No comments about Say It in Indonesian (Malay).

No comments about Complete Malay with Two Audio CDs: A Teach Yourself Guide (Teach Yourself: General Reference).

No comments about A Course in Conversational Indonesian: With Equivalent Malay Vocabulary.

No comments about Collins Malay Phrasebook: The Right Word in Your Pocket (Collins Gem).

No comments about Talk Now! Malay.

2 comments about Malay for Everyone: Mastering Malay Through English (Pelanduk Pocket).

1. I spent 6 months in South East Asia and was determined to master the Malay Language. As you may know both the Malays and the Indonesians speak a very similar language known as Bahasa.

   If you want to learn the Malay 'Bahasa Malaysia' then this book is perfect. It takes you through a number of lessons and by the end you really have a good grasp on this simple language. By taking the courses again and again and thus repeating the book you can develop a stronger handle on Bahasa and you are then ready to start practising!

   Bahasa Malayu (Malay) is very useful when in SE Asia in Malaysia and Singapore. Some Indonesians will be able to understand but you may need to adjust some words and pronounciations - similar to two people one from the UK and the other from the US with a strong American accent.

   Good Luck.




2. This book is one of the best available in a concise format for English speakers to learn Malay, the language spoken in Malaysia and Indonesia (with some minor variation). I lived in Malaysia almost four years and formally studied Indonesian at the university level for over three years on a language fellowship. With that background, I can say that this is the most useful single text I have seen. The organization is very clear and logical, explanations are sharp and crisp, there are plenty of succinct examples, the exercises are practical and accessible, and the vocabulary covered is excellent for everyday life. The organization also allows you to pick and choose what you want to concentrate on, i.e. to devise your own organization to some extent.

2 comments about Everyday Malay: Phrase Book and Dictionary.

1. I am a person that traditionally really dislikes phrasebooks, but this book is an excellent example of how a phrasebook should be written. Most phrasebooks just recite words or sentences, and the learner has no idea what each part of the sentence means. While a typical phrasebook may teach someone how to recite something verbatim, the learner will have no idea how the language works grammatically and thus cannot communicate effectively. This book is excellent because it provides a very good grammatical foundation for the phrases. It also has helpful, but not too complex, explanations for the phrases in the book. Moreover, there is a small English-Malay/Malay-English dictionary in the back.
   
   Unfortunately, I was not in Malaysia long, and since I was only in KL, getting by in English was not too difficult. However, I found this book while I was there and tried to get as much out of it as I could in a couple days. I recommend buying this and studying it for a month or so before going to Malaysia. That way, you'll get the most you can out of it. Give it a shot.



2. To be fair, I'm commenting on an earlier edition of the same title, by Oey and Hutton. As a Malay speaker, I wanted to brush up my speaking before an interview and was shocked to find that this phrasebook passes off Indonesian as Malay. Keep away if it's Malay you're interested in. A far better investment would be Lonely Planet Malay Phrasebook or the Teach Yourself Malay book.

3 comments about Teach Yourself Malay Complete Course (Book + 2CD) (TY: Complete Courses).

1. It is hard to find a decent Malay language course, in particular with audio, so I opted for this one to be send across the Atlantic to me.
   
   The lessons are very helpful to learn everyday Malay step-by-step and to practice pronunciation. Overall this is a good language course. The reference part of the book (dictionary) on the other hand leaves out many words I feel I should know... so buying a real dictionary in addition to this course is mandatory, if you want to get the most out of it.



2. It is helpful to have a proper textbook of sorts and the cd is ok but there are so many errors in this book it can be really frustrating. The examples often use vocabulary the book has not yet covered. The exercise dialogues on the CD do not always match the book. Even if they are the same as the listening transcripts in the book, the questions are wrong or use different vocabulary in the main text (an example: In a mock job interview the book gives the vocabulary for speaking "unclearly" and "with a heavy accent" but the dialogue itself uses the terms "smoothly" and "softly" and the former is not even in the glossary at the end of the book.)
   
