Linguistic Commonality flow from Tamil Sanskrit to Tagalog through Malay Indonesian Language

G.C. James Choi, Ph.D.1

The aim of this research is to re-find the linguistic influence to Philippines by Malay language; to re-find Malay language influence to Philippines language Tagalog and the linguistic relationship between Bahasa Indonesia and Malay language and each interaction with Sanskrit and Tamil language. This research is divided into three parts: First part is introduction for the Tamil and Sanskrit influence to Tagalog and thanks to Dr. Santarita of UP Diliman, Asian Studies for his help; Second part is Malay and Indonesian language influence to Tagalog, thanks to Mr. Kristanto from Indonesia Embassy in the Philippines; and Third part, Malay influence to Bicol and Hiligaynon language.

As early as 250,000 years ago, people from the Malayan Archipelago began trickling into what is now known as the Philippine Islands. Coming during the Ice Age, they are believed to have crossed on a land bridge that no longer exists. These people were followed 15,000 years ago by a Mongoloid people from Southeast Asia who also crossed on the land bridge. These groups possibly formed the basis for most of the approximately 100 different languages spoken today in the Philippines, although there is no archeological evidence of these people. Spanning from 7000 BC to 2000 BC larger groups of people began migrating from China and Vietnam. The largest migration took place in the Third Century BC, when people from the Malay Peninsula and the Indonesian Archipelago began pouring onto this group of beautiful, tropical islands. These immigrants, speakers from the Austronesian Language Family, surely cemented the basis for the various Philippine languages, of which Tagalog is extremely important2 (Encarta).  

Tamil/Sanskrit InfluenceOne of the first non-Austronesian languages to have a major impact on the Tagalog

language was Sanskrit. Two routes by which Sanskrit could have impacted Tagalog, as well as the other languages spoken in the Philippines, are through direct trade, and through indirect culture movements traveling from India through the Malaysian Peninsula and on into the Philippines. Beginning in the Fifth Century AD, trade in Southeast Asia erupted, and the interaction between the countries in this region of the world was boosted immensely. Traders sailed all over the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea to barter their goods. As a side-effect of this interaction, the languages interacted as well. One of these languages was Sanskrit, a language of India. As the traders mingled, words were borrowed and loaned throughout the region.

The second way in which Sanskrit impacted Tagalog was through culture movements which slowly worked their way down through the Archipelago and into the island groups. The spread of Hindu was a major culture movement. With it, Hindu brought many new customs into these countries. New words had to be borrowed and created to allow for the new customs and traditions (Francisco, 1-5).

1 Dr. G.C. James Choi is currently the Chief Secretary, in-house Scholar, and Chief-Editor of Forgotten People Magazine and SEACOM Journal since 2012 of SEACOM Research Center and a visiting professor at Bulacan State University and professor of Contemporary Problem in Southeast Asia in Graduate School of Bulacan State University. He finished his Bachelor’s Degree major in Malay-Indonesian Language at University of Foreign Studies at Seoul, Korea and Masters and Doctorate Degree at Bulacan State University, major in Social Studies. He stayed 34 years in Southeast Asia, 10 years in Malaysia, 10 years in Singapore, 12 years in Philippines, 1 year in Vietnam and Indonesia2 Encarta. (1997). Microsoft Encarta 97 Encyclopedia.CD-ROM

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Because if the manner in which the syntax of Tagalog is constructed, the grammatical structure of the language was fully preserved. Morphologically, Tagalog is constructed of roots of one or two syllables, to which affixes (there are more than 20) are attached. With the addition of these affixes, the roots are changed into verbs, nouns, adjectives, adverbs, and countless other derivations. This format is what saved Tagalog from being more drastically altered. It allowed new roots to be borrowed into the language, and then be altered using Tagalog affixes. Thus, one borrowed root word could be changed into countless words coming from the same borrowed root, but using affixes from Tagalog3 (Aspillera, viii).

There appear to be about 336 words in Philippine languages that are recognizably Sanskrit in origin and 50 percent of these have definitive provenance in Sanskrit. (Francisco, 1988) William Henry Scott even gave an actual statistical count of Sanskrit words in Philippine languages. He found out that some 150 separate Sanskrit words are identified as the origin of Philippine terms majority are in Tagalog and the rest in Bisaya, Ilocano and Sulu (Tausog). Some of these are bakti, guro, bangsa, bichara, dukha, guna, hina, pana, saksi and suchi.4 (Scott, 1968)

As words entered Tagalog from Sanskrit, they were often altered phonetically or semantically. Phonetic alterations included change in vowel length, change in vowel quality, changes in consonants, loss of aspiration, and haplology. The following is a list of phonetic alterations in Tagalog words borrowed from Sanskrit5 (Francisco, 71-109):  

