(Sinulat ni John Clement Husain sa 2026 sa Opon sa Sugbu.)

Proemium.

The reckoning of the day in Cebuano had always been based on the events in the sky, as the rest of the world did before the advent of dials and clocks. Henceforth, see the 00:00 xx as approximations only and not actual days.

Adlaw. The sun. The day. 

Kaadlawun. Refers to the recession of the current day and before the beginning of the next day.

The divisions of a day. 

Kabontagun. Refers to the recession of the night and before the buntag which is the full morning after the sunrise. This is the dawn. This overlaps with kaadlawun, as both begin at the same time. This is also referred to as bolobuntag. It is therefore said of this time kabuntagun na, bolobuntag na, or nagakaadlaw na, nagakaaga na.

Alamandaman. Refers to the first light of dawn. When this appears, it said to be napawà na ang adlaw, meaning that the day has become illuminated; or naputî na ang adlaw, meaning that the day has become “whitened”, or pagbanagbanag, where banagbanag means for the day to break or for the first light to appear. Paghoyaghoyag is another term, but it comes from hoyaghoyag which means for the day to lighten or for the daylight to appear, which is more general than banagbanag. Lamdag refers to the clarity of the day or the day already being illuminated. Which is why it is also used to refer to clarify, to illustrate, or to explain some obscure or difficult point or thing.

Subáng. This means for any heavenly body to appear from the east, which the sun is quintessential. Thus, the sunrise is called pagsubáng sa adlaw. This marks the end of the kabuntagun and the beginning of buntag. Other terms include pagluták sa adlaw, from luták meaning to split or crack open; and pagsidlak sa adlaw, from sidlak meaning for the sun to illuminate other bodies.

Buntag. The morning, when the sun has now appeared in the sky until the midday. Aga refers to the morning as well. In Fr. Tomas de San Geronimo’s Vocabulario de la lengua Sugbuana, dawn was nagakaadlaw or nagakaaga. Fr. Felix Juan de la Encarnacion, in his Diccionario Bisaya-Español, includes aga as a term for morning, with the morning meal being referred to as paniaga.

Ig-itlog sa Manók or Tingilitlog. Refers to the time when chickens begin to lay eggs, which to our ancestors was probably in the midmorning. Hence, this is used to refer to the midmorning. Fr. Encarnacion approximates this to the time between 7:00 AM to 9:00 AM.

Sablay. This means to hang. Thus the time after the tingilitlug but before the midday is called pagpanablay sa adlaw, as the sun is as if about to be hanged on the zenith (topmost or above the head). Fr. Francisco Encina, in his Arte de la lengua Zebuana, approximates this to 10:00 AM.

Odto. Refers to the midday, when the sun is above the head. Also referred to as pagkaodto sa adlaw.

Lingay. This means for the sun to move away from the zenith. Another term to refer to the time after odto is pagawás na sa odtohan*, meaning the sun is leaving or has left the zenith. Fr. Encina approximates this to 1:00 PM. 

Palis. Refers to the midafternoon. Fr. Encina approximates this to 3:00 PM.

Following the chicken’s day-to-day life metaphor, hapon refers to their roosting, which to our ancestors was probably in the evening (where evening, from Old English æfnung, means duskfall or the time before (eve) the night, where night refers to the time of total darkness). Hence, when the sun is about to fall, it is called paghaponhapon* or pagholohapon sa adlaw, meaning the time becoming evening. Fr. Encina approximates this to 4:00 PM. When this is over, thus it is said haponhapon na or holohapon na, which Fr. Encina approximates to 5:00 PM.

Lonod. This means to sink. As it appears to us, the sun does sink in the horizon during sunset, hence pagkalonod sa adlaw is the term for it also. 

Salomsom. Refers to the period after the sunset and before the evening begins. It is also referred to as pagkasalomsom sa adlaw. When the evening begins, it is said hapon na. Hence, this beginning of the evening is called bag-ong hapun, meaning new evening. It is also said gabii na, in general, and hence this time is also referred to as kagabhiun. This lasts from the beginning of the recession of the light until darkness. Fr. Encina refers to this as being around the time of oraciones, which could only mean the vespers, which is around 6:00 PM. As Fr. Encarnacion puts it, hapon ends at the evening Angelus bells, which is also at 6:00 PM. This is when panihapon is usually done.

Kulup. Refers to the first part of the night. When this begins, it is said to be kulup na, or makulup na. According to the Asocación de Academias de la Lengua Española, this refers to the time between 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM. 

Gabii. The night, the period between the recession of the light until right before its reappearance. The time right before midnight is said to be gabii ang dacû, meaning the night, or darkness, is great; and hence this time is also referred to as gabii nga dacû. This is when the light has totally receded, and darkness takes over totally. Fr. Encina approximates this to 9:00 PM.

Tungáng Gabii. Refers to the middle of the night or midnight.

Lalúm refers to the depth or extent of soomething. Hence, the late hours of the night, or deep night, is also referred to as pagkalalúm sa gabii* or lalúm nga gabii and it is said lalúm na ang gabii. Fr. Encina approximates this to 2:00 AM. Before the light reappears in kaadlawun, the dead of night is still at large, and aptly this time is called pagkahadulúm sa kaadlawun, referring to the darkness before the dawn.

* These were found in Fr. Encina’s Arte and were typed as pagasna sa adtohan, pag hayon hayon sa adlao, and sapag cahalom sa gabi respectively, which I infer to be typographical errors.