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Singaporean Hokkien

NameSingapore Hokkien
Nativename新加坡福建话
(Sin-ka-pho Hok-kiàn ōe)
FamilycolorSino-Tibetan
StatesSingapore
RegionSingapore
Speakers1,824,741
Fam2Chinese
Fam3Min
Fam4Min Nan
Fam5Hokkien
Fam6South East Asian Hokkien
Fam7Southern Malay Peninsular Hokkien

     Home | Language | Singaporean Hokkien



Singaporean Hokkien ( ) is a local variant of the Hokkien dialect spoken in Singapore. It is closely related to the Southern Malaysian Hokkien (南马福建话) spoken in Southern Malaysia as well as Riau Hokkien (廖内福建话) spoken in the Indonesian province of Riau. It also bears close resemblance with Amoy (厦门话) spoken in Xiamen of China and Taiwanese (台湾话) spoken in Taiwan.

Hokkien, is the Minnan pronunciation for Fujian (province of China) and is generally the term used by the Chinese in South-East Asia to refer to the Minnan dialect (闽南语). Singaporean Hokkien generally holds Amoy dialect as its own standard, and its accent is predominantly based on a mixture of Quanzhou speech (泉州话) and Zhangzhou speech (漳州话), but with a greater inclination towards Quanzhou accent.

Like many spoken languages in Singapore, Singaporean Hokkien is also subjected to influence from various languages or dialects spoken in Singapore. For instance, Singaporean Hokkien is influenced to a certain degree by Teochew, and is sometimes regarded as a combined Hokkien-Teochew speech (福潮话). In addition, it has also borrowed many loanwords from Malay and English.

Nevertheless, the grammar and tones of Singaporean Hokkien are still largely based on Minnan. When compared to Taiwanese's prestige accent, Singaporean Hokkien has a greater inclination towards Quanzhou accent and is also closer to Taipei and Amoy accent and less close to the Tainan accent.

A Singaporean would likely not have trouble conversing with Taiwanese speakers in Singaporean Hokkien. Similarly, Singaporean Hokkien is understood by Taiwanese speakers, with the exception of some Malay and English loanwords.

Singaporean Hokkien Video

the fat dude went totally ballistic! fat moto mouth fucker ugly singaporean singapore hokkien uncle irritating annoying obnoxious
1.45 min. | 2.98 user rating
Funny Singaporean Lady and man quarreling in hokkien haha.. (Ah Nam)æç¬ç­å§-( æå°äºº )
4.83 min. | 3.66 user rating
The Business Proposal is a comedy about an aspiring French filmmaker who wishes to distribute his film in Singapore. He meets up with a major distributor that surprisingly accedes to all his requests. Little does he know about the distributor's true identity and his hidden agenda.
3.20 min. | 5.0 user rating
Simi asks his dad for permission to attend Girls' Generation 2011 Concert in SIngapore
2.00 min. | 4.0 user rating

3.83 min. | 4.88 user rating
Hi guys, I'm from Singapore and I'm an Asian Chinese female and hokkien and here's my mini hokkien version of Michael Jackson beat it. I call beat it kiam pa in Hokkien.
2.70 min. | 3.54 user rating
My favorite song by Taiwanese Music Superstar Jay Chou, I hope you enjoy it. COPYRIGHT belongs to JAY CHOU and his music production. Pinyin lyrics by Let's Sing It: lang ya yue , yi ren jiao chui wo jui bei , ying jin le feng xue shi shui da fan qian shi kui , le chen ai shi fei yuen zhi jue , ji fan lun hui ni suo mei , ku hong yen huan bu hui cong ran qing shi yi jin chen hui , wo ai bu mie fan hua ru san qian dong liu sui , wo zhi qu yi piau ai liao jie zhi lian ni hwa shen de die ni fa ru xue , qi mei le li bie wo fen xiang gan dong le sui yao ming yue rang hui yi jiao jie ai zai yue kwang xia wan mei ni fa ru xue , fen fei le yan lei wo den dai chang lao le sui hung chen zui , wei shuen de sui yue wo yong wu hui , ke yong shi ai ni de bei la er la , la er la , la er la er la la er la , la er la , la er la er la tong jin pin wu xie , ja ma wei ni ruo san ye , jin shen wo ba jiu feng pei
5.03 min. | 4.88 user rating
Haven't done Singlish 7 2nd half yet, but managed to complete Singlish 8 last week. So I might as well upload the 8 first.
3.10 min. | 4.98 user rating