Vowel length: Tagalog pána < Sanskrit bäna, 'arrow' (¨ shows length)Vowel Quality: Tagalog kati < Sanskrit koti, 'ten millions'Consonantal Changes: Tagalog dalága < Sanskrit därika, 'young girl'Loss of Aspiration: Tagalog dalá < Sanskrit dhära, 'bear a burden'Haplology: Tagalog sakáli < Sanskrit sahakala, 'perhaps'

Semantic alterations included narrowing, widening, synecdoche, amelioration, and pejoration. The following is a list of semantic alterations found in Tagalog words borrowed from Sanskrit 6(Francisco, 109-120): 

Narrowing: Tagalog tála, 'the morning star, Venus' <Sanskrit tärä, 'star' Widening: Tagalog mása, 'time, epoch, season' < Sanskrit mäsa, 'month'Synecdoche: Tagalog búti, 'beauty' < Sanskrit bhüti, 'adornment'Amelioration: Tagalog bathálà, 'Supreme God' < Sanskrit bhattära, 'noble lord'Pejoration: Tagalog bandahalí, 'housekeeper' < Sanskrit bhandära, 'treasurer'

The question has been raised about the origin of some words in the various dialects of the Philippines and their possible connection to ancient Buddhist and Hindu culture in the region.

Tagalog Sanskrit Meaning

Agham Agama ScienceAsawa Swami Husband

3 Aspillera, viii4 Scott, 19685 Francisco, 71-109William Henry Scott. 1968. 52-53 as cited by Francisco, 19886 Francisco, 109-120

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Bathala Bathara Supreme BeingBalita Vartta NewsBudhi Bodhi ConscienceKatha Gatha Fabrication,Tall StoryDiwata Devata Fairy, Goddess, NymphDiwa Deva Spirit, SoulDukha Dukkha PovertyGadya Gaja ElephantGuro Guru Mentor, TeacherLaho Rahu EclipseMaharlika Mahardikka NobilityMahalaga Maharga ImportantMukha Mukha FacePana Bana ArrowSaksi Saksi WitnessSampalataya Sampratyaya FaithSaranggola Layanggula (via Malay) KiteSutla Sutra SilkTala Tara Star

Singapore is a Sanskrit word meaning the “City of the Lion”. Sumatra comes from the Sanskrit word Samudra (meaning ocean). Java comes from the Sanskrit word Yava (meaning barley). Siam (the official name of Thailand until 1939) comes from the Sanskrit word – Shyama (meaning brown). The etymology of Cambodia is a little bit controversial, as it derives from the Sanskrit word Kambuja. Kambojas refers to an Iranian tribe who had no castes. Thus, Brahmins called the Cambodians (who had no castes either) as Kambujas (the word implies "casteless barbarian")7. (Villanueva 2014)Table 4: Tamil

Tagalog Tamil Meaning

Ano என்ன (Enna) WhatBagay வகை� (Vakai) ThingDito இதோ (Itho) HereKamay கை� (Kai) HandKas �ோசு (Kācu) Cash, MoneyKuta த�ோட்கை (Kottai) FortMalunggay முருங்கை�

(Murungai)Moringa

Mangga மோங்�ோய் (Mángáy) MangoMasaya ம�ிழ்ச்சியோ

(Makicciyā)Happy

Pintungan பெ�ட் �ம் (?) Place to store thingsPooja பூகை� (Pūjai) PoojaPuto �ிட்டு (Puttu) CakeSadya சி (Sathi) Intentional

7 Villanueva 2014

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These examples give a colorful display of the many ways in which Tagalog has been influenced by Sanskrit and Tamil.

Malay Indonesian LanguageFrom a historical and structural perspective, both Indonesian and Malaysian (Bahasa

Malaysia) are closely related variants of the same language, Malay. However, we refer to them as separate languages, and they function as the national languages of two separate states. The spelling reform of 1972 had the effect of making the two look the same, as they use an identical writing and spelling system, but on lexical level considerable differenced remain (see the attached list of examples, based on the Times Comparative Dictionary of Malay-Indonesian Synonyms by Leo Suryadinata, 1991)

The differences are of various kinds:8

A mere difference in spelling (e.g. Indonesian coba, Malay cuba); A borrowing from Dutch in Indonesian and from English in Malaysian (e.g. Indonesian

klakson, Malay hon); A heavy influence of Javanese in Indonesian and Arabic in Malaysian; and An independent process of coining terms.

In some cases the same word has a different meaning in each language, leading to great hilarity in some cases, e.g. Indonesian and Arabic in Malaysian butuh“penis.”

So in answer to the oft-asked question “Are the two languages the same?” we can give an unequivocal answer “No”. Although the two may be mutually intelligible in their educated forms, there is still the risk of misunderstanding, or just plain mystification.

