Tutorials

Baybayin is an abugida writing system consisting of 14 consonants and 3 vowels. Each of the 14 consonants ends with the vowel “A”.  For example, the letter B would be BA. The Thai, Balinese, and Sanskrit scripts also have similar characteristics.

The original “alphabet” consists of the following characters:

Vowels
A | E | I | O | U

Consonants
Ba | Ka | Da | Ga | Ha | La | Ma | Na | Nga | Pa | Sa | Ta | Wa | Ya


Kudlit
The kudlit is a small mark above or below a consonant character to change the pronouncing properties.
The KA character alone looks like this:
ka
With the kudlit above it would be either KE or KI.
ke-ki

 

A kudlit below the character would be either KO or KU.
ko-ku

baybayin-chart

251 thoughts on “Tutorials

  1. Pingback: Jollibee | Baybayin.com

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  4. I need help trying to put “family is my everything” in baybayin. Can you help me out it would be much appreciated

  5. Well I was actually looking to have a tattoo done , and then I learned about baybayin .
    Id really like to learn this language , where can I start ?
    also id like a translation for a tattoo of “gift of God” or “kaloob ng dios” into baybayin .
    pls reply to mastakayos12@aol.com
    thank you

      • it is called virama,..just like in Devanagari script of India…,to eliminate the sound “a” in each BAYABAYIN character..we can used also the kudlit “+” ,instead of “x”. Actually the first to used that was Fr. Francisco Lopez in a book that he published in Kapampangan BAYBAYIN in 1620….

  6. Hello Christian, I’ve been practicing baybayin for two years now and can write and read it well enough to maybe teach it also to others. I haven’t seen your books yet. I just happen to see your site just now and I am amazed and proud that someone made it really well. Godbless

  7. Hi, I was wondering how you would translate the j sound. Like for Geraldine or genna. Is that with a g or a diye?

  8. We should follow the new rules in converting English to Tagalog….we should consider the sound of each letter–dipthong…,

  9. A good day,…Mr. Christian Cabuay,… i’m using BAYBAYIN everyday….in writing my journals and other articles on my notebook ..I also created facebook page and group which I posted different information about our BAYBAYIN.., .I learned writing and reading BAYBAYIN for a week coz I have already a knowledge about it from my readings and from school..My knowledge on computer and programming are limited…. That’s why I want to ask for your advice on how/what should I do for me to use BAYBAYIN characters in typing/encoding in computer…
    Hoping for your response…thank you..,

  10. Hi. How do you translate acronoyms, btw?Do you need to consider the first syllable consonant+vowel sound? Ex. letter P for Pilipinas in Unibersidad ng Pilipinas. Will the P= Pa (because when we say the letter P in Filipino abakada, we say /pa/)? or Do we just use the baybayin for ‘ P’, no vowel sound after? We would like to verify for the sake of the U.P. baybayin to be woven in the U.P. sablay. A fellow mentioned that the current baybayin in our sablay may possibly be an incorrect translation. Salamat!

  11. i have come across of one of your designs called “anak ng bayan” is it really what it is in baybayin or is it just a design you just decided to name that?

  12. Hello Kristian!
    I was wondering if I got this translation right. It’s my lola’s name, Juanita Cruz and to get the baybayin version, I put Wanita Karuz. I’m hoping that I followed the tutorial right. Thanks in advance!

  13. I would like to have a tattoo with my name on baybayin form and I want to be sure if I got my translation right. I was wondering which one is correct. Ke-Ne-T-H, Ke-N-Ne-T-H, or K-E-N-N-E-T-H. Thanks! 🙂

    • Batang tigas- Tagalog is a formal language so everything will be made purely in Tagalog sound. This can be abbreviated as Batanggas Or Batangangas.

  14. Hi I’m thinking of getting a tattoo in baybayin. I was wondering if anyone could help me translate ‘inner strength’ Would it be ‘sa loob ng kakayanan?’ Sa-Lo-B-Ng-Ka-Ka-Ya-Na-N?

  15. Hello there. Thanks for your page. I’m wondering how I would translate my name? It’s Michele Sherry. I’m confused on how it would be written since it doesn’t seem like Baybayin has the “ch” or the “sh” sound? Thanks in advance.

  16. Good morning christian pwede po ba ako mgpatranslate ng pangalan pra mgpagawa ako ng tattoo
    Me: Janrey
    Wife: Hyacinth
    Daughter: Cynthia Mikaella Jane
    Son: Danniel Scott

    Salamat po in advance

  17. How would I do Hope, Alexander, and Ebrahm in Baybayin? The E in Ebrahm makes the long A sound instead of the short E sound. Thanks!

