Tagalog

Tagalog is an Austronesian language with about 57 million speakers in the Philippines, particularly in Manila, central and southern parts of Luzon, and also on the islands of Lubang, Marinduque, and the northern and eastern parts of Mindoro. Tagalog speakers can also be found in many other countries, including Canada, Guam, Midway Islands, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, UK and USA.

Tagalog used to be written with the Baybayin alphabet, which probably developed from the Kawi script of Java, Bali and Sumatra, which in turn descended from the Pallava script, one of the southern Indian scripts derived from Brahmi. Today the Baybayin alphabet is used mainly for decorative purposes and the Latin alphabet is used to write to Tagalog.

The name Tagalog derives from tagá-ílog, which means "resident beside the river". Little is known of the history of the language before the arrival of the Spanish in the Philippines during the 16th century as no eariler written materials have been found.

The earliest known book in Tagalog is the Doctrina Cristiana (Christian Doctrine) which was published in 1593. It was written in Spanish and Tagalog, with the Tagalog text in both Baybayin and the Latin alphabet.

Notable features

Type of writing system: syllabic alphabet in which each consonant has an inherent vowel /a/. Other vowels are indicated either by separate letters, or by dots - a dot over a consonant changes the vowels to an /i/ or and /e/, while a dot under a consonant changes the vowel to /o/ or /u/.
The inherent vowel is muted by adding a + sign beneath a consonant. This innovation was introduced by the Spanish.
Direction of writing: left to right in horizontal lines.

The Baybayin alphabet

Baybayin alphabet

Latin alphabet for Tagalog
A a	B b	K k	D d	E e	G g	H h	I i	L l	M m
a	ba	ka	da	e	ga	ha	i	la	ma
N n	Ng ng	O o	P p	R r	S s	T t	U u	W w	Y y
na	nga	o	pa	ra	sa	ta	u	wa	ya

Hear the Tagalog alphabet at:
http://www.tagaloglang.com/abakada.htm

Pronunciation

Tagalog pronunciation

Sample text in the Baybayin alphabet

Sample text in Taglog in the Baybayin script

Sample text in the Latin alphabet

Ang lahat ng tao'y isinilang na malaya at pantay-pantay sa karangalan at mga karapatan. Sila'y pinagkalooban ng katwiran at budhi at dapat magpalagayan ang isa't isa sa diwa ng pagkakapatiran.

Listen to a recording of this text

Translation

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

Longer sample text (Tower of Babel)

Tagalog language courses, dictionaries, etc.

Links

Information about Philippine history, language, writing, etc by Paul Morrow (includes a tutorial on how to write with the Tagalog alphabet and free Tagalog fonts):
http://www.mts.net/~pmorrow/

Ating Baybayin, Our Filipino Script - includes a page on which you can type words in the Latin alphabet and see them transformed in the Tagalog alphabet (click on the 'translate' link on the left: http://www.eaglescorner.com/baybayin/

Alibata, Filipino's Ancient Writing Script
http://www.paradisephilippines.ph/2007/12/24/alibata-filipinos-ancient-writing-script/

An introduction to the alphabets of the Philippines by Hector Santos
http://www.bibingka.com/dahon/

Information about the Tagalog language
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tagalog

Online Tagalog lessons
http://www.seasite.niu.edu/Tagalog/
http://www.tagalog1.com/Index_Lessons.jsp
http://www.tagaloglang.com

Online Tagalog dictionary
http://www.tagalog-dictionary.com

Tagalog Translator Online
http://www.tagalogtranslator.nl

Tagalog Electronic talking dictionaries
http://www.ectaco.com

Related languages

Balinese, Batak, Bikol, Bugis, Buhid, Cebuano, Cham, Chamorro, Drehu, Fijian, Filipino, Hanuno'o, Hawaiian, Hiligaynon, Ilocano, Javanese, Kapampangan, Makasar, Malagasy, Malay, Mandar, Maori, Marshallese, Rarotongan, Redjang, Rotuman, Samoan, Sundanese, Tagalog, Tagbanwa, Tahitian, Tetum, Tongan, Tuvaluan, Waray-Waray, Yapese

Other languages written with the Latin alphabet

Other syllabic alphabets

Ahom, Balinese, Batak, Bengali, Brahmi, Buhid, Burmese, Cham, Dehong Dai, Devanagari, Dhives Akuru, Ethiopic, Evēla Akuru, Grantha, Gujarati, Gurmukhi (Punjabi), Hanuno'o, Hmong, Javanese, Kannada, Kharosthi, Khmer, Lanna, Lao, Lepcha, Limbu, Lontara/Makasar, Malayalam, Manpuri, Modi, New Tai Lue, Oriya, Pallava, Phags-pa, Ranjana, Redjang, Rotuman, Sharda, Siddham, Sinhala, Sorang Sompeng, Sourashtra, Soyombo, Sundanese, Syloti Nagri, Tagalog, Tagbanwa, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Tibetan, Tocharian, Varang Kshiti

Other languages written with the Latin alphabet

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