Cambodian Language

Cambodian is somewhat unusual among its neighboring countries' languages of ThaiLanguage, LaotianLanguage and VietnameseLanguage in that it's not a TonalLanguage.

Cambodian is one of the main AustroAsiaticLanguages, and has had considerable influence from Sanskrit, Pali, Thai, and Laotian. (Help...I just know these connections weren't genetic).

Accents are sometimes quite marked; notable accents are found

in speakers from Phhom Penh (the capital city) and Battambong.

(This analysis comes from my observation as a conversant speaker of Cambodian without any background in linguistics).

A notable characteristic of the Phnom Penh accent is a tendency

toward slang and laziness in pronunciation, much like American urban slang. For instance, "Phnom Penh" will sometimes be shortened to "m'Penh". Another characteristic of the Phnom Penh accent is observed in words with an "r" subconsonant in the first syllable (that is, where r is the second consonant, as in the Enlish word "bread"). The r is not pronounced, the first consonant is pronounced harder than usual, and the syllable is spoken with a dipping tone much like the "hoi" tone in the VietnameseLanguage. For example, I have heard the word "dre" (meaning "fish") pronounced "te"; the "d" becomes a "t", and the vowel (long A) begins low and rises in tone.

[This seems like a schwa - an unstressed neutral sound, like in "poor" right before the r or at the beginning of "about". Sometimes English r's get weakened to schwas. Same deal here?] -- No, not as far as I can tell. The r is rolled normally, and

completely omitted in the Phnom Penh accents I've heard.

Cambodian written language is alphabetic like English (and unlike

Chinese). Its alphabet consists is written in two separate parts; consonants and vowels. Only pronunciation is given here, because I can't find a good way to display the characters, but the pronunciation is listed in the traditional form.

Consonants

gaw kaw  go ko  ngo

jaw chaw jo cho nyo

daw taw  do to  naw

Daw taw  Do to  no

yo  ro   lo vo  saw

haw law  aw

Vowels

aa/Ea Ay/EE A/E ew/ew eww/eww

OO/UU O/U 

bleh... more some other time.