Tagalog (Filipino) is natively spoken by about 44 million people, primarily in the Philippines, where it is one of the official languages. It is one aspect of Filipino cultural identity along with other Philippine languages, known for its pre-colonial history, rich oral traditions, and vibrant festivals such as Sinulog and Pahiyas. Written in the Latin alphabet, Tagalog grammar features a verb-subject-object (VSO) word order, extensive use of affixes to indicate grammatical relationships, and a system of verb conjugations that indicate tense, aspect, and mood.