Malaysian Mandarin
Encyclopedia
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Malaysian Mandarin is a variety of Mandarin Chinese (官話) spoken in Malaysia by ethnic Chinese in Malaysia. Malaysian Chinese tend to think that the Mandarin Chinese they speak is a variation of Standard Mandarin
(Putonghua), however, since the difference can be as similar as British English
and Malaysian English
, it is a Mandarin dialect of its own right. Its closest cousin is not Standard Mandarin
, instead, its closest cousin is Singaporean Mandarin
, the language was widely used in films like Tiger Woohoo 大日子(2010), Namewee's Nasi Lemak 2.0
辣死你妈 and movies created by Singaporean movie director Jack Neo
.
Malaysian Mandarin speakers seldom translate local terms or names to Mandarin when they speak. They would prefer to say Malay place name in its original Malay pronounciation, for instance, even though the street name "Jalan Bukit Kepong" is written as 惹兰武吉甲洞 (rělán wǔjí jiǎdòng) in local Chinese printed media, the local Chinese almost never use "rělán wǔjí jiǎdòng" in daily conversations. There are exeption of course, for example Taiping
, since this name is derived from Chinese language, when people mention this place when they speaking local Mandarin, they always use its Mandarin pronounciation, tàipíng, instead of using its Malay pronounciation, which sounds more like taipeng. Another examples is when a place's Chinese translation varied vastly with its original local name, for example: Teluk Intan
(ānsǜn) and Kota Kinabalu
(yǎbǐ), they always use ānsǜn and yǎbǐ in these case.
In comparison with Chinese, Taiwanese or even Singaporean Mandarin, Malaysian Mandarin is clearly distinguished by its relatively tonally 'flat' sound as well as its extensive use of glottal stops and 'rusheng'. This results in a distinct 'clipped' sound compared to other forms of Mandarin.
and Qing dynasties, between the 15th and early 20th centuries. The majority were speakers of Hokkien
(Min Nan
), Cantonese
, Hakka, Teochew, and Hainanese. They became the Peranakan
Chinese after marrying Malay women, their descendants spoke Malay. In the 19th century, Qing immigrants to Malaya had no single common dialect and were mostly uneducated peasants, and they tended to cluster themselves according to the ethno-linguistic group, usually corresponding to their place of origin, and worked with relatives and other speakers of the same dialect. In 1879, according to Isabella Bird, a visitor to the tin mining boomtown of Taiping
, Perak
, "five dialects of Chinese are spoken, and Chinamen constantly communicate with each other in Malay, because they can't understand each other's Chinese".
The Chinese dialects spoken in Malaysia have over the years become localized, as is apparent from the use of Malay
and English
loan words. Words from other Chinese dialects are also injected, depending on the educational and cultural background of the speaker (see Education in Malaysia
and Rojak Language). Mandarin in Malaysia, too, has been localized, as a result of the influence of other Chinese variants spoken in Malaysia, rather than of Malay. Though it was discouraged in teaching at the local Chinese school and was regarded as mispronunciation.
Variants of Mandarin Chinese:
Malaysian Mandarin is a variety of Mandarin Chinese (官話) spoken in Malaysia by ethnic Chinese in Malaysia. Malaysian Chinese tend to think that the Mandarin Chinese they speak is a variation of Standard Mandarin
Standard Chinese
Standard Chinese, or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
(Putonghua), however, since the difference can be as similar as British English
British English
British English, or English , is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the United Kingdom from forms used elsewhere...
and Malaysian English
Malaysian English
Malaysian English , formally known as Malaysian Standard English , is a form of English used and spoken in Malaysia as a second language...
, it is a Mandarin dialect of its own right. Its closest cousin is not Standard Mandarin
Standard Chinese
Standard Chinese, or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
, instead, its closest cousin is Singaporean Mandarin
Singaporean Mandarin
Singaporean Mandarin is a variety of Mandarin Chinese widely spoken in Singapore. It is one of the four official languages of Singapore along with English, Malay and Tamil....
