In Philippines particularly Metro Manila greetings is an important part of daily communication. You always greet people as a first sign that you acknowledge their presence, for instance when arriving at work or visiting someone’s place or house.

In spoken Filipino, the MAGANDANG..becomes GANDANG..like other spoken languages, Filipinos tend to shortcut words too, so you say:

The day begins at 6AM or when the sun rises and normally they do at almost the same time daily unlike in other countries like Finland where the sun rises and sets differently at certain times of the year. Sunset is often at 6pm.

Magandang umaga is said when the day is bright which means the sun has already risen and 12noon greeting is Magandang tanghali. When the sun is down and its dark, we say Magandang gabi. Anytime of the day when it is bright, we say Magandang araw!