Asking Questions in Tagalog

In the previous posts, we have learn how to greet in Tagalog and some of the most basic conversational phrases in Tagalog. In this post, we are going to focus on asking and replying to questions.

What? /Ano?

What is it?/Ano iyon? 

What is that?/ Ano iyan?

What are those?/Ano ang mga iyon?

Where?/ Saan?

Where is it?/ Saan iyon?

Where is that? Saan iyan?

How to Introduce Yourself in Tagalog (Part 1)

Filipinos, just like in other countries introduce themselves by saying “Hi” or “Hello.” In formal introduction, new acquaintances usually shake hands. In informal conversations, they usually wave hands and just say Hi.

The following are typical Filipino conversations in Tagalog during introduction of friends (students) and their translations.

Marie: Hi. Ako si Marie. Anong pangalan mo? / Hi. I’m Marie. What’s your name?

Ethel: Hello, ako si Ethel? Hello, I am Ethel.

Note: ako (I, I am, me),  anong for “ano ang” (what),  pangalan (name)

***

Marie: Sino siya? / Who is he?

Ethel: Kaibigan ko, si Ralph. / My friend, Ralph.  

Notes: sino (who), siya pronounced as "shah" (he/she), kaibigan (friend), ko (my, mine)

How to Count in Tagalog From 1 to 10,000

Counting in Tagalog or Filipino is very similar to counting in English. Aside from 1 to 10 and 11 to 20, most numbers are just combined translations of their Tagalog equivalents in thousands, hundreds and ones place. Below are the translation of the numbers from 1 through 10,000. Note, however, that in the Philippines numbers greater than 10 are often said in English. 

Counting From 1 to 10 in Tagalog

one – isa                                            

two – dalawa

three – tatlo

four – apat

five – lima

six – anim

seven – pito

eight – walo

nine – siyam

ten – sampu

For 11 to 19, you add the word “labing” in front and then add the Tagalog of 1 through 9. So, eleven, twelve, and thirteen, will have the following Tagalog transalation respectively: labing isa, labing dalawa and labing tatlo.

Speaking Tagalog in Jeepneys and Other Public Transport

When you go to the Philippines, the main mode of land transportation is jeepneys or taxi cabs and the currency is Philippine pesos (PHP). Riding jeepneys is very cheap, so it is advisable that you take them if you want to save money. As of this writing, the minimum fare for jeepneys is PHP 8.00 or around US$0.20. One peso is added for every additional kilometer.

A jeepney can accommodate about 16 to 32 passengers depending on its size. Passengers are seated side by side and payments are done by passing the fare to the driver through other passengers. Here is a typical conversation when paying fares in a Jeepney.

Basic Conversational Tagalog Phrases

In the previous post, we have learned the basic greetings in Tagalog. In this post, we learn the basic Tagalog phrases that are very helpful when you travel to the Philippines. It is important to note that the Filipino usually mixed their language with English so words and phrases like "Hi", "Hello", "I'm Sorry", "Thank you", and "You're welcome" are more often used than their Tagalog equivalents. Below are some of the phrases that you should memorize before you go to the Philippines. If there's no choice, you can always speak in English since most Filipinos understands English and can speak the language pretty well. 

What is your name?
Anong pangalan mo?

Translation: Anong (what is the), pangalan (name), mo (you).
Note: Anong is the contraction of "Ano ang" where "Ano" means "What."

***

My name is ____.
Ako si _______.
Ang pangalan ko ay _____.

How to Greet in Tagalog

As mentioned in the previous post, Tagalog is formal Filipino, but in the following posts, we will use Tagalog and Filipino interchangeably to mean informal or conversational Tagalog.

Filipinos are good English speakers and usually mixed their language with English, so "Hello" and "Hi" are understood by almost everyone. These words are usually used by acquaintance when seeing each other. In addition to "Hi" and "Hello", here are a few greetings that can get you started. 

Good morning - Magandang umaga
Good afternoon - Magandang hapon
Good evening - Magandang gabi

Explanation

The words umaga, hapon, and gabi mean morning, afternoon, and evening respectively. The word magandang with root word maganda literally means "beautiful." The word magandang is a contraction of "maganda ang", where ang  means "the." Therefore, the full form of "Magandang umaga" is really "Maganda (beautiful) ang (the) umaga (morning)"  or "The morning is beautiful."

Filipinos usually say "Kumusta ka?" (How are you?) or often times "Kumusta?" omitting ka (you) when they see each other. Persons who have not seen each other for a while usually say "Anong balita?" or "What's new?" when seeing each other. Anong with root word "ano" means "what" and "balita" means "news."

Tagalog: The First Language in the Philippines

Tagalog is the first language of the Philippines and spoken by 98% of the Filipino people. It is the first language in the National Capital Region, the main cities in the country's capital as well as nearby provinces in Central Luzon (red in the map). Almost everyone in the Philippines understand Tagalog although a very small percentage cannot speak the language. 

The official name of Tagalog is really Filipino (language). Note that the people in the Philippines are also called Filipino. In the following discussion, Filipino will refer to language.