  18. Im trying to write my family name. Its AGPAOA. Should I cancel out the vowel in PA? I think I got a problem writing PA follwed by O and then A. Pretty confused here. Pls assist. Thanks

  19. Sir ano po ba ang tama para sa family name ko na “AGPAOA”? ganito po ba ᜀᜄᜉᜂᜀ or ganito ᜀᜄᜉᜓᜀ?

  20. i’ve noticed on your “BAYBAYIN” translation you only used “BA-BA-YI” why did you omit the “Y’s”?

  21. Can you help me translate JOSE CRISTIANO to Babayin please. I downloaded the font. However, the C doesn’t translate. Thanks!

  22. how do I write nanay patawad? idk if that’s even right..mother forgive me or forgiveness mother something along those lines..please help..is it na-na-y pa-ta-wa-d

  23. For the word “pamilya” is it “Pa-Mi-Ya” or “Pa-Mi-L-Ya”? Are the vowel cancellations only for words with consonants at the end? Thanks, btw. Your site is very informative.

  24. how u doin christian? ive been practing baybayin for few weeks now..but i just wanna make sure how to write respect. its gonna be for my next tattoo.. Thank u

  25. Hi Sir. I would love to have my second tattoo in Baybayin style. Please help me translate my name and my daughters name.
    Me: Arabelle
    My Daughter: Aiashi
    Thankyou so much in advance. Hope to have your response Sir. GodBless.

  26. sir is this the right way to translate my name (doc jay)DOK DI-EY ? my knowledge in alibata is very rusty now it is way back from highschool when i learned this..

  27. Hi!!

    I got my last name tattooed on my shoulder. It should be “Damil”.
    But after seeing the chart above, the characters I got are DA-MI-LA.
    So if I just add that little X to LA then it will change the pronouncation to L. Am I right??

  28. Hi, so I’m trying to translate ‘imperfect’ into baybayin. I translated it first into tagalog, ‘hindi lubos’ (there were several ways to put it but this fit best with what meaning i’m putting behind it the actual word). So would it be HI-N-DI LU-BO-S?

  29. Hi I want to get my last name translated into baybayin. My last name is “Enriquez”. I know there’s no “q” or “z” so would it just be “E-N-RI-K-ES”? Thanks

  30. sir KRISTIAN,

    im planning to have a new tattoo and im planning to use my SURNAME

    my surname is AXALAN and you can pronounce it as “AKSALAN”

    is this right, — A – K – SA – LA – N

    i had one na rin..FRIA — i made it P – Di – YA is that right…

    hope you can help me…^_^

  31. Hi, i need help regarding dun sa translation ng surname ko. It is Borja, sa baybayin it will be bo ha kasi walang letter j and r. Kaya nga lang yung translation niya is kapareho din ng word na “buhay” which is also bo ha in baybayin. I appreciate your assistance. Thank you.

  32. Hi I was wondering if you could help me. Im planning to have “agos” flow or flowing water tatooed in alibata. How do I write this properly since this would be permanently on me.
    Thanks

  33. Hi, I’m trying to get a tattoo with my mothers maiden name written in babayin. I don’t quite understand how to write it but I’d like some help since this will forever be on my body

  34. Hi sir, can you please translate the following words… Peace of mind and strength and calm. I wanted those words on arms but I wonder what is the exact baybayin characters for it. Help me please

  35. I have a question how do you write Libang in baybayin do use the Nga and a kudlit or something else the word ang, it doesnt seem write to write A them Nga.
    Also since i’m Cebuano what about the word gyud do I write Ga w/ kudlit -Yu- Da w/ kudlit
    What about punctuation………

  36. Good day sir. Patulong po sana ako mag translate in baybayin “Never a failure, always a lesson” hoping for your kind response. Thank you.

  37. good day sir. i would to translate “kalipay” or “hapiness” in baybayin.. i tried several baybayin generator and each of them has different translation .. i think ur blog is more legit. can u help me. i tried to do it here it was translated into ka-le-pa.. is that legit?

  38. Im trying to translate the word “SULONG” (forward) to baybayin. I wonder if it’s SU-LO-NG or S-U-L-O-NG. Salamat.

    aaannd yes its for a tattoo.

