Those who haven’t been to Malaysia might wonder why on earth I would give my blog a name like “Life in Lah-Lah-Land”. No, I wouldn’t say I’m out of touch with reality, and I’m not on some mind-altering drugs either. So what is this lah then?
There is no direct translation to lah. It is a suffix added to the end of a phrase, and it is used in Malay, Chinese as well as English languages. It is usually used to change the tone of the message – to either soften or emphasize it, depending on the context.
The unique LAH
Lah is unique language feature of Malaysians and Singaporeans. When you speak to a Malaysian, you may notice the suffix "lah" that often occurs in the conversation. "Lah" is a suffix in Bahasa Melayu that is meant to add emphasis to a word or phrase.
For example, "Just do it" is "Buat sahaja" in the Malay language. But it will be more forceful if you add the suffix "lah".
"Buat sahaja-lah".
The suffix "lah" is so natural in Malaysian tongue that they even adopt it when speaking English. "Just do it" becomes "Just do it-lah"
Here is a tip: Don't add a "lah" to the end of every sentence - thinking that you are making a good impression of a Malaysian accent. Trust me, you will not get away with that.
The use of "lah" is quite an art for those who were not born into the language.
Here are a few sophisticated variations of its use:
"No fun-lah, you!" (You're really no fun at all!)
"You see-lah, like that also you cannot do!" (Can't you even do such a simple thing?)
Stuck-lah! It has become a part and parcel of our life and will remain that way for a very long time. (wink!)
Here are a few simple variations that you can try to use.
| Apologise | Sorry-lah |
| Fed up | Enough-lah |
| Definite | Of course-lah or sure-lah |
| Generous | Take some more-lah |
| Unyielding | Cannot-lah |
| Reluctant | Don't want-lah! |
| Suggesting | Try-lah |
| Agreeable | Okay-lah |
| Coaxing | Come on-lah |
| Persuading | Please-lah |
Still can't get a hang of it?
Relax-lah! Practise makes perfect.
P/S:
Relax-lah or steady-lah is used when someone is getting a little uptight about something.
Like you - learning to use the suffix "lah". Just kidding!
These words urges the person (in this case, you!) to calm down.
The “lah” definitions were adapted from an excellent online Malay language guide:
http://www.langkawi-beaches.com/learn-malay-language.html
So now you all know what has happened to my English! So sorry-lah!