The linguistic situations of Indonesia and Malaysia are, after all, quite different. In Malaysia, the Malays, whose mother tongue is Malay, use either an uneducated (kampong) variety, or have an English education and may not have made a serious study of their Malay, even if it is compulsory, whereas the large Chinese community have no interest in Malay as a language whatever, even if they are forced to learn it at school and use it with officials. Although the expressions of administration, for example official forms, are in Malay, the influence of English is nevertheless strong due to the dominant influence of this world language and the colonial past.

At the same time there is a tendency on the part of the Malaysian media to imitate Indonesian in pronunciation and vocabulary (terms such as demonstrasi “demonstration” and reformasi “reform” come to mind), helps due to the fact that the population of Indonesia is ten times larger than Malaysia’s. But despite this tendency, the evidence suggests that Indonesian and Malaysian are not converging at all, but diverging at a rapid rate.

The contrasting situation of Indonesian and Malaysian is brought about not only by their different historical circumstances, namely the British colonial presence in Malaysia and the Dutch one in Indonesia, but also the fact that Indonesian has a large number of regional languages along-side it, chiefly Javanese, a language with a huge number of speakers which represents of reservoir of borrowings, in both its colloquial and classical forms. Whilst Javanese provides Sanskritic formations, deriving from deep in its Old Javanese past, Malay’s heritage is the Arabic of Islam. The deep well of spoken Malaysian Malay is the vernacular of the Malay states, while the speakers of regional Malay within Indonesia are relatively lacking in influence, and the analogous source in Indonesia is to be sought in the colloquial of Jakarta.The following list shows some contrasting Indonesian and Malaysian words.8 Times Comparative Dictionary of Malay-Indonesian Synonyms by Leo Suryadinata, 1991

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Table 1: Comparison of Indonesian and Malaysian words9 INDONESIAN

akhiralineaasramabanbangun; membanganbanyakbestikbedabicarabisabonbutuh; membutuhkancapaicobacerobohdaruratdokterformulirguruhadukhariulangtahunijazahinformasiisiINDONESIANizin; mengizinkanjanganjuarajudulkacamatakamarkamarkecilkantorkapankarenakejahatankeluhankeponakankemudi; mengemudiklaksonkualitaskuliahmaumedali

MALAYSIAN

hujungparagrafhosteltayarbina; membinaramaibifstikbezacakapbolehbilperlu; mmerlukanpenatcubacuaikecemasandoktorborangcikgutualaharijadsijilmaklumatkandunganMALAYSIANbenar; membenarkanusahjohantajukcerminmatabilikbelikbelakangpejabatbilamanakeranajenayahaduankemenakanpandu; memanduhonkualitisyarahmahupingat

ENGLISH

endparagraphdormitorytyreto buildmanybeefsteakdifferenttalkcan, to be ablebillto needtiredto trycarelessemergencydoctorform (to fill in)school teachertowelbirthdaycertificateinformationcontentsENGLISHto permitdon’tchampiontitle (of book article)spectacles, glassesroomtoiletofficewhenbecausecrimecomplaintniece/nephewto drive (a car)hornquality (university) lectureto wish, wantmedal

9 “Indonesian, A language of Indonesia". Ethnologue Languages of the World. Retrieved 10 July 2012.

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minggupahlawanpesanpelajarpemerintahpertama kaliperspipapanitiapolisiprapatanrahasiarapatrekanrusaksoresehatsekretarissisastekersumbersuratkabarterhormattatabahasaterusanINDONESIANtetanggatookumumwarganegarawawancara

pekanwiraoderpenuntutkerajaanjulung-julung kalipersuratkhabaranpaipjawatankuasapolissimpangjalansulitmitingrakanrosakpetangsihatsetiauhasabakiplagpuncaakhbarberhormatnahukanalMALAYSIAN jirankedaiam rakyattemuramah

weekheroorder(school) studentgovernmentfirst timethe presspipecommitteepolicecrossroadssecretmeetingcolleagueout of order, brokenafternoonhealthysecretaryleftover(electrical) plugSourcenewspaperrespectedgrammarcanalENGLISHneighborshopcommon, generalcitizeninterview

10Taking a quick look at the table, a few interesting details already emerge. For example, for “person,” the form orang/wong is restricted to the west, while tau is very widespread in the east. For “house” the rumah/umah type is very common, but the alternative (fale, bahay, whare) is not so strange, as it is connected with Malay balai, referring to a certain kind of building. For “three,” forms related to telu are very widespread, and the Malay tiga is the odd form out. Borrowing and historical developments are also complicating factors. For example, Javanese wadon is probably taken from Sanskrit wadhu (“woman”), and Javanese srengenge (“sun”) is derived from sang hyang we (“the holy sun”), found in Old Javanese. Language levels are another problem: should you choose the high or the low form for comparison?The languages used in the following table are:

Malay (the basis of Indonesian, an important language of western Indonesia and Malaysia )

10 Bellwood, Peter; Fox, James; & Tryon, Darrell (1995). The Austronesians: Historical and comparative perspectives. Department of Anthropology, Australian National University. ISBN 0-7315-2132-3.

