Visayan languages The Visayan languages of the Philippines, along with Tagalog and Bikol, are part of the Central Philippine language family. Most Visayan languages are spoken in the Visayas region but they are also spoken in the Bicol Region (particularly in Sorsogon and Masbate), islands south of Luzon such as those that make up Romblon, the northern and western areas of Mindanao, and the province of Sulu located southwest of Mindanao. There are over at least thirty languages that constitute the Visayan language family. Native speakers not only refer to their language by their local name, but also by Bisaya or Binisaya, meaning Visayan language. This means that two separate Visayan languages may be called Bisaya by their respective speakers despite their languages being mutually unintelligible. This does not apply to the Tausugs, who are mostly Muslims. While their language is technically Visayan, they view the term Bisaya as a religious term referring to Christian Filipinos. The most well-known Visayan language is Cebuano, spoken by 18 million people as a native language in central and south Visayas and northern Mindanao. Two other well-known Visayan languages are Hiligaynon, spoken by 7 million in western Visayas and Waray-Waray spoken by 3 million in eastern Visayas. There Visayan languages are further divided into five subfamilies. The list below is by no means exhaustive. Asi and Cebuano constitute their own subfamilies. Asi - spoken in towns on Tablas Island as well as the islands of Banton, Simara, and Maestro de Campo in Romblon province.. Cebuano - includes Boholano. Southern Visayan - Tausug, Butuanon, and Surigaonon (including Jaun-Jaun). Central Visayan - includes Hiligaynon, Waray-Waray, Romblomanon, Capiznon, Masbatenyo, Porohanon, the Bisakol languages of Sorsogon and Northern_Samar, and others. Western Visayan - includes Kinaray-a, Aklanon, Onhan, Malaynon, Caluyanon, Cuyonon, Ratagnon, and others. Most Popular Articles: Music    Musical Instruments    Guitar    Classical Music    History    Music Definition    Country Music    Rock Music    Pop Music    Hip Hop    Rap    DJ    Video Games    Casino Games    Poker    Blackjack    Casinos    Real Estate    Loan    Auction    eBay    Marketing    Search Engine Optimization    File Sharing    MP3    Music Industry    Kazaa    Internet    Supermodel    Fashion    Fashion Designers    Erotica    Modeling    Clothing    Boots    Shoes    Diamond Engagement Rings    Diamond    Rugs    Gospel Music    Affiliate    E-Commerce    Radio This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License at http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html You may copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license. You must provide a link to http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html To view or edit this article at Wikipedia go to http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visayan_languages