Appendix:Cebuano–Tagalog relations

This appendix contains the relations between the languages Cebuano and Tagalog.

Cebuano and Tagalog are two languages of the Philippines with the most native speakers, both descended from a last common ancestor called Proto-Central Philippine. Cebuano is spoken in Cebu, eastern Negros island, Bohol, western & southern Leyte and most of Mindanao. Tagalog is spoken in Metro Manila, as well as Bataan, Batangas, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Marinduque, Mindoro island, Nueva Ecija, Palawan, Quezon, Rizal and Zambales, and serves as the basis of the national language Filipino, one of the Philippines' official languages alongside English. Cebuano and Tagalog are closely related, both being Central Philippine languages, and shares many cognates, but they are not mutually intelligible, and there are also many false friends and false cognates speakers of both languages can encounter.

Unless otherwise indicated, Cebuano terms listed here usually refer to General Cebuano words, that is, those from the de facto prestige dialect of Cebuano spoken around Carcar in Cebu. For Tagalog, terms used in the standard language of Manila is used. Where no accent is provided, the word is pronounced with second-to-final (penultimate) stress.

Cognates

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Cebuano and Tagalog shares many cognates, especially in core vocabulary. Most Cebuano-Tagalog cognates descend from Proto-Central Philippine, Proto-Philippine, Proto-Malayo-Polynesian and Proto-Austronesian. For each of these forms, a Proto-Central Philippine (PCPh) reconstruction is given. This list excludes terms that are spelled similarly and mean the same in both languages:

Reflexes for Proto-Philippine (PPh) sounds in Cebuano and Tagalog via Proto-Central Philippine (PCPh) respectively are as follows. Cebuano reflexes also apply to the other Bisayan languages:

  • PPh/PCPh *ə → Cebuano and Bisayan /o ~ u/, Tagalog /i/. The Bisayan reflex is also shared with Bikol languages (Albay Bikol, Bikol Central, Iriga Bicolano/Rinconada, etc.), as well as most Bisayan languages (Aklanon, Capiznon, Hiligaynon, Masbatenyo, Surigaonon, Tausug, Waray-Waray, etc.). Karay-a keeps the schwa, as well as the Rinconada (Iriga) Bikol dialects.
  • PPh *ʀ → PCPh *g → Cebuano and Tagalog ⟨g⟩ /ɡ/.
  • PPh *z → PCPh *d → Cebuano and Tagalog ⟨d⟩ /d/ (⟨r⟩ in Tagalog and ancient Cebuano in intervocalic position)
  • Intervocalic PPh/PCPh *l often disappears or changes to h, w or y in Tagalog depending on the surrounding vowels. General or Standard Cebuano (Carcar-Dalaguete dialect) retains it, but some Cebuano dialects (Metro Cebu, Boholano, Leyte) lose it.
  • Intervocalic PPh/PCPh *d generally turns to r and eventually l in both Cebuano and Tagalog.
  • The clusters PPh *l+consonant (except *h, *q or another *l) and *q+consonant undergo reduction in Tagalog, with the former sound disappearing and the preceding vowel lengthened (and thus stressed in modern Tagalog). Most Bisayan languages including Cebuano retain these clusters, albeit with metathesis (e.g. PPh *qalsəm > PCPh *ʔalsəm > Cebuano aslom and Old Tagalog: */a:sim/ > Tagalog ásim; PPh *baqʀu > PCPh *baʔgu > Cebuano bag-o and Old Tagalog: */ba:gu/ > Tagalog bágo)

Loanwords

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Cebuano borrowings in Tagalog

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Tagalog has loanwords from Cebuano, mostly due to to Cebuano and Bisayan migration to Tagalog-speaking regions. Some of these terms refer to concepts that did not previously exist in Tagalog or relate to Cebuano or Bisaya culture; some others have pre-existing equivalents and are introduced to Tagalog by native Cebuano speakers. Some Tagalog slang are of Cebuano provenance (e.g. Tagalog jombag, from Cebuano sumbag).

