Tenth | Ika-púlô |
Days of the week
The names of the days of the week are derived from their Spanish equivalents.| Day | Adlaw |
|---|---|
| Sunday | Domingo |
| Monday | Lunes |
| Tuesday | Martes |
| Wednesday | Miyerkoles |
| Thursday | Huwebes |
| Friday | Biyernes |
| Saturday | Sabadó |
Months of the year
The first set of Hiligaynon names of the months are derived from Spanish.| Month | Bulan |
|---|---|
| January | Enero; ulalong |
| February | Pebrero; dagangkahoy |
| March | Marso; dagangbulan |
| April | Abril; kiling |
| May | Mayo; himabuyan |
| June | Hunio; kabay |
| July | Hulyo; hidapdapan |
| August | Agosto; lubad-lubad |
| September | Septiyembre; kangurolsol |
| October | Oktubre; bagyo-bagyo |
| November | Nobiyembre; panglot-diotay |
| December | Dissiyembre; panglot-daku |
Quick phrases
| English | Hiligaynon |
|---|---|
| Yes. | Hu-o. |
| No. | Indî. |
| Thank you. | Salamat. |
| I'm sorry. | Patawaron mo ako. / Pasaylo-a 'ko. / Pasensyahon mo ako. / Pasensya na. |
| Help me! | Buligi ako! / Tabangi (a)ko! / |
| Delicious! | Namit! |
| Take care. | Halong. |
| Are you mad? | Akig ka? |
| I don't know. | Ambot. / Wala ko kabalo. |
| That's wonderful! | Námì-námì bala! / Nami ah! |
Greetings, friends and lovers
| English | Hiligaynon |
|---|---|
| Good morning. | Maayong aga. |
| Good noon. | Maayong ugto. |
| Good afternoon. | Maayong hapon. |
| Good evening. | Maayong gab-i. |
| How are you? | Kamusta ka?/Kamusta ikaw?/Musta na? |
| I'm fine. | Maayo man. |
| I am fine, how about you? | Maayo man, ikaw ya? |
| How old are you? | Pila na ang edad (ni)mo? / Ano ang edad mo? / Pila ka-tuig ka na? |
| I am 25 years old. | Beinte singko anyos na (a)ko./ Duha ka pulo kag lima ka tuig na (a)ko. |
| I am Erman. | Ako si Erman./Si Erman ako. |
| What is your name? | Ano imo ngalan?/ Ano ngalan (ni)mo? |
| I love you. | Palangga ta ka./Ginahigugma ko ikaw. |
| Thank you very much. | Salamat gid./ Madamo gid nga salamat. |
This, that, and whatnot...
| English | Hiligaynon |
|---|---|
| What is this? | Ano (i)ni? |
| This is a sheet of paper. | Isa ni ka panid sang papel./Isa ka panid ka papel ini. |
| What is that? | Ano (i)nâ? |
| That is a book. | Libro (i)nâ. |
| What will you do? | Ano ang himu-on (ni)mo? / Ano ang buhaton (ni)mo? / Maano ka? |
| What are you doing? | Ano ang ginahimo (ni)mo? / Gaano ka? |
| I don't know. | Ambot |
| My girl friend/boy friend | Ang akon miga/migo |
| My girlfriend/boyfriend | Ang akon uyab |
Space and time
| English | Hiligaynon |
|---|---|
| Where are you now? | Diin ka subong? |
| Where shall we go? | Diin (ki)ta makadto? |
| Where are we going? | Diin (ki)ta pakadto? |
| Where are you going? | (Sa) diin ka makadto? |
| We shall go to Bacolod. | Makadto (ki)ta sa Bacolod. |
| I am going home. | Mapa-uli na ko (sa balay). / (Ma)puli na ko. |
| Where do you live? | Diin ka naga-istar?/Diin ka naga-puyô? |
| Where did you come from? (Where have you just been?) | Diin ka (nag)-halin? |
| Have you been here long? | Dugay ka na di(ri)? |
| (To the) left. | (Sa) wala. |
| (To the) right. | (Sa) tuô. |
| What time is it? | Ano('ng) takna na?/Ano('ng) oras na? |
| It's ten o'clock. | Alas diyes na. |
| What time is it now? | Ano ang oras subong? or Ano oras na? |
The marketplace
| English | Hiligaynon |
|---|---|
| May I buy? | Pwede ko ma(g)-bakal? |
| How much is this/that? | Tag-pilá iní/inâ? |
The Lord's Prayer
Amay namon, nga yara ka sa mga langitPagdayawon ang imo ngalan
Umabot sa amon ang imo ginharian
Matuman ang imo buot
Diri sa duta subong sang sa langit
Hatagan mo kami nian sing kan-on namon
Sa matag-adlaw
Kag ipatawad mo ang mga sala namon
Subong nga ginapatawad namon ang nakasala sa amon
Kag dili mo kami nga ipagpadaug sa mga panulay
Gino-o luwason mo kami sa kalaut
Amen.
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Ang Kalibutanon nga Pahayag sang mga Katarungang Pangkataohan)Ang Bukid Nga Nagpalangga Sang Pispis
Ang Bukid Nga Nagpalangga Sang Pispis is a fully illustrated, colored children's picture book. The original story is The Mountain That Loved A Bird by Alice McLerran. Originally published in the United States with illustrations by Eric CarleEric Carle
Eric Carle is a children's book author and illustrator who is most famous for his book The Very Hungry Caterpillar, which has been translated into over 50 languages...
