Speak basic Bahasa Malaysia
Penang University is a great place to learn Bahasa
Although the Chinese community of Penang speak Hokkien, the national language of Malaysia is still Bahasa Malaysia. Generally English is extremely widely spoken in Penang and most visitors can get by perfectly well without practicing any other dialect, and may local people are extremely keen to practise the language as much as possible
However, those wanting to stick around for a while or perhaps simply have a richer experience in the country would be wise to pick up a few Bahasa words and phrases. Locals are extremely pleased to hear foreigners attempt to speak their language and doing so is a rewarding experience.
And Bahasa is extremely easy to learn – broadly the same idiom as spoken in Indonesia (with a few crucial differences for certain words) so the skills acquired by picking up the language have far wider uses than simply within Malaysian territory. The Malay language is believed to have originated around the south Sumatran region, with the oldest existing documents in Bahasa dating back to before 700AD.
Bahasa grammar is extremely simple to pick up. Nouns do not require any article, have no gender with the plural form created merely by repeated the singular word. So anak means ‘child’ and anak anak translates as ‘children’. Repeating a word also implies ‘doing’ something such as so jalan jalan can mean ‘walking’ while the singular just means path or street. There are no tenses for verbs while sentence order is generally similar to English except adjectives are said after the noun.
Greetings in Bahasa Malaysia
Good morning Selamat Pagi
Welcome Selamat Datang
Good bye Selamat Jalan
See you later Jumpa Lagi
Good evening Selamat Petang
How are you? Apa Khabar?/Bagaimana Dengan Anda?
Thank you Terima Kasih
Hey, friend! Hi, Kawan!
I’m ok Khabar Baik Juga
You’re welcome! Sama-sama
What’s new? Khabar Terbaru?
Nothing much Sama Sahaja
I missed you so much Saya Amat Merindui Anda
Good night Selamat Malam
I’m fine Khabar Baik
Numbers
0 Nul
1 Satu
2 Dua
3 Tiga
4 Empat
5 Lima
6 Enam
7 Tujuh
8 Lapan
9 Sembilan
10 Sepuluh
12, 13, 14… Sebelas, duabelas, tigabelas…
20 Duapuluh
22, 22… Duapuluh satu, duapuluh dua..
30, 40, 50 Tigapuluh, empatpuluh, limapuluh…
100, 200, 300… Seratus, duaratus, tigaratus…
1000 Seribu
Asking for directions and help
Can I help you? Bolehkah Saya Membantu Anda?
I’m lost Saya Tersesat
Where is the bathroom? Di manakah bilik mandi?
Can you help me? Bolehkah Anda Membantu Saya?
Go straight! Jalan Lurus
I’m looking for john Saya Sedang Mencari John
Then turn left/ right! Kemudian Pusing Kiri/ Kanan
How much is this? Apakah Harga Barang Ini?
One moment please! Sila Tunggu Sebentar
Excuse me! (to move pass) Maafkan Saya
Excuse me … (request) Encik? (for man) Cik? (for woman) and then request
Cold Sejuk
Menu Menu
Hot (spicy) Pedasl
Hot (temp) Panas
I don’t eat meat or fish Saya tak makan daging
