Ivatan language
The Ivatan language, also known as Chirin nu Ibatan, is an Austronesian language spoken in the Batanes Islands of the Philippines
Although the islands are closer to Taiwan than to Luzon, it is not one of the Formosan languages. Ivatan is one of the Batanic languages, which are perhaps a primary branch of the Malayo-Polynesian family of Austronesian languages.
The language of Babuyan Island is sometimes classified as a dialect. Babuyan was depopulated by the Spanish and only repopulated at the end of the 19th century with families from Batan Island, most of them speakers of one of the Ivatan dialects.
Introduction
Ivatan is especially characterized by its words, which mostly have the letter v, as in vakul, Ivatan, and valuga. While related to the Northern Philippine group of languages, Ivatan, having been isolated, is most close to the two other members of the Bashiic sub-group of languages, Yami and Itbayat, neither of which is indigenous to Luzon. Ibatan, spoken on the nearby Babuyan group of islands, is so similar to Ivatan that it is not entirely clear whether it should be classified as a dialect of Ivatan or a separate language, though each does receive its own code in ISO taxonomy.Ivatan has two dialects; Basco Ivatan, more commonly known as Ivasay, spoken on the main island of Batan, and Southern Ivatan or Isamurung, spoken on the southern half of Batan and on the most southern island, Sabtang.
Variations in language
In the capital of Basco and the surrounding northern half of Batan, the area encompassed by Ivasayen, t is prominent, whereas in the Isamurongen zone to the south that phoneme becomes a ch.Examples of the more visible variations of the Ivasayen and Isamurongen words and pronunciations are:
- tiban in Basco is chiban in the southern towns
- antiyaw in Basco is anchiyaw in the southern towns
- kabatiti in Basco is kabachichi in the southern towns
- timoy in Basco is chimoy in the southern towns
- adkan in Basco and the southern towns is umahan in Itbayat.
- arava in Basco and the southern towns is aralih in Itbayat.
- bago in Basco and the southern towns is kuyis in Itbayat.
- otioyan in Basco, is ochoyan in the southern towns and hangtay in Itbayat.
- ipos in Basco is vochivot in the southern towns and also ipos in Itbayat.
Some tend to mix the Ivatan words to Filipino or vice versa in sentences, much worset is the combining or compounding of the Filipino words to the Ivatan words. One common example of this is – mapatak. This is derived from marunong and chapatak which literally means "someone who knows" which were then compounded to form the word mapatak. This is actually the result of the influence of non-Ivatans who tend to speak the language and were then eventually adopted.
Another common mistakes that are often heard, is the mispronunciation of the Ivatan word like iskarayla – the correct is iskalayra – which means "stairs", and tumaraya – the correct is tumayara – which means "going up".
One unique characteristic of the language is its enormous street language. It is called street language because it emanated from the streets. Examples of these are: tanchew, coined from mirwa ta anchiyaw – literally means "we’ll meet again later", and nganmu, coined from jinu ngayan mu, literally means "where are you going". These are results of shortening the Ivatan phrases or sentences into one or two words depending on its usage.
Common Ivatan expressions have various origin such as:
- Dios mamajes or Dios Mamajes nu mapia
Usage: Used to show gratitude to someone
- Dios mavidin
Usage: Used by the person who is leaving
- Dios machivan
Usage: Used by the person who is staying behind
Phonology
The Ivatan language consists of five vowels, 21 consonants and five diphthongs.- Vowels: a, e, i, o, u
- Diphthongs: aw, iw, ay, ey, oy
- Consonants: b, ch, d, f, g, h, hh, j, k, l, m, n, ng, ny, p, r, s, t, v, w, y
Grammar
Pronouns
The following set of pronouns are the pronouns found in the Ivatan language.| Nominative free | Nominative bound | Genitive free | Genitive bound | Locative | |
| 1st person singular | yaken | 'ako | niaken | ko | diaken |
| 2nd person singular | 'imo | 'ka | nimo | mo | dimo |
| 3rd person singular | sia | sia | nia | na | dia |
| 1st person plural inclusive | yaten | ta | niaten | ta | diaten |
| 1st person plural exclusive | yamen | kami | niamen | namen | diamen |
| 2nd person plural | 'inio | kamo | ninio | nio | dinio |
| 3rd person plural | sira/sa | sira/sa | nira | da | dira |
Cultural terms of the Ivatan people
- uve, ubi, sudi – yam; staple crop
- sudi – taro
- wakay – sweet potato
- bulyas – onions
- baka – cow
- kaddin – goat
