Ibanag language

The Ibanag language (also written as Ybanag or Ibanak) is an Austronesian language spoken by up to 463,390 speakers, mostly comprising the Ibanag people, in the northeastern provinces of Isabela and Cagayan in the Philippines. It is spoken widely in many communities such as Abulug, Buguey, Camalaniugan, Lal-lo, Solana, and Tuguegarao in Cagayan, and places like Cabagan, Ilagan, San Pablo, Santo Tomas, Santa Maria, and Tumauini in Isabela. It is also spoken near the Cagayan River and in some areas of La Union, like barangay San Agustin East in Agoo.

Ibanag is also used by Filipinos living in places such as the Middle East, United Kingdom, and the United States. Most Ibanag speakers can also speak Ilocano, which is a common language on northern Luzon island. The name Ibanag comes from a prefix meaning 'people of' and a word meaning 'river'. This language is closely related to other languages such as Gaddang, Itawis, Agta, Atta, Yogad, Isneg, and Malaweg.

Classification

The Ibanag language is part of the Austronesian language family, just like Cebuano and Tagalog. It belongs to a group called the Northern Philippine languages, which also includes Ilocano and Pangasinan.

Distribution and dialects

The Ibanag language is spoken in many parts of the northeastern Philippines, mainly in the provinces of Isabela and Cagayan. There are small differences in how people speak Ibanag in these areas. The form of Ibanag spoken in Tuguegarao, the capital of Cagayan, is considered the main version of the language.

Before Spanish settlers arrived, a different language called Irraya was mostly spoken in Tuguegarao. The Spanish brought Ibanag to the area and made it the common language. But later, many people from Ilocano came to the region, and now Ilocano is more widely used.

People from certain towns speak Ibanag with unique accents. For example, speakers from Cauayan and Ilagan have a "hard" accent, while those from Tuguegarao have a style that sounds a bit like Spanish. In northern Cagayan, people change some sounds in words. For instance, they might say "mafatu" instead of "mapatu" for "hot."

There are two main types of Ibanag: Southern Ibanag and Northern Ibanag. Southern Ibanag is often thought of as the standard form, while Northern Ibanag is closer to the very old version of the language. Southern Ibanag may have picked up some words from nearby languages and from Spanish.

Archaic Ibanag

Some modern Ibanag words have older forms found in Spanish texts. For example, the word for "rice" is now innafi, but it was once written as innafuy. Similarly, "pig" is now bavi, but it was bavuy. The word for "fire" is now afi, but it was afuy. Also, the modern word for the number one, tadday, used to be used together with another word, itte, which is not commonly used today.

Use and current status

In October 2012, the Philippine government started a program to help keep the Ibanag culture and language alive. This program is called the Mother-Tongue Based (MTB) program. Ibanag is one of the languages taught in schools. There were also two plays being performed in Ibanag: Zininaga Ta Bannag ("Heritage of the River") and Why Women Wash the Dishes.

Phonology

Vowels

In Ibanag, some words change their sounds a little. For example, the word umay meaning "to go" can sometimes sound like ume, and balay meaning "house" can sound like bale.

Consonants

Ibanag is a language from the Philippine languages. It has special sounds not found in many other Philippine languages. For example, it uses the sound [f] like in innafi meaning "rice", and [v] like in bavi meaning "pig".

Orthography

There are two main ways to write the Ibanag language. Older books were written with Spanish influence, using special letters and adding extra letters at the end of words. Today, we use a simpler way to write Ibanag that leaves out quiet letters, just like in Filipino, Bisaya, and Ilocano. This new way is used in schools and is supported by the Ibanag Heritage Foundation.

Grammar

Nouns

Pronouns

Subject Pronouns

Ibanag is a language where pronouns are often added to verbs.

Sakan/So' (1sg.)

There are different ways to say "I" in Ibanag.

• 'I am eating': Kuman na' means "to eat" and "I".
• 'I gave him some food': Neddak ku yayya ta makan means "to give" and "I".
• 'I will be the one to go': So' laman ngana y ume means "I".
• 'I split it in half': Ginaddwa' means "to split in half" and "I".

Sikaw (2sg.)

• '(You) go outside': Mallawak ka means "to go" and "you".
• 'You give': Iddammu means "to give" and "you".

Yayya (3sg.)

The word for "he/she/it" is usually na.

• 'He lost it': Nawawan na means "lost" and "he/she/it".

Sittam / sittang (1pl. - inclusive)

Sittam can change to -tam or -tang when added to the end of a verb or noun.

• 'Let us go': Tam ngana!/Ettang ngana! (Isabela) or Ume tam!

Sikami (1pl. - exclusive)

To talk about "we" but not include the person you're speaking to, Sikami is used. The ending -mi is added to the verb, adjective, or noun.

