I am half Filipino and I was born in CA...At my high school some guys make fun of or repeat what I say [in an accent]. how could I have worse English than everyone else who was not born in US? Is it because that I'm do't talk a lot? Any Suggestions? I feel so stupid... I always here this question: "You are born here, why is your English bad"?
Also I have a low vocabulary but I trying so hard to improve.
Thank you and please don't be so harsh. ^_^

Hello everyone. For the past few months, I've been studying "Tagalog" which is the language of the Philippines in case you didn't know. I recently picked up "Pimsleur's Tagalog" and I'm progressing along fine. I didn't want this to be my ONLY method for learning, so I looked up some other methods.

I've read everywhere (including here on Yahoo! Answers) that conversing with your family/friends in Tagalog will help you pick up the language fast. Now, I find this hard because I don't even know what to say! My vocabulary isn't that broad and whenever they speak, I can only pick out key words and sometimes I can't even pick up any words.

Any suggestions? Should I finish my studies and get proficient before I start practicing? This is my first time actually committing to learning a language so any tips would help.

I am a bit confused how Pinoys use the word dialect. Dialect in the science of linguistic means a slight variation in the same language. For example British English and American English are two dialects of the same language- it means slightly different grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation but it is English nonetheless.
A dialect must be "of something".
For example in Butuan and Cebu they speak Cebuano but there si a slightly different vocabulary. Same in Leyte. So , one can say that Leyte people speak a different dialect of Cebuano from Butuan people.

However Cebuano, Tagalog and Ilocano are not dialects; they are languages- they have their own literature and TV stations and newspapers and are generally not understood by other speakers.

Vernacular is a regional variation of a dialect- as in different parts of a big city people may have a slightly different vocabulary and pronuncuation.

I think that the Spaniards humiliated the natives by not seeing the local languages as of their own right and simply calling them "dialectos", but they are not.

I keep seeing quite educated people here and at work ( I work with highly educated Pinoys) that make that mistake all the time.

Is this information news to you? If not, how many languages are spoken in RP, vs. How many dialects?

I was born in Manila, Philippines, but moved to Canada when I was young. I still speak/understand Tagalog. I always seem to combine Tagalog and English together, that nowadays I don't even know how to say that English word in Tagalog.

For example, "Ma, mag-sho-shower lang ako ha?" "Nag coo-cook ako ng food."
Which mean, Ma, I'm just gonna shower okay? and I'm cooking food.

I want to just speak pure Tagalog without substituting any English words into it, but it's become a habit of mine and my family's, how can I stop this?
Also, how can I build up my vocabulary again? I have forgotten a lot of words, but not exactly "forgotten", like I can't think of it myself but if someone says that word to me, I remember it and the meaning of the word, unless I've never heard of the word before.

Also, I have a question for Bisaya and Ilocano people, do you guys also combine English into your language?

I am a 19 year old Filipina in the US and I would like to be able to chat with someone in Tagalog over Skype to help improve my vocabulary, pronunciation, and grammar. In return, I can help with improving your English.

My interests include anime, video games, guitar, piano, animals, the environment and other nerdy things. If you find this cool, please send me a message! Thank you!

Does anyone know what "TNT" stands for?
I know it's an acronym for something.

#17. You make acronyms for phrases: 'OA' = overacting, 'DOM' = dirty old man, and 'TNT' for... You know.

http://www.jeepneygang.com/bola/pinoysgn.htm#VOCABULARY

Next year, I will be enrolling for a Korean class. I really want to learn Korean and it's something that I love and want to learn.
But, I live in Canada and our two official languages are French and English.
You at least have to have 1 French credit to graduate High school. Also, in grade school they teach French every year.

I have been in Canada since Grade 4 and I am now in Grade 9.
I took French this semester and I am planning on taking the Grade 10 course next year as well. It is a benefit if I can speak/understand French here in Canada, and I will have a better chance at getting a job later on. I'm not really interested in French, and I'm just taking it for the benefit. However, this would mean that I would be taking Korean and French at the same time. I don't want to give up either of them.

Will it be alright to learn 2 languages at once?
If I do decide to take both courses, I would have French for 5 days (Mon-Fri.)
But, Korean classes for only 1 day. (Saturday)
What should I do?
Won't I learn French faster since I will have it everyday compared to Korean which I will only have for one day?

Also, if I don't take the Grade 10 French Course this year, I would not be able to take it in Grade 11 or 12, since I would need to have a Grade 10 Credit, my only choice would be to take it in summer school if I decide to take it in Grade 11.

Another thing, I heard it's good if I can find a native speaker of the language I'm trying to learn and get help from them and that it's also good to use the language a lot and surround yourself with it. But, I speak Tagalog a lot because of my friends and family, I don't want to forget how to speak my native language, like my little brother. (Since he was still very young when we moved here.) & Since I only know about an 9 year old's vocabulary of Tagalog and I don't know many 'deep' Tagalog words, I learn new words and sayings (dialect) from my friends who have just recently moved.

