Learn Cebuano (Bisaya)

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About Cebuano (Bisaya)

Cebuano is known by many names: Binisaya, Bisaya, Sebuano, Sugbuanon, Sugbuhanon and Visayan. It is a language spoken in the Philippines, mostly in the Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas and Mindanao. It is the second most spoken language of the Philippines after Tagalog, with which it shares a lot of words - others come from Spanish, English, Chinese and Arabic. Standard Cebuano is based on the dialect of south east Cebu.

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Planet Earth
Where is it spoken?

Philippines

People Talking
Number of speakers

20,000,000

Family Tree
Language family

Austronesian

Malayo-Polynesian

Philippine

Fun facts — Cebuano (Bisaya)

  • In Cebuano, the word ‘kandingon’ means someone who doesn't take a bath frequently and literally translates as ‘like a goat’!
  • The proverb 'walay aso nga makomkom' means nothing can be kept secret forever and literally translates as ‘you can’t hold smoke’.
  • A commonly-used local word for a mate, dude or pal is ‘bai’.
  • The expression for a bragging competition - patas-anay ug ihi - literally translates as ‘longest urine reach’!

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