Script guide › Latin
Swahili vs Tagalog (Filipino)
Swahili and Tagalog (Filipino) sit in the same corner of the writing-system map — Grafle's Latin group — and players mix them up constantly. Here's the fastest way to tell them apart.
The tell
Tagalog: ng/mga everywhere. Swahili: m-/wa- word starts (watu, watoto) and no stand-alone two-letter words.
Side by side
Swahili
Watu wote wamezaliwa huru na sawa katika utu na haki.
Hujambo! Habari za watoto na kazi?
Haraka haraka haina baraka.
Swahili's own tells
- No accents; every word ends in a vowel, and the m-/wa- word starts (watu, wote, watoto) are everywhere.
On signs in:
- United Republic of Tanzania
- Kenya
- Uganda
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Rwanda
Tagalog (Filipino)
Ang lahat ng tao ay isinilang na malaya at pantay-pantay.
Magandang umaga sa inyong lahat, mga kaibigan!
Ang hindi lumingon sa pinanggalingan ay hindi makararating.
Tagalog (Filipino)'s own tells
- The tiny words ng and mga are uniquely Filipino.
- 'ang' and 'ay' pepper every sentence.
On signs in:
- Philippines