So won't it seem like I'm learning 3 languages at once?
Will it be easier to learn only one language rather than more than one at the same time?

[Sorry for writing a lot .. ]
Another thing I forgot to add, I feel like I'm surrounded my all three of the languages because:

Tagalog - I speak it everyday with my friends and family.

Korean - I listen to a lot of Korean music, watch dramas (Subbed of course), and TV shows.

French - Everything is translated into french here, for example on a milk package it would say MILK and under LAIT, stuff like that.

I have a Co-Worker who doesn't consider other peoples opinion but who likes to consider hers even if her opinions suck and are veiled with errors. I don't like her, she's so arrogant and she thinks that she knows everything and when it comes to our written reports, she always inspects what I've done and when she sees something that she doesn't like, she gets mad and then tries to change everything. I don't know what to do with this "Fucking Visayan Filipino LOSER", and plus she's really starting to get on my nerves, she thinks she's so smart but when it comes to VOCABULARY, her brain is as small as an ant, and not to mention if she doesn't have any clue about anything that's got something to do with the task, she always resort to my help, I hate people like her. So tell me, what would you do if you PRETTY MUCH encounter "ONE OF THE PHYSICAL EMBODIMENTS OF EVERYTHING THAT YOU LOATHE? What would you do in this kind of situation? Should I just listen to her stupid opinions and nod?

is there a website where i can learn Tagalog? teaching me vocabulary, sentence structure, and how to pronounce things. No google translate please, or tagalog lang. Thank you.

Historians says there are 3,000+ ancient Hebrew words found in Philippines vocabulary.

I need someone to teach me tagalog, or give me a website where it does not cost money to learn...I'm trying to find it but can't find good ones that can really teach me the grammar, vocabulary, sentence structure, slang, etc. If you know what website I can refer to, or know how to speak tagalog well, please, please contact me! thank you soooooooooo much, i truly appreciate it! my email is tingtinglaw@yahoo.com

thank you in advance!

I need someone to teach me tagalog, or give me a website where it does not cost money to learn...I'm trying to find it but can't find good ones that can really teach me the grammar, vocabulary, sentence structure, slang, etc. If you know what website I can refer to, or know how to speak tagalog well, please, please contact me! thank you soooooooooo much, i truly appreciate it! my email is tingtinglaw@yahoo.com

thank you in advance!

I can speak tagalog but very little. My family is from the Philippines and I would like to communicate with them better.. I have read some books and websites..but all they really give you is phrases. I was wondering if there is anything I can learn from, that indroduces vocabulary and sentence structure little by little.......thanks so much!

I'm a Fil-Am, born in the States. My family is from Leyte and they all speak Cebuano. However it is impossible to find classes that teach Cebuano. My university offers a course on Tagalog though.

I know the vocabulary is very different, but if I learned Tagalog grammar would that help me understand Cebuano grammar? Like how to conjugate verbs, future, past, present, and progressive tenses?
@ radsr: I'm not that interested in learning Tagalog simply because my family does not speak it at home. And when I go back to the Philippines I am only in Cebu or Leyte.

So will learning Tagalog give me a better understanding of Cebuano grammar?

I'm writing a paper in both english and Filipino for my language class. I want to make sure or I guess have an idea of how to go about goal-focused and subject-focused verbs.. so if someone could translate these paragraphs it'd help me majorly!

Food is a major part of Filipino culture. IN fact, the number of meals per day is greater than five. These meals consist of at least two meriendas in between the main meals during the day. Today, we will be looking at how to cook on of the most popular dishes in the Philippines, Adobo. You can cook adobo with pork, chick, or beef...

You will need the following ingredients:

(I have already translated the ingredients and steps for cooking)

but also need translated the following facts:

Filipino cooking reflects the history of the islands. Chinese, Hindu, Spanish, and American ingredients and customs have influenced the cooking.

*here I am supposed to talk about curry (hindu) and ketchup/banana ketchup (american) and champado (spanish) foods in Philippines and also how the many sauces - fish sauce/shrimp paste etc are used*
if anyone has ideas about those influences it'd be greatly appreciated! Keep in mind as well I am also only in first year Filipino so I don't have a huge extensive vocabulary but can look up almost anything.

I know it seems like a lot but I am also doing a speech tonight. Thanks!!

I just want to know more about the language
Is it spoken by many people outside the Phillipines region? Is it a difficult language to learn (the grammar and vocabulary)
What are some interesting facts about the language, some pros about it, and cons? Thanks!!

Why do we use so much English into our language?
I'm also Filipino. I was born there but I moved to Canada when I was 8 years old.
I don't remember much but I remember having English and Tagalog classes.

