Temuan language (Temuan: Benua, Bual Uwang Hutarn, bual Mutan, Niap, Bahasak Temuan, Malay: Bahasa Temuan) is a Malayic language (part of the Austronesian language family) spoken by the Temuan people, one of the Orang Asli or indigenous peoples of Peninsular Malaysia which can be found in the states of Selangor, Pahang, Johor, Malacca and Negeri Sembilan. Temuan is a separate language but has a degree of mutual intelligibility with the Malay language. It is written in a Latin alphabet, but no standard orthography has been made.
Examples of Temuan words:
| English | Malay language | Temuan language |
|---|---|---|
| I | Saya/Aku | Akuk |
| You (casual) | Kau/Awak | Ajih/Ong |
| You (formal) | Kamu | Higun |
| Aunty | Makcik/Inang[2] | Inak |
| Uncle | Pakcik/Mamak[3] | Mamak |
| Bad | Buruk/Jahat | Barap/Nyap Elok/Nyahat |
| No/Not | Tak | Nyap |
| Don't have | Tiada | Hap |
| Alcohol/Liquor | Arak | Engkem/Aii/Sukuk |
| Hokkien mee | Mi Jalung | Hokieen Mee |
| Smoked monkey meat | Daging kera salai | Pantim |
| Day | Hari | Haik |
| People | Orang | Uwang/Eang |
| Tell | Beritahu/Khabar[4] | Kaba |
Dialects
Temuan is divided into two major dialects, namely Belandas and Mantra, which differ mostly in terms of phonology and to some extent vocabulary but are still mutually intelligible.
Comparison between Belandas and Mantra dialects:
Sample of Temuan Belandas dialect – diak ('he/she'), hajak ('only'), kitak ('we'), tai (end of sentence particle).
Sample of Temuan Mantra dialect – dien ('he/she'), hajen ('only'), kiten ('we'), tea (end of sentence particle).
Footnotes
- ^ Temuan at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
- ^ "Carian Umum".
- ^ "Carian Umum".
- ^ "Carian Umum".
External links
- Temuan Web Page Orang Asli Temuan Webpage
- http://projekt.ht.lu.se/rwaai RWAAI (Repository and Workspace for Austroasiatic Intangible Heritage)
- http://hdl.handle.net/10050/00-0000-0000-0003-BE48-2@view Temuan in RWAAI Digital Archive
This page was last edited on 22 December 2022, at 09:38