gi-...-an

Started Locative Focus

Level 3

The gi-...-an circumfix indicates a started/completed action (Perfective) where the grammatical subject (the ang phrase) is the location, recipient, or source of the action.

How It Works

The gi-...-an pattern is a fundamental part of the Cebuano focus system. It combines the prefix gi- (indicating started aspect) with the suffix -an (indicating locative focus).

1. Functional Roles:
Unlike the simple gi- patient focus which focuses on the object being moved or acted upon, gi-...-an focuses on:

  • Recipients: The person who was given something (e.g., 'I was given money').
  • Locations: The place where an action occurred (e.g., 'The wall was written on').
  • Sources: The person or place something was taken from (e.g., 'He was taken a photo of').
  • Partial Action: Unlike the patient focus which implies the whole object was affected, gi-...-an often implies the action was done to only part of the object (e.g., Gikaonan ang isda means 'Part of the fish was eaten from').

2. Sentence Structure:
In these sentences, the 'receiver' or 'location' is marked by ang (or si before a name, or is a subject pronoun like ko). The 'doer' of the action must be in the genitive case (using nako, nimo, niya, etc.).

3. Morphological Changes:

  • If the root ends in a vowel, the suffix often becomes -han (e.g., basa → gibasahan).
  • Some roots undergo syncope (vowel dropping), such as laba (wash) becoming gilabhan.
  • The stress often moves when the suffix is added.

Examples (4)

  1. Gihatagan ko niya og bulak.

    He/she gave me a flower.

    Word by Word: Was-given I by-him/her a flower.

    Here, 'ko' (I) is the recipient and the focus of the sentence. The action is finished.

  2. Gisulatan niya ang bungbong.

    He/she wrote on the wall.

    Word by Word: Was-written-on by-him/her the wall.

    The wall (ang bungbong) is the location where the writing happened, so the locative focus is used.

  3. Gikuhaan nako siya og hulagway.

    I took a picture of him/her.

    Word by Word: Was-taken-from by-me he/she a picture.

    In this case, 'siya' (he/she) is the source from which the photo was taken.

  4. Gipalitan nako si Mama og bag-ong sinina.

    I bought Mama a new dress.

    Word by Word: Was-bought-for by-me [personal focus] Mama a new dress.

    Mama is the recipient of the purchase, so the verb 'palit' (buy) takes the gi-...-an form.

Common Mistakes

  • Mixing up who gives and who receives.

    Different MeaningGihatagan siya nako og kwarta.
    Gihatagan niya ko og kwarta.

    'Gihatagan siya nako og kwarta' is a good sentence, but it means 'I gave him money': the receiver is the focus and the giver is in the genitive. For 'He gave me money,' make 'ko' the receiver and 'niya' the giver.

  • Dropping the -an suffix when focusing on a person as the recipient.

    Gihatag ko niya og pagkaon.
    Gihatagan ko niya og pagkaon.

    The verb 'gihatag' focuses on the object being given. Because 'ko' (I) is the focused subject here, you must use the locative suffix -an to show that 'I' am the location or recipient of the action.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

gi-...-anLevel 3Started Locative Focus

Learn This First

The 'gi-...-an' pattern is a combination of the locative focus suffix (-an) and the started aspect prefix (gi-). To understand this, you need to be familiar with how locative focus identifies the recipient or location as the subject, how the prefix 'gi-' shifts an action into the past/started aspect, and how the actor is expressed using genitive pronouns or markers.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

gi--an