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Javanese (found mainly in Central and East Java and the largest regional or ethnic language of Indonesia, with about 100 million speakers.

Balinese (found on the Island of Bali, to the east of Java) Sundanese (found in the province of West Java) Iban (found in the western part of Kalimantan) Samoan (found in Samoa, in the Pacific) Tagalog (the largest and most developed of the Philippine languages and the basis of

Filipino) Maori (the language of Polynesian inhabitants of New Zealand

Table 2: Comparison of eight Austronesian languages11

ENGLISH MALAY JAVANESE BALINESE SUNDANESE IBAN SAMOAN TAGALOG MAORI

Person oramg wong anak urang orang tagata tao tangataChild anak anak panak anak anak tamaitiit

ianak tamaiti

Male laki-laki lanang muani laki laki tane lalaki taanefemale perempua

nwadon luh awewe indu fafine babae wahine

house rumah omah umah imah rumah fale bahay whareriver sungai kali tukad walungan sungai vaitafe ilog awasun matahari srengenge matanai panonope mataari ari la raamoon bulan wulan bulan bulan bulan masina buwan maramarain hujan udan ujan hujan ujan ua ulan ua-inawater air banyu yeh cai ai vai tubig waione satu siji besik hiji sa tasi isa tahitwo dua loro dua dua dua lua dalawa ruathree tiga telu telu tilu tiga tolu tatlo toru

Indonesian InfluenceBahasa Indonesia and Filipino (Tagalog) both belong to the Malayo-Polynesian

language family. That is why it’s no wonder that there are some similarities between the two languages. (Take a look at Table 3). Bahasa Indonesia is spoken and understood by more than 300 million people in Southeast Asia including Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei. Bahasa Indonesia has more than 3,200 words similar to Filipino.12 Indonesian (Bahasa Indonesia) is the official language of Indonesia. It is a standardized register of Malay, an Austronesian language which has been used as a lingua franca in the Indonesian archipelago for centuries. Most Indonesians also speak one of more than 700 indigenous languages. Indonesia is the fourth most populous nation in the world. Of its large population, the majority speak Indonesian, making it one of the most widely spoken languages in the world. Most Indonesians, aside from speaking the national language, are often fluent in another regional language (examples include Javanese, Sundanese and Madurese) which are commonly used at home and within the local community. Most formal education, and nearly all national media and other forms of communication, are conducted in Indonesian.

On the other hand, Filipino is the standard register of the Tagalog language and the national language of the Philippines, sharing official status with the English language. As of 2007, Tagalog is the first language of 28 million people, or about one-third of the Philippine 11 Bellwood, Peter; Fox, James; & Tryon, Darrell (1995). The Austronesians: Historical and comparative perspectives. Department of Anthropology, Australian National University. ISBN 0-7315-2132-312 Kristanto (2006), Learn and Speak Bahasa Indonesia, ISBN 978-971-92705-2-2

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population, while 45 million speak Filipino as their second language. Filipino is among the 185 languages of the Philippines identified in the Ethnologue. Officially, Filipino is defined by the Commission on the Filipino Language (KWF) as "the native language, spoken and written, in Metro Manila, the National Capital Region, and in other urban centers of the archipelago." Filipino is ideally a pluricentric language. Indeed, there have been observed "emerging varieties of Filipino which deviate from the grammatical properties of Tagalog" in Davao City and Cebu, which together with Metro Manila form the three largest metropolitan areas in the Philippines. In reality, however, Filipino has been variously described as "simply Tagalog in syntax and grammar, with no grammatical element or lexicon coming from other major Philippine languages," and as "essentially a formalized version of Tagalog." In most contexts, Filipino is understood to be an alternative name for Tagalog, or the Metro Manila dialect of Tagalog.

The first Indonesians are thought to have come to the Philippines in groups, beginning some 5,000 to 6,000 years ago and again about 1500 B.C. (Bautista). Linguistic evidence connects Tagalog with Bahasa Indonesia as having common roots, so the main root of the modern Filipino languages probably came with these people (although other groups of people are thought to have come to the Philippines much earlier). In addition, the Malay people make up the largest percentage of the population in the Philippines (Bautista).

