Hiligaynon language
Hiligaynon, also often referred to as Ilonggo or Binisaya/Bisaya nga Hiniligaynon/Inilonggo, is an Austronesian regional language spoken in the Philippines by about 9.1 million people, predominantly in Western Visayas and Soccsksargen, most of whom belong to the Hiligaynon people. It is the second-most widely spoken language in the Visayas and belongs to the Bisayan languages, and it is more distantly related to other Philippine languages.
| Hiligaynon | |
|---|---|
| Ilonggo | |
| Hiniligaynon, Inilonggo | |
| Pronunciation | /hɪlɪˈɡaɪnən/ |
| Native to | Philippines |
| Region | Western Visayas, Soccsksargen, western Negros Oriental, southwestern portion of Masbate, coastal Palawan, some parts of Romblon and a few parts of Northern Mindanao |
| Ethnicity | Hiligaynon |
Native speakers | 7.8 million (2010) 9.1 million total speakers 4th most spoken native language in the Philippines |
Austronesian
| |
| Dialects |
|
| Latin (Hiligaynon alphabet) Hiligaynon Braille Historically Baybayin (c. 13th–19th centuries) | |
| Official status | |
Recognised minority language in | |
| Regulated by | Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-2 | hil |
| ISO 639-3 | hil |
| Glottolog | hili1240 |
Areas where Hiligaynon is spoken in the Philippines | |
It also has one of the largest native language-speaking populations of the Philippines, despite it not being taught and studied formally in schools and universities until 2012. Hiligaynon is given the ISO 639-2 three-letter code hil, but has no ISO 639-1 two-letter code.
Hiligaynon is mainly concentrated in the regions of Western Visayas (Iloilo, Capiz, Guimaras, and Negros Occidental), as well as in South Cotabato (including General Santos), Sultan Kudarat, and North Cotabato in Soccsksargen. It is spoken in other neighboring provinces, such as Antique and Aklan in Western Visayas, Negros Oriental in Central Visayas, Masbate in Bicol Region, and Romblon and Palawan in Mimaropa.
It is spoken as a second language by Kinaray-a speakers in Antique, Aklanon/Malaynon speakers in Aklan, Capiznon speakers in Capiz, Cebuano speakers in Negros Oriental, and spoken and understood by native speakers of Maguindanaon, Cebuano, Ilocano, Blaan, Tboli and other settler and indigenous languages in Soccsksargen in Mindanao. There are approximately 9,300,000 people in and out of the Philippines who are native speakers of Hiligaynon and an additional 5,000,000 capable of speaking it with a substantial degree of proficiency.