utang na loob, n.
Pronunciation:
Brit.
/ˌuːtaŋ nə ˈləʊb/
, , , ,
U.S.
/ˌ(j)uˌtæŋ nə ˈloʊb/
, , , , Philippine English/ˈuˌtɑŋ ˌnɑ ˌloˈob/
Origin: A borrowing from Tagalog. Etymon: Tagalog utang na loob.
Etymology: < Tagalog utang na loob < utang debt, indebtedness + na, connective + loob one's own volition, inner self, lit. ‘inside’.
Philippine English.
A sense of obligation to return a favour owed to someone.
[1906 Outlook 20 Jan. 144/1
The idea of gratitude is conveyed by the phrase utang na loob—literally, debt of the heart.]
1961 Southwestern Jrnl. Anthropol. 17 256
Serious conversations, oftentimes with strong emotional overtones, almost inevitably turn on the concept of utang na loob.
1986 Orange County
(Calif.)
Reg. 31 Oct. f7/1
A young man will have utang na loob for whoever helps find his first job, even if he never liked that person.
1993 Asian Affairs 20 177
A gift that creates utang na loob must satisfy a need that the recipient cannot himself satisfy.
2004 R. F. Manlove in G. A. De Vos & E. S. De Vos Cross-cultural Dimensions in Conscious Thought II. xiii. 426
If a poor man is given money or a job, he presumably has utang na loob for his benefactor.
1961—2004(Hide quotations)