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BeginnerLesson 2

Greetings, Titles & Introducing Yourself

How to greet someone, address family and elders respectfully, and say who you are.

Saying who you are

The simplest Ilokano sentences just put two noun phrases next to each other — no linking word like English "am/is/are" is needed. A personal name can be the predicate only when the subject is a pronoun like siák 'I' — that's exactly the pattern for introducing yourself.

  • Siák ni Pédro.

    I am Peter.

    siák 'I' + ni Pédro 'Peter' (ni marks a personal name)

  • Ni Pédro ka.

    You are Peter.

    reversing which side has the name vs. the pronoun changes who's being told what

Greeting someone

Kumustá comes from the verb kumustá 'to greet.' Attach the pronoun -ka 'you' directly after it to ask how someone is doing — a very common everyday greeting.

  • Kumustáka?

    How are you?

    kumustá 'to greet, how' + -ka 'you' (enclitic form)

  • Naggapoám?

    Where have you been? / How are you?

    a traditional greeting, literally asking where someone came from

  • Wén.

    Yes.

  • Saán.

    No.

Addressing family and elders

Ilokano has specific respectful terms of address, used even for people who aren't literally your relatives — a common courtesy across the Ilocos region.

  • manáng

    older sister / respectful term for an older woman close to your age

  • manóng

    older brother / respectful term for an older man close to your age

  • ápo

    sir / ma'am — a respectful term for an elder or someone in authority

  • áding

    younger sibling / an affectionate term for someone younger than you

Practice these words →

Grammar: Ch. 6.1, Nominal Sentences, from Constantino's Ilokano Reference Grammar (1971, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).