, the story has been translated to Hiligaynon by Genevieve L. Asenjo and illustrated with new art by Beaulah Pedregosa Taguiwalo drawn from the landscapes of the Philippines.
The publisher is Mother Tongue Publishing Inc.http://mothertonguepublishinginc.wordpress.com/, a new publishing company based in Manila, Philippines formed in November 2006 by Mario and Beaulah Taguiwalo. Their mission is to publish books in as many languages as possible. They are inspired by the words of science fiction writer Ursula K. Le Guin: “Literature takes shape and life in the body, in the wombs of the mother tongue.” They also agree with neuro-scientist Elkhonon Goldberg
Elkhonon Goldberg
Elkhonon Goldberg is a neuropsychologist and cognitive neuroscientist known for his work in hemispheric specialization and the "novelty-routinization" theory.- Biography :...
who refers to mother tongues as “an extremely adaptive and powerful device for modeling not only what is, but also what will be, what could be, and what we want and do not want to be.”
Noted Hiligaynon Writers
- Antonio Ledesma JaymeAntonio Ledesma JaymeAntonio Ledesma Jayme was a Filipino lawyer, revolutionary, provincial governor and assemblyman.-Early years and education:Antonio L. Jayme was born on July 24, 1854 in what is now the district of Jaro, Iloilo City...
(1854–1937) Lawyer, revolutionary, provincial governor and assemblyman. Born in Jaro. - Graciano López JaenaGraciano López JaenaGraciano López Jaena was a Filipino journalist, orator, and revolutionary from Iloilo, well known for his written work, La Solidaridad....
(1856–1896) Journalist, orator, and revolutionary from Iloilo, well known for his written works, La SolidaridadLa solidaridadLa Solidaridad was an organization created in Spain on December 13, 1888. Composed of Filipino liberals exiled in 1872 and students attending Europe's universities, the organization aimed to increase Spanish awareness of the needs of its colony, the Philippines, and to propagate a closer...
and Fray Botod. Born in Jaro. - Flavio Zaragoza y Cano (1892–1994) Lawyer, journalist and the "Prince of Visayan poets". Born in Janipaan. http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=Flavio_Zaragoza_Canohttp://www.nhi.gov.ph/downloads/ca0045.pdf.
- Conrado Saquian Norada (1921– ) Lawyer, intelligence officer and governor of Iloilo from 1969–1986. Co-founder and editor of Yuhum magazine. Born in Iloilo City. http://www.panitikan.com.ph/authors/n/csnorada.htm
- Ramon Muzones (?-?) Born in Molo. http://books.google.ca/books?id=v8Xk_10M4icC&pg=PA1&lpg=PA1&dq=Ramon+Muzones&source=bl&ots=4rCNeKWm7_&sig=jqPAW0uJFaOUa15Lr_sNTK4PPZI&hl=en&ei=wWEmTrOJPIensQLO6t2TDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBYQ6AEwAA
- Magdalena JalandoniMagdalena JalandoniMagdalena Gonzaga Jalandoni was a Filipino feminist writer. She is now remembered as one of the most prolific Filipino writers in the Hiligaynon language...
(1891–1978) Prolific writer, novelist and feminist. Born in Jaro.http://www.nhi.gov.ph/downloads/lt0021.pdf - Angel Magahum Sr. (1876–1931) Writer, editor and composer. Composed the classic Iloilo ang Banwa Ko, the unofficial song of Iloilo. Born in Molo.http://www.thenewstoday.info/2008/08/05/angel.m.magahum.sr.htmlhttp://fil.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=Angel_Magahum%2C_Sr.
- Jimeno Damaso
- Serapion Torre Born in Mandurriao.
- Valente Cristobal (1875–1945) Noted Hiligaynon playwright. Born in Polo (now Valenzuela City), Bulacan. http://bayanihan.org/2010/05/21/today-in-history-87/
- Agustin Sayno of Arevalo
- Salvador Magnoer
External links
- Ethnologue report for Hiligaynon
- Omniglot on Hiligaynon Writing
- Ilonggo Community & Discussion Board
Dictionaries
- Hiligaynon to English Dictionary
- English to Hiligaynon Dictionary
- Bansa.org Hiligaynon Dictionary
- Kaufmann's 1934 Hiligaynon dictionary on-line
- Diccionario de la lengua Bisaya Hiligueina y Haraya de la Isla de Panay (by Alonso de Méntrida, published in 1841)
Learning Resources
- Some information about learning Ilonggo
- Hiligaynon Lessons (by Cecile L. Motus. 1971)
- Hiligaynon Reference Grammar (by Elmer Wolfenden 1971)
Writing System (Baybayin)
- Baybayin – The Ancient Script of the Philippines
- The evolution of the native Hiligaynon alphabet
- The evolution of the native Hiligaynon alphabet: Genocide
- The importance of the Hiligaynon 32-letter alphabet
Primary Texts
- Online E-book of Ang panilit sa pagcasal ñga si D.ª Angela Dionicia: sa mercader ñga contragusto in Hiligaynon, published in Mandurriao, IloiloIloiloIloilo is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Iloilo occupies the southeast portion of Panay Island and is bordered by Antique Province to the west and Capiz Province and the Jintotolo Channel to the north. Just off Iloilo's southeast coast is Guimaras Province,...
(perhaps, in the early 20th century)
Secondary Literature
- Language and Desire in Hiligaynon (by Corazón D. Villareal. 2006)
- Missionary Linguistics: selected papers from the First International Conference on Missionary Linguistics, Oslo, March 13–16th, 2003 (ed. by Otto Zwartjes and Even Hovdhaugen