, the language was widely used in films like Tiger Woohoo 大日子(2010), Namewee's Nasi Lemak 2.0
Nasi Lemak 2.0
Nasi Lemak 2.0 is a film by Namewee. The film had a low budget, since the government did not provide funding. Wee spent nearly a year applying for loans...
辣死你妈 and movies created by Singaporean movie director Jack Neo
Jack Neo
Jack Neo Chee Keong , PBM, credited as Jack Neo on screen, is a Chinese Singaporean film and television actor, host and director...
.
Malaysian Mandarin speakers seldom translate local terms or names to Mandarin when they speak. They would prefer to say Malay place name in its original Malay pronounciation, for instance, even though the street name "Jalan Bukit Kepong" is written as 惹兰武吉甲洞 (rělán wǔjí jiǎdòng) in local Chinese printed media, the local Chinese almost never use "rělán wǔjí jiǎdòng" in daily conversations. There are exeption of course, for example Taiping
Taiping, Perak
Taiping is a town located in northern Perak, Malaysia. With a population of 191,104 , it is the second largest town in Perak after Ipoh, the state capital. Taiping took over Kuala Kangsar's role as the state capital from 1876 to 1937, but was then replaced by Ipoh...
, since this name is derived from Chinese language, when people mention this place when they speaking local Mandarin, they always use its Mandarin pronounciation, tàipíng, instead of using its Malay pronounciation, which sounds more like taipeng. Another examples is when a place's Chinese translation varied vastly with its original local name, for example: Teluk Intan
Teluk Intan
Teluk Intan（安順）is a town located in the state of Perak in Malaysia. It is the largest town in Hilir Perak district and third largest town in the state of Perak with an estimated population of around 120,000, about half of Hilir Perak district's total population...
(ānsǜn) and Kota Kinabalu
Kota Kinabalu
Kota Kinabalu , formerly known as Jesselton, is the capital of Sabah state in East Malaysia. It is also the capital of the West Coast Division of Sabah. The city is located on the northwest coast of Borneo facing the South China Sea. The Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park lies on one side and Mount...
(yǎbǐ), they always use ānsǜn and yǎbǐ in these case.
In comparison with Chinese, Taiwanese or even Singaporean Mandarin, Malaysian Mandarin is clearly distinguished by its relatively tonally 'flat' sound as well as its extensive use of glottal stops and 'rusheng'. This results in a distinct 'clipped' sound compared to other forms of Mandarin.
Some Differences between Malaysian Mandarin and Putonghua (Mandarin in China)
- Jalan Bukit Kepong – 惹兰武吉甲洞 rělán wǔjí jiǎdòng
- Raja Abdullah – 拉惹亚都拉 lārě yàdūlā
- Kuih Talam – 达兰糕 dálán gāo
- Roti Canai – 印度人的面包 Yìndùrén de miànbāo
Early Ming and Qing immigrants
The majority of ethnic Chinese people living in Malaysia came from China during the MingMing Dynasty
The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
and Qing dynasties, between the 15th and early 20th centuries. The majority were speakers of Hokkien
Hokkien
Hokkien is a Hokkien word corresponding to Standard Chinese "Fujian". It may refer to:* Hokkien dialect, a dialect of Min Nan Chinese spoken in Southern Fujian , Taiwan, South-east Asia, and elsewhere....
(Min Nan
Min Nan
The Southern Min languages, or Min Nan , are a family of Chinese languages spoken in southern Fujian, eastern Guangdong, Hainan, Taiwan, and southern Zhejiang provinces of China, and by descendants of emigrants from these areas in diaspora....
), Cantonese
Standard Cantonese
Cantonese, or Standard Cantonese, is a language that originated in the vicinity of Canton in southern China, and is often regarded as the prestige dialect of Yue Chinese....
, Hakka, Teochew, and Hainanese. They became the Peranakan
Peranakan
Peranakan Chinese and Baba-Nyonya are terms used for the descendants of late 15th and 16th-century Chinese immigrants to the Indonesian archipelago of Nusantara during the Colonial era....
