Page 89 - Tagalog for Beginners: An Introduction to Filipino, the National Language of the Philippines

In the example above, note that the Filipino nasa ibabaw is equivalent to the
English preposition “on.” Similarly, nasa ilalim is equivalent to “under,” and
nasa loob means “in.”
In written Filipino, some writers like to use the subject-predicate structure,
and thus would use: Ang libro ay nasa ibabaw ng mesa. (The book is on the
table.) (Literally, Marker book is on marker table.)

To sound more natural, you may want to use the predicate-subject structure.

III. The Ownership Markers Kay/Kina and Sa
In preceding chapters, you have studied the markers si, ang, and ni. The
ownership markers kay and kina are used for proper nouns, the former for
singular proper nouns and the latter for plural proper nouns. Sa is used for non-
proper nouns.

Here are a few examples:
EXAMPLE Kay Clara ang bag na iyan. That bag is Clara's. (literally, Clara's
:
marker bag linker that.)
EXAMPLE Kina Clara at Juan ang mga librong iyan. Those bags are Clara's
:
and Juan's. (literally, Clara's and Juan's marker books those).
EXAMPLE Sa kaibigan ko ang lapis na iyan. That is my friend's pencil. (literally,
:
Friend's my marker pencil linker that.)

Mga Tala Sa Kultura

In precolonial Philippines, life among many of the more than sixty ethnolinguistics
groups was communal. People owned the land they could till and that they needed
in order to survive, and they did not need documents to prove it was theirs.
The Banaue Rice Terraces in the Cordillera Mountains are an example of this. It
is believed that the people of Banaue carved the mountains for hundreds of years to

make rice terraces for their families and the community. A family planted rice for
their needs, and when the children grew up and started their own families, they
would make more rice paddies.
Today, the Banaue Rice Terraces are considered to be among the most amazing
man-made “wonders” of the world, as the people of the Cordillera continue to
struggle for their indigenous rights.