TY  - JOUR
T1  - Language and Dialect Use of Majorities and Minorities: A Study in Terengganu,
East Coast of Malaysia
AU - Ismail, Isma Rosila AU - Noh, Che Hasniza Che 
JO  - The Social Sciences
VL  - 11
IS  - 30
SP  - 7330
EP  - 7335
PY  - 2016
DA  - 2001/08/19
SN  - 1818-5800
DO  - sscience.2016.7330.7335
UR  - https://makhillpublications.co/view-article.php?doi=sscience.2016.7330.7335
KW  - Multicultural
KW  -communication
KW  -minorities language
KW  -language use
KW  -dialect
AB  - Malaysia is a multiracial country consisting of three ethnic groups, namely, Malay; Chinese and
Indian. Being proficient in more than one language is an advantage, particularly in a multiracial and multicultural
society as Malaysia. Especially at the workplace as this could help to avoid any misunderstandings particularly
when dealing with colleagues of different ethnicities. This study outlines a research conducted in Terengganu,
in the East Coast of Malaysia which investigated language and dialect use among personnel in a higher
educational institution. This is important to integrate the three ethnic groups at the workplace so that
communication is always mutual among them. The research employed a qualitative method whereby a semistructured
interview was conducted using purposive sampling. The interviews were conducted with twenty
one respondents coming from three managerial levels: lower, middle and upper levels. The data was analyzed
using the thematic analysis. The preliminary findings indicated that only a small number of Malay respondents
are trying to learn the minoritie’s languages. They do this to the extent of knowing only a limited range of Tamil
and Chinese words and meanings. Meanwhile, their Chinese and Indian colleagues have made the extra effort
to understand their surroundings in order to facilitate them in learning the local dialects. This research study
concluded that the Malay personnel at this institution apparently show an initiative to learn well the majoritie’s
local dialects but not at the minority dialects such as Mandarin or Tamil.
ER  -