Chinese after marrying Malay women, their descendants spoke Malay. In the 19th century, Qing immigrants to Malaya had no single common dialect and were mostly uneducated peasants, and they tended to cluster themselves according to the ethno-linguistic group, usually corresponding to their place of origin, and worked with relatives and other speakers of the same dialect. In 1879, according to Isabella Bird, a visitor to the tin mining boomtown of Taiping
Taiping, Perak
Taiping is a town located in northern Perak, Malaysia. With a population of 191,104 , it is the second largest town in Perak after Ipoh, the state capital. Taiping took over Kuala Kangsar's role as the state capital from 1876 to 1937, but was then replaced by Ipoh...
, Perak
Perak
Perak , one of the 13 states of Malaysia, is the second largest state in the Peninsular Malaysia bordering Kedah and Yala Province of Thailand to the north, Penang to the northwest, Kelantan and Pahang to the east, Selangor the Strait of Malacca to the south and west.Perak means silver in Malay...
, "five dialects of Chinese are spoken, and Chinamen constantly communicate with each other in Malay, because they can't understand each other's Chinese".
The Chinese dialects spoken in Malaysia have over the years become localized, as is apparent from the use of Malay
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
loan words. Words from other Chinese dialects are also injected, depending on the educational and cultural background of the speaker (see Education in Malaysia
Education in Malaysia
Education in Malaysia is overseen by two government ministries. The Ministry of Education handles matters pertaining to pre-school, primary school, secondary school and post-secondary school. Matters regarding tertiary education are dealt with by the Ministry of Higher Education...
and Rojak Language). Mandarin in Malaysia, too, has been localized, as a result of the influence of other Chinese variants spoken in Malaysia, rather than of Malay. Though it was discouraged in teaching at the local Chinese school and was regarded as mispronunciation.
Examples
- Angela, 你们不是应该要拿那个 'form' 先, 然后才去四楼那个 'counter' 的 meh?
- 刚刚从 Taman Chempaka 回来, 它的 traffic '死伯' (泉漳片闽南HokkienHokkien is a Hokkien word corresponding to Standard Chinese "Fujian". It may refer to:* Hokkien dialect, a dialect of Min Nan Chinese spoken in Southern Fujian , Taiwan, South-east Asia, and elsewhere....
)够力, 它 '敢敢' 跟你塞两个多小时 '那种', 现在 '讲真的' 我很 'Sian' 了. - 那个黑色 body 的跟它 '马是' 同样的, 我看你们重 '砍' 了, 又.
See also
- Malaysian ChineseMalaysian ChineseMalaysian Chinese is a Malaysian of Chinese origin. Most are descendants of Chinese who arrived between the fifteenth and the mid-twentieth centuries. Within Malaysia, they are usually simply referred to as "Chinese" in all languages. The term Chinese Malaysian is also sometimes used to refer to...
Variants of Mandarin Chinese:
- Standard MandarinStandard MandarinStandard Chinese or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
- Singaporean MandarinSingaporean MandarinSingaporean Mandarin is a variety of Mandarin Chinese widely spoken in Singapore. It is one of the four official languages of Singapore along with English, Malay and Tamil....
- Taiwanese MandarinTaiwanese MandarinTaiwanese Mandarin is a variant of Mandarin derived from the official Standard Mandarin spoken in Taiwan Area of the Republic of China . The latter's standard lect is known in Taiwan as 國語 , based on the phonology of the Beijing dialect together with the grammar of Vernacular Chinese...
- Filipino-MandarinFilipino-MandarinFilipino Mandarin is a variety of Mandarin Chinese widely spoken by ethnic Chinese in the Philippines. It is based on the phonology of the Beijing dialect and the grammar of Vernacular Chinese, and is identical to the standard of Mandarin used in Taiwan that is called "Guoyu" . Many...
- Regional differences in the Chinese language