Kedah Malay

A phoneme of a language or a dialect is an abstraction of a speech sound or of a group of different sounds which are all perceived to have the same function by speakers of that particular language or dialect. For example, in standard Malaysian Malay, the word cepat consists of five phonemes: the initial "c" sound, the schwa sound, the "p" sound, the "a" sound and lastly, the "t" sound.

In Kedah Malay, the final syllable /a/ is pronounced as an open back unrounded /ɑ/ such as the /a/ in the English dark, which is varied from standard Malay where it is instead pronounced as an open central unrounded /ä/ or as a schwa /ə/:

• mana ('where') /mänä/ or /mänə/ > /mänɑ/
• siapa ('who') /siäpä/ or /siäpə/ > /siäpɑ/

The /ä/ also becomes an /ɑ/ when at the final syllable (except when followed by an /s/, /l/ or an /r/):

• rumah ('house') /rumäh/ > /ʁumɑh/
• usah ('don't') /usäh/ > /usɑh/

The consonant /r/ is pronounced as a voiced uvular fricative /ʁ/ when at the start or the middle of a syllable and as a voiceless uvular plosive /q/ when at the end of a syllable instead of a voiced alveolar trill /r/ in both cases:

• racun ('poison') /rät͡ʃʊn/ > /ʁät͡ʃon/
• berak ('to poop') /beräʔ/ > /beʁɑʔ/
• dengar ('to listen') /dəŋär/ > /dəŋäq/
• agar ('as long as') /äɡär/ > /äɡäq/

After /a/ or /i/, the consonant /s/ is pronounced as /h/ when at the final syllable of a word:

• lepas ('let go') /ləpäs/ > /ləpäh/
• majlis ('council') /mäd͡ʒlɪs/ > /mäd͡ʒlɪh/

After /o/ or /u/, it becomes /ih/:

• mampus ('destroyed') /mämpʊs/ > /mämpoih/
• lurus ('straight') /lurus/ > /luʁoih/

/ul/ becomes the diphthong /oi/:

• betul ('right') /bətʊl/ > /bətoi/
• bendul ('type of woodlog') /bəndʊl/ > /bəndoi/

/al/ sometimes becomes the diphthong /äi/:

• pasal ('topic') /päsäl/ > /päsäi/
• mahal ('expensive') /mähäl/ > /mähäi/

/u/ sometimes become an /o/:

• cucuk ('poke') /t͡ʃut͡ʃʊʔ/ > /t͡ʃot͡ʃoʔ/
• masuk ('enter') /mäsʊʔ/ > /mäsoʔ/

/ɪr/ becomes /ɑq/ or /iɑq/

• air ('water') /äjɪr/ > /äjɑq/
• bibir ('lips') /bibɪr/ > /bibiɑq/

Speakers in Trang as well as Satun are heavily influenced by the Thai language.