  39. Good day sir.sinubukan ko po sa full name ko na Aris Pacadaljen Chan ung tuts nyo. Ang ginawa ko po drinop ko po ung S sa 1st name, ung L at N sa last,tpos po yung je is pronounce as he.nahihirapan po ako sa last name.tama po ba ung ginawa ko na ti ya tpos drop po ung n?

  40. Hi, I need your help:
    I want to translate the name of my son to tattooing it on me.
    His name is DENNIS.
    The correct Baybayin translation is DE-NI or DE-NI-S?
    I understand that traditionally the consonant without vowel are killed… then how is the correct translation? The first or the second?
    And it’s right that not counting the double N, like DE-N-NI-S?

  41. Hi, I need your help: I want to tattooing the on me the name of my son (his mother is from Bacolod).
    His name is DENNIS.
    The correct Baybayin translation is DE-NI or DE-NI-S?
    I’ve understand that traditionally the consonant without vowel were killed… I’m confused now…
    And it’s true that we don’t consider the double N? Like DE-N-NI-S?

    Thanks a lot!!!!!

    • ohhhh iv’ve been trying to translate mine too. mine is just DENIS. i’ve seen one translation, and yeah it says that you have to drop the “S” but i want to make sure first.

    • Pavlovir .it is true that a consonant without a vowel is omitted in Tagalog Baybayin. Only when in use in Tagalog language.One must understand the true nature of Tagalog. It is the language of correct guessing and puzzle solving.but in case the names and words do not belong to Tagalog vocabularies, the case will be different.This is how your name read in Baybayin not Tagalog Baybayin cause the sound is not Tagalog.De Ni Si or Re Ni Si

  42. Good Day Sir, how about RONALD? is it RO-NA or RO-NA-L-D.. .And my wife’s name is SANDRA, SA-RA or SA-N-D-RA? thanks and more power!

  43. Magandang gabi po. Itatanong ko lang po sana kung paano ang question mark at exclamation mark sa Baybayin? Kapareho lang din po ba ng period na || ? Salamat po.

  44. Someone please help…..I am trying to translate my last name to baybayin….

    My last name is Bellini but I am having trouble finding out how to write it in the language

    I am going to get a tattoo representing my Filipino heritage and I need it to be accurate…..any help is appreciated

  45. How to make this on baybayin “taga felipos” is it “ta-ga pe-li-po-s”? Thank you bec i want to have a tattoo done with baybayin characters

  46. I want to get a tattoo that’s says bulaklak in baybayin. I know what symbol to use for “Bu” but what symbol would you use for “lak”?

  47. Sir, are there any complete documentation (books or ebooks) about this baybayin system? Also, I’d like to know what variation of baybayin did you use in the tutorial above. Is it bikolnon, ilockano, pangasinense, visaya, or tagalog? I’d appreciate your reply.

  48. Is there a ‘Ra’ in Baybayin, I just had an app that has this letter. And is there also a ‘-‘ for some words?

  49. Hi there, I’m looking forward to getting a tattoo for my middle and last name in babayin. Would you mind translating it for me when you can. Thanks, appreciate it!

    Middle name: Esguerra
    Last name: Regadio

  50. Hello Sir, I wanted to write Manawari in baybayin. Shall I change the ri to di? So that it goes Manawadi? Also, Is baybayin written from top to botto? Thank you

  51. Hi! I am wanting to get a tattoo in remembrance of my lola, can you help me with the correct baybayin translation for “last farewell until we meet again” and also is the L in mahal dropped? Thank you!

  52. I want to get a tattoo for my dad’s birthday saying “Father and Daughter”. Could you please help me as to know how would I have that written in Baybayin?

  53. I agreee so much about the rules on baybayin. It seem applicable to all filipino dialects, specially so the bisaya speaking since it only have three vowels – the a i u.

  54. Pano ang tamang pag bigkas pag ganito. Live and let live. Magiging lib and let lib ba? Tanxs ng marami

  55. How would I write my daughter’s name? It is GEMMA SOFIA (pronounces Jehm-mah Soh-phee-ah).
    Would it be Da-Ye-Ma So-Pi-A?

  56. Good day po. ask ko lang papano baybayin ang pangalan ko na Roland Gerd Brett Eckert. ung Gerd po na ay magiging Gedd or Ged at ang Brett ay Bdett or what? Salamat.