  • bilanggo - prisoner. Originally meant “bailiff”. Of Tamil origin. Borrowed further into Ilocano via Tagalog but with a different meaning.
  • bilangguan - prison. From bilanggoan, which originally meant “bailiff's house", and derives from bilanggo (see above). Coexists with kulungan.
  • buang - crazy, insane. Coexists with baliw.
  • dugong - dugong; sea cow
  • habal-habal – motorcycle taxi
  • kawatan - robber. Coexists with magnanakaw.
  • lungsod – city. Borrowed into Tagalog under the Tagalista movement with the intention of displacing the Spanish borrowing siyudad.
  • Tsekwa - (ethnic slur) Chinese person. Originated from Insik wakang, kaon, kalibang, a Cebuano limerick chanted by children to mock Chinese people in the late 19th century.
  • tulisan - bandit. Since borrowed into Bikol (same meaning) and Ilocano (with the meaning "robber").

Tagalog borrowings in Cebuano

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See also: Category:Cebuano terms derived from Tagalog

Cebuano, in turn, also has loanwords from Tagalog. Most of these words usually form the vocabulary of "Bisalog" (Cebuano-Tagalog code-switching, or Cebuano varieties influenced by Tagalog, especially spoken Davao Cebuano). Some of these coexist with pre-existing equivalents.

False friends and false cognates

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Cebuano and Tagalog has many false friends and false cognates.

Cebuano word Cebuano word's English translation Tagalog translation Tagalog word Tagalog word's English translation Cebuano translation Notes
asó smoke usok aso dog irô Tagalog also has asó in the same sense as Cebuano, but usok is more widely used.
bago paddy oats (Gnetum gnemon) bago new bag-o
balon food, money or provisions to be brought on a trip baon balón well atabay
bangág hole butas bangág intoxicated; high; stoned
bangaw rainbow bahaghari bangaw blowfly; botfly lagong
bantót light thud of a falling object bantot foul smell of stagnant water
banyaga rascal; scoundrel banyagà foreigner From Sanskrit via Malay berniaga.
basbás to chop off nodes, lumps, etc. in wood or bamboo; to husk corn basbás blessing; benediction bendisyón
batasan custom; habit gawî, kagawian batasan legislature balaoran, lehislatura Cebuano sense also used in Hiligaynon and Waray-Waray. The Tagalog derives from batas (law), which is likely originated as a back-formation of the Cebuano, and dates from the early 20th century.
batid experienced; skilled bihasà, dalubhasà batíd aware nasayod Cebuano sense also used in Hiligaynon
binata childish kilos-bata, isip-bata binatà bachelor Sense also used in Waray-Waray
bukid mountain bundok bukid field; farm patag, umahan Both from Proto-Austronesian, but meanings since diverged due to cultural and geographical differences between the Tagalogs and the Cebuanos (the Tagalog homeland is mostly plains, while Cebu is mostly hills and mountains). Both Cebuano and Tagalog are cognate with Indonesian and Malay bukit (hill); the Cebuano meaning is much closer to those, but are still false friends.
butò
butó
(vulgar) vulva
to explode
kiki
sabog
butó bone bukog
butó seed liso, binhi
daan old lumà, matandâ daán way, road, street dalan Cebuano is cognate with Ilocano daan
daán hundred gatos
dagan to run takbo dagán
dagsà to wash ashore dagsa arrival in great numbers baha, punsisok
didto there doón dito here dinhi Cebuano dinhi is cognate to Southern Tagalog dini.
dukót burned rice tutóng dukot act of pulling or drawing out of something from a pocket, bag, etc. kuot Cebuano is cognate with Tagalog dikit
gamót root of plants ugát gamót medicine tambal Both from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian. Both Cebuano and Tagalog are cognate with Ilocano ramot; Cebuano and Ilocano share the same meaning.
gubat war giyera, digmaan gubat forest lasang Tagalog also has the "war" sense, but is now obsolete.
hubog drunk; intoxicated lasing hubog to shape; figure; form; mold

