Who Are the Bisaya or Visayan People?
The Biggest Confusion to all Cebuano speaking people in Cebu, Mindanao, and Dumaguete is that almost all of them think that Bisaya means the Cebuano language which is totally False.
Who Are the Bisaya or Visayan People?
Bisaya is derived from the word Visayas. So Visayas - s = Visaya changed V to B = Bisaya
Visayas is one of the three island groups in the Philippines, along with Luzon and Mindanao. It consists of several islands, primarily surrounding the Visayan Sea. Its inhabitants are referred to as the Visayans or Bisayans.
The major islands are the following:
Panay
Negros
Cebu
Bohol
Leyte
Samar
Bisaya is NOT a specific to Cebuano language only which most people from Mindanao, Cebu, Dumaguete think which is totally based on wrong assumption.
Bisaya refers NOT only to Cebuano but ALSO to Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Aklanon, Capiznon, Kinaray-a, Bantoanon, Romblomanon, Cuyonon, Waray, Surigaonon, Butuanon, Tausog, etc.
Bisaya means different Visayan people, who live in different parts of Visayas Islands, who speak different Visayan languages such as Cebuano, Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Aklanon, Capiznon, Kinaray-a, Bantoanon, Romblomanon, Cuyonon, Waray, Surigaonon, Butuanon, Tausog, etc.
BISAYA Language Family:
Cebuano is BISAYA language spoken most of Mindanao, Cebu, Dumaguete, and part of Samar.
Hiligaynon or Ilonggo is BISAYA language spoken in Bacolod, Iloilo, and Roxas.
Aklanon is BISAYA language spoken in Aklan.
Capiznon is BISAYA language spoken in Capiz.
Kinaray-a is BISAYA language spoken in Antique.
Asi also known as Bantoanon, Calatravanhon, Odionganon, Sibalenhon, Simaranhon, is BISAYA language spoken in Romblon.
Cuyononis BISAYA language spoken on the coast of Palawan and the Cuyo Islands in the Philippines.
Waray is BISAYA language spoken in the provinces of Samar, Northern Samar, Eastern Samar, Leyte (eastern portion), and Biliran.
Surigaonon is BISAYA language spoken in the province of Surigao del Norte, and some portion of Agusan del Norte especially those towns near the Mainit Lake. It is related to Butuanon and Tausug.
What started this big confusion? I think the main reason this misunderstanding started by Max Surban and Yoyo Villame's songs who referred to Cebuano as Bisaya in some of their popular songs in which many people in Cebu and Mindanao listened and subconsciously absorbed the wrong terminology.
Suprisingly, if you ask any Ilonggos, Karay-a, Aklanon people etc they know that their language is also Bisaya and they also know that they are Bisaya people because they live in the Visayas Islands.
Also you will be surprised when you fill out a document to work overseas because you will not see a bisaya language among Filipino list of languages, that's because bisaya is a group of Visayan languages which includes Cebuano, Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Aklanon, Capiznon, Kinaray-a, Bantoanon, Romblomanon, Cuyonon, Waray, Surigaonon, Butuanon, Tausog, etc.
Visayans (also spelled Bisayans) generally refer to people who trace their roots to the Bisayan-speaking region in central Philippines. This region includes the islands of Panay, Romblon, Guimaras, Negros, Cebu, Bohol, Siquijor, Leyte, Biliran and Samar.
However, because of migration over time, a large part of Mindanao (from Zamboanga up to northern Mindanao and down to Davao and Cotabato) is now largely populated by Visayans. Thus, it is not uncommon for people from Mindanao to call themselves “Visayan,” especially if they are native speakers of the Bisaya language.Bisaya is a group of related languages belonging to the Malayo-Polynesian family. Spoken in the central and southern Philippines, it is comprised of roughly 25 languages, some near extinction.
The origin of the term “Visayan “ is unclear. Some sources say it refers to Shri Vijaya, the ancient island Southeast Asian empire to which the original Visayans supposedly belonged. Others consider the term a literal rendering of the Visayan sadya or the Tagalog saya, meaning happiness. The latter version appears to stem from the stereotype that Visayans are a generally laid-back, fun loving and happy-go-lucky people. But as Visayans themselves would put it, they are a hardworking people who just know how to enjoy life.
Source: http://www.hawaii.edu/cps/visayans.htm