Malaysian InfluenceThe primary peoples of the Philippine archipelago were the Negrito, proto-Malay, and

Malay peoples. The Negritos are believed to have journeyed to the Philippines by land bridges some 30,000 years ago from Borneo, Sumatra, and Malaya, during the last ice age. Later migrations were by water and took place over several thousand years. The Malayans followed in successive waves. These people belonged to a prehistoric age of Malayan culture, which has in fact survived to this day among certain groups such as the Igorots. The Malayan tribes that came later had more highly developed material cultures.

13Indeed, traces of an Old Malay language in the Philippines are found showing evidence that the pre-colonial Filipinos did speak Malay. Malay was mostly spoken in Visayas and Mindanao by the aristocrats. Malay and Tagalog have long had cognates for a long time. Such as anak (son), puti (white), balik (back/return), lima/limang (white), agung (gong) and langit (heaven/sky). There's much more cognates than these. Also, Tagalog and Malay belong to the Austronesian languages. Malay is spoken as a lingua franca in the southernmost parts of the Philippines, from Zamboanga down to Tawi-tawi among a minority of the Tausug, Bajau, and Yakan peoples. It is also spoken as a daily language by Malays and Indonesians who have settled, or do business in the Philippines. It is also spoken in Southern Palawan to some extent. It is not spoken among the Maranao and Maguindanao people. The liturgical language of Islam is Arabic, but the vast majority of Muslims in the Philippines have little practical knowledge of it beyond limited religious terminology.

Old Malay and Indonesian cultures and civilizations in ancient Sumatra and Java influenced the history, lifestyles, and culture of Philippine peoples. The Malay language, along with Philippine languages belonging to the Malayo-Polynesian language family, has also had an immense influence on many if not most of the languages spoken in the Philippines. Roughly a third of all commonly used verbs and nouns used in the Philippines are of Old Malay origin. This is because Old Malay used to be the lingua franca throughout the archipelago, a good example of this is Magellan’s translator Enrique using Malay to 13 Early Southeast Asia Viewed from India (The Malay – R.C. Majumdar), Published by Ajay Kumar Jain 2013

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converse with the native Sugbuanon (Cebuano) during this time period. An example of Old Malay and Javanese languages spoken in Philippines history can be seen in the language of the 10th century Laguna Copperplate Inscription.14

Laguna Copperplate Inscription

The Laguna Copperplate Inscription 

Modern transcriptionand Filipinos spoke in the year 900.

In 1996, a Filipino history buff in California, Hector Santos, precisely converted the Sanskrit date over to our calendar by using astronomical software and some historical detective work. He determined that the Sanskrit date written on the plate was exactly Monday, April 21, 900 C.E. In spite of the similarities to Javanese documents, the copper plate had some peculiarities that led scholars to believe that it was not from the island of Java. First: the LCI did not mention the king of Java at that time, King Balitung. It was the custom at that time to always mention the name of the king in official documents. Second: the language used in the document was not only Sanskrit. It was a mixture of Sanskrit, Old Javanese, Old Malay and Old Tagalog. And third: the method of writing was different. At that time in Java the characters were impressed into heated copper, but the characters on the Laguna plate seemed to have been hammered into cold copper.

In his examination, Postma learned that the inscription was a pardon from the Chief of Tondo that erased the debt of a man named Namwaran. His debt was one kati and

14 The Laguna Copperplate Inscription by Paul Morrow ©1998 Paul Morrow Latest revision: 14 July 2006

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eight suwarna, or about 926.4 grams of gold. Today in 2006, this is equal to about $18,600 Canadian.

The document mentioned a few towns that still exist today: Tundun, which is now Tondo in Metro Manila and three towns in Bulakan; Pailah or Paila, Puliran or Pulilan, and Binwangan. A town in Agusan del Norte on Mindanao called Dewata or Diwata also appears in the text. Diwata is near Butuan, which has been a rich source of ancient artefacts. A place called Medang was mentioned, too, which is possibly Medan in Sumatra, Indonesia. Also, the name of Namwaran’s son was given as Bukah, a name that may have some relation to the town of Gatbuka in Bulakan. Gat is a title similar to “Sir” for a knight.15

 

Places Mentioned in the L.C.I.16So, because of the places mentioned in the text and because of the plate’s differences

to typical Indonesian documents, it was Postma’s opinion that it was an inhabitant of the ancient Philippines who made the LCI and that it was most likely not the work of a hoaxer.

As is often the case, though, this discovery has raised more questions than answers.It is only one document but it seems to have revealed a widespread culture with Hindu influences in the Philippines before the arrival of the Spaniards and even before the Muslims. Did ordinary Filipinos share this culture or were the people mentioned in the document just members of a small ruling class of foreigners? Was their culture pushed out of the islands when the Muslims arrived in the 12th or 13th century?

Did Filipinos once speak Sanskrit or was it reserved for important documents written by an elite minority? There are certainly some Sanskrit influences in Philippine languages but nobody was speaking it by the time the Spaniards arrived.

