Bien Chabacano

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Chabacanizing Tagalog Expressions and Slang

A week ago, I was quite surprised when my friend greeted me, cosa man el noticia ? I found this strange because I have never heard this greeting in Chabacano. I, however, realized that it is a direct translation of a very popular Tagalog greeting in Manila, anong balita ? Come to think of it there are a lot of Chabacano words which sounds as if they are direct translations from Tagalog. A couple of examples are: Tagalog Chabacano Patay-Gutom Muerto-Hambre/Muertoy Hambre Mukhang Pera Caray Sen Feeling Maganda Senti Guapa The 'y' in cara is added most probably because Chabacano sometimes follows Cebuano grammar and whenever a Tagalog word ends with a -ng , the Cebuano equivalent ends in a 'y'. The Chabacano caray is a very useful bit of vocabulary because you can use it whenever you wish to say that something or someone looks like __________. Here are other examples of the word caray being used in Chabacano. Tagalog: Mukhang Baboy Chabacano: Caray Pu...

9 Chabacano Words You Didn't Know Were From Hiligaynon (Ilonggo)

Most people think that the Chabacano in Zamboanga is Spanish mixed with Cebuano (Bisaya) and the Chavacano in Cavite is Spanish mixed with Tagalog. However, I have recently discovered that there are some Chabacano de Zamboanga words that actually came from Hiligaynon (Ilonggo). The first word that I discovered was of Hiligaynon origin is amon . When I learned that this word which we use a countless number of times in daily speech is of Hiligaynon origin, I immediately set out to find other words in Chabacano which are from that language. I just couldn’t believe that only a single Hiligaynon word can creep into Chabacano and a pronoun at that! Here are ten Chabacano words that you may not know were from the Hiligaynon language. 1. Subay (Ant) Chabacano: Tiene subay na tuyo detras. Hiligaynon: May subay sa likod mo. English: There are ants on your back. 2. Hutik (Whisper) Chabacano: Tiene yo cosa man hutik contigo. Hiligaynon: May hutik ko sa imo. English: I have someth...

The Chabacano Tiene and No hay

Last week, I was listening to a friend of mine teach our colleague at work how to speak Chabacano. Now since this person spoke Spanish it made things a bit easier. It was strange to find out though that Chabacano grammar is not at all that simple. My friend told this person that in Chabacano when asking someone if he/she has something, you simply have to say tiene + pronoun + thing. An example is this: Chabacano: Tiene tu comida? Spanish: Tienes comida? English: Do you have (any) food This person told me tiene yo pregunta (which was correct) and then I asked him cosa tuyo pregunta ? This was where he made a mistake because he said no tiene yo pregunta . That was when I realized that the rule he was taught only applies to positive sentences. However, in the negative, it should be no + hay + pronoun + thing. Here is a negative response to the sample sentence above: Chabacano: No hay yo comida Spanish: No tengo comida English: I don’t have any food

Origins of the Chabacano No Hay Vale Ansina

I was researching the word vale and checking if any usage of this word in Spanish is similar to the common usage of vale in Chabacano which expresses appreciation. An example is vale man ese tuyo camisa which means your shirt is quite nice. I did, however, stumble upon some information on a particular usage of the Spanish valer which is quite similar to one of the usages of this word in Chabacano. If you are ever in Zamboanga city and see a group of children making up rules for a game that they are about to play, you might probably hear them say * no hay vale ___________. Or, if you see some kids playing, you might probably hear one of them say to one another nuay vale ansina. Here is a dialogue which features this phrase: Boy 1: Juga kita entramos! ( entramos is the Chabacano equivalent of the game patintero ) Boy 2:Ok. Pero no hay vale ta jala mano o brazo. Boy 3: Oo, no hay vale ansina. No hay tambien vale ta quita camisa. Here is a rough English translation of th...

Origins of the Chabacano Anda

Anda in Chabacano means 'to go'. It is the word we use when one uses the verb ir in Spanish. The verb andar in Spanish has several definitions. Here is a Spanish sentence which I found here using the word anda just like we would in Chabacano. Spanish: Anda a comprar el periódico. English: Go and buy the newspaper. Chabacano: Anda compra el periodico. Here are some examples of the Chabacano anda being used in a sentence . In bidding farewell: Chabacano: Anda ya yo. English: I’m going/ I’m leaving. To go: Chabacano: Anda tu na pueblo? English: Are you going to the downtown area? Chabacano: Ya anda le compra comida. English: He went and bought food. Chabacano: Anda tu conversa con aquel gente. English: Go speak with that person. Chabacano: Anda kita na Manila. English: Let’s go Manila.

