The Cebuano Alphabet

Q: What is the Cebuano alphabet?

The Cebuano alphabet is a Latin-based writing system with 20 letters : 5 vowels and 14 consonants, plus the digraph Ng [3] . Native spelling excludes c, f, j, q, v, x, and z, which appear only in loanwords and proper names.

Q: Is Cebuano the same as Bisaya?

Largely, yes. Bisaya is the term most native speakers use for their own language, while Cebuano is the more common academic and international name. The language is also called Sinugboanon , literally "in the manner of Cebu", after the island where it is most closely associated.

Q: Where is Cebuano spoken?

Cebuano is spoken across Central Visayas , parts of Eastern Visayas , and most of Mindanao in the southern Philippines. It was spoken in 1.72 million households (6.5%) at the 2020 census [1] .

Q: How many people speak Cebuano?

Cebuano was recorded as spoken in 1.72 million households , or 6.5% of Philippine households, at the 2020 census [1] . It ranks among the largest language groups in the Philippines, alongside Tagalog and the broader Bisaya/Binisaya group.

Q: Why does Cebuano have only three vowel sounds but five vowel letters?

Native Cebuano speech is built on three core vowel sounds — a, i, and u — though the written alphabet includes five vowel letters. The letters e and i , and o and u , are often interchangeable in casual spelling, especially in final syllables.

Q: How many letters are in the Cebuano alphabet?

The Cebuano alphabet has 20 letters : five vowels, fourteen consonants, and the digraph Ng [3] . This is more compact than English, since native Cebuano writing excludes c, f, j, q, v, x, and z.

Q: Does Cebuano use letters like C, F, J, Q, V, X, and Z?

These letters are excluded from native Cebuano spelling , appearing only in loanwords and proper names borrowed from Spanish or English. The letter ñ also appears occasionally, mainly in Spanish-derived family names.

Q: Is Cebuano related to Tagalog?

Cebuano and Tagalog are both Central Philippine languages, but they belong to different branches — Bisayan and Tagalog respectively [2] . They share Austronesian roots and many loanwords , but are not mutually intelligible without study.

Q: What does the ISO 639-3 code "ceb" mean?

The code ceb is the official ISO 639-3 identifier assigned to Cebuano by the international standards registration authority [3] . This code distinguishes Cebuano from other Philippine languages in international language databases and library catalogues.

Cebuano Alphabet at a Glance

20 letters: 5 vowels and 14 consonants, plus the Ng digraph
Cebuano, also called Bisaya or Sinugboanon, was spoken in 1.72 million households (6.5%) of the Philippines at the 2020 census ^[1]
Cebuano belongs to the Bisayan branch of the Central Philippine languages ^[2]
Cebuano carries the ISO 639-3 code ceb ^[3]
Cebuano is the largest Bisayan language, spoken across Central Visayas, parts of Eastern Visayas, and most of Mindanao
Native Cebuano speech has only three core vowel sounds, though the alphabet writes five vowel letters
Native spelling excludes the letters c, f, j, q, v, x, and z, which appear only in loanwords and Spanish-derived proper names

[AH]

[EH]

[EE]

[OH]

[OO]

[ah]

[eh]

[ee]

[oh]

[oo]

[BEE]

[DEE]

[GEE]

[HUH]

[KAY]

[EL]

[EM]

[EN]

[PEE]

[AR]

[ESS]

[TEE]

[WUH]

[YUH]

[BEE]

Uppercase B, a voiced bilabial stop, similar to "b" in "boy".

[DEE]

Uppercase D, a voiced alveolar stop, similar to "d" in "dog".

[GEE]

Uppercase G, a voiced velar stop, similar to "g" in "go".

[HUH]

Uppercase H, a voiceless glottal fricative, similar to "h" in "hat".

[KAY]

Uppercase K, a voiceless velar stop, similar to "k" in "key".

[EL]

Uppercase L, an alveolar lateral approximant, similar to "l" in "lamp".

[EM]

Uppercase M, a bilabial nasal, similar to "m" in "man".

[EN]

Uppercase N, an alveolar nasal, similar to "n" in "nose".

[PEE]

Uppercase P, a voiceless bilabial stop, similar to "p" in "pen".

[AR]

Uppercase R, a tapped or trilled rhotic consonant, similar to the rolled "r" in Spanish.