And what happened to this Kavi style of writing? It was a far more advanced and accurate way to write than the baybayin script that Filipinos were using 500 years later. Perhaps only that elite minority used it and so it disappeared with them.Whatever the answers, it hints at some exciting discoveries to come in the future.  

15 Hector Santos, 199616 The Laguna Copperplate Inscription by Paul Morrow ©1998 Paul Morrow Latest revision: 14 July 2006

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The LCI in EnglishIn 1994 Hector Santos asked Paul Morrow to write a Filipino translation of the

Laguna Copperplate Inscription. The first was based on Santos English translation, the second was based on Santos glossary, called the LCI Dictionary, on Morrow’s own research.

“Long Live! Year of Siyaka 822, month of Waisaka, according to astronomy. The fourth day of the waning moon, Monday. On this occasion, Lady Angkatan, and her brother whose name is Buka, the children of the Honourable Namwaran, was awarded a document of complete pardon from the Commander in Chief of Tundun, represented by the Lord Minister of Pailah, Jayadewa.By this order, through the scribe, the HonourableNamwaran has been forgiven of all and is released from his debts and arrears of 1 katî and 8suwarna before the Honourable Lord Minister of Puliran, KaSumuran by the authority of the Lord Minister of Pailah.

Because of his faithful service as a subject of the Chief, the Honourable and widely renowned Lord Minister of Binwangan recognized all the living relatives of Namwaran who were claimed by the Chief of Dewata, represented by the Chief of Medang.Yes, therefore the living descendants of the HonourableNamwaran are forgiven, indeed, of any and all debts of the HonourableNamwaran to the Chief of Dewata.This, in any case, shall declare to whomever henceforth that on some future day should there be a man who claims that no release from the debt of the Honourable... “

Tagalog Influenced by Malay and Indonesian Word17Tagalog is an Austronesian language and a close cousin of both Malay varieties

in Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia. Because of this close relationship, there are many cognates between the two languages stretching back many millennia. Many cognates were re-borrowed into the language when Old Malay became the official language of trade and documentation during the pre-Hispanic era of Philippine history, as evidenced by the Laguna Copperplate Inscription of 900 AD and accounts of Pigafetta at the time of the Spanish arrival in the country five centuries later. This is a small sample of the thousands of cognates present between Tagalog and Malay.

Table 3: Cognates with Malaysia and IndonesiaTagalog word Malay word (M)/Indonesian Word

(I)Meaning

Ako Aku I (first person)Anak Anak ChildApat Empat FourBahagi Bahagian (M)

Bagi (I)Portion, Part

Balik Balik ReturnBalimbing Belimbing StarfruitBalot Balut To wrapBangis Bengis Fierce, FerociousBangkay Bangkai Corpse, CarcassTagalog word Malay word (M)/Indonesian Word Meaning

17 The Tagalog Language from Roots to Destiny Jessica Klakring 1998-1999 © Dr. Cynthia L. Hallen Department of Linguistics, Brigham Young University, September 6, 1999

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(I)Bansà Bangsa NationBatò Batu StoneBawang Bawang GarlicBayad Bayar PayBibig Bibir MouthBobo Bodoh StupidBukas Buka OpenBuwan Bulan Month, MoonBuwaya Buaya CrocodileDahon Daun LeafDalamhati Dalam + hati GriefDaán Jalan Street, Road

Dingding Dinding WallDurián Durian DurianGanap Genap Adj. ExactGulay Gulai VegetablesGulong Gulung To rollGuntíng Gunting ScissorHalagâ Harga PriceHangin Angin WindHarapan Hadapan In frontHiram Pinjam To borrowIkaw Kau YouItik Itik DuckItim Hitam BlackKahoy Kayu WoodKalapatî Merpati PigeonKambing Kambing GoatKami Kami We (excludes addressee)Kanan Kanan RightKangkong Kangkung KaleKapag Kapan WhenKawali Kuali Frying pan, WokKawani Kerani

Pramuniaga/i (I)Clerk

Kita Kita We (Dual addressee)Kulang Kurang LessKulong Kurung Jailed, CagedKusing Kucing CatLaban Lawan Oppose (v.), Opposition (n.)Lagok Teguk GulpTagalog word Malay word (M)/Indonesian Word

(I)Meaning

Landas Landasan Lintasan (I) Track (noun)Langit Langit Sky, HeavenLangka Nangka JackfruitLibo Ribu Thousand

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Luwalhati Luar + hati Glory

Mahal Mahal ExpensiveMangga Mangga MangoMangkok Mangkuk BowlMukha Muka FaceMulâ Mula FromMura Murah CheapPako Paku NailPalayok Periuk Cooking potPangulo Penghulu PresidentPaso Pasu FlowerpotPasok Masuk EnterPayong Payung UmbrellaPili Pilih ChoosePinggan Pinggan

