  The letters made use of in the Bisaya alphabet, are twenty in number as follows: | A. | Ah. | N. | Ai-nay. | | B. | Bay. | Ng. | Ai-ngay. | | C. | Thay. | Ñ | Ai-nyay. | | D. | Day. | O. | Oh. | | E. | A or ay. | P. | Pay. | | G. | Hay. | Q. | Coo. | | H. | Atchay. | S. | Es say. | | I. | EE. | T. | Tay. | | L. | Ai-lay. | U. | OO. | | M. | Ai-may. | Y. | EE (griega). | The vowels are A, E, I, O, U, and Y at the end of a word. The vowels are never silent, except U in the syllables que, qui, the sound of which corresponds to that heard in the English words Kedge, Keep, Key. | A | sounds always like A in alam. | | B | sounds like B in back | | C | before a, o, u, sounds like K in English, as—caadlaoon—The dawn of the day—Coco—Nail of the fingers. | | D | at the beginning of a word or in the middle, if preceded by a consonant, is pronounced like in English. At the end of a word or between two vowels has a sound between D and R, which may be obtained by placing the tip of the tongue against the higher teeth turning the thick part towards the roof of the mouth. | | G | has always a very smooth sound like in English before a, o, u, as—ginicanan, forefathers—gintoon-an, scholar. | | H | has a slight aspirated sound like a very faintly aspirated h in English in the words horse, hog—as—hocom, judge—habagat, a strong wind—hilanat, fever. | | E, I | these vowels although sound like in English, nevertheless, natives confound them very often: the same shall be said of the vowels O and U; and this is the reason why the P. John Felix's Dictionary employs but I and O, instead E, I—O, U. | | L | sounds like in English, as—lamdag, brightness—libac, backbiting. | | M | sounds like in English: as—mata, eye—motÓ-top. | | N | sounds like in English; as—nipis, fine, thin. | | Ng | this letter has no equivalent in English, and it must be heard from the natives. | | Ñ | this letter has a strong nasal sound resembling that of n in the English word “poniard” out of Bohol province, where it is pronounced as in the English word—manger and written ny: as, caninyo, bonyag, instead of caniÑo, boÑag. | | O | sounds like in English; as—olan, rain—Úhao, thirst. | | P | sounds as in English:—pito, seven—ponÓ, fill. | | Q | is always followed by u, and pronounced like K; as, quinabuhi, life, quilay, eyebrow, quilquil, scratching. | | S | has always a harsh, hissing sound like ss in English. There is not a word in Bisaya beginning with s followed by a consonant. | | T | sounds as in English, as—tabang, help, tiao, joke. | | U | sounds like in English in the words “proof, goose” but it is frequently confounded with O. (See I and E on the preceding page). | | Y | sounds like ee in English at the end of a word; but before a vowel, or between two vowels, sounds like in the English words “joke, jolt” as—yabÓ, pour.—This letter when after a noun or pronoun, if the same noun or pronoun, is employed instead of the particle ang, being as it does, an article of appellative nouns. Examples: I did that—acÓ ang nagbuhat niana, or, acoy nagbuhat niana—What is the reason of that.—¿Onsa ba ang hingtungdan niana? or ¿Onsay hingtungdan niana? |
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