Jcml19 wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2019 8:46 am Learning a new language is cool... Learning it like in the matrix is awesome!!!

Doh... Wish i wasnt so old bc it would have been a lot easier in my youth

You still can. Just start by learning a little. Then a little more, and a little more.

When you know enough to communicate simple things, it will be beneficial. Then you add to that.

Exercising your brain will help keep it active.

Kammekor wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2019 9:37 am

explorer wrote: ↑Sat Mar 16, 2019 1:31 am If people use the French spelling of Cambodian, and pronounce it that way, they will pronounce many words so badly that Cambodians wont understand them.

There are a lot of Australians in Cambodia, who can benefit from my examples.

I always recommend they ask Cambodians for pronunciation.

I will say it once more, and then be silent forever, but there is no such thing as 'French spelling of Cambodian'.

It's just a way to Romanize / use the Latin script (the basis for nearly all Western languages) like Jamie said, using the letters A until Z. If the French spelling would have been used, like you are incorrectly suggesting , there would be extra letters with diacritics available like the è é ê ç to indicate different vowels and c / s sounds. Since there are none, the basis is Latin script, not French.

So because other people use a system that is wrong, I should use it too.

If you use that for your pronunciation, I am sure you speak Khmer badly.

Doh... Wish i wasnt so old bc it would have been a lot easier in my youth..."

I am 75 and share your frustrations. Even though I have been been living rurally for nigh on 20 years and hence circumstances have obliged me to pick up the local lingo, I remember how easily my other 3 foreign languages came to me. In part because I was literate in them, but also because memory banks didn't get sucked up in black holes nestled in my brain wrinkles. However my highly bilingual wife and teenage kids are a wonderful resource for expanding my mind.

One piece of unsolicited advice, don't worry about making mistakes, it is an invaluable and unavoidable part of language acquisition. Go for it and pretentious purists be damned.

Kammekor wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2019 9:22 am

kps wrote: ↑Sun Mar 17, 2019 7:39 pm I also look for a way to address the most obnoxious tuk-tuk drivers in the tourist areas. When the third guy in the group asks the same question and calls me brother/friend I reply
Thngai ni ort traukae, bong.
But what can I exchange bong for? It should absolutely not be rude, just intimate, as stupid as an unknown tuk-tuk guy calling me brother.

Maybe mutt-phae is ok?
Or do they call their friends brother? bong-bro comes up in Google.

Be careful, in Khmer they will always outsmart you and they might take your reply for being interested.

I never talk to them, waste of time, I either ignore or just just raise my hand.

But to answer your question, mutt-phae is a noun, not a form to address someone. Pick a word from Jamie's extensive list, pick a high one, and then address the guy with that. 'Lauk' or 'hear' (similar, not in Jamie's list) are both way too polite and he will probably understand what you mean. But then again, outsmarting them in their mother-tongue won't be easy.

They use a noun (friend) so I do too Brother is also a noun, but of course also a title, especially in Kampuchea. Though tempting, I would never go into titles like brother number something, due to the genocide, of course.

That is true. Usually I never look at them, just smile and put up a hand for no. They correctly assume I can't chat in Khmer. The drivers are better than 8-10 years ago or maybe they just have more foreigners to shout come ons to My first visit was more than 20 yrs ago. The motodopes then said nothing and just put up their left hand. I think they then also often wore a striped shirt like a soccer referee, maybe I remember incorrectly.

My replies have so far been successful. They sometimes say Aaaahhh in a friendly tone when I reply.

I mostly move outside tourists areas. I believe the occasional less good attitude started around tourist areas like Psar Thmey and P Toul Tom Pong. (Hope I got that right) But the province can also be a little tense sometimes.

Recently at Psar Kandal, I realized that was central market to Khmer and what foreigners call Central market is really the new market to locals.

Thanks for your pointers, appreciated.

kps wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2019 10:27 am Recently at Psar Kandal, I realized that was central market to Khmer and what foreigners call Central market is really the new market to locals.

yeah not sure why that is (or maybe forgotten), either way, its annoying! lol

kps wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2019 10:27 am Recently at Psar Kandal, I realized that was central market to Khmer and what foreigners call Central market is really the new market to locals.

Psar Kandal was central many decades ago.

Psar Tmai was built since that time, and was called the new market by Cambodians. Decades have passed since it was built, but they still call it Psar Tmai.

explorer wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2019 8:04 pm

kps wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2019 10:27 am Recently at Psar Kandal, I realized that was central market to Khmer and what foreigners call Central market is really the new market to locals.

Psar Kandal was central many decades ago.

Psar Tmai was built since that time, and was called the new market by Cambodians. Decades have passed since it was built, but they still call it Psar Tmai.

its Psar Thmey/Thmei

Jamie_Lambo wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2019 9:11 pm

explorer wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2019 8:04 pm

kps wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2019 10:27 am Recently at Psar Kandal, I realized that was central market to Khmer and what foreigners call Central market is really the new market to locals.

Psar Kandal was central many decades ago.

Psar Tmai was built since that time, and was called the new market by Cambodians. Decades have passed since it was built, but they still call it Psar Tmai.

its Psar Thmey/Thmei

OK