Hamilton A.W. Malay Made Easy: Covering Both Malaya and Indonesia.
- Singapore: Easte Universities Press, 8th edition, 1959. - 122
p.
This elementary Malay handbook is based on a condensation of the hitherto accepted grammatical rules which elucidate the general principles on which the language is built up and are to be found in all the standard European works on the subject. Though intended principally for English people who propose to reside in Malaya and wish to lea to speak Malay intelligibly and with a reasonable degree of accuracy, it also serves those living in Indonesia.
This elementary Malay handbook: is based on a condensation of the hitherto accepted grammatical rules which elucidate the general principles on which the language is built up and are to be found in all the standard European works on the subject.
Though intended principally for English people who propose to reside in Malaya and wish to lea to speak Malay intelligibly and with a reasonable degree of accuracy, it also serves those proceeding to Indonesia.
The whole field of speech is covered in a series of fifty lessons each dealing with a different grammatical aspect and exemplified by sentences in the accompanying exercises.
A vocabulary of ten words is given with each lesson and is used progressively so that only those words which have been mastered previously are employed at any particular stage.
The rather copious notes deal with minor points of grammar and idiom or the meanings of words and phrases as well as with matters of general interest and the slight differences which exist between Malay as spoken in Malaya and that current in Indonesia.
All the Malay words employed in this grammar will be found in the word lists of its companion volume, the 'Easy Malay Vocabulary', which contains phonetic aids to pronunciation in addition to a glossary which enables it to be used as a pocket dictionary of common Malay words whether English into Malay or vice versa,
Malay is, primarily, the language of the Malays inhabiting the east coast of Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula and adjacent islands, and the west coast of Boeo. It is not the speech of a nation but of a number of closely related peoples and so has many minor dialectical differences and variations in pronunciation.
The standard speech, which is understood by all the educated classes and is the medium in which Malay literature is composed, is the Riau-Johor dialect which was spoken at the court of the Malacca Sultans.
To meet the need of a lingua franca for commercial purposes amongst a varied Malaysian population speaking many different though distantly allied tongues, Malay, owing to its simplicity, adaptability, and receptivity to new words, came to be adopted.
Being the language of a coastal people it early came into contact with foreign traders, religious teachers and settlers, whether Indian, Arab, Chinese or European, and absorbed something from each for the easy conduct of the daily affairs of life, and this process still continues.
To speak Malay properly a sense of balance and correct intonation is necessary so that only short and simple sentences should be employed. Furthermore, as a Malay word expresses an idea rather than any definite part of speech it may be used without any change in form in different grammatical categories.
As Malay is the sole common medium of communication between the polyglot peoples of the Peninsula and Indonesia it is advisable in the course of conversation with races other than Malay to avoid a too meticulous correctness of speech as a Malay himself under similar circumstances always tends to talk down to his interlocutor's level of intelligence or knowledge of his tongue.
This elementary Malay handbook is based on a condensation of the hitherto accepted grammatical rules which elucidate the general principles on which the language is built up and are to be found in all the standard European works on the subject. Though intended principally for English people who propose to reside in Malaya and wish to lea to speak Malay intelligibly and with a reasonable degree of accuracy, it also serves those living in Indonesia.
This elementary Malay handbook: is based on a condensation of the hitherto accepted grammatical rules which elucidate the general principles on which the language is built up and are to be found in all the standard European works on the subject.
Though intended principally for English people who propose to reside in Malaya and wish to lea to speak Malay intelligibly and with a reasonable degree of accuracy, it also serves those proceeding to Indonesia.
The whole field of speech is covered in a series of fifty lessons each dealing with a different grammatical aspect and exemplified by sentences in the accompanying exercises.
A vocabulary of ten words is given with each lesson and is used progressively so that only those words which have been mastered previously are employed at any particular stage.
The rather copious notes deal with minor points of grammar and idiom or the meanings of words and phrases as well as with matters of general interest and the slight differences which exist between Malay as spoken in Malaya and that current in Indonesia.
All the Malay words employed in this grammar will be found in the word lists of its companion volume, the 'Easy Malay Vocabulary', which contains phonetic aids to pronunciation in addition to a glossary which enables it to be used as a pocket dictionary of common Malay words whether English into Malay or vice versa,
Malay is, primarily, the language of the Malays inhabiting the east coast of Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula and adjacent islands, and the west coast of Boeo. It is not the speech of a nation but of a number of closely related peoples and so has many minor dialectical differences and variations in pronunciation.
The standard speech, which is understood by all the educated classes and is the medium in which Malay literature is composed, is the Riau-Johor dialect which was spoken at the court of the Malacca Sultans.
To meet the need of a lingua franca for commercial purposes amongst a varied Malaysian population speaking many different though distantly allied tongues, Malay, owing to its simplicity, adaptability, and receptivity to new words, came to be adopted.
Being the language of a coastal people it early came into contact with foreign traders, religious teachers and settlers, whether Indian, Arab, Chinese or European, and absorbed something from each for the easy conduct of the daily affairs of life, and this process still continues.
To speak Malay properly a sense of balance and correct intonation is necessary so that only short and simple sentences should be employed. Furthermore, as a Malay word expresses an idea rather than any definite part of speech it may be used without any change in form in different grammatical categories.
As Malay is the sole common medium of communication between the polyglot peoples of the Peninsula and Indonesia it is advisable in the course of conversation with races other than Malay to avoid a too meticulous correctness of speech as a Malay himself under similar circumstances always tends to talk down to his interlocutor's level of intelligence or knowledge of his tongue.