Chabacano Numbers

Counting in Chabacano is almost the same as in Spanish. Cardinal numbers are the same except for the words we use for 100 and 1000 in Chabacano. Here's a comparison between the Spanish and Chabacano 100 and 1000: 100 Chabacano: Ciento Spanish: Cien Sample Chabacano sentence: Ciento euro lang ba ese camisa? Spanish translation: Cuesta solamente cien euros esa camisa? English: Does that shirt cost only a hundred euros? Notes on this word: In Chabacano, the noun after the word hundred ( ciento ) does not become plural as it would in Spanish. Also, the only time that you use ciento in Spanish is when counting after 100 ( ciento uno , ciento dos , etc). Cien is used to say 100 in Spanish. In Chabacano, we don't have a word similar to the Spanish costar. Instead, we use the Tagalog 'lang' which is like saying only. In fact, if you would translate the above Chabacano sentence directly to English, it would sound like this: Is the shirt only a hundred euros? ...

How to say the Names of Animals in Chabacano

The Chabacano animals are more or less the same as Spanish animals. Differences are limited mostly to pronounciaton. One peculiarity though that stands out is that there are some Chabacano animal names that in Spanish refers to the meat or the food (cooked) that comes from that animal. A good example is the Chabacano pescao. In Chabacano, pescao is used both for fish as a food and as an animal. Meanwhile in Spanish, pescao (pescado) is used exclusively for fish as in the food. Pez is used to refer to fishes that are alive (which are not intended for cooking). Another example of this Chabacano anomaly is the word cabrito. In Spanish cabrito means a small goat (a kid) and goat as a food. In Chabacano though, cabrito is used to refer to goats as animals (small or adult) and food. Spanish uses the word cabra to refer to adult goats. Chabacano animals that differ in pronounciation to their Spanish counterparts are the following: Chabacano Spanish Tiboron Tibur...

Origins of the Chabacano Caga and Miya

I had always been curious about the word caga and miya in Chabacano. It sounds Spanish but somehow, I can’t seem to find it in any Spanish dictionary. It wasn’t until I tried my luck using WordReference.com that I found the possible Spanish origins of caga and miya . There is indeed a Spanish verb cagar meaning to have a sh*t and mear meaning to have a p*ss. These two words though are considered very vulgar which explains why I couldn't find them in standard Spanish dictionaries. In the Chabacano dictionaries that I have, this word is spelled as miya , which is also the spelling I decided to use in this article. Here are some sample Chabacano sentences using these two words. Chabacano: Quiere tu caga? English: Do you want to defecate? Chabacano: Que hora tu ultimo ya miya? English: When was the last time that you urinated? In hospitals, they tend to use the word ensucia instead of caga to refer to defecating. Thus, caga is also informal in Chabacano but not ne...

Origins of the Chabacano Señor

In Chabacano, people do not say !Dios mio¡ when they say 'my God' as one would in Spanish. When we say 'my God', we say Señor ! Here are some situations wherein you would use the Chabacano señor and sample sentences along with their rough English translation: In frustration Chabacano: Señor, yo ya daw hace conese! English: My God, let me do it! (let me be the one to do it) When shocked Chabacano: Señor! Cosa ese? English: My God, what is that? In fright Chabacano: Ay señor, tiene ladron na otro lao casa. English: Oh my God, the house on the other side is being robbed. (literally, there's a burglar at the house at the other side) In Chabacano, one says el otro lao casa to mean your neighboring house In relief: Chabacano: Señor! Bueno ya lang ya llega ya tu. English: My God! It's a good thing that you have already arrived. The way you say señor would tell the emotion you are conveying.

Origins of the Chabacano Vene and Uste

I was watching an Argentine film when I heard this woman telling his husband, “veni, veni!” She was obviously calling on her husband to come to her. Now, in my attempt to learn Spanish, I have learned that the imperative form of venir is ven (informal) and venga (formal), so you could probably imagine how perplexed I was to hear this form of venir . My shock was replaced by amusement when I realized that in Chabacano, we say vene to ask someone to come to us. Here are some sample Chabacano sentences using vene . Chabacano: Vene aqui! Standard Spanish: Ven/ Venga aca! English: Come here! According to my research, veni is the informal imperative form of venir in some countries like Argentina, and Guatemala (where vos is used). Normally, Chabacano verbs are formed out of Spanish infinitives (i.e. habla from hablar , vivi from vivir , and come from comer ), but vene is an exception to this rule because we never say veni in Chabacano. Another thing that I h...