• 'We are going to look': Ume mi nga innan means "to go" and "we".
• 'We are full' (as in food): Nabattug kami means "full" and "we".
• 'We are Ibanags': Ibanag kami

Sikamu (2pl. - inclusive)

Both -nu and -kamu are used:

• 'Go get him/her': Apannu yayya! means "to get" and "you".
• 'You went there?': Uminé kamu tari? means "went" and "you".

Ira (3pl.)

Ira is not often used unless it's very important to show who is being talked about. Instead, the word da is used.

• 'They bought my house': Ginatang da y bale' means "bought", "they".

Possessive pronouns

The word kua, when used with "I" or "you all", shows ownership, and the prefix ku- can be added to kua to stress ownership.

'That IS mine.': Kukua' yatun

• 'My, mine': ku, kua', kukua'
• 'Me': tanyo'
• 'Your, yours': -m, mu, kuam, kukuam
• 'His, her, its': na, kuana
• 'Our, ours' (inclusive): tam, kuatam
• 'Our, ours' (exclusive): mi, kuami
• 'Your, yours': nu, kuanu
• 'Their, theirs': da, kuada
• 'My toy': gaggayam
• 'Your gift': regalum
• 'Her earring': aritu' na
• 'Our land': davvut tam
• 'Our house': balay mi
• 'Your car': coche nu
• 'Their dog': kitu da
• 'This is mine': kua' yaw
• 'This is hers/his': kukua/kua na yaw
• 'That is yours': kuam yatun
• 'That is hers': kuana yari/kuana yatung

Demonstrative pronouns

• 'This': yaw, ye, yawe
• 'That' (item by person being spoken to): yatun or yane (Isabela)
• 'That' (far from both speaker and person being spoken to): yari or yore
• 'That' (sometimes used for objects that are absent or in the past): yuri
• 'This dog': ye kitu
• 'That cat': yane kitaw
• 'That carabao': yari nuang
• 'That day': yuri aggaw

Locatives

• 'Here': taw or tawe
• 'There': tatun (by person being spoken to)
• 'There': tari (far from both)
• 'There': turi (absent, past time and location)

Locatives can also show how far something is.

• 'THIS house' (here): ye balay taw
• 'That girl there': yatun babay tatun
• 'That man over there': yari lalaki tari
• 'That old lady a long time ago': yuri bako' turi

Enclitic particles

Interrogative Words

• 'What?': anni?
• 'When?': nikanni?
• 'Where?': sitaw?
• 'Who?': sinni?
• 'Why?': ngatta?
• 'How?': kunnasi?
• 'How much?': piga?

Each of the doubled consonants must be pronounced separately – i.e. anni? – an ni

• 'What are you doing?': Anni kuammu?
• 'When did you arrive?': Kanni labbe' mu?
• 'Where are we going?': Sitaw angayat tam?
• 'Who took my fan?': Sinni nanga' ta affefec ku?
• 'Why are you not eating?': Ngatta nga ari ka kuman?
• 'How are you going to cook that if you do not have the ingredients?': Kunnasim lutuan yatun nu awan tu rekadum?
• 'How much is this? How much is that?': Piga yaw? Piga yatun?

Verbs

Ibanag verbs change based on tense, but not who is doing the action. Like many other languages in the Malayo-Polynesian family, Ibanag does not use a special word to mean "to be." Instead, the verb egga, which means "to have," can sometimes work like "to be."

Infinitive and present tense

The form of a verb that tells us what something is to do is often the same as the form we use when something is happening now. Here are some examples:

• 'There is'/'to have': egga
• 'To eat/eat': kuman
• 'To drink/drink': minum
• 'To need/need': mawag
• 'To want/want', 'to like/like': kaya'
• 'To go/go', 'to come/come': umay
• 'To not want/not want', 'to not like/not like': manaki'
• 'I am here': Egga nga tawe
• 'Do you eat goat?': Kumak ka tu kazzing?
• 'Drink this': Inumang mu/inumammu yaw.
• 'Drink water': Uminum/mininum/mininung ka tu danum/danung.
• 'You need to sleep': Mawag mu makkaturug.
• 'To ask': mangiyavu

Past tense

There are several ways to show that something happened in the past. Some examples include:

• 'Cooked': nilutu/nallutu
• 'Cut': ginappo'
• 'Cut (hair)': inusi'
• 'Placed far away': inirayyu
• 'Bought': ginatang
• 'We cooked dinengdeng': Nallutu kami tu dinengdeng
• 'We cooked the pig': Nilutu mi yari bavi. (Y becomes yari assuming the pig itself is not present since it was already cooked)
• 'They cut my hair': Inusi' da y vu' ku.
• 'I got my hair cut': Nappa usi' na' tu vu' ku.
• 'They placed him far away': Inirayyu da yayya.
• 'I bought you this cow': Ginatang ku yaw baka para nikaw/niko.

