What is this language "Suwai"

[Guest]

From close to Surin, she said she speaks "Suwai" or "Soowhy", can't speak Issan. Said she was a decendant of the 'Mons'. Anyone can clarify what is this language?

[samak]

Suai is a dialect of Khmer, also refered to as Mon-Khmer or Kuy. it is spoken in some parts of Surin and Sisaket close to the cambodian boarder. it's quite a bit different of the Khmer that is spoken in those provinces incl. Buri Ram (often refered to as Kamen). it's probably closer to Isaarn/Laos language than the Khmer.

[Flashermac]

Isn't that the language of the famous elephant trainers?

[Guest]

I don't think it is accurate to say that it's a "dialect of Khmer" or that it's also referred to as Mon-Khmer. "Mon-Khmer" is a language *family*, and the Suay language is part of that family. Suay is not mutually intelligible with Khmer.

 

Khmer is only referred to as "Kamen" because that is the transliteration of the Thai word for "Khmer." The Khmer spoken in Thailand is more properly known as Northern Khmer.

 

More info

[samak]

<I don't think it is accurate to say that it's a "dialect of Khmer" or that it's also referred to as Mon-Khmer>

 

i have to leave this to the linguists and philologists; the only thing i can say from my own experience and understanding is that it is very different from the "kamen", but also from isaarn/laos.

[iuytrede]

Suai is very different from (Northern) Khmer but still belongs to the same language family, Mon-Khmer.

 

Isaarn/Lao belongs to another language family altogether (the same as Thai).