Learn Ilocano

Learn Ilocano online with practical, real-life situations! Simple, fast and easy learning. Speak Ilokano language with confidence. Start now with uTalk!


About Ilocano

Ilocano, also called Iloko and Iloco, is the third most spoken language in the Philippines. Its speakers are mostly found on Luzon island and Mindanao. There are over 180 languages spoken in this country, so Ilocano is used as a common second language by about 2 million people. As part of the Austronesian family, Ilocano has links to languages ranging from Hawaiian to Malay to Malagasy. It has absorbed a lot of words from Spanish and English, as well as Hokkien and Sanskrit.

Get Started
uTalk Language Logo
Arrow facing left to cycle backwards through text
Play sample text audio Play sample text audio
Arrow facing right to cycle forward through text

Planet Earth
Where is it spoken?

Philippines

People Talking
Number of speakers

10,000,000

Family Tree
Language family

Austronesian

Malayo-Polynesian

Philippine

Fun facts — Ilocano

  • Locals know this language as Samtoy, from 'sao mi ditoy' or 'our language here'.
  • Modern Ilocano speakers tend to use their traditional numbers to count from 1 to 9, and Spanish numerals for higher numbers.
  • The name Ilocano is derived from 'i-' meaning 'from', 'looc' or 'bay' and the Spanish ending '-ano'.

Over 30 million people have started speaking a new language with uTalk

Treasure

Over 2500 words and phrases, across 60+ topics covering everyday situations

Native Speakers

Practise speaking and compare your pronunciation with native speakers

Games

Game-based learning is fun and intuitive

Get Started