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Showing posts from February, 2013

The Little Prince By Antoine De Saint-Exupéry Is Now Available In Chabacano!

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While Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince) written by Antoine De Saint-Exupéry in 1943 now has over 300 translations in different languages worldwide and is now considered the world’s most translated book (not counting religious works), there have been surprisingly only two translations of his book in the Philippines (Filipino and Bicol). El Diutay Principe is only the third edition featuring a Philippine language. The Little Prince is a classic French novella about a pilot who gets stranded in the desert after a plane crash and encounters a little fellow who asks him to draw a sheep for him. Through the course of their meeting, the pilot rediscovers the true meaning of life and what people should value the most. When I came across the book in 2013, I found that I could relate very well to the negative image given to “growing up” in the book. When the idea to translate the book into my mother tongue was presented to me, I didn’t think twice. I thought, ‘a lot of people my
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Origins of the Chabacano Sapa

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The Chabacano sapa might have its roots either from the Spanish zafar or the Portuguese safar . Here is how these words are defined in WordReference.com: Zafar(se): to get or wriggle out of something, to come undone Safar: to escape In Chabacano, this is how we use the word sapa. Chabacano: Ya sapa el tornillo del bicicleta. English: The screw was separated from the bike. (Literally) OR The bike's screw got loose. Chabacano: Ta sapa ya el cortina. English: The curtain is getting loose already. Aside from something getting physically separated or loose from something, the word sapa can also be used like so in Chabacano: Chabacano: Ayer lang ya sapa el mio calentura. English: My fever wore off just yesterday. Chabacano: Hinde pa ba siempre ta sapa ese tuyo custipao? English: Are you still nursing a cold?  If we're going to analyze the sentences above, it sounds like the Chabacano sapa has more in common with the Spanish zafar . Although, I don't spea
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7 Chabacanized English Words

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If you listen to people speak or read posts in online forums and social media websites, you will see more and more people creating Chabacano forms out of different English words. Here are 10 English words that have been "Chabacanized" over the past years. 1. Corecta Where it came from: Correct What it really should be: Corregi How it is pronounced: Corehi, Corihi 2. Protecta  Where it came from: Protect What it really should be: Protege How it is pronounced: Protehe 3. Expecta Where it came from: Expect What it really should be: Espera, Anticipa Unfortunately, these words are not widely known or used in Chabacano as of the moment. You might even get weird looks from your friends if you use these words, so better stick with expecta  for the time being. 😜 4. Proposa Where it came from: Propose What it really should be:  Propone 4. Promese Where it came from: Promise What it really should be: Promete 5. Fontana Where it came from: Fountain Wh
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Origins of the Chabacano Embusterias

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In Chabacano, the word for a liar is embustero . An embustero is somebody who tells embusterias or lies. These words are spelled with an “i” in the Chabacano dictionary of Camins ( imbustero, imbusterias ). The Spanish meaning of embustero is generally a deceitful person. The word embusteria does not exist in the Spanish language. In most Spanish dictionaries, you wouldn’t find that the word embustero can also mean a liar however according to the WordReference.com website ; this word can also refer to a liar in the Spanish language (this usage though is labeled as informal). So there you go, as like many words in the Chabacano language, it is either informal or vulgar in the Spanish language, owning up to its name. In the Chabacano dictionary of Camins, the Spanish words menti , mentiroso/a , and mentira exist and preserve their Spanish meaning. However, these words are seldom used or not used anymore today in the Chabacano language. I have yet to encounter a Chabacano speaker
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How To Say 'Beautiful' in Chabacano

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Did you know that there is a difference between the usage of the words bonito and bonita in the Chabacano language? In the Chabacano language, adjectives generally don’t have genders like in Spanish. The only time that adjectives will have gender in the Chabacano language is when referring to persons. For example, we say: Alto mi hermano, Alta mi hermana In English: My brother is tall, My sister is tall Blanca el mujer, Blanco el hombre In English: The girl is white, The boy is white Flaco el mio tio, Flaca el mio prima In English: My uncle is thin, My (female) cousin is thin However, for inanimate objects or when referring to people in general, adjectives don’t have genders (they are always masculine). For example, we say: Blanco el casa In English: The house is white Blando el cama mio In English: My bed is soft Negro el camisa suyo In English: His/her shirt is black With regards to the words bonito and bonita however, they exist independently with thei
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Porque by Maldita Lyrics (Original Chabacano and Translated Spanish version)

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Original Chabacano Version: Solo-solo na mi cuarto Hinde ta puede dormi Vira-vira na cabeza El dolor yo ya senti Por que pa contigo yo ya quiere? Como bula lang tu ya perde Por que contigo yo ya escoge? Ahora mi corazon ta sufri Bien simple lang yo ta pedi Era senti tu el cosa yo ya senti Ta pedi milagro, vira'l tiempo El mali hace derecho Na de mio rezo ta pedi yo Era olvida yo contigo Todo-todo yo ya dale Ahora ta arrepenti Sobra-sobra el dolencia Tormento para vivi Por que pa contigo yo ya quiere? Como bula lang tu ya perde Por que contigo yo ya escoge? Ahora mi corazon ta sufri Bien simple lang yo ta pedi Era senti tu el cosa yo ya senti Ta pedi milagro, vira'l tiempo El mali hace derecho Na de mio rezo ta pedi yo Era olvida yo contigo No tu distorba Y no atraca kay baka palmadea yo contigo Nunca acepta Si tu ay vira por el dolor ya senti Por que contigo yo ya escoge? Ahora mi corazon ta suf
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How To Say 'I Love You' And 'I Hate You' In Chabacano

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Saying I love you in Chabacano is a bit tricky. Most people just say 'I love you' (pronouncing the word love as lab ). But in songs or formal occasions, Chabacano speakers say 'I love you like this': ta ama yo contigo . Let’s dissect this sentence. Ta= Present tense indicator Ama= love Yo= I Contigo= you Again, you’ll only hear this in songs. You really won’t hear people saying to each other  ta ama yo contigo. Saying I hate you in Chabacano is also a bit difficult. In the dictionary of Santos (2010), the word hate in Chabacano is rabia or odia . However I’m not really sure how to use these two words in a sentence because to me ta rabia yo contigo or ta odia yo contigo just doesn’t sound natural. Rabiao yo contigo (which is something people frequently say in Chabacano) just doesn't convey the correct emotion because it means something like I am angry at you (milder than hate). So how do we say the English 'I hate you' in Chabacano? One of
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How to say I Miss You in Chabacano

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In Facebook groups, a lot of people, even Chabacano speakers themselves, seem to be wondering how to say 'I miss you' in Chabacano. Most Chabacano speakers get away with just saying tan miss ya yo contigo . However, the verb miss is still untranslated. The English verb to miss (someone or something) may very well be untranslatable. I googled I miss you in Tagalog  and I nearly fell off my chair when I saw what Google Translate had to say: In very formal Tagalog, one can say nangungulila ako sa iyo although it will probably make you cringe saying it. Most formal Chabacano translations of I miss you  are similar; they will make you cringe saying them. Besides, most people wouldn't understand you anyway, if you use them. In Cebuano, they actually have a translation for I miss you  and that is gimingaw kaayo ko nimo. I'm not sure though if Cebuano speakers actually say this. My friend tells me that it's more common to hear people say namiss na ta ka which if yo
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