5.75 min. | 4.94 user rating
Do watch Singlish 7 1st half before watching the 2nd half: www.youtube.com Joke like Crocodily did happen in classroom.
4.77 min. | 4.90 user rating

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Cultural centres in S'pore, Fujian - Straits Times Tweet this news
Straits Times--To be built in tourist destination Gulangyu island near Xiamen in Hokkien-speaking Fujian, the Cultural Exchange Centre will be set up by -Singapore Hokkien- ... - Date : Tue, 16 Nov 2010 05:17:36 GMT+00:00
Singapore: Rising Gang Violence - Global Voices Online Tweet this news
Global Voices Online--Salakau, which literally means '369′ in -Hokkien-, also known as “Sah Lak Kau”, is a street gang or secret society based in -Singapore-. ... - Date : Sun, 14 Nov 2010 23:51:33 GMT+00:00
A creative life - Global Times Tweet this news
Global Times---...- his mother's life story of becoming a distinguished -Hokkien- opera singer, garnered him rave reviews, won him Best Play of the Year at -Singapore's- LIFE! ... - Date : Tue, 26 Oct 2010 00:30:38 GMT+00:00
The best hawker food stalls in Singapore - CNNGo.com Tweet this news
CNNGo.com--Here you will not only find nearly all the different hawker dishes, but some of -Singapore's- best hawker stalls. One of the most famous is Nam Sing -Hokkien- ... - Date : Thu, 12 Aug 2010 00:17:58 GMT+00:00
An 'Ah Beng' Italian chef? - Straits Times Tweet this news
Straits Times---...- he means the -Hokkien- colloquialism for being over-charged and taken for a ride. The street-smart chef should know, after living in -Singapore- for more ... - Date : Sun, 13 Jun 2010 10:12:21 GMT+00:00
Mother Tongue: What's in a name? - TODAYonline Tweet this news
TODAYonline--My father grew up speaking Teochew and my mother grew up speaking -Hokkien-, but I am now told that my Mother Tongue is Mandarin. In the same vein, ... - Date : Tue, 18 May 2010 22:16:49 GMT+00:00
Foodie paradise - Malaysia Star Tweet this news
Malaysia Star--The Malay food has a strong Bugis slant while the Chinese tends to be influenced by the Teochew and -Hokkien- regional cuisine. For those who are interested ... - Date : Sat, 22 May 2010 22:52:29 GMT+00:00

Pronunciation (Pe̍h-ōe-jī) Normal Value Notes
lêng 0 〇 is an informal way to represent zero
also 空 [khòng]
chi̍t 1 also [it]
also 么(T) or 幺(S) [io] when used in phone numbers etc.
nn̄g 2
also [lī]/[jī] (二)
saⁿ 3
4
5
la̍k 6
chhit 7
poeh 8
káu 9
cha̍p 10

Unique vocabulary :
Singaporean Hokkien (Hanji) POJ Definition Compare Taiwanese Hokkien
  sí-kéng Museum   (phok-bu̍t-kóan)
  o̍ah-kéng Zoo   (tōng-bu̍t-hn̂g)
  lia̍h-bô-kiû Completely do not understand (literally "catch no balls")   (m̄ bat)
  kê-khiàng Act "smart" (overdo it)   (ké-gâu)
  chhiò bú Pretty girl   (súi cha-bó͘)

