Learn Filipino Tagalog: Greetings and Introducing Yourself

In basic Filipino, whenever you meet someone for the first time, you always say "Hi!" "Kamusta?"
Kamusta has been used for ages, it's just a shorter way of saying the Spanish "Como esta?" which means how are you?

If you are not familiar with the history of the Philippines, you will find out that the country has had about three centuries of Spanish influence as a colony and many of the words used in daily life are derived from European Spanish language.

If it's an older person, you say "Kamusta po?" Adding the word "po" when you talk to people is a sign of respect. Even if they are not older, and you just want to be respectful, you just say "po" and you immediately earn brownie points!

Also, in Filipino language, if you want to greet someone you already know, you call them out and you say "Hoy!"
Possibly, a short, familiar way of saying "Ahoy!" in pirate language.

If you're a foreign person, you will sometimes be asked, just out of curiosity, Where are you from? You will hear something like "Taga-saan ka?" Followed by:

Are you American? Amerikano ka ba?
Are you from Germany? Taga-Germany ka ba?
Are you Chinese or Japanese? Intsik ka ba o Hapones?

These are just some of the many ways you will hear Filipino people ask about your origin. You can do the same thing with them, if you're familiar with Philippine cities and towns. Just ask, "Taga-saan ka?"

Then you can introduce yourself or your friend. Just start by saying "Ako si Joe." Which translates to "I am Joe."

When you ask someone's name and vice versa, say "Anung pangalan mo?" Which means, "What's your name?" Honestly, when I hear Filipino people talk to someone they don't know and say "Sino ka?" which means "Who are you?" In my opinion, is kind of rude. I just prefer to use the polite way.

Anung pangalan mo? What's your name?

SAYING THANKS. Why is this very important? We all know when someone does something for us, it's always polite to say thanks. In Filipino language, you say "Salamat (po)." Really simple. And when someone thanks you, it's usually colloquial and normal to say "Wala yun!" which means "It's nothing." Otherwise, you say the standard and traditional "Walang anuman."

So the next time you ask someone for directions and they helped you out, just say "Salamat."

You can make a lot of friends if you learn how to communicate politely in Filipino or Tagalog or even any Philippine dialect. Politeness goes a long way. That's why when  you part ways, don't just leave without saying anything. Try to say, "Aalis na (po) ako." or "Mauna na po ako." This means, "I am going now." Then you say "Bye!"

Most people don't use the traditional word for goodbye, "Paalam" because it's just too traditional. But it's still being used, especially for educational purposes and TV shows as standard Filipino translation. Otherwise, just say "Bye!" or "Sige na!" which means, Go ahead!

Let's recap:

Aalis na ko. I'm going now. 
Mauna na po ako. I'm gonna go ahead and leave. 
Paalam na! (Traditional) Bye!
Sige na! Go on! Go ahead!

There you have it. Our very first way of introducing ourselves and showing our manners the Filipino way. Hope you learned something new and I will see you on the next  post. Paalam!