  57. we had an a lesson about this in filipino .. and 1 week after we had a test about it .. our filipino teacher told some words and she made us write it in baybayin .. of course she gave us days to study symbols and all .. but seriously .. you can’t learn it easily without having to have a headache .. and test day day came on .. I still did not get a single symbol correct .. to this day I still remember it .. those were the days

  58. Hello! I just so happen to read your blog and I have a hard time translating my name.

    Cyndrei pronounced as sindrey
    So I came up with this,

    Si-N-Re or Si-Ne-Re-Y ?

    I’m not sure about the “drei” part.
    Hoping you could correct this. Thanks!

  59. If the word ends with W (e.g. Bughaw, malinaw, lugaw), do you put the WA symbol with an x at the bottom, or the O/U symbol?

  60. Hi Sir Kristian,question. So If I’ll be using initials only, I just have to put x mark below, right? Planning to have my Family’s initials tattooed on my arm.

  61. ano po ang preferred niyong gamiting paraan sa tuwing mag susulat ng pangalan sa baybayin, yung orihinal, oh yung ginamitan ng virama?
    gusto ko po kasing isulat ang pangalan ko sa baybayin sa pinaka authentic na paraan ng pag sulat nito.
    salamat po.

  62. can I ask ? Are you a Pilipino? Did you ask a teacher before making this website? do you have a reference book that is where you get the baybayin information? because according to the book I see in the College Library, the i is different from the e kudlit. I’m just asking.

  63. and can I ask favor? please. Can you help me make a translations too about alibata? Don’t worry , I will not imitate your site. It’s only at home

  64. I wanna get a tattoo of the word “Family” or “Pamilya” in baybayin but I’m confused what’s right or wrong. Please help.

  65. Hi Christian, Can you help me translate Yuan Carlos Manuel- Mañago in Baybayin. Thats my late son’s name. thank you!

  66. Hi, tanung ko lang po about sa pagsusulat nag baybayin. Kapag ang letra po ba ay walang kasunod na vowel no need na po ba ilagay ang character nya? Hal. po ay salamat no need na po ba ilagay yung character ng T sa dulo? kelan lang po pwede gamitin yung pamudpod o krus-kudlit na kapag tatanggalin yung letrang A sa bawat letra? Hal.po ay yung BA n character tpos need u lang po yung B sa words.

  67. Can you please translate the sentence “o na shita wa kikiki wu” to English please? Thank you very much for your assistance in advance 🙂

  68. hi there!

    i tried to write in baybayin but maybe i wrote it wrong so can you help me out how to write our names in baybayin?

    1. Christian
    2. Jesse
    3. Sheila

  69. Hello, how can I write “ng” in baybayin example “kumuha ng pintura si nene”
    Paano rin po isulat yung “luwalhati’t”

  70. Hello!
    Magtatanong lang ako sana kung may translation na ba ang makabaging alpabeto natin sa baybayin?
    Naghahanap kasi ako ng paraan para maisalin ang mga initials ng pangalan namin pati na rin pangalan namin sa baybayin.
    Maraming salamat!

  71. All these questions for how to write names. Makes me feel guilty to ask mine.
    I just don’t know where to ask!
    I would love to know how to write the names Tom and Gracy
    Kind regards.

  72. I really want this design, but I don’t really know how to do it. This is I want to translate “ BALDOVINO SANTIAGO “

  73. Hi, I’ve studied Baybayin for like a long time and I’m still having a problem on how to put my name in Baybayin. My name is Josh, I know the letters DI-YO could satisfy the “Jo” part of my name, how then do I put “sh” in Baybayin (traditional) in order to make “Josh”

  74. Hi, I’ve been studying baybayin for quite some time now but I have a question about writing my name in the traditional baybayin. My name is “Josh” I’ve came up with “Di-Yo-Si-Yo”. Should I just drop the last “Yo” or keep it the same.

  75. Hi I’m trying to translate Sagip Buhay, would it look like SA-GI-P BU-HA-Y??? 😃😃😃 or maybe MA-BU-HA-Y would be better? 🤔🤔🤔

  76. Hi! Your tutorial was helpful and this is what I came up with so far… would Cereno (sir-ee-no) be translated as SI-RE-NO?

  77. Pingback: Episode 158 – Baybayin atbp. with Kristian Kabuay – This Filipino American Life Podcast

  78. Hi! I’m in the process of getting a tattoo and was looking to getting translated to baybayin. I was hoping if you could help me interpret the word “path”, which is the word I’m getting tattooed. Thank you!

  79. Hello!

    I’m trying to translate my daughter’s name Ellie. Using the tutorial would E – Le be correct?

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