   In one exercise you are supposed to identify the family the speakers are talking about from several pictures but the pictures are wrong (ie a son and daughter instead of two daughters.)The authors frequently ask questions in the exercises about characters who have not yet been mentioned in the book (in a dialogue between Zamaini, Baharom and Davies they ask if "Wong" is married.) I am only in Unit 5 and I have already found errors in English (ie saying "noun" instead of "verb") and possibly in Malay (as in a dialogue which says all the brothers and sisters work already but then says that the youngest brother is 4 years old!!)
   
   Moreover the language in this book seems overly formal, mostly business related and somewhat outdated. (I would assume it is no longer necessary to ask a potential secretary if she knows how to do email, nor is it necessary for most of us to know how to ask that). Teach Yourself Malay does not get to numbers until unit 5 and consistently uses the most formal language rather than what you are likely to hear people say. Thomas Oey's Everyday Malay seems much more accessible and useful although it does not have a CD. There is also a free online web course that covers the very basics with audio clips if you google "Bahasa Malay Course"



3. The book is not bad at all. However, its too formal. You may need a malay speaker to guide you along with pronunciatian and sentence formation. I speak the language and bought this for my hubby. He finds it difficult to remember, perhaps just the way the book is set up.

1 comments about Pocket Malay Dictionary: Malay-English English-Malay (Periplus Pocket Dictionaries).

1. This is a decent introductory Malay-English/English-Malay dictionary. It's compact, so it's small enough to take on a trip. However, it really could include twice as many words and still remain compact. There are so many basic words you just can't look up in this dictionary: backpack, parrot, gay, boot, silly, to comfort or to console, structure, architect, to commute, to wink, to pinch, to drop... Pretty basic stuff. (And "stuff" isn't in there either.)

5 comments about Malay: Lonely Planet Phrasebook.

1. I got this phrasebook as a gift. I was skeptical at first because of its child-like appearance, but once I started looking through it I found it to be amazing. No other Malay book has the detail that this one does. With short paragraphs at the beginnings of each section, it ensures the best understanding of the culture. The authors are very knowledgeable and knows their Malay. I would recommend this reference book to anyone who is even considering a trip to Malaysia or is interested in the culture.



2. This little guide gives you the basics of words and phrases - but I dont think it would give you the ability to hold more than a very simple "Where is ..." , "Hello, my name is ... " sort of conversation with anyone.
   
   My partner grew up in Malaysia and she has spotted a few errors in the meanings given to some words - but overall its pretty accurate in the translation. One thing I did like was the Malay/English and English/Malay dictionary that is included. It is pretty comprehensive for basic words and you can sort of get by in translating simple sentences both ways. More useful for written material than for speech I find - but with a bit of thought you can use it to work out the general meaning of things eg a newspaper story, etc.
   
   I do think though that if anyone buys this book and feels that it will help them converse, they will be disappointed. I think its a useful starting point but to develop converational skills you really need to be talking with a Malay-speaking person.



3. I was quite happy with the second edition when it came out in 2002, so I suppose I shouldn't complain too much. Still, when many other LP phrasebooks (such as Thai and Indonesian) were updated I was somewhat disappointed when I found that the third edition had not been. It remains a workable phrasebook for short-term visitors and anyone interested in Bahasa Melayu, with both local spellings and easy-to-understand pronunciation guides.



4. extremely helpful, it can not get any better, for some thing that pocket size, it will not make you learn the language, but will be of great help. I strongly recommend it.



5. I needed a Malay phrasebook to brush up on my Malay before an interview. I bought this one and Everyday Malay by Oey et al. This one was very useful, the other wasn't. The topics are pertinent, detailed, and the two-way dictionary is brief yet strangely comprehensive for the most common terms. My only complaint (if I may call it that) is that the physical size of the book is a little small so can be a little taxing on the eyes owing to its small font size. Other than that, it's a top-notch phrasebook and the only one you'll need.