Indeed, I already hired Phalla, class starts Monday.SunSan wrote:After you got Andy's recco (which I'd second or third) we figured you'd got your answer
Khmer lessons
- ChicagoGuy
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I was told there would be cake.
Would it it be more natural to try and learn the dialect of the area where you live? On the other hand, does it really matter what dialect you learn, as long as you are aware of the differences and can speak clearly or authentically enough for the people to understand you, with whom you are trying to communicate?flying chicken wrote:Good post claptrap. In my humble opinion, if you want to learn the Khmer language it is best not to learn the Phnom penh accent in term of speaking, for, some of the pronunciations dont represent the actual sounds, for example 'pearm hoi (500), sey (girl) etc. Thus it will confuse you in the long run. In term of an authentic accent, Svay Rieng is a better choice.
I could learn to speak "book Khmer", using the correct sounds and grammar but would I then understand the people in the market? No, of course not. And although the marketeer would understand me perfectly, I would be automatically have a $$$ stamped at my forehead or be treated as a foreigner who admittedly can speak well but who obviously has learned Khmer a Language lab, far removed from real life. Basically same as having $$ stamped on the forehead, someone to be fleeced because, although my speaking might be perfect, I would obviously be just a visitor who doesn't really know anything.
When I came to Cambodia and tried to speak my faltering book Khmer, not only I had difficulty of understanding what the sellers were saying but they would simply type the price on a calculator and not even bother to tell it to me verbally - and bargaining was totally fruitless. Now my Khmer is only fractionally better but I have learned to say peam, m'bu-un and pomui and now the sellers initial price is lower and they are often willing to drop the price a little. In other words, by using even just a few dialect words shows that I "belong" here. Usually Cambodians are more than happy to teach me the official words and pronunciation. One Cambodian explained to me that that's how foreigners should speak, as being polite and not to sound too familiar. So if I see a word that confuses me because of the written version doesn't match with the sound, or if the word sounds different, I can simply accept it as a book Khmer or a variation of the pronunciation. I might have to ask the spelling if I want to check the formal pronunciation or simply ask someone what is the official way of saying it.
If you learn Khmer you should learn 'high' Khmer. This is spoken in the northwest, specifically Siem Reap and Kampong Thom provinces. No bullshit pronunciation as in PP or along the Viet border (as in Svay Rieng).
They speak as it's written, which is correct. You can always show your attachment to whichever locality by learning the local lingo.
They speak as it's written, which is correct. You can always show your attachment to whichever locality by learning the local lingo.
My Khmer is at a beginner level, but my teacher did comment that the dialect in Siem Reap is the one that is most different from anywhere else in the country, so I would have to say that unless you live there, that would definitely not be the one to learn first.
It's still the correct way to pronounce the language and it's the standard, 'high' language. It's understood in the whole country.
If I'm going to learn English I don't learn it in Newcastle or the Scottish Highlands or some swamp in Georgia either.
If I'm going to learn English I don't learn it in Newcastle or the Scottish Highlands or some swamp in Georgia either.
- nightmare.believer
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Makes most sense to learn to speak the way the people who live in your city speak.
- shizzle
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If you learn 'high' Khmer as SunSan said, you will be understood everywhere you go in Cambodia. However, if you just learn the local slangs, no one will understand you in other parts of the country. Besides, it is easy enough to pick up local sayings wherever you're living so you don't sound like a rube in the city.nightmare.believer wrote:Makes most sense to learn to speak the way the people who live in your city speak.
- hanky
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Narr mae, yer learn Ih in farking Lahndarnn, innit?SunSan wrote: If I'm going to learn English I don't learn it in Newcastle or the Scottish Highlands or some swamp in Georgia either.
Who Gives a Fuck?
I am learning now for one year. Started with G2k. But not satisfied with group lessons. No time for conversation. Dit some RUPP for writing and reading. Best experience with LECleccenter.org
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