THERE ARE things linguistic retained by most Visayan languages that the Tagalog language and all its dialects (which are mutually intelligible versions of the same language) have lost.
These are things divinable because many Visayan languages have retained them. They were probably present in the ancient Southern Philippines language that gave rise to the Visayan languages, Bicol languages, and Tagalog.
To simplify matters we shall use Hiligaynon in comparison to Tagalog, rather than multiple Visayan languages. This is especially appropriate because Hiligaynon is arguably the Visayan language most closely related to Tagalog. However, please bear in mind that the statements below also generally apply to most Visayan languages, including the one with the most speakers, Sugbuanon (Cebuano).
We shall use examples to concretize the ideas herein. Sentences or paragraphs in italics may be skipped, as they just add a little info, but are of less import to the topic at hand.
So, let’s start.
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The things linguistic retained by most Visayan languages that the Tagalog language has lost fall under two categories – Existential words and Imperative affixes. Imperative affixes are affixes used to express commands or requests.
PART 1
(The Existential words retained by most Visayan languages that the Tagalog language has lost.)
An Existential Sentence means there is (are, was, will be) someone or something in existence, and is introduced by Existential Words. Hiligaynon has at least three of them. The Tagalog language has retained only one of them.
Thus, Tagalog instead usually uses Locative Words.
Hiligaynon (and most other Visayan languages) possess both Existential and Locative words. However, their speakers usually use Existential words.
The Existential Word that both Hiligaynon and Tagalog have and commonly use is MAY.
Examples:
Both Tagalog and Hiligaynon – MAY baha. (English – There is a flood.)
Both Tagalog and Hiligaynon – MAY baha kahapon. (English – There was a flood yesterday.)
Both Tagalog and Hiligaynon – MAY baha sa sunod. (English – There will be a flood next.)
What about MAYROON one might say?
Well, MAYROON is actually two words compounded together, MAY and DOON or MAYDOON. DOON is modified into ROON, and is a Locative. It literally means a thing located in a place there.
In brief MAYROON is a Locative. ‘Mayroong baha’ can literally be translated into ‘Located there is a flood’.
In order to shed light on this, let us examine the Karay-a (a Visayan language of Panay used by many Ilonggos, Capiceños, and all Antiqueños) word MAY-DIYAN. It is a synonym of MAYROON, although in form it uses DIYAN instead of DOON or ROON. It literally also means a thing located in a place there. ‘May-diyan nga baha’ can literally be translated into ‘Located there is a flood’.
Hiligaynon speakers use MAY-ARA instead, which is an Existential. ‘May-ara nga baha’ is taken to mean as ‘There is a flood’, but it can literally be translated into ‘A flood exists’.
May, Mayroon, May-Diyan, May-Ara may also occur with topics to express possession of indefinite things. Examples: She has a letter. May sulat siya. Mayroong sulat siya. May-diya’t sulat tana. May-ara sing sulat siya.
And how about NAGING? The Hiligaynon equivalent is NANGIN.
In the author’s opinion, NAGING or NANGIN is not an existential word. It is an affix that indicates that the thing its stem word represents is changing into some other thing or being. The Tagalog ‘Ang Diyos NAGING tao’ or the Hiligaynon equivalent ‘Ang Diyos NANGIN tao’ translates literally as ‘God changed into (became) man.’] (To be continued)/PN
