Malay language in the Philippines

rdf:langString Malay language in the Philippines

rdf:langString Malay (Filipino: Wikang Malayo; Malay: Bahasa Melayu) is spoken by a minority of Filipinos, particularly in the Palawan, Sulu Archipelago and parts of Mindanao, mostly in the form of trade and creole languages, such as Sabah Malay. Historically, use of Malay as lingua franca prior to the Spanish colonization of the Philippines is witnessed by the first Philippine written document, the Laguna Copperplate Inscription of 900, which was written in localised Old Malay. In the 16th century, Ferdinand Magellan used a Malay servant Enrique of Malacca to converse with the Visayans who lived in the central Visayan islands at the time. https://www.academia.edu/35682910/Malay_documents_from_Sulu_and_Mindanao_in_the_British_LibraryUntil the late of 18th century to the early 19th century, there are still many documents from Sulu and Mindanao that used Malay language such as The Sulu Treaties and the Royal Letters from The Sultanate of Maguindanao that were written in Malay language. The documents now are preserved in The British Library. Even in predominantly non-Malay speaking communities, mostly in Muslim communities, titles of nobility such as datu (datuk), raja or rajamuda, which themselves originate from Sanskrit, are retained. Numerous loan words exist in Philippine languages today from Malay, with the greatest concentration being in the areas that have or historically had heavy contact and cultural exchange with native-Malay speaking states. These are, respectively, the south central, southwest and northwest areas of the country, with the languages Bahasa Sug, Sinama, Maranao, Iranun, Maguindanao, Kapampangan, Tagalog, Bisaya and Ilocano exhibiting numerous Malay or Old Malay loan words. One variant of Malay spoken in the Philippines is Indonesian, which is spoken by Indonesians who have either settled or do business in the Philippines. It is also learned as a foreign language, by students and members of the armed forces.