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Series:   Elements in Phonetics

The Phonetics of Malay

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 February 2022

David Deterding ,
Ishamina Athirah Gardiner  and
Najib Noorashid
David Deterding
Affiliation:
Universiti Brunei Darussalam
Ishamina Athirah Gardiner
Affiliation:
Universiti Brunei Darussalam
Najib Noorashid
Affiliation:
Universiti Brunei Darussalam

Summary

Malay is one of the major languages in the world, but there has been relatively little detailed research on its phonetics. This Element provides an overview of existing descriptions of the pronunciation of Standard Malay before briefly considering the pronunciation of some dialects of Malay. It then introduces materials that may be used for studying the phonetics of Malay: a short text, the NWS passage; and a map-task, to generate conversational data. Based on recordings using these materials by two female and two male consultants who are academics at Universiti Brunei Darussalam, the Element next offers an acoustic analysis of the consonants and vowels of Malay, the syllable structure arising from fast speech processes, as well as the rhythm and intonation of the Standard Malay that is spoken in Brunei. Finally, it suggests directions for further research on the phonetics of Malay.
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Keywords

Malayvowelsconsonantsrhythmintonation
Type
Element
Information
Series: Elements in Phonetics
Online ISBN: 9781108942836
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication: 19 May 2022

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