# What's the highest romantic compliment in Tagalog?



## tagalogstudent

In Spanish, "simpactico" is the single highest compliment you can pay a regular friend.

I'm looking for something beyond "nobya," "syota," *[...]*
What kind of name of affection should I address her in the second person *[unnecessary details snipped. Frank, moderator]*


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## niernier

tagalogstudent said:


> What kind of name of affection should I address her in the second person, so that, as soon as she reads it, in instant messenger, her jaw drops and she starts marking out the way she did when she first met me, and she's like "ooooh, really?  Wow!  I LOVE YOU!"



"irog" is worth more than calling her your "darling". It's like calling her "my tender affection" or "my one true love", but I think nowadays, lovers just call each other, lab, switheart, or darling. 

kasintahan or nobya are nouns, and thus can't be used as a name of affection to address a loved one. Nobya or kasintahan are both used to mean, girlfriend, fiancee or sweetheart. Nobyo means boyfriend.

syota is a Tagalog slang for sweetheart, girlfriend or boyfriend. Few knows its etymology, syota being derived from short time. I was actually in my freshmen year in college when I learned about that. I took Filipino courses 1 and 2 in college.


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## jkris

ikaw ay ang aking mahal,

and

maganda ka


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## tagalogstudent

As I put "ikaw ay ang aking mahal" into translate.google.com, I get "you my dear."

So, is "dear" the highest level of romantic hierarchy in the Philippines?

Like, here in America, the hierarchy is:

Acquaintance
Friend
Friend w/ benefits
girlfriend/boyfriend
fiance
spouse
soul mate.

Where does "dear" fit in that hierarchy?


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## jkris

"ikaw ay ang aking mahal" means "you are my love"

mahal means love i am pretty sure.


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## romelako

Mahal can mean "love" or something that's expensive.


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