Chavacano

Spanish-based creole

FamilySpanish-based creole Speakers~700K ScriptLatin CountriesPhilippines Official inNo (Filipino and English are official; Chavacano is an auxiliary regional language in Zamboanga) Vitalitysafe ISO 639-3cbk

Chavacano (also Chabacano, "broken Spanish") refers to the family of Spanish-based creole varieties of the Philippines, of which Zamboangueño is by far the largest and most vital. Spanish lexical superstrate (~85%) overlays Hiligaynon, Cebuano, and Tagalog grammatical and prosodic substrate, producing distinctive features: SVO order (vs. Philippine VSO/VOS), no Spanish noun-verb agreement, plural marker "manga" (from Tagalog mga), perfective "ya" / future "ay" / progressive "ta" preverbal aspect markers. Chavacano is the only surviving Spanish-based creole in Asia (others — Ternateño, Caviteño — are nearly extinct). Major literary tradition since the 19th century, including newspaper El Tiempo de Zamboanga.

Where it is spoken

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87 core words in Chavacano

Water

agua

ˈaɡwa

Fire

fuego

ˈfweɡo

Sun

sol

sol

Moon

luna

ˈluna

Star

estrellas

esˈtɾejas

Night

noche

ˈnotʃe

Rain

ulan

uˈlan

Snow

nieve

ˈnjebe

Wind

viento

ˈbjento

Earth

tierra

tjera

Stone

piedra

ˈpjedɾa

Mountain

monte

ˈmonte

Sea

mar

maɾ

Mother

nana

ˈnana

Father

tata

ˈtata

Daughter

hija

ˈixa

I

yo

jo

You

tu

tu

We

kita / kame

kiˈta / kaˈme

Name

nombre

ˈnombɾe

Person

gente

ˈhente

Head

cabeza

kaˈbesa

Eye

ojos

ˈohos

Ear

orejas

oˈɾexas

Nose

nariz

naˈɾis

Mouth

boca

ˈboka

Tooth

diente

ˈdjente

Tongue

lengua

ˈleŋɡwa

Hand

mano

ˈmano

Foot

pies

pjes

Heart

corazon

koraˈson

Bone

hueso

ˈweso

Blood

sangre

ˈsaŋɡre

Love

ama

ˈama

Tree

palo

ˈpalo

Dog

perro

ˈpeɾo

Cat

gato

ˈɡato

Fish

pescao

pesˈkaw

Bird

pajaro

paxaɾo

Butterfly

mariposa

maɾiˈposa

Egg

huevo

ˈweβo

Bear

oso

ˈoso

Horse

caballo

kaˈbajo

House

casa

ˈkasa

Milk

leche

ˈletʃe

Honey

miel

mjel

Salt

sal

sal

Wine

vino

ˈbino

Rice

arroz

aˈɾos

Chocolate

chocolate

tʃokoˈlate

Iron

hierro

ˈjero

Wheel

rueda

ˈrweda

Silk

seda

ˈseda

Book

libro

ˈlibro

Eat

come

koˈme

Drink

toma

toˈma

Sleep

durmi

duɾmi

One

uno

ˈuno

Two

dos

dos

Three

tres

tɾes

Four

cuatro

ˈkwatɾo

Five

cinco

ˈsiŋko

Hundred

cien

sjen

Hello

buenas

ˈbwenas

Thank you

gracias

ˈɡɾasjas

Good

bueno

ˈbweno

New

nuevo

ˈnwebo

Red

colorao

koloˈɾaw

White

blanco

ˈblaŋko

Black

negro

ˈneɡro

Green

verde

ˈberde

Blue

azul

aˈsul

Tea

cha

tʃa

Coffee

cafe

kaˈfe

Sugar

azucar

aˈsukar

Ninety-nine

noventa y nueve

noˈbenta i ˈnwebe

Sources

Words compared

Compared with languages in the same classification: Spanish-based creole

Meaning ChavacanoMexican SpanishColombian SpanishPeruvian SpanishBolivian SpanishEcuadorian SpanishParaguayan Spanish
Water agua /ˈaɡwa/ agua /ˈaɣwa/ agua /ˈaɣwa/ agua /ˈaɣwa/ agua /ˈaɣwa/ agua /ˈaɣwa/ agua /ˈaɣwa/
Fire fuego /ˈfweɡo/ fuego /ˈfweɣo/ fuego /ˈfweɣo/ fuego /ˈfweɣo/ fuego /ˈfweɣo/ fuego /ˈfweɣo/ fuego /ˈfweɣo/
Sun sol /sol/ sol /sol/ sol /sol/ sol /sol/ sol /sol/ sol /sol/ sol /sol/
Moon luna /ˈluna/ luna /ˈluna/ luna /ˈluna/ luna /ˈluna/ luna /ˈluna/ luna /ˈluna/ luna /ˈluna/
Star estrellas /esˈtɾejas/ estrella /esˈtɾeʝa/ estrella /esˈtɾeʝa/ estrella /esˈtɾeʝa/ estrella /esˈtɾeʎa/ estrella /esˈtɾeʝa/ estrella /esˈtɾeʎa/
Night noche /ˈnotʃe/ noche /ˈnotʃe/ noche /ˈnotʃe/ noche /ˈnotʃe/ noche /ˈnotʃe/ noche /ˈnotʃe/ noche /ˈnotʃe/
Rain ulan /uˈlan/ lluvia /ˈʝuβja/ lluvia /ˈʝuβja/ lluvia /ˈʝuβja/ lluvia /ˈʎuβja/ lluvia /ˈʝuβja/ lluvia /ˈʎuβja/
Snow nieve /ˈnjebe/ nieve /ˈnjeβe/ nieve /ˈnjeβe/ nieve /ˈnjeβe/ nieve /ˈnjeβe/ nieve /ˈnjeβe/ nieve /ˈnjeβe/
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