Place names in Penang HokkienPlace names in Penang Hokkien (16 March 2020)


There are a number of places in Penang with names in Hokkien, using Taiji Romanisation. Many of these are simply Hokkienized rendition of the Malay names, while a few are entirely Hokkien names that do not bear any resemblance to the Malay name. To help you learn these names, I have created a map showing places where the Hokkien place names differ significantly from the Malay names. Those that are similar (for example, Jelutong, Batu Ferringhi and Tanjong Tokong) are not shown.

Place Names in alphabetical order

  1. Air Itam: Ai3tam3 [ai-tam]

  2. Balik Pulau: Pu3lor2 [pu-lɔ]

  3. Batu Maung: Ba3tu1 Mau2 [ba-tu-mau]

  4. Bayan Lepas: Ba3 Lark3pai4 [ba-lə-pai] , often contracted to Ba3 Pai4 [ba-pai]

  5. Bukit Mertajam: Tua33 Snua3 Kha1 [tua-suã-kha]

  6. Butterworth: Koay1 Kang4 [koe-kaŋ]

  7. George Town: Pho3 Te4 [pho-te]

  8. Gertak Sanggul: Boey1 Or2 [boe-ɔ]

  9. Green Lane: Chnae3 Chau1 Hang33 [tshɛ̃-tshau-haŋ]

  10. Jelutong: Jit3lor33tong3 [dzit-lɔ-tɔŋ]

  11. Nibong Tebal: Ko3 En1 [ko-ian]

  12. Paya Terubong: Long1boey4 [lɔŋ-boe]

  13. Penang Hill: Seng3 Ki3 Snua1 [seŋ-ki-suã]

  14. Permatang Damar Laut: Ma3tang1 [ma-taŋ]

  15. Perai: Pa1hai4 [pa-hai]

  16. Relau: Or3 Lai33 [ɔ-lai]

  17. Sungai Ara: Sin3 Kang4 [sin-kaŋ]

  18. Sungai Keluang: Bang3kha3lan2 [baŋ-kha-laŋ]

  19. Sungai Tiram: Koay1 Snua1 [koe-suã]

  20. Teluk Kumbar: Kong3 Pa1 [kɔŋ-pa]

  21. Teluk Tempoyak: Tam3po3yak3 [tam-po-iak]

Islands Around Penang

  1. Pulau Betong: Pu3lau3 Be3tong3 [pu-lau-bə-tɔŋ]

  2. Pulau Jerejak: Thai1 Ko3 Su33 [thai-ko-su]

  3. Pulau Kendi: Hor3 Lor3 Su33 [hɔ-lɔ-su]

  4. Pulau Rimau: Lau33 Hor1 Su33 [hɔ-lɔ-su]

  5. Pulau Tikus: Niau1 Chu1 Su33 [niau-tshu-su]


View full list of Penang Hokkien Vocabulary

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Please use the information on this page as guidance only. The author endeavours to update the information on this page from time to time, but regrets any inaccuracies if there be any.

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.

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