[ESS]

Uppercase S, a voiceless alveolar fricative, similar to "s" in "sun".

[TEE]

Uppercase T, a voiceless alveolar stop, similar to "t" in "top".

[WUH]

Uppercase W, a labial-velar approximant, similar to "w" in "water".

[YUH]

Uppercase Y, a palatal approximant, similar to "y" in "yes".

[bee]

[dee]

[gee]

[huh]

[kay]

[el]

[em]

[en]

[pee]

[ar]

[ess]

[tee]

[wuh]

[yuh]

[bee]

Voiced bilabial stop, similar to "b" in English "boy".

[dee]

Voiced alveolar stop, similar to "d" in English "dog".

[gee]

Voiced velar stop, similar to "g" in English "go".

[huh]

Voiceless glottal fricative, similar to "h" in English "hat".

[kay]

Voiceless velar stop, similar to "k" in English "key".

[el]

Alveolar lateral approximant, similar to "l" in English "lamp".

[em]

Bilabial nasal, similar to "m" in English "man".

[en]

Alveolar nasal, similar to "n" in English "nose".

[pee]

Voiceless bilabial stop, similar to "p" in English "pen".

[ar]

Tapped or trilled rhotic consonant, similar to the rolled "r" in Spanish.

[ess]

Voiceless alveolar fricative, similar to "s" in English "sun".

[tee]

Voiceless alveolar stop, similar to "t" in English "top".

[wuh]

Labial-velar approximant, similar to "w" in English "water".

[yuh]

Palatal approximant, similar to "y" in English "yes".

[ENG]

[eng]

A a

B b

D d

E e

G g

H h

I i

K k

L l

M m

N n

Ng ng

O o

P p

R r

S s

T t

U u

W w

Y y

A a

Vowel A, similar to the "a" in English "father".

B b

Consonant B, a voiced bilabial stop.

D d

Consonant D, a voiced alveolar stop.

E e

Vowel E, similar to the "e" in English "bed".

G g

Consonant G, a voiced velar stop.

H h

Consonant H, a voiceless glottal fricative.

I i

Vowel I, similar to the "ee" in English "see".

K k

Consonant K, a voiceless velar stop.

L l

Consonant L, an alveolar lateral approximant.

M m

Consonant M, a bilabial nasal.

N n

Consonant N, an alveolar nasal.

Ng ng

Digraph Ng, the velar nasal.

O o

Vowel O, similar to the "o" in English "go".

P p

Consonant P, a voiceless bilabial stop.

R r

Consonant R, a tapped or trilled rhotic.

S s

Consonant S, a voiceless alveolar fricative.

T t

Consonant T, a voiceless alveolar stop.

U u

Vowel U, similar to the "oo" in English "food".

W w

Consonant W, a labial-velar approximant.

Y y

Consonant Y, a palatal approximant.

;

(

)

Period (full stop)

Comma

;

Semicolon

Colon

Question mark

Exclamation mark

Apostrophe, used to mark the glottal stop in some Cebuano words

Quotation mark

Hyphen

(

Left parenthesis

)

Right parenthesis

Expand All Collapse All

What is the Cebuano alphabet?

Is Cebuano the same as Bisaya?

Where is Cebuano spoken?

What language family does Cebuano belong to?

How many people speak Cebuano?

Why does Cebuano have only three vowel sounds but five vowel letters?

How many letters are in the Cebuano alphabet?

Does Cebuano use letters like C, F, J, Q, V, X, and Z?

Is Cebuano related to Tagalog?

What does the ISO 639-3 code "ceb" mean?

References:

[1] Philippine Statistics Authority. "Tagalog is the Most Widely Spoken Language at Home" — 2020 Census of Population and Housing, recording Cebuano spoken in 1.72 million households (6.5%). Retrieved from Philippine Statistics Authority: Language Spoken at Home, 2020 Census
[2] Glottolog 5.x. "Cebuano [cebu1242]" — Austronesian > Malayo-Polynesian > Greater Central Philippine > Central Philippine > Bisayan classification. Retrieved from Glottolog: Cebuano
[3] SIL International. "ISO 639-3 Registration Authority: Cebuano [ceb]". Retrieved from SIL ISO 639-3: Cebuano