Origins of the Chabacano Preñada and Pellejo

One peculiarity in Chabacano is the way that we say the word pregnant. In Spanish, preñada does mean pregnant as well, however it is used only to refer to animals being pregnant, not people. Here are some examples on how Chabacano preñada (pronounced and spelled by many as prinyada or priniada ): Chabacano:Preñada ya tamen tu? English: Are you pregnant again? Chabacano: Cuanto veces ya tu ya queda preñada? English: How many times have you been pregnant? Chabacano: No quiere mas yo queda preñada. English: I don't want to be pregnant again Chabacano: Grande el bariga del perro. Quiere decir, preñada ese. English: The dog's stomach is big. That means (it) is pregnant. As you may have noticed, Chabacano preñada is used both for animals and people. According to a post in the WordReference forums , the Spanish preñada can also be used for people however it sounds very vulgar (in other words it sounds so Chabacano ). Another word that we use in Chabacano that is ...

How To Say Health Related Words In Chabacano

If you've ever been to one of the hospitals or clinics in Zamboanga city, here is a dialogue (in Chabacano) that you might encounter: Dialogue 1 Nurse: Cosa aquel? (pronounced as cosaquel) Patient: Miss, duele man mio cabeza. Nurse: Del cuando pa ese ma'am? Patient: Na, del lunes pa este. Nurse: Tiene ba tu cosa otro ta sinti? No hay ba tu calor? Patient: No hay man, pero ta tose yo ahora ( ahora is normally pronounced in Chabacano as ahra , only on formal settings or by certain people would you hear this word pronounced as it is pronounced in Spanish) Nurse: Pero no hay tu custipao Patient: No hay man. No hay man yo custipao (this word comes the Spanish constipao ). Dialogue 2 Mother: No hay tu entra escuela? Son: No hay. Enfermo yo. Mother: Na anda ya kita na doctor. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Doctor: Cosa el problema? Mother: Enfermo mio anak. Son: Grabe mio tos doc. Doctor: Tiene ba flema si ta tose tu? Son: Si. Acabar duele tambien (pronounced as tamen ) mio ...

The Chabacano Queda

In Spanish, the word quedar is used sometimes in place of estar . Other times it is used to mean 'become' or 'left over'. In Chabacano, you will also find similar uses. Here are some examples (along with a Spanish and English translation): Chabacano: Cuanto zapatos ya lang ya queda contigo? Spanish: Cuántos zapatos te quedan? English: How many shoes are left with you? Chabacano: Ya queda malo el TV Spanish: La televisión no funciona más English: The TV is not functioning anymore. Chabacano: Hinde de suyo culpa si ya queda le dormido na mi coche. Spanish: Ella no tiene la culpa de quedarse dormida en mi coche. English: It isn't her fault that she fell asleep in my car. Chabacano: Donde tu ta queda? Spanish: Donde vives? English: Where do you live? As you may have noticed in the last sentence, we don't use the word vivi to express the word live (to reside) in Chabacano. Instead we say queda . Interestingly, the Spanish quedarse means to stay...

Chabacano Greetings

Greeting people in Chabacano is a bit different compared to Spanish. For example, we say buenas dias instead of buenos dias . This greeting though (along with buenas tardes and buenas noches ) is normally only used in formal settings and by older speakers of Chabacano. When at the doorstep and you are trying to check if there's anyone home, one would yell, buenas ! Now even though you have been escorted inside the house or the owner has asked you to come in already, it is polite to still say buenas . Buenas is also sometimes used as a verb meaning to greet someone or to let someone know that you are at their house. Here is an example: In a party, Maria has not yet greeted Pedro (the host) and is talking to her friend (Pilar) who is also a guest. Maria: Donde ya si Pedro. Man buenas anay yo conele. Pilar: Talla pa na cocina. Here is an English translation: Maria: Where is Pedro? Let me greet him first/ Let me show myself to him first. Pilar: He is still in t...

The Chabacano Enbuenamente

I have always been curious about the Chabacano enbuenamente . I have always thought that it sounded very Spanish especially since the word is used as an adjective which meant to do something properly (very similar to its Spanish counterpart). Recently though, I tried researching on the origins of enbuenamente , but all I could find were Chabacano texts in blogs and other websites. I have come to the conclusion then that it is a Chabacano word without Spanish origins. However, I encountered some texts online (in Chabacano) which spelled enbuenamente as en buena mente and it is there that I found its Spanish origins.The Chabacano word which I have been using all my life to describe an action is actually Spanish. Here are some examples of how enbuenamente is used in Chabacano along with their rough English translation: Chabacano: Conversa daw enbuenamente English: Would you speak properly... Chabacano: Ta hace ya gane yo enbuenamente... English: I'm doing it properly already…...

