balintataw

Tagalog

Alternative forms

• balintatao — chiefly dialectal
• balintatauo — obsolete, Spanish-based orthography
• balintatawo — obsolete

Etymology

Derived from Proto-Philippine *tau-tau (“pupil (eye)”), from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *tau tau, from Proto-Austronesian *Cau Cau (“pupil of the eye”), reduplication of *Cau (“person”). Compare Ilocano tao-tao, Kapampangan balintatau, Bikol Central alintataw / tatawo, Cebuano tawo-tawo, and Tausug tau-tau mata.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /balintaˈtaw/ [bɐ.lɪn̪.t̪ɐˈt̪aʊ̯]
• Rhymes: -aw
• Syllabification: ba‧lin‧ta‧taw

Noun

balintatáw (Baybayin spelling ᜊᜎᜒᜈ᜔ᜆᜆᜏ᜔) (anatomy)

1. pupil (hole in the middle of the iris of the eye)

   Synonyms: inla, alikmata, tao-tao

Derived terms

• bahay-balintataw

Related terms

• katawan
• tao

See also

• alintataw
• bata-bataan
• busilig

Further reading

• “balintataw”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018
• Serrano-Laktaw, Pedro (1914) Diccionario tagálog-hispano, Ateneo de Manila, page 90.
• Santos, Fr. Domingo de los (1835) Tomas Oliva, editor, Vocabulario de la lengua tagala: primera, y segunda parte.‎^[1] (in Spanish), La imprenta nueva de D. Jose Maria Dayot
• San Buena Ventura, Fr. Pedro de (1613) Juan de Silva, editor, Vocabulario de lengua tagala: El romance castellano puesto primero‎^[2], La Noble Villa de Pila, page 443: “Niña) Balintatavo (pc) del ojo la grande”