Languages in Sarawak
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Speaking Malay in Sarawak
Please notice some basic communication terms in Bahasa Melayu Sarawak.
- Kamek - I
- Kitak - You
- Auk - Yes
- Sik - No
- Igek - Piece
- Kamek Mauk Pergi Jamban Dolok - I Would Like To Go To The Toilet
- Kitak Dari Siney? - Where Are You From?
- Nyaman Juak Makanan Tok - This Food Is Quite Tasty
- Kamek Ngupok/Mupok Dolok - I'd Like To Make A Move
- Nama-Name
- Maok-Want
- Jamban-Toilet
- Duit-Money
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As elsewhere in Malaysia, Malay is the official language, but English and various Chinese dialects are widely spoken. The Iban language is the largest linguistic group, with many local variations. The majority of Sarawakians are multi-lingual, a necessity in such a multicultural society, and Malay or English will stand you in good stead in most places. Knowing some phrases in Iban, Chinese or other local dialects however will greatly impress your hosts wherever you go. For travels to the Upper Baram region, some knowledge of Penan may be useful.
The Iban Language:
This mostly and widely spoken language of Sarawak is a very unique language which is quite similar to Malay. With some of the vocabulary which is totally the same as Malay, but it is hard to understand as the slang is totally different. It is also known that the Iban community in Sarawak is divided into various different division ranging from Kuching to Sri Aman, Betong, Sibu, Bintulu and all the way up North to Miri. This also trigger the different accent of the dialects.
Some useful Iban Words:
English-Iban
You-Nuan/dik/kuak
I-Aku/kami(also stand for plural form of us)
Eat-Makai/empuk
Not yet-Bedau/apian
speak-jaku
cheers(drink)-ngirup
nice-nyamai
beautiful-bajik(bajiek)
While standard Malay is well understood, the local dialect, known as "Bahasa Melayu Sarawak", is different enough to be legally categorized as its own language. Malays from coastal part of Sarawak, especially the one from Sebuyau, Kabong, Saratok, Betong, Sri Aman and the surrounding areas speak different dialect called "Bahasa Orang Laut". Malays from Sibu and Miri speak similar language with Kuchingites Malay, but they have some terms unique to their dialect, for example "Pia" in Sibu (in Kuching, they called it "Sia", which means "there"), "Cali" in Miri (in Kuching, they called it "Jenaka", which means "funny").
The chinese community here in Sarawak are mostly origin from the Southern China whcih is The Fukkien province. Therefore, the most widely spoken chinese dialects here in Sarawak is totally different from those you always hear in most of the Chinatown in the world which is Cantonese. The dialect use here is normally either Fukkien, Foochow, Hakka or Teo-chew. Don't bother trying to speak Cantonese here as there are only a small Cantonese community here. Hence, the mother of all tongue chinese mandarin is applicable here.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Sarawak
