How do you say...?
Cambodians speak Khmer, which is
pronounced "K'mai" or "Kmy"
The following is just a short simple list of a few words you might like to know
as an adoptive parent. This list is courtesy of Ngasha Beck-Huy, author of
Children of Sovanna-Phum, The Golden Land of Cambodia. You can hear
the pronunciations by clicking on the 
symbol.
Hello
- Suesday (soo-ess-DAY)
Goodbye
- Lieh HAOY (LEE-uh howie)
Thank
you - Ah-kun
Yes
(females) - Chah
Yes
(males) - Baht
No
- Aht-tay
Cambodian
Currency - riel (like the english word "real")
Child
- Koun (cone)
or K'chai
Children
- koun-k'chai
Family
- kruesa (crew-ess-AH)
Parents
- Mae-Eu
Mommy
- Mae (pronounced "my")
Daddy - Eu (or) Pa
Grandma
- Yiey (between yee-ay and "yay")
Grandpa
- Taa
Older
brother - Bong proh
Younger
brother - P'ohn proh
Older
sister - Bong srei (the ei sounds like the letter 'A')
Younger
sister - P'ohn srei
Boy
child/son - Kaun-proh (the "kaun" is pronounced like "cone")
Girl
child/daughter - Kaun-srei
I
love you very much - Knyom sraw-line ne-uh nah (the 'n' in Knyom is so slightly
pronounced that it is often not even picked up)
a
For an additional Khmer vocabulary list click here