Penang Hokkiens, this language is commonly spoken and loved by many as you can see when you visit us.

Don't be surprised when you hear our local Indians speaking Hokien or Chinese speaking Tamil, or Malays speaking in fluent Hokkien to their Chinese friends.

It won't be surprising at all too, if you see the 3 races speaking Penang Hokkiens together. Most locals could speak a minimum of 3 to 4 languages or dialects.

They don't go to learn the Hokkien language in center. But if you do want to learn, there is private tuition given. Penang Hokkiens dialect is easy, you can listen and pick up when the locals talk.

Bahasa Malaysia is the national language. English, our second language is widely used in business, education and the tourism industry.

As Penang was (and still is) a meeting point of many cultures, other languages and dialects are also spoken and understood here. Penang Hokkiens is widely spoken.

These include the various Chinese (Mandarin, Cantonese, Hakka, Hokkien, Taochiew) and Indian (Bengali, Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam, Punjabi and Telegu) dialects, as well as several dashes of Thai, Myammar, Nepalese and some European languages.

You may want to impress our people with a few phrases of Malay, Mandarin or Hokkien now and then. It might be useful to learn a few Chinese phrases too. Please have fun learning to speak like us.

Refer to the table below. Listed below are our local languages or dialects: Mandarin, Hokkien, Bahasa Melayu.

English Spoken	Malay	Penang Hokkiens	Mandarin
Good morning	Selamat pagi	Gau Cha	Zao An
Good afternoon	Selamat tengahari	n/a	Wu an
Good evening	Selamat petang	n/a	Wu an
Good night	Selamat malam	n/a	Wan an
Goodbye	Selamat jalan	Ban Ban Kiea	Zai jian
Thank You	Terima Kasih	Kam Sia	Xie Xie
Hello	Hai or Ello	Lu Hoe Bor	Ni Hao
No	Tidak	Mm Ci	Bu shi
Yes	Ya	Ci	Shi
My name is	Nama saya	Gua Mia Ci	Wo ming jiao
How are you?	Apa khabar?	Lu Hoe Bor?	Ni hao ma?
I am fine	Khabar baik	Gua Hoe	Hen hao
How much?	Berapa harga?	Kui Looi	Duo sao qian?
What is this?	Apa ini?	Har Me Lai?	Ze shi shen me?
Me	Saya	Gua	Wo
You	Awak	Lu	Ni
He/she	Dia	Ee	Ta
We	Kami	Gua lang	Wo men
They	Mereka	Ee Lang	Ta men
Where	Di mana	Ta Lok	Zai nali
I don't understand	Saya tidak faham	Gua bor beng pek	Wo bu ming bai
Excuse me	Minta Maaf	n/a	n/a
Do you speak English?	Tau ka kamu cakap Bahasa Inggeris?	Eh heow kong Ang Moo Wah bor?	n/a
Help	Tolong	Kiew mia	n/a
Please bring the menu	Tolong bawa saya mennu	Gia har gua men nu	n/a
Please bring me the bill	To ong bawa saya bil	Gia bill lai	n/a

For serious learners or if you like our Hokkien rhymes and Ditties, here are one food for thought:

Nyonya Hokkien Sayings Mm chai, ai chai, bo phai say mooi, toe chai Mm chai, ai chai, bo ai mooi, kooi si lang gong tai Translation Not to know and to ask is but a moment's shame Not to know and not to ask is a life time of fools mind A teaser and advise to people Ask if you need information, or forever be doom.

One we tease our Grandparents: :) Urm mong mong Niau choo kong Ah Mah choey Ah Kong Ah Kong pek khi chang Ah Mah choey bo lang Total darkness Big Rat King Grandma searches for Grandpa Grandpa climbs up a tree Grandma can't find anyone

Cheers!!

Go to Top of Penang Hokkiens Page

Back to Getting Around Page

Back to Getting Here Page

Back to Penang Facts Page

Back to Penang Travels Page

Back to Malaysia Calendar Page

Back to Penang Introduction age

Back to Penang Maps Page

Back to Penang Weather Page

Back to Anti Dadah Page

Back to Pinang History Page

Back to Money Changers Page

Back to My Island Penang Home Page