Bikolano Language

Central Bikol, commonly called Bikol Naga or simply Bikol, is an Austronesian language spoken by the Bicolanos, primarily in the Bicol Region of southern Luzon, Philippines. It is spoken in the northern and western part of Camarines Sur, the second congressional district of Camarines Norte, the eastern part of Albay, the northeastern part of Sorsogon, San Pascual town in Masbate, and the southwestern part of Catanduanes. Central Bikol speakers can be found in all provinces of Bicol, and it is a majority language in Camarines Sur. The standard ''sprachraum'' form is based on the Canaman dialect. The language has also speakers outside their native regional homeland, especially in Metro Manila, Mindoro, Palawan, and Mindanao (particularly in Mati, Davao Oriental)

Central Bikol features some vocabulary not found in other Bikol languages nor in other members of the Central Philippine language family like Tagalog and Cebuano. Examples are the words and , which are the same as the Kapampangan words meaning 'older' and 'foot, feet', respectively. The word ('night') is another example of this as it is different from the usual Bikol word but closer to the word of Kapampangan. There is no formal study on the relationship of the Central Luzon languages to Central Bikol but the latter has several words that are also found in the archaic form of Tagalog spoken in the Rizal and Quezon provinces that are believed to be the home of Central Luzon languages such as Kapampangan in Pampanga and southern Tarlac, and Sambalic languages in Zambales province.

Central Bikol dialects

Because of its broad geographic coverage as compared with other Bikol languages separated by islands and mountains, Central Bikol diverged into six dialects, which are still mutually comprehensible. The division of the language into different dialects is mainly because of the influence of other Bikol and non-Bikol languages surrounding the region.

The Canaman dialect, despite being used by only a small portion of the population in Camarines Sur, is the standard form of Central Bikol used in literature, Catholic religious rites and mass media. Naga City dialect is spoken in the first, second, and third districts (except in Del Gallego, where residents are mostly Tagalog speakers), and in the western and eastern portions of the fourth district (Caramoan, Garchitorena, Presentacion, Siruma and Tinambac) of Camarines Sur. It is also spoken in San Pascual, Masbate (Burias Island) and the southwestern part of Catanduanes. The Partido dialect is spoken in the eastern part of Camarines Sur centered in the southern portion of the fourth districts (Goa, Lagonoy, Sagñay, San Jose, and Tigaon). The Tabaco-Legazpi-Sorsogon (TLS) dialect is spoken in the eastern coast of Albay and the northeastern part of Sorsogon. TLS is the dialect that has been most influenced by the Inland Bikol languages. The Daet dialect, on the other hand, is spoken in the second district of the province of Camarines Norte. The Virac dialect (or Viracnon language) is spoken around Virac, Catanduanes and surrounding towns on the southeastern part of the island of Catanduanes.

Dialectal comparison of Central Bikol

The following table shows the sentence "Why did Pedro's bird not fly even though there is no lock to the cage?" translated to different dialects of Central Bikol along with some other languages in the region.

Like other Philippine languages, Bikol has a number of loanwords, largely Spanish ones as a result of Spanish rule in the Philippines. These include (, 'luck'), (, 'meat'), (, 'investigator'), ('liter'), ('but'), and (, 'crime'). Another source of loanwords in Bikol is Sanskrit, with examples including words like ('responsibility') and ''karma''.

Phonology

Consonants

There are 16 consonants in the Bikol language: . Eight sounds are borrowed from loanwords: .

The sound system of the language according to Mintz in 1971 is as follows.

Notes

# ʃ – written as , this is only found only in loan words from English, as in ''shirt''.
# tʃ – written as , this is found in loan words from Spanish and English and is pronounced like the ''ch'' in ''check''.
# dʒ – written as , this is found in loan words from English and is pronounced like the ''j'' sound in ''jeep''.
# ɲ – written as , this is found in loan words from Spanish and is pronounced like the ''ñ'' in .
# ʎ – written as , this is found in loan words from Spanish and is pronounced like the ''ll'' in and (in Spanish dialects without yeísmo).
# h – Due to contact with the nearby Albay Bikol languages, words that start with ''h'' in Bikol Naga, start with in Bikol Legazpi.
#* Ex: ('look', Bikol Naga) becomes ('look', Bikol Legazpi)

Vowels

Native words exhibit a three-vowel system whose vowels can be noted as , with realized as in the final syllable. Due to contact with Spanish, modern Central Bikol also has two marginal phonemes distinct from .

Grammar

Particles

Like many other Philippine languages, Bikol has a rich set of discourse particles.

* – (Tagalog: ) used for emphasis determined by context
* – giving a chance to someone; polite insisting
* – (Tagalog: ) quoting information from a secondary source
* - emphasizing the condition that intensifies the difficulties. ()
* – (Tagalog: ) interrogative particle
* - (Tagalog: ) although
* - (Tagalog: ) then
* – (Tagalog: , ) likeness or similitude. English: 'It looks like, it's as if'.
* – 'exactly'
* – 'not exactly, not really'
* – (Tagalog: ) 'maybe, could be'
* – (Tagalog: ) 'again'
* – 'I hope (something did / did not happen' ; 'If only ...' (conditionality of past events)
* , – (Tagalog: ) 'only, just'
* – hoping that something will happen, or expressing surrender/assent
* – (Tagalog: , ) 'also' or 'ever' (such as 'whatever' and 'whoever')
* - 1. relenting or agreeing () 2. one is yielding () 3. stating what actually happened ()
* – (Tagalog: ) 'first' or 'yet'
* – (Tagalog: ) 'now' or 'already'
* – (Tagalog: ) 'again'
* – (Tagalog: , ) 'really, truly, absolutely' (adds a sense of certainty)
* – 'I said'
* – expresses fate ("This is helpless") or a plea for others not to insist
* – indicates to a person what they should say to another ()
* – 'in the future', 'later' (span of time)
* – expresses a hypothetical event/situation ()
* – (Tagalog: ) 'still'
* – (Tagalog: ) expresses surprise or sudden realization
* – (Tagalog: ) politeness marker; in some Bikol dialects due to the influence of Tagalog.
* – 'lest' (Akuon ko na sana an ayuda kan barangay, harambiling makamati nin gutom. I'll just accept the help of the barangay, lest I will get hungry).
* – (Tagalog: ) 'immediately, right away'
* – (Tagalog: ) 'really', 'truly'

Numbers

Numerals

There exist two types of numerals in Bikol: native Bikol and Spanish numerals. Generally, Bicolanos use the Spanish terms when referring to time, as in the phrase ('5 o'clock'). However, the native terms can be read in literary books. The Spanish numerals are often encountered in pricing.

Angry speech register

The angry register of Bikol, also known natively as ''tamanggot'' or ''rapsak'', is used when angry, shouting, or speaking in a high-pitched voice at someone. Some examples of the register include:

Note:

See also

*Bikol languages

Notes

References

* Lobel, Jason William, Wilmer Joseph S Tria, and Jose Maria Z Carpio. 2000. ''An satuyang tataramon / A study of the Bikol language''. Naga City, Philippines: Lobel & Tria Partnership, Co.: Holy Rosary Minor Seminary.
* Mattes, Veronika. 2014. ''Types of Reduplication: A Case Study of Bikol''. Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston.

External links

Translate Bikol

{{Philippine languages

Bikol languages
Languages of Camarines Norte
Languages of Camarines Sur
Languages of Albay
Languages of Sorsogon
Languages of Catanduanes
Languages of Masbate
Articles with Central Bikol-language sources (bcl)