Tagalog language

Tagalog is an Austronesian language spoken by the Tagalog people, who make up a quarter of the population of the Philippines. It is also used as a second language by most people in the country. The standardized version of Tagalog is called Filipino, which is the national language of the Philippines and one of its two official languages, the other being English.

Tagalog is closely related to many other Philippine languages, including the Bikol languages, the Bisaya languages, Ilocano, Kapampangan, and Pangasinan. It is also linked to languages found far beyond the Philippines, such as the Formosan languages of Taiwan, Indonesian, Malay, Hawaiian, Māori, and Malagasy, showing its place in the wide family of Austronesian languages.

Classification

Tagalog is a Central Philippine language within the large Austronesian language family. It is related to many other languages, such as Malagasy, Javanese, Indonesian, and Cebuano. Tagalog is especially close to languages spoken in the Bicol Region and the Visayas islands.

One interesting difference in Tagalog is how it treats certain sounds from older Philippine languages. For example, a sound that existed in older times changed differently in Tagalog compared to other nearby languages. This helps linguists understand how these languages are related and have changed over time.

History

Main article: Old Tagalog

The word Tagalog may come from taga-ilog, meaning "river dweller." Early words from Tagalog appear in the Laguna Copperplate Inscription from the tenth century, written mostly in Old Malay. The first full book in Tagalog, the Doctrina Christiana (Christian Doctrine), was printed in 1593. It was written in Spanish and two versions of Tagalog — one using the ancient Baybayin script and another using a Spanish-style Latin alphabet.

During the 333 years of Spanish rule, Spanish priests wrote many books about the language. Important works include dictionaries and grammar guides, such as the Vocabulario de la lengua tagala published in 1754.

Main article: Filipino language

Tagalog became an official language in 1897 under the first Philippine revolutionary constitution. In 1937, it was chosen as the basis for the national language, later named Pilipino and then Filipino. Today, Filipino — based on Tagalog — is one of the two official languages of the Philippines, along with English.

Tagalog is spoken by about a quarter of the Philippines' population as their first language and is understood by most as a second language.

Geographic distribution

Tagalog is mainly spoken in the Philippines, especially in central and southern parts of Luzon island. Areas like Aurora, Bataan, Batangas, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Metro Manila, Nueva Ecija, Quezon, and Rizal have many native speakers. It is also spoken on islands like Marinduque and Mindoro, and in some parts of Mindanao.

Outside the Philippines, Tagalog is used by many Filipino communities. The United States has many speakers, especially in California, Nevada, and Washington. Other countries with large Filipino populations, such as Saudi Arabia, Canada, Japan, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Malaysia, also have many Tagalog speakers.

Dialects

Tagalog has many dialects, or regional versions, spoken across different areas. Some main dialects include Northern (like in Bulacan), Central (including Manila), Southern (like in Batangas), and Marinduque. These dialects have small differences in pronunciation and vocabulary. For example, some dialects keep sounds that Standard Tagalog has dropped, and others change certain words slightly.

One of the most different dialects is spoken in Marinduque. It has unique verb forms and keeps some older language features. Outside Luzon, a special version of Tagalog called Soccsksargen Tagalog is spoken in the southwestern part of Mindanao. This dialect mixes Tagalog with other local languages due to the area's history of migration and cultural mixing.

Phonology

Main article: Tagalog phonology

Tagalog has 21 sounds, called phonemes: 16 consonants and 5 vowels. Words in Tagalog usually follow a pattern of a consonant followed by a vowel, but sometimes there are more complex sounds, especially in words borrowed from other languages.

Tagalog has five main vowel sounds. Originally, it had three vowels, but two new ones came from Spanish influence. The five vowels can change slightly depending on where they are in a word or how people say them. There are also four combinations of vowels called diphthongs. Stress, or which syllable is said louder, is important in Tagalog and can change the meaning of a word.

Grammar

Main articles: Tagalog grammar and Austronesian alignment

The grammar of Tagalog is agglutinative, meaning it builds words by sticking smaller parts together. It is also predicate-initial, with the verb usually coming first, and follows the Austronesian alignment system.

Tagalog uses many prefixes, infixes, suffixes, and other word parts to change verbs and show different meanings like time, mood, and who is doing what. Nouns are simpler but also use word parts to create new words. The language shows who is doing what using special words placed before nouns instead of changing the nouns themselves.

Word order usually starts with a verb, but can change to put emphasis on different parts of the sentence. Repetition of parts of words is common and has many uses, like showing ongoing actions or repeating actions. Stress on certain parts of a word can change its meaning.

