pinoy

-used by Filipinos for their compatriots in the Philippines and around the world. Filipinos usually refer to themselves informally as Pinoy or some times feminine: Pinay, which is formed by taking the last four letters of the word 'Filipino' and adding the diminutive suffix -y. The word was coined by expatriate Filipino Americans during the 1920s and was later adopted by Filipinos in the Philippines. -Pinoy is a term of endearment and is rarely used in formal settings. The term is akin to that of a nickname which is used by close family members and friends so that one who uses it somehow already developed some close ties with Filipinos. -The term especially gained popular currency in the late 1970s in the Philippines when a surge in patriotism made a hit song of Filipino folksinger Heber Bartolome's "Tayo'y mga Pinoy" (We are Filipinos), and later with famous Filipino band Bamboo's "Noy-pi" (Pinoy in reversed syllables). -In addition to Pinoy, Filipinos also refer themselves as Filipinos and Filipinas, Filipinos for the male gender (masculine), and Filipinas for the female gender (feminine).