Piring (I)Plate

Pinto Pintu DoorPulò Pulau IslandPutî Putih WhiteRambután Rambutan RambutanSabón Sabun SoapSakit Sakit Ill, SickSaksi Saksi WitnessSamantala Sementara Meanwhile, While, TemporarySampalataya Percaya To believeSandata Senjata WeaponSandok Senduk

Sendok (I)Ladle

Sarap Sedap DeliciousSilaw Silau DazzledSintá Cinta Love (Possessive)Siyasat Siasat InvestigateSukat Sukat MeasureSulat Surat LetterTaas Atas TopTakot Takut Afraid, FearTagalog word Malay word (M)/Indonesian Word

(I)Meaning

Tamis Manis SweetTanggal Tanggal To remove, To take offTawad Tawar To bargain, To ask for

discountTulak Tolak Push, ShoveTulong Tolong HelpTusok Tusuk Pierce, Prick, StabUban Uban Gray hairUlan Hujan RainUtak Otak Brain

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Utang Hutang DebtÁnim Enam Six

Malay Influence to Bicol and Hiligaynon LanguageBikol languages are a group of closely related languages (macrolanguages) spoken

particularly on the Bicol Peninsula on the island of Luzon and parts of Catanduanes and Burias Island in the Philippines. The languages of Bicol are a group of four languages that are spoken in the Bicol Region of the Philippines.

Bikol language cognate some words from Malay language since both of them are belong to Austronesian languages. Similar words for example are: apat and empat for four, balik for return, bareta and berita for news, bawang for garlic, bayad and bayar for pay, buka for open, bulan for month, dalan and jalan for street, gunting for scissors, lalaki and lelaki for male, mahal for expensive, and many more.18

19Likewise, Hiligaynon, often referred to as Ilonggo, is also an Austronesian language spoken in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines. Hiligaynon is concentrated in the provinces of Iloilo, Negros Occidental, Guimaras and Capiz, but is also spoken in the other provinces, such as Negros Oriental, Antique, Aklan, Romblon, Masbate and Palawan, and in many parts of Mindanao such as Koronadal City, South Cotabato, and Sultan Kudarat and in other parts of North Cotabato. It is also spoken as a second language by Karay-speakers in Antique, Aklanon and Malaynon speakers in Aklan, and Capiznon speakers in Capiz. Like Bikol language, Hiligaynon also cognates some words from Malay language. (Look at the table 5)

Some words from Hiligaynon and Bikol language are exactly the same from Malay Bahasa. Hiligaynon words has more than 69 words same as Malay, Bikol words has more than 78 words exactly from Malay and Tagalog has more 69 words from Malay.

20In table 5 you will find out the comparison of Malay language to Tagalog, Hiligaynon, and Bicol. Indeed, Malay language has a big contribution to Philippine languages during pre-Spanish time.

Table 5: Comparison of Four Austronesian Languages in Philippines2122

Bahasa Tagalog Hiligaynon Bicol Englishabu abo *same *same ashalias alyas alyas alyas alias

18 Lobel, Jason William & Wilmer Joseph S. Tria (2000). An Satuyang Tataramon: A Study of the Bikol language. Lobel & Tria Partnership Co. ISBN 971-92226-0-3.19 Lewis, M. Paul (2009). "Hiligaynon". http://www.ethnologue.com/. Retrieved July 23, 2011.

20 Dr. G.C. James Choi (2014), Linguistic Commonality flow from Tamil Sanskrit to Tagalog through Malay Indonesian Language. 21 An English - Hiligaynon Dictionary, Published by: Faculty Center 2110 University of the Philippines, Diliman October 197522 Lobel, Jason William & Wilmer Joseph S. Tria (2000). An Satuyang Tataramon: A Study of the Bikol language. Lobel & Tria Partnership Co. ISBN 971-92226-0-3.

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alkohol *same *same *same alcoholalmanak *same *same *same almanacaltar *same *same *same altarangin hangin hangin *same windbalkon *same *same *same balconybatalion batalyon batalyon batalyon battalionbatu bato bato *same stonebiskuit biskwit biskwit biskwit biscuitbola *same *same *same ballbangku bangko *same *same benchbrutal *same *same *same brutalbuaya buwaya *same bwaya crocodilecincin singsing singsing singsing ringdaun dahon dahon don leafdiploma *same *same *same diplomadirektur direktor direktor direktor directordinding dingding dingding *same walldrama *same *same *same dramaengkau ikaw ikaw ika youfilm *same pilm pilm filmgunting *same *same *same scissorsinternasiounal internasyonal internasyonal internasyunal internationalitik *same *same *same duck

