Bangkok Malay

Bangkok Malay also referred as Bangkok Melayu or Nayu is the local variant of Malay spoken by ethnic Malays living in Bangkok and its surrounding areas. It arose after the intermingling of Malay community from Southern Thailand and slowly diverge as a distinct variety of Malay. Despite historical Malay presence in what is now Bangkok dated as early as Ayutthaya era, nonetheless the dialect only began to develop after the settlement of deportees from Kedah, Kelantan, Pattani, Satun and Yaring dating from 1786.

The speakers of Bangkok Malay can be found throughout the city, with higher concentration in Malay enclaves in Thon Buri, Thung Khru, Phra Pradaeng, Bang Kho Laem, Phra Khanong, Khlong Saen Saep, Min Buri, Nong Chok, Bang Nam Priao, Chachoengsao, Thon Buri and Pom Prap Sattru Phai.

There are several variations of the dialect, owing to various waves and origin of Malay settlement in the city. The dialect was largely based on Pattani Malay with visible divergent from the original spoken in the south, this allowed Bangkok Malay to constitute as a separate dialect from Pattani Malay. Another notable sub-dialect of Bangkok Malay spoken in Bang Bua Thong and Tha It districts demonstrating a strong Kedahan influence, this correlates to the fact that most Malay people from these areas are the descendant of deportees that were bought from a village in western Yala in the 18th century, who spoke with a Kedahan dialect.

Following the rise of urbanism and the assimilation with the larger Thai majority, the language is now highly confined with adult over the age of 40 with varied fluency among younger generations.