The F Word in Chabacano

One of the things that my friend picked up from his Chabacano roommates is the word chinga, he tells me. Indeed, if you listen to Chabacano spoken between friends, you would hear a lot of chinga. According to urbandictionary.com, chingar is a Mexican Spanish word that is the equivalent of the English f word. Another word I presume is derived from chingar which is used often in Chabacano is 'chingona'. It is used towards a female and means whatever it is you think it means. It is sometimes used affectionately among female friends though. When you hear a girl saying chingona vos to another girl, it doesn't necessarily mean that they're quarreling. Another bad word in Chabacano is coño de vos nana (mother). Most Chabacano speakers though would not pronounce the de and s in vos and would say conyobohnana. Now this is something you say to someone you're very angry with. Other adjectives which has a bad meaning in Chabacano are: -pendejo -animal -de mal herencia...

Origins of the Chabacano Ansina, Endenantes, Enantes, and Masquin

When I read an article wherein Gemma Cruz-Araneta (former tourism secretary) was saying that she would hear Mexican Indians use the word ' ansina ', I automatically thought that ansina is a Nahuatl word. Nahuatl is a language spoken by the Aztecs and rumor has it that there are a number of Chabacano words with Nahuatl origin. Immediately, I set out to research the word ansina . To my surprise though, it turned out that ansina is not a Nahuatl word but it is actually Spanish, old Spanish that is. Well, considering that Spanish reached the shores of Zamboanga in the early 1600s, it is actually no surprise that Chabacano is peppered with old Spanish words. There are two varieties of this word, the other being ansí though it is not used in Chabacano. According to the Diccionario de la Lengua Española de la Real Academia Española (DRAE) , besides in old Spanish documents, this word is still used in parts of rural Spain like Aragón and some states in the United States that bo...

Origins of the Chabacano Aton and Amon

Aside from Spanish, Nahuatl, and Portuguese, the Hiligaynon (Ilonggo) language also made some notable contributions to Chabacano. Some of these words are amon and aton . Having made the acquaintance of a Hiligaynon speaker recently, I made it a point to ask her to provide me with Hiligaynon sentences using amon and aton so that I could compare how similar the Chabacano and Hiligaynon languages are. Ilonggo: Sa amon lang kamo makaon. English: Just eat at our (place). Chabacano: Alla lang ustedes come con amon. Ilonggo: Amon na ya. Rough translation in English: That is ours. Chabacano: De amon ese. Ilonggo: Sa aton balay sila matulog. English: They will sleep at our house. Chabacano: Na de aton casa sila dormi. Ilonggo: Aton-aton lang ni. English: This is just between you and me. Chabacano: De aton-aton lang este. As you can see, there's great similarity on how the two languages use these two words. In Zamboanga city, one will observe that th...

Origins of the Chabacano Estaba and Pensaba

The Spanish imperfect tense in Spanish occurs (in my observation) only twice in Chabacano vocabulary. It can be found in the words pensaba and estaba . These two words are probably one of a handful verbs in Chabacano which are conjugated. Note however that only these two forms exists ( pensabas , pensaban , etc. and estabas , estaban , and etc. do not exist). Here are some examples of how Chabacano uses the word pensaba : Chabacano: Pensaba yo hinde tu ta come carne English: I thought you didn't eat meat Chabacano: Pensaba le ya mori ya tu. English: He thought that you already died. Chabacano: Pensaba mio nana volve tu este diciembre. English: My mother thought that you will come home this December. As you may have noticed Chabacano pensaba is similar to Spanish pensaba . The Chabacano usage of estaba also seems to be similar to that of its Spanish meaning. Here are some examples: Chabacano: Estaba yo alli. English: I was there. Chabacano: Estaba mio nana na pu...

Chabacano there VS Spanish there

In Spanish there are three words for the English 'there'. When referring to something near the person being addressed, one uses 'ahí'. Here is an example: Las plumas que tienes allí son bonitas The pens that you have there are very pretty When referring to something which is distant however, one would use 'allí'. An example is: Allí, hay playas bonitas There are beautiful beaches over there And when 'allí' comes after a verb of motion like ir, 'allá' is used. An example would be: Voy para allá I'm on my way there In Chabacano, we only use 'alli' and 'alla'. Although, these two forms of there are used differently. Chabacano 'alli' is used to refer to something which is near the person being addressed. An example is: Tiene tu alli lapiz? Do you have a pencil there? While Chabacano 'alla' is used to refer to something distant. Here's an example: Tiene ba alla culebra? Are there snakes ...