BaltimoreJack wrote: ↑Wed Sep 06, 2023 6:53 am

Username Taken wrote: ↑Wed Sep 06, 2023 5:00 am

Probably something in Pub Street.

The confusing thing about this, as you probably know, is that there is an actual English-Khmer dictionary written by someone named "Long Hair"

I didn't know that however in the context of Cambodia it's no great surprise.

MarkArmstrong wrote: ↑Tue Sep 05, 2023 11:24 pm How do I pronounce the hawtha part of this? Any accent in there

នេះហៅថាអ្វី?
nih hawtha avei?
What is this called?

Nih (i as in ear) means this.
Noo (oo as in look) means that.

'Nih hawtha avei' is pronounced more or less like like 'knee hat away'. It doesn't make any sense though. 'hat away' means why. 'Away' means 'it' and is more often than not shortened to 'ay'. If you talk short you can say 'knee away?' which means 'what this?' or "nih chea away?' which means 'what is this' and is politer and clearer? Or you can just use the shortest form: 'ay?' while pointing. Please note the shorter the more rude. The shortest one should only be used when joking or when you know someone really well.
If you really want to learn to talk proper polite Cambodian you need to dig into the grammar as well and you have to build a grammar construction around the question. The situation is, in day to day life, barely anyone uses proper Khmer, so I would stick with the longest 'short version' for now: 'nih chea away?'. What is this? Preferably with the person you talk to in front of your question: 'Neck look, nih chea away?. Seller, what is is this? Or, 'Mak, nih chea away?'. The last one will be directed to you. No Cambodian will pronounce your name properly because r's in the center of words are not pronounced.

Happy studies Mak!

MarkArmstrong wrote: ↑Wed Sep 06, 2023 4:05 am

Username Taken wrote: ↑Wed Sep 06, 2023 3:50 am If you don't already have one, a long-haired dictionary can be useful but they can be expensive.

I've been told that! What kind of bookshop would i need to go to purchase one.

I remember reading that you used to live in Grenoble and can speak french, maybe fluently. One book considered as the Bible here by the French is "Parler le cambodgien, comprendre le Cambodge" by Dr Pierre-Régis Martin. You'll find it quite easily both in PP and SR.
Speaking khmer will open you new perspectives here, especially if you plan to live away from the main expats areas. Good luck !

Username Taken wrote: ↑Wed Sep 06, 2023 3:50 am If you don't already have one, a long-haired dictionary can be useful but they can be expensive.

The English part of those dictionaries is often incomplete or flawed.

Kammekor wrote: ↑Wed Sep 06, 2023 8:38 am

MarkArmstrong wrote: ↑Tue Sep 05, 2023 11:24 pm How do I pronounce the hawtha part of this? Any accent in there

នេះហៅថាអ្វី?
nih hawtha avei?
What is this called?

Nih (i as in ear) means this.
Noo (oo as in look) means that.

'Nih hawtha avei' is pronounced more or less like like 'knee hat away'. It doesn't make any sense though. 'hat away' means why. 'Away' means 'it' and is more often than not shortened to 'ay'.

Happy studies Mak!

You are confusing this word ហៅ which he has written as ‘haw’ this means ‘to call’ (someone) it’s not the same word as ហេតុ in ‘hat away’ (ហេតុអ្វី)

But that’s nit picking - you are right it isn’t used in this context as in ‘what do you call this?’ I suspect Mark has put it thru Google translate and it has translated his words accurately but incorrectly.

khmerhamster wrote: ↑Wed Sep 06, 2023 5:22 pm

Kammekor wrote: ↑Wed Sep 06, 2023 8:38 am

MarkArmstrong wrote: ↑Tue Sep 05, 2023 11:24 pm How do I pronounce the hawtha part of this? Any accent in there

នេះហៅថាអ្វី?
nih hawtha avei?
What is this called?

Nih (i as in ear) means this.
Noo (oo as in look) means that.

'Nih hawtha avei' is pronounced more or less like like 'knee hat away'. It doesn't make any sense though. 'hat away' means why. 'Away' means 'it' and is more often than not shortened to 'ay'.

Happy studies Mak!

You are confusing this word ហៅ which he has written as ‘haw’ this means ‘to call’ (someone) it’s not the same word as ហេតុ in ‘hat away’ (ហេតុអ្វី)

But that’s nit picking - you are right it isn’t used in this context as in ‘what do you call this?’ I suspect Mark has put it thru Google translate and it has translated his words accurately but incorrectly.

You are correct, I mixed up two words, 'why' and 'to call something'.

Still don't recommend to use nih hawtha avei? It's commonly shortened to "nih haw avei?" or even more often 'nih haw aye?' which both means 'how is this called'.

MarkArmstrong wrote: ↑Tue Sep 05, 2023 11:24 pm How do I pronounce the hawtha part of this? Any accent in there

About accent / pronunciation, if one wants to improve his or her pronunciation, one has to realize most Western languages tend to emphasize the first syllable of a word. Cambodian language does the opposite, the last syllable of words is emphasized / stretched.

Once you do that, people will realize you're talking their language more easily. When people use Cambodian language like their own Western language the sheer first impression makes the receiver think it's a foreign language, thus switching off.