Bahasa Tagalog Hiligaynon Bicol English

kangkung kangkong *same *sameswamp cabbage

karat *same *same *same caratkilo *same *same *same kilokomite *same *same *same committeekompas *same *same *same compasskopra *same *same *same coprakrisis *same *same *same crisiskristal *same *same *same crystalkupon *same *same *same couponkutu kuto kuto *same licelampin *same *same *same diaperlangit *same *same *same skylegal *same *same *same legalliberal *same *same *same liberalliga *same *same *same leaguelima *same *same *same fivelipstik *same *same *same lipsticklokal *same *same *same localmahal *same *same mal expensivemalaria *same malarya malarya malariamatematika *same *same *same mathematicsmaterial materyal materyal materyal material

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menu *same *same *same menumisa *same *same *same massmoral *same *same *same moralmotor *same *same *same enginenanah nana nana nana pusnganga *same *same *same open the mouthnikotin *same nikotina nikotina nicotinenormal *same *same *same normalotak utak utok utak brainpabrik pabrika pabrika pabrika factorypastor *same *same *same pastorpayung payong payong *same umbrellapedal *same pidal pidal pedalpensiun pensyon pensyon pinsyun pensionpesta pyesta pyesta pista feastpilih pili pili pili selectpintu pinto pinto *same doorprofesor propesor propesor propesor professorpropaganda *same *same *same propagandaBahasa Tagalog Hiligaynon Bicol Englishrabies rabis rabis rabis rabiesradar *same *same *same radarradio radyo radyo radyu radiorestoran restawran restawran restawran restaurantsabun sabon habun *same soapsaksi *same *same *same witnesssalah sala sala sala errorsayang *same *same *same what a pitysensor *same *same *same censorsensus *same *same *same censussirkus sirko *same *same circussiku siko siko *same elbowsimbol simbolo simbolo simbolo symbolsistem sistema sistema sistema systemsoda *same *same *same sodasofa sopa sopa sopa sofasolo *same *same *same solospesial espesyal espesyal ispesyal specialstasiun istasyon estasyon istasyon stationsurat sulat sulat *same lettertablet tableta tableta tableta tablettaksi *same *same *same taxitanam tanim tanom taneum planttangki tangke tangke *same tanktarget *same *same *same targettenis *same *same *same tennistermos *same *same *same thermostelegram telegramo telegramo telegramo telegram

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terminal *same *same *same terminaltema *same *same *same themetetanus tetano tetano tetanu tetanustiket *same *same *same tickettinta *same *same *same inktipus *same *same *same typhoidvisa bisa bisa bisa visa

As a results to compare Tagalog (Luzon), Hiligaynon (Visaya) and Bikol language with the chosen 119 Malay Indonesian words, Hiligaynon words has 69 words same as Malay, Bikol words 78 words and Tagalog 69 words same as Malay Indonesian words. Bicol has most influenced by Malay Indonesian language among Luzon and Visaya and part of Mindanao in Philippines. It means Bicol peninsula might be most frequent trading points with Malay, Indonesia and India.

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Encarta. (1997). Microsoft Encarta 97 Encyclopedia.CD-ROM.Francisco, Juan R. (1964). Indian influences in the Philippines with special reference to

language and literature. Quezon City, University of the Philippines, Diliman.An English - Hiligaynon Dictionary, Published by: Faculty Center 2110 University of the

Philippines, Diliman October 1975"Indian Origins of Filipino Customs". Vedic Empire. Retrieved 2013-11-09.“Indonesian, A language of Indonesia". Ethnologue Languages of the World. Retrieved 10

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Philippine FactsheetReid, Lawrence A. (1971). Philippine minor Languages: Word lists and phonologies.

University of Hawai'i Press. ISBN 0-87022-691-6.William Henry Scott. 1968. 52-53 as cited by Francisco, 1988.Tabbada, Emil V. (2005), Gripaldo, Rolando M.; McLean, George F., eds., Filipino Cultural

Traits: Claro R. Ceniza Lectures, Cultural Heritage and Contemporary Change, IIID, Southeast Asia (Washington, D.C.: The Council for Research in Values and Philosophy) 4, ISBN 1-56518-225-1

The Laguna Copperplate Inscription by Paul Morrow ©1998 Paul Morrow Latest revision: 14 July 2006 

The Philippines: Then and Now. Excerpted from The Filipino Americans (From 1763 to the Present): Their History, Culture, and Traditions, by Veltisezar Bautista.

The Tagalog Language from Roots to Destiny Jessica Klakring 1998-1999 © Dr. Cynthia L. Hallen 

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Department of Linguistics, Brigham Young University, September 6, 1999Welcome to Indonesian (A beginner’s survey of the language) Stuart RobsonTuttle Publishing © 1994www.philippinecountry.com © 2006

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