Ambatunat's definitions
Pagging pah-ging
noun (Filipino slang, humorous)
Definition:
1. A Filipino person whose parents are from two major ethnolinguistic groups: one Tagalog, the other Bisaya.
2. A cultural fusion of the Tagalog’s gritty city survival and the Bisaya’s earthy wild energy.
3. A mashup of “pagpag” and “saging,” used comically to describe the chaotic, beautiful blend of both heritages.
Etymology / Word Origin:
Pag – from pagpag, leftover food (usually meat or chicken) scavenged from trash, cleaned, and recooked. Often associated with impoverished urban areas in Luzon, where many Tagalogs live.
Ging – from saging, the Bisaya word for banana. Bisaya people are humorously (and very inaccurately) portrayed as being so connected to nature they "goon into banana trees" — a meme-worthy exaggeration.
Together: Pag + Ging = Pagging.
A dual-core Filipino with the street smarts of pagpag and the jungle instinct of saging.
Cultural Note:
Tagalog – Typically raised in Luzon, speaking the Tagalog language as their mother tongue.
Bisaya – Refers to several Visayan-speaking groups found in Visayas and Mindanao. Those from the Visayas are considered to speak the “original” Bisaya dialect.
noun (Filipino slang, humorous)
Definition:
1. A Filipino person whose parents are from two major ethnolinguistic groups: one Tagalog, the other Bisaya.
2. A cultural fusion of the Tagalog’s gritty city survival and the Bisaya’s earthy wild energy.
3. A mashup of “pagpag” and “saging,” used comically to describe the chaotic, beautiful blend of both heritages.
Etymology / Word Origin:
Pag – from pagpag, leftover food (usually meat or chicken) scavenged from trash, cleaned, and recooked. Often associated with impoverished urban areas in Luzon, where many Tagalogs live.
Ging – from saging, the Bisaya word for banana. Bisaya people are humorously (and very inaccurately) portrayed as being so connected to nature they "goon into banana trees" — a meme-worthy exaggeration.
Together: Pag + Ging = Pagging.
A dual-core Filipino with the street smarts of pagpag and the jungle instinct of saging.
Cultural Note:
Tagalog – Typically raised in Luzon, speaking the Tagalog language as their mother tongue.
Bisaya – Refers to several Visayan-speaking groups found in Visayas and Mindanao. Those from the Visayas are considered to speak the “original” Bisaya dialect.
“Wag mo ko maliitin, pare. I’m Pagging — I can survive with pagpag and climb banana trees with my bare hands.”
by Ambatunat August 4, 2025
Get the Paggingmug.