Question: what is the difference between 'nasaan' and 'saan'? i' - Page 2

Once I asked "Satan ang kubeta?" I looked around after asking and the two guys (shop assistants) were doubled up laughing. So I began research to find out why.I discovered that saan and nasaan are slightly different. So nasaan means "where" something is located and saan means where an action takes place. Consider that kubeta can be considered as a toilet bowl. Then I understood the joke.

I have zero fear of speaking and using languages.Once I asked "Saan ang kubeta"? I looked around and the two guys (shop assistants) were doubled up laughing. So I began research to find out why.I discovered that saan and nasaan are slightly different. So nasaan means "where" and saan means where an action takes place. Then I understood the joke.

@NikNak Using either “saán” or “násaán” would be correct in that sentence. It is like asking “Which way is the toilet?” with “saan” and “Where is the toilet?” with “nasaan”. I think what made them laugh was your use of “kubeta”. Although that is a Tagalog word for “toilet”, we rarely use it. If you’re looking at a floor plan of a building it is all right to use “kubeta” and not get a reaction for doing so, but when you use the word to mean that you’re going to use it, then be warned. The shop attendants laughed because you surprised them by asking the question so bluntly. The word we almost always use for the toilet is “CR (Comfort Room)” - Saan/Nasaan ang CR?. So, using “kubeta” is like being at the Ritz-Carlton and asking where the crapper is. Since Filipinos practically don’t use the word, it would sound even more unsuitable to hear it from a foreigner.Just know what “kubeta” means and stick to using “CR” even when you’re discussing floor plans, just to play it safe. 😎

@NikNak I should also mention that we more often use "men's/ladies' room" or "lavatory" on formal occasions.

@chrxlr I would just like to point out that it's not just "anaa" for everything in Cebuano. "anaa" is just one of the existential demonstratives in the language. It is the existential form of the medial. The following are the existential demonstratives in the language:Proximal (nearer to speaker than to receiver) - adi'a / ari'a / di'a (all are variations of the first).
Medioproximal (near to speaker and receiver) - ani'a / ni'a
Medial (nearer to receiver than to speaker) - ana'a / na'a
Distal (far from both speaker and receiver) - adtu'a / atu'a / tu'aSo here's how it should have been:
Tagalog | Cebuano
na kay | tu'a kang
nasa | <existential demonstrative> sa (depending on relative distance i.e. is it proximal, medioproxmal, medial, or distal)
narito, nandito | ni'a (the locative demonstratives are not necessary)
narine | di'a (again, the locative demonstratives are not necessary)
nariyan, nandiyan | na'a
naroon, nandoon | tu'aHowever, as you said, it's informal. Cebuano does use « ana'a », still as an existential, but for locative only (as opposed to « aduna »; with the addition of the indefinite direct marker « ing », « ana'a » becomes « ana'ay » (ing has been contracted), likewise « aduna » becomes « adunay)). In Tagalog, this is approximately the same as "may, but concerns the location of an object i.e. does it exist in this or that location.As for "na" (or "nan") in Tagalog, it may have the purpose of transforming the locatives (doon, diyaan, etc.) into existential forms. "nasa" could have implied that "na" is an existential particle, thus removing the necessity of relative distance in pertaining to the existense of something.

@bullets2002 nasaan means almost the same with saan. Nasaan is a slang word and usually used in tagalog casual conversation, not recommended in formal written however 'saan' is much better same speaking and writing.

@tangahaga7 indeed, it is informal---or should I say, nonstandard. I should've mentioned that the dialect I'm referring to is the one spoken in Southern Mindanao.Tagalog | Cebuano (S. Mindanao) | Cebuano (standard)
na kay | na kang*/na kay* | atua kang
nasa akin | na sa* akoa** | ania nako/adia nako
nasa iyo | na sa* imoha** | anaa nimo
nasa kaniya | na sa* iyaha** | atua niya
narito | naa dirî | ania (diri)
narine | naa dinî | adia (dinhi)
nariyan | naa dirâ | anaa (dinha)
naroon | naa didtô | atua (didto)(*) In informal writing, they're treated as one word: "nakang/nakay" and "nasa".
(**) Although I myself uses "nako/nimo/niya", I observed that many, especially the younger generation, tend to use "sa akoa/imoha/iyaha" instead.
(***) Since the locative adverbs (ania/adia/anna/atua) have basically been merged into one (naa), using demonstrative pronouns (diri/dini/dira/didto) has become necessary.

@Mapadilla No, it is not a slang word.Both “saan” and “nasaan” are standard words and they have their specific uses. Though they both mean “where”, “saan” is concerned with the occurrence of an event. It functions as a pronoun substitute for the location of that event. “Nasaan”, on the other hand, is about the location of someone/something. It functions as an adverb of the verb “to be” to indicate a location. Saán mo itinago ang libró? = Where did you hide the book?
Nasaán ang libró? = Where is the book? Saán ka nagpuntá? = Where did you go?
Nasaán ka kanina? = Where were you earlier?

Nasaán ang mga kaibigan mo? = Where are your friends?
Saán manggagaling ang mga kaibigan mo? = Where are your friends coming from? At times we shorten “nasaan” to “saan/’saan” for convenience, but grammatically speaking, “nasaan” is the proper word to use.Saán ang bangko dito? = Where is the bank here? (The correct word is “nasaan” because “where” is used as an adverb of the verb “to be”. At times “saan” would be written as “ ‘saan ” to indicate the omitted prefix.)Saán may bangko dito? = (lit.) Where is there a bank here? (“Saan” is correct. It functions as the pronoun for “at which place”.)