“White” in every Philippine language
White across 9 languages, and what the differences tell you.
Last updated
Side by side
| Language | White |
|---|---|
| English | White |
| Tagalog | Puti |
| Ilocano | Puraw |
| Cebuano | Puti |
| Hiligaynon | Puti |
| Waray | Busag |
| Bikol | Puti |
| Kapampangan | Maputi |
| Pangasinan | Amputi |
What the pattern shows
Puti is the base, and two languages keep it under a prefix: Kapampangan maputi, Pangasinan amputi. The two that abandon it are Ilocano puraw and Waray busag — and busag is one of the words that marks Waray off from its Bisayan neighbours, which both say puti.
Where they agree
- Puti — Tagalog, Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Bikol
Standing alone: English (White), Ilocano (Puraw), Waray (Busag), Kapampangan (Maputi) and Pangasinan (Amputi).
More colours
Where this comes from
This row is one of 161 concept pages drawn from a parallel set of everyday vocabulary held across nine languages. You can browse all of them, download the whole set under CC BY-SA 4.0, or paste text to find out which language it is.
Compiled from published general reference and pending review by native speakers. If something here is wrong in a language you speak, please tell us.