Same meaning, different words :
Singaporean Hokkien Definition Compare Taiwanese Hokkien Notes
  (ai) Want   (beh) 爱(ài) in Taiwanese Hokkien means "love" or "must". "欲" in Singaporean Hokkien can be classified as an auxiliary verb denoting volition of the following verb.
  (lé or lú) You   (lí) "你 (lí)" is also used in Singaporean Hokkien
  (lín lâng) You-all   (lín)
  (góa lâng) We   (gún) or   (lán) "  gún lâng" and "  lán/lán lâng" are also used in Singaporean Hokkien
  (i lâng) They   (in)
  chhò Wrong   m̄-tio̍h The Malay word "salah" is actually more commonly used to mean 'wrong' in Singaporean Hokkien. " " (m̀-tio̍h) is also used in Singaporean Hokkien
  chia̍h-páh bē Hello!   lí-hó "  chia̍h-páh bē" is also used in Taiwan, but generally means "have you eaten already?"
  to lo̍h Where?   tó-uī E.g.   khì to lo̍h, "Where are you going?"
  khiā Live   tòa E.g.   khiā to lo̍h',' "Where do you live?"
  kū-chá In the past   (éng-pái) or   í-chêng All variants are used in Singapore Hokkien
  tàu-kha-chhiú Help   tàu-saⁿ-kāng "斗跤手 (tàu-kha-chhiú)" is also used in Taiwan
  chit-tau This place   chit-pêng or   chia   chit-pêng is also commonly used in Singapore,   chia less so
  án-ne-khóan In this way, so   án-ne   khóan is not generally appended in Taiwan
  (kui-lui) or   kui kho How much?   jōa-chōe chîⁿ The word "lui" is a Malay loan.
  tńg-chhū (pron. tn̂g-chhū) Go home   tńg-khì   tńg-khì is used in Singapore as well, but with a more general meaning of "going back", not specifically home.
  kiaⁿ-ji̍t Today   kin-á-ji̍t Singapore   kiaⁿ-ji̍t is a concatenation of Taiwan   kin-á-ji̍t. Also heard in Singapore is   (kin-ji̍t).
  tong-kim Nowadays   hián-chú-sî (pron. hiān-chū-sî) Both Singapore and Taiwan more commonly use   chit-chūn to encompass the meaning of "nowadays"
  chit-chūn Now   chit-má or   chit-chām   chit-chūn is also used in Taiwan
  sì-sōaⁿ (pron. sí-sóaⁿ) anyhow/casual/random   (o͘-pe̍h) E.g. 伊四散讲 i sì-sōaⁿ kóng - He speaks casually (or nonsense).   (sì-sōaⁿ) is sometimes also used in Taiwan.
  tiāⁿ-tio̍h surely   it-tīng or   cho̍at-tùi (pron. chòat-tùi)   tiāⁿ-tio̍h is sometimes also used in Taiwan.   it-tīng is a loan from Mandarin.
  gia̍h or giâ Take   thêh   gia̍h is also used in Taiwan, while   thêh in Singapore has the specific meaning of "carry".
  kiaⁿ-su Fear of losing out/failure - kiasu   (kiaⁿ sit-pāi)
  kong-si Share   pun or   kong-ke   kong-si means "company" in Taiwanese
  chiā Very   chin,   chiâⁿ or   chiok 
  siong Very tough or difficult   kan-lân "  siong" literally means "injurious", but has become slang in Singapore for "tough" or "difficult"
  heng Luckily, fortunately   hó-ka-chài In Taiwanese Hokkien, "  hīng-ūn" is also used.
  sioⁿ-siâng same   kāng-khóan
  chia̍h-hong To go on holiday, or more generally to live in luxury   thit-thô In Taiwanese Hokkien, "  (chia̍h-hong)" is also used but means "facing the wind". In Singapore,   thit-thô means simply "to play" (as in children playing).

