Guide Note
Baybayin is a script writing style related to Tagalog and other Filipino languages. It was used commonly through the late 1800s. The term "baybayin" literally means "syllables."
Fast Facts
- AKA: Alibata
- Related spoken languages: Ilokano, Kapampangan, Pangasinan, Tagalog, Bikol languages, Visayan languages
- Parent system: Proto-Canaanite alphabet
- Sister systems: Balinese, Batak, Buhid, Hanunó'o, Javanese, Lontara, Old Sundanese, Rejang, Tagbanwa
Writing in Baybayin
Baybayin is a abugida system using consonant-vowel combinations. Each character is a consonant ending with the vowel "a." To produce consonants with other vowel sounds, a mark is placed above or below the consonants. There is only one symbol for the letters D or R.
Alibata
Baybayin is commonly referred to as "Alibata." The term was invented in 1939 by Paul Versoza, a member of the National Language Institute.
