TRANSLITERATION OF MALAY. 145 
Arabic alphabet used by the Malays. 
This sound can only be expressed in Avabic writing by the 
vowel-point called fathah (Malay, baris di-atas); it is a dash 
placed over the consonant to which the vowel belongs. The parti- 
i oF 07 
cles ber-, ter- would be written 3, >. 
(The fathah, however, denotes a short a as well as a short ¢ 
ae oe oe 
as kapada nea). 
In the words sembah, salutation, homage, bendang, a rice-field, 
senduk, a spoon, the first syllables are not pronounced like the 
English words gem, men. An indefinite sound is given to the 
syllables mentioned, as if it were attempted to pronounce the two 
consonants without an intervening vowel, s’mbah, b’ndang, s’nduk. 
Some English scholars seeking a satisfactory mode of render- 
ing Malay in Roman letters have attempted to do what the Malays 
have not thought it necessary to do for themselves, namely to de- 
note this peculiar vowel-sound by a particular sign. Crawrurp 
professed to distinguish it by @; Krasperry wrote 7; there is per- 
haps good reason for this in works intended for the use of students 
beginning the study of the language, vocabularies, grammars and 
the like. But the authors of the Government spelling-system, who 
selected ¢ to express the sound in question, might have spared 
themselves this additional vowel-symbol. 
As we have seen above, this sound can only be expressed in 
writing by Malays by the fathah, short @ or short e. Why not be 
satisfied with @ or e to express it in English? This is quite suffi- 
cient for purposes of transliteration, and scientific men do not want 
to burden their text with accents to denote sounds not expressed in 
the native text. We do not distinguish by a different sign each of 
the numerous ways of pronouncing ¢ in the English or French 
language. 
Once quit the safe ground of transliteration and trust to that 
uncertain guide—the ear—and all chance of uniformity is at an end. 
Let us see how the systems mentioned above have worked in prac- 
tice. Take, for instance, the short syllable sa, which is frequently 
found as the first syllable of Malay words. The authorities who 
have been quoted are not agreed when to give the syllable the 
