# taga- ...



## Qcumber

*Taga-* terms either refer to nationalities, etc., or to jobs.

This is a passage from a Tagalog short story published in the 1950s.

Context: An old provincial man is visiting his family in Manila, and is stunned at the pace of life.
*"Doon sa amin sa Magdayupay, para tumakbo ang isang tao ay kung hinahagad lamang ng taga ... Asus ko po ..." at nagkurus ang Lolo Uweng.*
= In our (village), Magdayuhay, for a person to run, it is only to fetch the ______ ... Oh, Jesus! ..." at grandpa Uweng made the sign of the cross.

My question: What is the end of the *taga-* word, Lolo Uweng doesn’t want to utter?


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## guymelef

"taga" here refers to the local sword (one-sided blade) or long knife, like bolo used by Andres Bonifacio...

"...hinahagad lamang ng taga..." is like saying "...only when chased with a (long knife)".

So the sentence is basically saying, "In our (village) Magdayupay, a person will run only when chased with a (bolo/long knife)... "


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## Qcumber

guymelef said:


> "taga" here refers to the local sword (one-sided blade) or long knife, like bolo used by Andres Bonifacio... "...hinahagad lamang ng taga..." is like saying "...only when chased with a (long knife)". So the sentence is basically saying, "In our (village) Magdayupay, a person will run only when chased with a (bolo/long knife)... "


So it's *tagâ* not *taga*-. 
My dictionary only gives the translations 1) big cut 2) fishhook for *tagâ*.
I'll add the meaning "machete" in the margin.
Thanks a lot.


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## guymelef

yup, that's how it should be pronounced.

no problem... you're welcome!

the tagalog/Filipino in that short story, they are still written in the old tagalog, now only used by the old folks and in literary works.


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