Addressing people in Penang Hokkien

Penang Hokkien has a set of polite words to address strangers depending on your own station in society. Some of these addresses are derivatives of other languages, such as Ah Boy, which is obviously on permanent loan from English.

Many families still call each member by their address, limited not only to Mom and Dad, but extends to 2nd-Elder-Uncle-on-the-Maternal-Side, Wife-of-the-Eldest-Uncle, and so on. We will visit those complicated addresses for distant relatives further on in our lesson. For now, let's concentrate only on the addresses you will be using most frequently, that is, terms to address immediate family members and strangers.

Parents & Grandparents

Elder Brothers & Sisters

Strangers

When talking to a stranger, such as the salesgirl in the department store or the hawker at the market, it is polite to use the forms stated above. As a tourist or visitor who isn't Chinese, if you master this, I guarantee you will win instant admiration. (Feel free to ask me whenever you are not sure).

Address a person Ah Ba only if he is a young man who is younger than yourself (otherwise he will be insulted). Similarly Ah Nya is used for young woman who is younger than yourself. If the male person is merely a teenager or younger, you can call him Ah Boy.

You may call a person Tauke (also written Towkay) out of politeness if he is of the same age as yourself or older, particularly if he appears to be holding a somewhat authoritative position. It is fine to call the butcher or vegetable hawker at the market Tauke/Towkay.

On the other hand, reserve using Tauke Soh/Towkay Soh for women who is obviously the lady boss or the wife of the boss, as in a restaurant or business.

A cordial way to call strangers, particularly if you need to stop someone in the streets to ask for directions, is to call the person Ah Ko ("Brother") or Ah Chee ("Sister"). You are free to use these terms even when talking to strangers who are slightly younger than you, although the terms literally mean "elder brother" and "elder sister".

In Penang Hokkien, "Ah3" is commonly prefixed to addresses, to denote intimacy or congeniality. It is often attached to people's names. For example, a man whose name is Weng Seng may be known to his friends and family members as Ah Seng2. It is also used on surnames, Ah Lee4, Ah Yeap4, etc. It is not uncommon to hear the Chief Minister, Lim1 Guan1 Eng4, being referred affectionately as Ah Eng1. It is even used with English names, hence Ah Joe, Ah John, Ah Chris, though only with monosyllable English names.

Penang Hokkien has lately borrowed from Singapore Hokkien the term "Ah Beng2", which is used to refer to an unsophisticated person, the "Phua Choo Kang" type. This despite the word "beng2" meaning "bright". Hence Ah Beng can be translated in jest as "Mr Bright".

Practice pronouncing the various terms of address on this page, keeping in mind the lesson on Penang Hokkien intonation as you articulate each syllable.

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