- Tagalog language
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Austronesian language of the Philippines, spoken as a first language by about 17 million people on the island of Luzon and by at least half a million immigrant Filipinos.As the language of Manila, the capital and chief city of the Philippines, Tagalog has long had an importance outside its own speech area. With vocabulary enrichment from other Philippine languages, it has been made the basis of Pilipino, the national language; widely used in education and the media, Pilipino is now understood by more than 60% of the Philippine population. Though a script ultimately of South Asian origin was in use for Tagalog in the 16th century (see Indic writing systems), all recent literature in the language has utilized adaptations of the Latin alphabet.
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member of the Central Philippine branch of the Austronesian (Malayo-Polynesian) language family and the base for Pilipino (Pilipino language), an official language of the Philippines, together with English. It is most closely related to Bicol and the Bisayan (Visayan) languages—Cebuano, Hiligaynon (Ilongo), and Samar. Native Tagalog speakers form the second largest linguistic and cultural group in the Philippines and number about 14 million; they are located in central Luzon and parts of Mindanao.Pilipino (based on Tagalog) is spoken by another 25 million persons as a second language and is increasingly used in literature, radio, and the press and as a language for government and education. Tagalog grammar is notable for its complex verbal system, including in particular three distinct types of passive constructions.* * *
Universalium. 2010.