Penang Hokkien for VisitorsPenang Hokkien for Visitors (3 May 2015)


Coming to Penang, and want to impress the locals? Then learn some Penang Hokkien!

  1. Upon arrival in Penang, if you're met by a host, he/she will say this to you:
    Setibanya di Pulau Pinang, jika anda bertemu hos anda, dia akan berkata sedemikian:
    Huan3ging3 lai3 Penang!
    (Welcome to Penang! Selamat Datang ke Pulau Pinang!)

  2. You will reply by saying: Anda boleh berbalas sedemikian:
    Kam1siah33!
    (Thank you! Terima kasih!)

  3. Your host may ask you: Hos anda mungkin bertanya:
    Lu1 ho4 boh2?
    (How are you? Apa khabar?

  4. You will reply by saying: Anda jawab begini:
    Wah1 ho4!
    (Fine. Khabar baik.)

  5. Your host may ask you: Hos anda mungkin bertanya:
    Lu1 mia3 ha1mik1?
    (What is your name? Siapakah nama kamu?

  6. You will reply saying: Anda menjawab:
    Wah1 mia3 ...
    (My name is ... Nama saya ...)

  7. You may introduce the people travelling with you:
    Anda mungkin memperkenalkan mereka yang datang bersama anda:
    Cit1-leh1 si33 wah1-eh3 bor4. Cit1-leh1 si33 wah1-eh3 knia4.
    (This is my wife. This is my child. Ini isteri saya. Ini anak saya.)

    Some words use with the above sentence: Antara perkataan lain yang boleh digunakan dengan ayat di atas:

    ang1
    (husband suami)

    ca3bor1 peng3iu4
    (girlfriend teman wanita)

    ta3por3 peng3iu4
    (boyfriend teman lelaki)

    hau33snaeh1
    (son anak lelaki)

    cau1wa4
    (daughter anak perempuan)

    ma3ma1
    (mother ibu)

    pa3pa1
    (father ayah)

  8. Your host may ask you: Hos anda mungkin bertanya:
    Lu4 ta1lok1 lai2 eh2?
    (Where do you come from? Anda datang dari mana?

  9. You will reply saying: Anda mungkin menjawab:
    Wah4 Bee1 Kork3 lai2 eh2.

    Other common countries include: Antara negara yang lain:
    Australia: Au3ciu1
    Britain: Eng3 Kork3
    China: Teong3 Kork3
    France Perancis: Huat1 Kork3
    Germany Jerman: Teik1 Kork3
    Hong Kong: Hiang3 Kang4
    India: In1tor3
    Indonesia: In1ni2
    Japan: Jit3pun4
    Korea: Han3 Kork3
    Thailand: Thai1 Kork3

  10. To locate public transport, you may want to ask: Untuk menaiki pengangkutan awam, anda mungkin bertanyaL
    Chia3cam3 ti1 ta1lok1?
    (Where is the bus stop? Di manakah perhentian bas?)

  11. Other words to use with above question. Perkataan yang lain untuk digunakan bersama soalan di atas.
    taxi stand: hentian teksi tek1si1 cam3

    train station stesen keretapi: hoay1chia3 cam3

    jetty jeti: cun3thau2

    airport lapangan terbang: poay3ki3tniau2

  12. If you're taking a taxi, the driver may ask you:
    Sekiranya anda menaiki teksi, drebar mungkin bertanya:
    Lu1 boek1 khee3 ta1lok1?
    (Where do you want to go? Anda nak ke mana?

  13. You will reply with:
    Wah1 boek1 khee3 ...
    (I want to go to ... Saya nak ke ...)

  14. Other words to use with above question. Perkataan yang lain untuk digunakan bersama soalan di atas.
    George Town: Pho3tay4

    Air Itam: Ai3tam3

    Balik Pulau: Pu3lor2

    Batu Ferringhi: Ba3tu1 Frin3gi2

    Butterworth: Koay1kang4 or Park1 Hai4



Learn Penang Hokkien with Memrise

Now you can use the most user-friendly tool on the web to learn Penang Hokkien. It helps you to listen, understand and memorise. Go to Memrise, and learn Penang Hokkien at your own pace.

Return to Penang Hokkien Resources

About this website



Dear visitor, thank you so much for reading this page. My name is Timothy Tye and my hobby is to find out about places, write about them and share the information with you on this website. I have been writing this site since 5 January 2003. Originally (from 2003 until 2009, the site was called AsiaExplorers. I changed the name to Penang Travel Tips in 2009, even though I describe more than just Penang but everywhere I go (I often need to tell people that "Penang Travel Tips" is not just information about Penang, but information written in Penang), especially places in Malaysia and Singapore, and in all the years since 2003, I have described over 20,000 places.

While I try my best to provide you information as accurate as I can get it to be, I do apologize for any errors and for outdated information which I am unaware. Nevertheless, I hope that what I have described here will be useful to you.

Copyright © 2003-2025 Timothy Tye. All Rights Reserved.