Same word, different pronunciation :
Hokkien Words Definition Singaporean Hokkien Taiwanese Hokkien Notes
  Coffee ko-pi ka-pi
按怎 How án-chóaⁿ án-nuá "án-chóaⁿ" is also commonly used in Taiwan
啥物 What sí-mi̍h siáⁿ-mi̍h "sí-mi̍h" is based on Quanzhou speech

Loanwords from other Chinese dialects :
Singaporean Hokkien Definition Taiwanese Hokkien Notes
  (phiⁿ) Cheap   (sio̍k) Originated from Teochew
  (sî-bēh) Very   (chin) or   (chiok) Originated from Teochew. The word  (sí-pēh) in original Hokkien is a vulgar word that means "to the extent that your/my father dies".
  (soāⁿ-ku) Country-bumpkin   (thó͘-pau-á) Originated from Teochew, lit. "mountain tortoise"
  (bô-piàn) There is no way (nothing can be done)   (bô-hoat-tō) Originated from Teochew
  (chò-bú),  (chò-tīn) together   (chò-hóe),  (tâng-chê) or   (tàu-tīn) Originated from Teochew
  (gan tʂiong) Nervous   (kín-tiuⁿ) Originated from Cantonese

Malay loanwords :
Malay loanwords in Singaporean Hokkien Hanzi Definition Compare Taiwanese Hokkien Notes
Su-ka (soeka)   (su-kah) Like   (kah-ì)
Sabun   (sap-bûn) Soap   (tê-kho͘)   (sap-bûn) is also used in Taiwan
Kah-win (kawin) 交寅 (kau-ín) Marry   (kiat-hun)
Ka-cau Disturb   (kiáu-liáu)
Ba-Lu (Baru) Recently   (chòe-kīn)
Pa-sak (Pasar)   (pa-sat) Market   (chhī-tiûⁿ) or   (chhài-chhī-á)
Ma-ta (Mata Mata) Police   (kéng-chha)
Ga-duh Quarrel   (oan-ke)
Si-nang (Senang) Easy   (kán-tan)
Lui (Duit)   (lui) Money   (chîⁿ)
To-long Help   (pài-thok),  (pang-bâng) or   (tàu-saⁿ-kāng)
Sa-lah Offence, Wrong   (hōan-hoat)
Ta-pi (Tetapi) But   (tān-sī),   (m̄-koh) or  (iáu m̄-koh)
Loti Bread   (mī-pau) or 'phang' (Japanese loanwords)
Pun  (pun) Also   (mā sī) or   (iā-sī) E.g. 伊本是真帅 (i pun-sī chin suí) - She is also very pretty
Saman summons (fine)   (ho̍at-khóan)
Agak Agak Guess/Estimate   (ioh)
Kentang Potato   (má-lêng-chû)
Guli Marble   (tāi-lí-chio̍h)
Botak Bald   (kng-thâu) or   (thut-thâu) 
Pakat   (pá-kat) Conspire   (chhòan-thong)
Buaya   (buá à) Crocodile   (kho̍k-hî)
Beh Ta-han 袂ta-han Cannot tolerate   (tòng bē tiâu) Formed by Hokkien word "beh 袂" and Malay word "tahan"
Mana Eh Sai Mana 會使 How can this be?   (kam ē-sái) Formed by Malay word "mana" and Hokkien word "e-sai 會使"

English loanwords :
English loanwords in Singaporean Hokkien Compare Taiwanese Hokkien
Shopping   (se̍h-koe)
MRT   (chia̍t ūn) or 地下鐵 (tē-hā-thih)

Grammar :
+ Differences in Sentence Structure
Singaporean Hokkien Taiwanese Hokkien English
  (ai chia̍h-pn̄g mài?)   (beh chia̍h-pn̄g bô?) Do you want to eat?
  (lé ū khùn-pá bô?)   (lí kám ū khùn-pá?) Did you have enough sleep?

Southern Min languages

Hokkien (Min - Tai Division)Amoy Min * Quanzhou dialect * Zhangzhou dialect * Taiwanese Minnan * Singaporean Hokkien * Lan-nang Hokkien * Penang Hokkien * Muar Hokkien * Medan Hokkien
Teochew (Chaoshan Division)Chaozhou Min * Shantou dialect * Chaoyang dialect * Puning dialect * Huilai dialect * Hailufeng dialect * Bangkok Teochew
Qiongwen DivisionHainanese Min
Leizhou Min DivisionLeizhou Min * Zhanjiang dialect
Zhenan Min DivisionZhenan Min * Longhai dialect * Zhangpu dialect * Anxi dialect * Hui'an dialect * Tong'an dialect



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