Future tense

The main way to show that something will happen in the future is by using a helper verb like "to go." Sometimes, the present tense can also suggest something that will happen later. Examples include:

• 'We are going to pick him up.': Apam mi ngana yayya
• 'Go buy lechon later.': Sonu manannwang ka na gumatang tu lichon or Sonu bibbinnay ka na matang tu lichon (Isabela), Sonu mangananwan ka ngana gumatang ta lechon. (Tuguegarao)

Sangaw and Sangawe^{[clarification needed]}

• 'Do it now': Sangaw ngana! (Sangawe not used in Tuguegarao)
• 'Do it now': Sangawe ngana! (Isabela)
• 'Later on': Sonu mangananwan!, Sonu bibbinnay

Structure

Syntax and word order

Ibanag sentences usually follow a verb–subject–object order.

• 'Andoy took out the dog.': Nellawan ni Andoy y kitu.

Adjectives usually come before nouns with a special marker attached.

• 'The house is red': Uzzin y balay
• 'The red house': Uzzin nga balay

Markers

Y and nga are the two most common markers in Ibanag. They connect adjectives to nouns or show who or what is being talked about. Y works like a connecting word, while nga describes an adjective.

• 'Loud laughter': Nagallu nga galo'. Nagallu means 'loud' and nga links it to laughter.
• 'Your child is tall.': Atannang y ana' mu. Without the word to be, y shows that your child is who we are talking about.

The marker tu is also used, but it can be tricky. It often appears with the word awan, meaning 'nothing, none'.

• 'There is nothing to eat': Awan tu makan – Tagalog: Wala nang pagkain. Here, tu links awan ('none') and makan ('food'). Tu works like nang in Tagalog.

Ta is another marker used. Ta is like sa in Tagalog.

• 'Make a new chair.': Maggangwa ka ta bagu nga silla. – Tagalog: Gagawa ka ng bagong upuan. (Here both nga and ta are used)

Tu and ta in the Isabela dialect

Ta is used to talk about places in the Isabela and Tuguegarao dialects.

Example: 'We went to Tuguegarao.': Minay kami ta Tuguegarao.

Tu is used to talk about things.

Example: 'We ate pork.' Kiminang kami tu bavi. (Isabela)

Sandhi

Ibanag verbs that end in n drop the last letter n when the next word starts with a consonant (not a vowel or another n).

Examples:

• *Apan mu yari libru.

Correct: Apam mu yari libru 'Go get the book.'

• *Nasingan ku y yama na.

Correct: Nasingak ku y yama na 'I saw his father.'

The marker ta and the word na (not the pronoun) can, depending on the dialect, take the first letter of the next word.

• Ta likuk/likug na balay

Tal likuk nab balay 'at the back of the house'

• Ta utun 'on top.' Note that ta is followed by utun, which starts with a vowel.

Examples

Proverbs

Cagayan provincial anthem

Cagayan, a beautiful land to me, You have done great things, If it were true that you will be away from me, I will not forget you.

Cagayan, I adore looking at you, Cagayan, you are incomparable. Even if other lands are beautiful, You are in my heart to be loved.

The translation given here is not the official English version of the Cagayan Provincial Anthem.

Vocabulary

Loan words

Many words in Ibanag come from Spanish. Some of these words are not used in other Philippine languages. Here are a few examples:

• Eyeglasses: anchuparra_/_anteojos
• Plants: masetas
• Store: chenda (from Spanish: tienda)
• Door: puerta
• Toilet: kasilyas
• Quickly, immediately: insigida (from en seguida)

Simple greetings

Here are some common greetings in Ibanag:

• Good morning: Dios nikamu ta umma (others say Mapia nga umma)
• Good afternoon: Dios nikamu ta fugak (others say Mapia nga fugak)
• Good evening/night: Dios nikamu ta gabi (others say Mapia nga gabi)
• How are you?: Kunnasi ka?
• I am fine/good, and you?: Mapia so' gapa, sikaw?
• I am just fine, thank God: Mapia so' gapa, mabbalo' ta Afu
• Thank you: Mabbalo'
• Where are you going?: Sitaw y angayammu?
• I am going to...: Umay na' ta...
• What are you doing?: Anni kukuam mu?
• Nothing in particular: Awan, maski anni laman.
• Please come in: Tullung kamu, Maddulo kamu or Mattalung kamu.
• Long time no see: Nabayag taka nga ari nasingan.

Numbers

Here are some numbers in Ibanag:

• 0: awan
• 1: tadday
• 2: duwa
• 3: tallu
• 4: appa'
• 5: lima
• 6: annam
• 7: pitu
• 8: walu
• 9: siyam
• 10: mafulu
• 11: karatadday/onse
• 12: karaduwa/dose
• 13: karatallu/trese
• 14: karappa/katorse
• 15: karalima/kinse
• 20: duwafulu/beinte
• 100: magatu
• 200: duwa gatu
• 500: lima gatu
• 1000: marivu
• 2000: duwa rivu

^{[clarification needed]}

Sentences