- kayvayvanan – friendship; cooperative work by a community which starts at the blow of a shell horn called a vodiadong
- payohoan – helping one another; work club of teenagers who alternate their shifts
- paluwa; chinarem; tataya – three boats used for fishing
- kabbata – legends
- laji- – lyric folk songs
- kalusan – working songs
- sisyavak – humorous anecdotes and
- kabbuni – riddles
- pananahan – proverbs
- vachi – song leader
- mais – corn
- palay – rice plant
- dukay – lesser yam
- rakarakanen- vegetables
- hagsa – an extinct wild deer
- vulaw a bagu – wild boar
- tatus – coconut crabs
- lakasan – tops of wooden trunks used for storing cloth and other valuables serve as benches
- dulang – low dining table
- bangku – low bench
- rahaung, camarin – a storeroom for larger farm equipment such as plows, harrows, sleds, card, and the ox-drawn pole used for clearing off sweet potatoes and other vines from fields being prepared for re-cultivation
- vuyavuy – Phoenix loureiroi, a small palm growing usually on Batanes coastal hills
- talugung – a kind of conical hat woven from strips made from the stalk of a local plant called nini
- pasikin – small bamboo or rattan baskets worn on the back
- lukoy – bolo knife
- suhut – sheath of a bolo knife
- suut, vakul – a head-and-back covering woven from the stripped leaves of banana or the vuyavuy
- alat – baskets
- batulinaw – a necklace made of hollow globules interspersed with smaller pieces of gold in floral patterns and held together by a string made of fiber
- tamburin – an all-gold necklace whose beads are smaller and more ornate than the batulinaw, and lockets
- seseng, pamaaw, chingkakawayan, liyano, de pelo, dima s'bato, pitu s'bato, de perlas, bumbolya, karakol, pinatapatan- traditional earrings that come from the Spanish period
- angang – jars
- dibang – flying fish
- payi – lobster
- arayu – dorado
- mataw – dorado fisherman
- tipuho – breadfruit
- uhango – pandan
- tamidok – fern
- chayi – fruit similar to lychee Pometia Pinnata
- soot – generic term referring to the Ivatan rain cape made from the finely stripped leaves of the vuyavuy palm.
- vakul – woman's soot, worn on the head.
- kanayi – man's soot, worn on the shoulders.
- falowa – Ivatan boat, now usually motorized, for 10–20 passengers.
- tataya – Ivatan dory with twin oars, for 2–4 passengers.
- timban – church
- vanuwa – port
- avayat – a broad directional term used to indicate the west, a western direction or the western side.
- valugan – a broad directional term sued to indicate the east, an eastern direction or the eastern side.
- palek – sugar cane wine
- malisto –
- mawadi –
- mavid – beautiful
- kuman – eat
- minem- drink
- bapor, tataya- boat
- taw – sea
- ranum – water
- salawsaw – wind
- kayvan – friend
- mahakay – man
- mavakes – woman
- masalawsaw - windy
- makuhat - hot
- matimuy/machimuy - raindrops
Phrases
- Hello – Kapian capa nu dios
- How are you? – Ara ca mangu?
- I am fine – Taytu aco a mapia
- I am not fine – Ara coava mapia
- Thank you – Dios mamajes
- Where are you going? – Ngayan mo?
- I am going to... – Mangay aco du...
- Where is ___? – Ara dino si ___?
- Straight ahead – Direcho
- How much? – Manyi Pira?
- How many? – Pira?
- Good – Mapia
- No good – Mapia/Mavid ava
- Yes – Oon
- I want ___ – Makey ako no ___
- I don't want – Makey aco ava
- I have a problem – Mian problema ko
- No problem – Arava o problema
- Good luck – Mapia palak
- What's your name? – Angu ngaran mo?
- Where is the house of ___? – Jino vahay da ___?
- There – Du nguya, du daw, dawr
- Here – Diaya
- Hungry – Mapteng
- Thirsty – Ma-waw
- Tired – Mavanah, chinagagan, navanax
- Happy – Masuyot, masaray
- Whistling – Mamito, mihiñoxay
- Soft – mahma, maxma & mayuxma
- Sea – Taw, hawa
- Bird – manumanok, kangkang
- Perpendicular – maybatbat, mipatinu-nong
- Mud – hetek, xetek
- Sea – Taw, hawa
- Yesterday – Kakuyab
- Afternoon – Makuyab
- When are we going? – Antin mangu ta mangay?
- When are you going to cut your hair? – Antin mangu ka mapagugud?
Ivatan words
Etymology
Coined words are two words combined to form one new word.| Sentence | Coined word | Meaning | Usage |
| Mirwa ta anchiyaw | Tanchew | We’ll meet again later. | Street language |
| Jinu ngayan mu | Nganmu | Where are you going? | Street language |
Similarities with other Philippine languages
Similarities with the Tao language
Accommodation
Approval and disapproval
Colors
Days of the week
Direction
Cardinal numbers
Writing system
Ivatan is written with the full 26 letter Latin alphabet, with 3 extra letters, CH, Ň and NG.The letter e is pronounced as the schwa oun, or uh, as in Dios Mamajes, 'di-yos-ma-ma-huhs', and palek 'pa-luhk'.