Barkada

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A close-knit group of friends or companions who spend time together regularly and share strong bonds of loyalty and camaraderie
2. A tight circle of friends who often engage in social activities together while fostering an atmosphere of trust and support
3. A loyal and intimate group of individuals who regularly meet and enjoy each other's company in a spirit of friendship

Etymology: The Spanish source word "barcada" literally meant "shipload," the cargo or crew that a boat carried at one time. Its root is "barca," a boat, and the same nautical image lies behind the Filipino term. Over time, the sense moved from the people packed into a vessel to the people who travel together, and in Philippine Spanish "barcada" came to mean a gang of friends. Tagalog took the word in that social sense and adapted it as "barkada," which is now the everyday term in the Philippines for a close circle of friends who spend time together. The ship-cargo meaning has faded entirely, so the word's current use depends on the idea of a group bound together by shared passage rather than by any formal arrangement.