In the Encyclopedia of Philippine Art published by the Cultural Center of the Philippines (1994, 2018), Hiligaynon is described by Cruz-Lucero, Fernandez, et al as the term used for the language and literature of the Ilonggo people. The term connotes the more formal and literary language as it is used in schools and academe. “Hiligaynon” is said to be a Hispanic contraction of the phrase “manog-ilig sang kawayan,” or “bamboo floaters,” meaning people whose occupation it was to float bamboo poles downriver to sell as building materials. Early Spanish documents by Fray Alfonso Mentrida refer to the people as Yligueynes and their language as Hiligueyna, and he wrote about the Hiliguiana and Hiniraia languages of Panay in the 1620s and 1630s.

The Hiligaynon language is one of the top five Philippine languages, spoken chiefly by over five million natives of Iloilo and coastal Panay, Guimaras, Negros Occidental and by hundreds of thousands of others in the diaspora in Mindanao (mainly General Santos, Cotabato), Palawan, and overseas. “Ilonggo” is also popularly and informally used as a synonym for Hiligaynon and now generally refers to the people and the culture of the Malay race identified with Iloilo, Guimaras Island, and most of Negros Occidental. 

Linguists note that the country has around 180 different languages; Hiligaynon apart, other major Philippine languages include Tagalog, Bikol, Cebuano, Waray, Ilokano, Maguindanao, Kapampangan, and Pangasinense; all together spoken by an estimated 80-90% of the total population. In The Augustinians in Panay (1987), R. Morales Maza cites Mentrida: “In the mountain regions of Ogtong (today’s Oton town) a very harsh language is spoken, called Kinaharay-a; along the coast, another, more polished and elegant, is called Hiligueyna.”

Of the major Philippine languages, Hiligaynon is considered one of the most sweet, soft, and melodious, such that those who speak the language are invariably described as “malambing” or gentle and slow to anger; my colleagues in Manila in the ’80s, noting my thick Ilonggo-accented Tagalog, would ask, “Marunong bang magalit ang Ilonggo?”

Maza speculates that Molo, the pari-an or Chinese enclave for much of the Spanish colonial era, is the place of origin of Hiligaynon; she writes that the sound of “r” softened by “l” and other Kinaharay-a words spoken with gentle Chinese inflections resulted in the Hiligaynon dialect. The inability to pronounce “r” would have produced “Molo” from Moro, “Iloilo” from Irong-Irong, ““Halay-a” from Kinharay-a, and “Himal-us” from Guimaras, just like the Tagalog “saklolo” (help) from the Spanish “socorro”. Spanish and British writers from the 18^th and 19^th centuries mention a large Indio-Chinese mestizo population in Molo, where more than a hundred Chinese (among them was my great-great grandfather) had married native women.  

Perhaps the most versatile word in Hiligaynon/Ilonggo (and relative to many other languages of the world) is “kwan.” Kwan is so versatile, it can mean anything, anyone, anywhere, or any manner or action, depending on the context where the word is used. Ilonggo dictionaries in English describe it as a “catch-all,” a “whatchamacallit,” or a “placeholder word.” Wikipedia states its possible origin from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian “kuan” (to speak, talk) or “kua” (whatchamacallit).

As a “whatchamacallit,” kwan can be used if you cannot find the exact word for anything; this can refer to a person whose name is temporarily forgotten, or something that is right at the tip of the tongue. Prefixes may give a more specific clue: “si kwan” refers to a person; “sa” before kwan indicates a place; “ang” as a prefix may mean a thing or a non-human object; ma/magpa,” “gin pa,” or “nag pa” preceding kwan all indicate performance of a behavior or an action, albeit in different tenses. Kwan happens to be a common Chinese surname, and that can add a bit of confusion too.  

As a placeholder or a “catch-all” word, it can be substituted for any word in a phrase or sentence. The nearest English equivalents, therefore, would mean thingamajig, thingie, something, someone, someplace, somewhere, so-and-so, etc. The word may be used several times in the same sentence or paragraph, as in, “Si kwan nga amigo ni kwan, ang nag kwan kay kwan sa kwan (Mr./Ms. So-and-so, friend of so-and so, did something to someone somewhere).” Amazingly, the intended listener may understand who or what you are referring to, even if kwan has a different intended meaning each time it is used. Thus a typical dialog may go like this:

Sister: Di-in ginbutang ni kwan ang kwan? (Where did so-and-so put the thingie?)

Me: Didto sa kwan bala… (It’s at this place…)

Sister: Ay, okay.

In some contexts, the word may be used deliberately, especially if substituting for a word considered vulgar. So it can be a way of censoring, or confusing others. For example, “Ka lip-ot sang palda, nakikita na ang kwan nya (The skirt was so short, you could see her thing).” It can be used to sow intrigue, spread gossip, or to prevent others within hearing distance from knowing the juicy details, may this be a person, an action or an event. In place of the person’s name, or place, or what they may have done, the speaker may say, “Si kwan…” accompanied by a knowing smirk. Furthermore “bala,” may be added after kwan for emphasis or to indicate, “you know who or what I mean.” Thus, the intricacies of kwan, its prefix, tone, manner of delivery, accompanying facial expressions, and body language, is certainly a more precise way of communicating to someone, without actually naming the specifics!  

Thus there can be no other word as versatile and as adaptable. Cebuano has a similar word, pronounced as “ku-an,” and its meaning is essentially the same as in Hiligaynon. Though I am not fluent in Cebuano, I surmise that “ku-an” is used less often compared to its Ilonggo counterpart. Ditto for Tagalog, where “kwan” may also be used, but more sparingly compared to Hiligaynon.

So if you’re at a loss for words, just use “kwan” with the right prefix, and Ilonggos will get what you mean! – Rappler.com