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Most Ilonggos are actually fluent in English. They are also quite comfortable communicating with it. Just ask the hordes of Koreans coming to our humble city just to study and learn English.

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But nothing really beats the smile you can get from an Ilonggo when they hear you trying to speak their own language. This will surely get you in the good side of any Ilonggo.

Even if you only know how to say “Good Morning” (Maayong agá) it will endear you to the person whom you’re speaking and will definitely gain you an instant friend.

Let’s start the lesson:

So you already know how to say good morning - that’s maayong agá. “Maayo” means “good” while “aga” means “morning.” The “ng” is a preposition(?) used to connect two words.

Using “maayo” we can then form different greetings: “Maayong ug-to“, “Maayong hapun“, “Maayong gab-i” and “Maayong adlaw“.

“Ugto” means “noon” - so that “Maayong ugto” will mean “Good noon”

“Hapun” means “afternoon” - so that “Maayong hapun” will mean “Good afternoon”

“Gab-i” means “night”- so that “Maayong gab-i” will mean “Good night”

“Adlaw” means day - which refers to the whole day. Hence, you can use “Maayong adlaw” (Good day) to greet anyone, anytime of the day.

Two other important terms to learn are:

“Palihog” meaning “Please” and “Salamat” which means “Thank You”.

“Oo” means “Yes” while “Indi’” means “No”.

It is also important to note that Ilonggos are generally known to be soft-spoken. They have this sing-song accent that prevents them to sound angry, even if they are.

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