Kaban ni Lino Labra: BIGSA, SANGYAW UG ANG PINULUNGANG SUGBUANON
I
was a voracious reader of Bisaya Magazine when I was growing up as teenager in
the barrio. My favorite series was Pantomanok as far as my memory could recall.
Gitik gitik and word cross puzzle were most of the time the boon of contention
among members of our family as to who should read the magazine first the moment
it landed in our sari sari store from the slow-running passenger Autobus. The
conductor was a family friend to whom my elder sister charged the burden of
bringing our subscription to the barrio 80 kilometers from the city.
Prior
to the advent of modern medium of information like television, magazine was the
most effective source of ideas and entertainment to people in lethargic barrios
in the country. There were magazine such as “Bag-ong Kusog” of Vicente Sotto,
“Bag-ong Suga” of the Duranos, “Alimyon” and “Bulak” publication before Bisaya
became popular as the number one magazine in Visayas and Mindanao. These
magazines became the pastime favorites after the Second World War. Except for
Bisaya, the rest folded out of circulation one after the other through the
years leaving Bisaya as the only surviving local magazine in this modern day.
The
last time I read Bisaya Magazine was two years ago and to find a copy of its
latest edition was a long search that ended my staff buying a rare copy in a
newsstand in Sanciangco. Nothing much has changed in its format except for the
members of the editorial board. While it will slowly succumbing to natural
death from the reading public, Bisaya as a language will surely survive in this
modern age courtesy of the two popular tabloids in Cebu: Sun Star Super Balita
and The Freeman Banat News. I am happy to know that a good compañero Atty.
JAMES LOBEDICA is visibly active as the successor-in-interest of Marcel Navarra
for relentlessly writing stories and words of wisdom in his literary works in
Cebuano called PATNUBAY. Writers in Bisaya language are not getting younger in the person of
Oliver Flores, John Tam Ybanez, Godofredo Ypon, and others. I have not heard of
Quir de Gracia anymore. But I learn the loss of some writers from the literary
scene when they wrote finis their last breath due to old age as reported in the
news. Marcel Navarra (1914-1984) was still writing for Bisaya when I began the
interest in reading. But I was able to read only his famous work, “Ang Hunsoy
Sungsongan Usab” when I became a researcher in Cebuano Studies Center.
According
to the expert, Bisaya is a language and Cebuano is a dialect. Whatever it may
be, I have observed that young generation now a days have difficulty
understanding common and popular Cebuano or Bisayan words. Take for instance
Atty. JVG. He did not understand the word “BIGSA” when I used that word to
describe a lawyer who was flirting with a pretty lady lawyer while we were
waiting for the judge to come out from his chamber. In our barrio, we used the
word BIGSA to describe an aggressive cockerel in its sexual advances to a
pullet. I was surprised to a request from another lawyer who had to ask what
does the word “SANGYAW” mean. It is commonly used to describe what a religious
person did as missionary of the gospel. It means PREACHING. I am not sure if you understand TAKULAHAW
LAMANG, DAGITAB, BUGNONG LUGAYNON and BATOBIG. To understand these words, you
have to know who ULDARICO ALVIOLA was and his works. A street is named after
him in Barangay Tinago in this City.
I
know of two groups of Bisayan writers competing for followers in Visayas and
Mindanao. One was “LUBAS SA DAGANG BISAYA” or LUDABI and the other was “PUTING
DAGANG”. I used to be a member of the latter. Atty. James Lobedica is a
stalwart of the former. The two groups were at the opposite end in the effort
of propagating our language. LUDABI was advocating for Bisayan language to
acculturate with the language of the modern generation. Our group insisted in
its purity. Instead of electrisidad, we followed Uldarico Alviola who coined
the word “Sugang Dagitabnon” (Sugang Dagitab) for its Cebuano meaning. Ice is
Batobig (means Bato nga Tubig) and Bugnong Lugaynon (Inilogay sa Katongdanan)
is Election. Who knows the etymology of the word, “BIGSA”? From what my law
partner did to a lady lawyer in MTCC 7, Cebu City yesterday morning, I guess, it comes from the words ANG BIGSA NGA ABOGADO.
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