But, why is it that we use so much English to substitute words in Tagalog?
Is it because the literal translation into Tagalog is too long and hard to say?

It's kind of weird because when people ask me how to say a word in Tagalog, sometimes I can't find the literal translation. Or do I need to learn more words and improve my vocabulary?

Thank you ^_^

I've been trying to increase my Tagalog skills lately. How ever I'm doing a pretty lousy job thanks to my lack of resources. Anyway, I have some questions about a specific sentence.

This morning I herd the phrase "Masakit ang ulo ko." which I know (or think I know) means my head hurts. But I don't actually understand the vocabulary.

Ang means the?

I'm writing a paper in both english and Filipino for my language class. I want to make sure or I guess have an idea of how to go about goal-focused and subject-focused verbs.. so if someone could translate these paragraphs it'd help me majorly!

Food is a major part of Filipino culture. IN fact, the number of meals per day is greater than five. These meals consist of at least two meriendas in between the main meals during the day. Today, we will be looking at how to cook on of the most popular dishes in the Philippines, Adobo. You can cook adobo with pork, chick, or beef...

You will need the following ingredients:

(I have already translated the ingredients and steps for cooking)

but also need translated the following facts:

Filipino cooking reflects the history of the islands. Chinese, Hindu, Spanish, and American ingredients and customs have influenced the cooking.

*here I am supposed to talk about curry (hindu) and ketchup/banana ketchup (american) and champado (spanish) foods in Philippines and also how the many sauces - fish sauce/shrimp paste etc are used*
if anyone has ideas about those influences it'd be greatly appreciated! Keep in mind as well I am also only in first year Filipino so I don't have a huge extensive vocabulary but can look up almost anything.

I know it seems like a lot but I am also doing a speech tonight. Thanks!!

I'm learning Tagalog, please help me enrich my vocabulary and conversations.(good or bad)

When I mean stories, I mean from novels down to the short stories....
I want to know if there are still people out there who write and read books in Filipino... I want to read Filipino books to widen my Filipino vocabulary so that I can write a story in Filipino.... I've always found Filipino ... (its so indescribable!!!)..... sweeter than English....
Correction: Do you read any Filipino books?
Hey, Joe C!!!! Filipinos DO have a written language!

Dialect- Linguistics. a variety of a language that is distinguished from other varieties of the same language by features of phonology, grammar, and vocabulary, and by its use by a group of speakers who are set off from others geographically or socially.

Like English in the UK and in the US; or Spanish in Spain and in Argentina. They speak the same language but different dialect.

Now how could these be similar?

(good morning)

Tagalog: Magandang umaga
Ilocano: Naimbag nga bigatyo
Hiligaynon/Ilonggo: Maayong buntag
Kapampangan: Mayap ayabak

They clearly differ in phonology, grammar, and VOCABULARY. I think the Commission on the Filipino Language should have known better before declaring each indigenous "dialects" as dialects. It just makes most Filipinos unaware of what a dialect really is.

Do you agree?

I believe it will help me build my vocabulary.

For those who have read ibong adarna or understands filipino, please help me translate! My vocabulary in Filipino is not that good. Also, please don't use an online translator. Just say it in your own words or interpret it.
Chapter 12

half of stanza 474:
ngunit likas na sa ating
ang wala ay paghanapin

475
tayo'y hindi masiyahan
sa abot na ng pananaw
iniimbot pa rin naman
ang lahat na ay malaman

476
Langit man ay mararating
sapilitang aakyatin
matalos lang yaong lihim
na balot ng salamisim

I wanna polish my Filipino grammar and build my Filipino vocabulary (because it's a shame naman that I don't speak my native tongue fluently). i'm fil-chi but I'm more fluent in English >.< I was wondering, what books could help me do that? I was thinking: books by Efren Abueg, Edgardo M. Reyes (those are the authors in my HS third year textbooks)..but I can't find them anymore anywhere!

I tried reading Bob Ong's MACARTHUR but it wasn't my thing...so I guess that rules him out.

Ayaw ko rin ng local/native setting. Those settings really depress me! It's very hard to choose Filipino books...because majority of 'em are set in native provinces... I want to read a Filipino book that I could relate to.

And I also DO NOT like the romance books they sell in National Bookstore! (Yung Filipino version ng Mills and Boon!)

Of course, Eli Fili and Noli are out of the question! (Truth is, masyadong malalim yung Tagalog dun para sa akin)
btw, in case it helps, i'm currently 16.

Tagalog is a language since it have different structure from other Malayo-Polynesian language such as Bahasa, Cebuano, Tausug, Ilokano, Bicol, etc... Will you call Filipino a Tagalog dialect? Or is it the other way around? Since they got the same structure but sometimes use a different set of intonations and vocabulary.