Writing system

See also: Filipino orthography

Tagalog, like other Philippine languages, is written using the Latin alphabet today. Before the Spanish arrived in 1521, Tagalog was written in an abugida called Baybayin. This writing system gradually changed to the Latin alphabet brought by the Spanish. Over time, the Spanish created grammars and dictionaries for Philippine languages, using a writing system close to Spanish orthography.

In the late 1800s, some Filipinos suggested new ways to spell Tagalog. In 1884, a doctor named Trinidad Pardo de Tavera shared his study on ancient Tagalog scripts. In 1887, he also wrote an essay using a new writing system he created. Around the same time, Jose Rizal, another Filipino writer, began developing his own new spelling system. A big change in these new systems was using the letter ⟨k⟩ instead of ⟨c⟩ or ⟨q⟩ for the sound /k/.

Vocabulary and borrowed words

See also: List of loanwords in Tagalog

Tagalog has many words that come from its own Austronesian roots, like words ending in -iw or using repeating sounds. Over time, it has also taken in words from other languages. Spanish and English are big sources of new words, especially for more technical topics.

Long ago, traders using Malay helped bring Malay words into Tagalog. Tagalog also has words from Indian languages like Sanskrit, from Chinese languages like Hokkien, and from Japanese, Arabic, and Persian. Some Tagalog words have even made their way into English and Spanish.

Taglish (Englog)

Main article: Taglish

See also: Singlish and Spanglish

Taglish and Englog are names for mixing English and Tagalog in speaking. People in the Philippines often switch between these two languages, sometimes using a little English and sometimes more. This switching can happen even within a single sentence.

When people mix these languages, they often change foreign words to fit Filipino rules. Speakers usually choose the word that comes to mind first or seems easiest to use. This way of speaking is common among city dwellers and is also used in TV, radio, and newspapers. Companies like Wells Fargo, Wal-Mart, Albertsons, McDonald's, and Western Union have used Taglish in their ads.

Comparisons with Austronesian languages

Below is a chart showing how Tagalog compares with several other Austronesian languages using thirteen words.

comparing

Religious literature

Religious literature is very important in Tagalog writing. The first Bible in Tagalog, called Ang Dating Biblia, was printed in 1905. Later, in 1970, the Philippine Bible Society made a new version in modern Tagalog.

Many groups have their own Tagalog Bible versions. These include the Magandang Balita Biblia, the Bibliya ng Sambayanang Pilipino, the 1905 Ang Biblia, and the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures used by Jehovah's Witnesses.

After rules changed, allowing prayers to be in local languages, the Catholic church in the Philippines translated important prayer books into Tagalog. The Tagalog version of the Roman Missal was first published in 1982 and updated later.

Example texts

In Tagalog, the Lord's Prayer is known by its incipit, Amá Namin (literally, "Our Father").

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Tagalog begins:
“Bawat tao’y isinilang na may layà at magkakapantáy ang tagláy na dangál at karapatán. Silá’y pinagkalooban ng pangangatwiran at budhî, at dapat magpálagayan ang isá't-isá sa diwà ng pagkákapatiran.”

Numbers in Tagalog follow two systems. The first uses native Tagalog words, and the other uses Spanish-derived words. For example, the number "seven" can be translated as pitó or siyete (Spanish: siete).

Common phrases

Here are some common Tagalog proverbs and their meanings:

• Ang hindî marunong lumingón sa pinánggalingan ay hindî makaráratíng sa paroroonan.
  One who does not remember where they came from will never reach their destination.

• Unang kagát, tinapay pa rin.
  The first bite is still bread — something that seems small can still be valuable.

• Tao ka nang humaráp, bilang tao kitáng haharapin.
  Treat others as you would want to be treated — with respect and fairness.

• Hulí man daw (raw) at magalíng, nakáhahábol pa rin.
  Even if you start late, if you are capable, you can still succeed.

• Magbirô ka na sa lasíng, huwág lang sa bagong gising.
  You may laugh at someone who is drunk, but never at someone who has just woken up.

• Aanhín pa ang damó kung patáy na ang kabayò?
  What good is the grass if the horse is already dead? This means some actions are pointless if the main goal is already lost.

• Ang sakít ng kalingkingan, damdám ng buóng katawán.
  The pain in one finger is felt by the whole body — when one person suffers, the whole group feels it too.

• Nasa hulí ang pagsisisi.
  Regret always comes at the end.

• Pagkáhabà-habà man ng prusisyón, sa simbahan pa rin ang tulóy.
  Even if something takes a long time, it will still end where it must — like a procession that always ends at the church.

Main article: Tagalog grammar

Main articles: Procession , Shotgun marriage