curved

giporma; kurbado Both Cebuano and Hiligaynon share the same word and definition, albeit in a different spelling (see hubug.) The words giporma (root word: porma) and kurbado are also used in Bikol Central (see porma, and kurbado), which are derivatives from the Spanish words forma and curvado.
kagaw germ, microbe mikrobyo kagaw itch

mite

Both from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian. Tagalog has since acquired the sense of “germ; microbe” but the loanword mikrobyo is still more commonly used.
kamót hand kamáy kamot scratch kuskós
kawáy tentacle galamay kaway waving of hands; calling someone by waving warawara Tagalog is also borrowed to Cebuano. Words come from similar PMP roots, meaning "to wave one's hands" and "tentacle"; a connection between the two is proposed.
langgam bird ibon langgám ant holmigas
libog confusion litó libog libido; sex drive biga, ulag
litid exposed root of a tree litid tendon; ligament
lungsód town bayan lungsód city siyudád, dakbayan Tagalog borrowed the Cebuano under the early 1900s Tagalista movement, but with deliberate semantic shift to "city" in attempt to replace siyudad, resulting to the Cebuano and Tagalog becoming false friends.
ngalngál to make thoughtless, extravagant demands ngalngál loud, long cry of a child
pakpak husk; bark of trees balat pakpak wing pakó
pakô wing pakpak pakò nail lansáng
palít to buy bili palít change; exchange puli From Proto-Philippine.
pulò ten sampû pulô island pulô, isla
saad promise; vow pangakò saád saying or mention of something sulti
suhol wage; compensation sahod, kompensasyon suhol bribe suborno Cebuano suhol has since acquired the sense of "bribe", but is associated with Bisalog (Cebuano influenced by Tagalog, especially spoken Cebuano in Davao Region).
tuló three tatló tulò drip; drop tulò
tulong skewer tuhog tulong help tabang
usá one isá usá deer usá
walá left kaliwâ walâ none, nothing walâ

Example texts

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Provided here are various example texts for comparison between the two languages.

Basic phrases

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English Cebuano Tagalog
Hello Kumusta/Maayong adlaw Kumusta/Magandang araw
Good morning Maayong buntag Magandang umaga
Good afternoon Maayong udto (noon-12:59PM); Maayong palis (1-2:59PM); Maayong hapon (3-6PM) Magandang tanghali (noon-12:59PM); Magandang hapon (1-6PM)
Good evening Maayong gabii Magandang gabi
Goodbye Ari na ko; Hangtod sa sunod na kahigayon Hanggang sa muli
Thank you Salamat
Thank you very much Daghang salamat Maraming salamat

Lord's Prayer

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Cebuano Tagalog

Amahan Namo

Amahan namo, nga anaa sa langit, pagabalaanon unta ang imong ngalan. Umabot kanamo ang imong gingharian, matuman ang imong kabubut-on, dinhi sa yuta maingon sa langit. Hatagi kami karong adlawa sa among kalan-on sa matag adlaw, ug pasayloa kami sa among mga sala, maingon nga kami usab nagapasaylo sa mga makasasala kanamo, ug ayaw kami itugyan sa panulay, kondili luwasa kami gikan sa daotan. Amen.

Ama Namin

Ama namin, sumasalangit ka, sambahin ang ngalan mo. Mapasaamin ang kaharian mo, sundin ang loob mo, dito sa lupa para nang sa langit. Bigyan mo kami ngayon ng aming pagkain sa araw-araw, at patawarin mo ang aming mga sala, para nang pagpapatawad namin sa nagkasala sa amin, at huwag mo kami ipahintulot sa tukso, at iadya mo kami sa lahat ng masama. Amen.

Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

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Cebuano Tagalog
Ang tanang katawhan gipakatawo nga may kagawasan ug managsama sa kabilihon. Sila gigasahan sa salabotan ug tanlag ug mag-ilhanay isip managsoon sa usag usa diha sa diwa sa espiritu. Bawat tao'y isinilang na may laya at magkakapantay ang taglay na dangal at karapatan. Sila'y pinagkalooban ng pangangatwiran at budhi na kailangang gamitin nila sa pagtuturingan nila sa diwa ng pagkakapatiran.