yawa

See also: yaŵa

Cebuano

Etymology

Possibly related to Proto-Austronesian *dawak (“curing ritual conducted by a medium in a trance”). Compare Kalinga dawak (“curing rite involving spirit possession”) and Murut rawak (“ritual for exorcising spirits during a self-induced trance”). In early colonial records, the term was demonized by Spanish missionaries who equated indigenous shamanic trances with demonic possession.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈjawa/ [ˈja.wɐ]

Noun

yáwa (Badlit spelling ᜌᜏ)

1. (Christianity) The Devil; Satan.

   Synonyms: Satanas, diyablo, panulay

2. (Christianity) malevolence; wickedness
3. (mythology) A pre-colonial deity or powerful spirit (diwata) associated with the underworld and the spiritual "negotiation" between the living and the dead.
   1. (Panay) A goddess or heroine of prowess, specifically in the form of Nagmalitong Yawa in the Hinilawod epic.
   2. (Leyte, Samar) A male deity of the forest (banwanun) and mountains; the "executioner" of the supreme god Maka-ubus.

Adjective

yawà (Badlit spelling ᜌᜏ)

1. evil; wicked
2. barbaric; savage

Interjection

yawà!

1. (vulgar) Term of abuse

Usage notes

• Demonization and Trance: Historically, the word's association with "evil" stems from a Spanish misinterpretation of the babaylan's performative rites. Trance states—achieved through rhythmic dancing, exhaustion, or neurological conditions like epilepsy—were interpreted by chroniclers as "demonic possession."
• Lexical Evidence: Early dictionaries (Mentrida, Sanchez) link Yawa to possession: sinab-han sang Yawa ("possessed") and yayawaan ("to have a familiar spirit").
• Profanity: In modern Cebuano, it is a high-intensity profanity (e.g., Pisting Yawa), often used to express extreme frustration or anger.

Derived terms

• yawaon (“possessed; devilish; also a type of rooster with red and black feathers”)
• yayawaan (“to be possessed by a familiar spirit”)
• pagyawa (“to perform an offering to Yawa”)

See also

• dawak (“trance ritual”)
• banay (“ritual fan used to harness spirits”)
• hula (“divination to beckon the Yawa”)
• pisti (“pestilence; plague”)

Chamicuro

Noun

yawa

1. point; tip

Eastern Cham

Etymology

From Proto-Malayic *ñawa, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *nihawa, from Proto-Austronesian *NiSawa. Cognate of Acehnese nyawöng.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /zawaː/

Noun

yawa (Akhar Thrah spelling ꨢꨥꨩ)

1. sound

Alternative forms

• nyawa

Hausa

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /já.wàː/
  • (Standard Kano Hausa) IPA^(key): [jɛ́.wàː]

Noun

yawā̀ m (possessed form yawàn)

1. quantity

References

• Newman, Paul (2007), A Hausa-English Dictionary (Yale Language Series), New Haven; London: Yale University Press, →ISBN, page 225.

Hiligaynon

Etymology

Compare Cebuano yawa. From Nagmalitong Yawa Sinagmaling Diwata, a goddess in the Suludnon epic Hinilawod, according to F. Landa Jocano.

Noun

yawà

1. devil; evil spirit; demon

Interjection

yawà!

1. (vulgar) term of abuse

Derived terms

• yawan-on

References

• John Kaufmann (1934), Visayan-English Dictionary‎^[1] (overall work in Hiligaynon and English), page 538

Japanese

Romanization

yawa

1. Rōmaji transcription of やわ

Masbatenyo

Noun

yawa

1. devil; evil spirit; demon

Old Javanese

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ja.wa/
• Rhymes: -wa
• Hyphenation: ya‧wa

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Sanskrit यव (yava, “barley”).

Noun

yawa

1. barley

Etymology 2

Unknown, probably Inherited from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *(ma-)zauq.

Noun

yawa

1. outside

Alternative forms

• yawā
• yawi

Further reading

• "yawa" in P.J. Zoetmulder with the collaboration of S.O. Robson, Old Javanese-English Dictionary. 's-Gravenhage: M. Nijhoff, 1982.

Woiwurrung

Verb

yawa

1. swim

See also

• yaRaka (“swim”)
• erra-ge (“swim”)