Language/Central-khmer/Grammar/Gender

Central Khmer Grammar - Gender

Hi Central Khmer learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will be discussing gender in Central Khmer. Understanding gender is an essential part of speaking and understanding the Khmer language. Central Khmer uses gender to identify masculine and feminine nouns, pronouns, adjectives, and verbs. It is essential to be familiar with the rules of gender in the Khmer language to speak it fluently.

Consider exploring these related pages after completing this lesson: Using Conjunctions & Using Prepositions.

Gender in Central Khmer

In Central Khmer, every noun has grammatical gender, which can either be masculine or feminine. The gender of a noun is displayed by the use of gender markers, which are added to the noun as a suffix. The masculine gender is indicated by the suffix ‘នោះ’ ('noh'), whilst the feminine gender is indicated by the suffix ‘នេះ’ ('neh').

Examples:

Central Khmer	Pronunciation	English
ប្រុស	prum	man (masculine)
ស្រី	srey	woman (feminine)
ម្លប់ថ្នាក់អង្គរវត្ថុ	mlap ta nak angkor wat	Angkor Wat temple (masculine)
រាជធានីភ្នំពេញ	rachatheni phnompenh	Phnom Penh city (feminine)

Note: We use ម្លប់ថ្នាក់ (mlap ta nak) to show that temples are considered masculine in Khmer culture.

When using adjectives to describe a noun, the adjective must agree with the gender of that noun. Adjectives used to describe masculine nouns will take the form of 'នេះ' ('neh'), whilst those used to describe feminine nouns take the form of 'នោះ' ('noh').

Example:

• ត្រូវការដាក់គូសលេខនៅកំប៉ុងស្រីបាន។ (trouy ka dark kuss leunh nov kambong srei bawn - The lady at the market needs to put numbers.)

In this sentence, the adjective 'ស្រី បាន' ('srei bawn') agrees with the feminine noun 'កំប៉ុងស្រី' ('kambong srei'). In contrast, if the market was run by a man, it would be described as 'កំប៉ុងប្រុស' ('kambong prum'), and the adjective would agree with this by taking the masculine suffix 'ប្រុស' ('prum').

Pronouns in Central Khmer are gendered as well. The personal pronouns ‘ខ្ញុំ’ ('khnoum') and ‘យើង’ ('yerng') are used to describe oneself and are neutral in terms of gender. The female word ‘នាង’ ('neang') is used by women to refer to themselves. For men, the word ‘អ្នក’ ('nak') is used, indicating that the Khmer language privileges men.

Example:

• Person 1: ខ្ញុំស្រលាញ់បង។ (khnoum srolagn bong - I miss you. [neutral for gender])
• Person 2: ខ្ញុំស្រលាញ់នាង។ (khnoum srolagn neang - I miss you. [women use])
• Person 3: ខ្ញុំស្រលាញ់អ្នក។ (khnoum srolagn nak - I miss you. [men use])

In verb conjugation, the gender of the noun will also affect the verb form. For example, when using the verb ‘រង់ចាំ’ ('rongcham'):

• If the gender of the noun is feminine, the verb is ‘នាំ’ ('nam' - she walks).
• If the gender of the noun is masculine, the verb is ‘កើត’ ('kaet' - he walks).

Example:

• នាងកើតម្ដង។ (neang kaet mdong - She walks a lot.)
• ខ្ញុំនាំរថាស្សីម្រាប់គ្រូសន្ថាន។ (khnoum nam rotaslai mreab krus onthan - I bring roses for the principal. [feminine verb agreement with subject])

In short, in Central Khmer, gender is essential in the identification of people and things, and it affects all aspects of the language, including grammar, vocabulary, and syntax.

Interesting Facts

Did you know that in Cambodian culture, it is a sign of respect for guests to call their hosts by their gender-specific terms in place of their name?

For example, when addressing a Khmer woman, it is sometimes considered disrespectful to address her by her name. Instead, the guest should use the title ‘ស្រី’ ('srei' - woman) or ‘ម្រកភាសាខ្មែរ' ('mrak phasa khmae' - Khmer language expert) when speaking with her.

For men, it is appropriate to use the term ‘ប្រុសដែលមានលីង' ('prum deal mean ling' - distinguished gentleman) when addressing them.

Practice

To practice using gender in Central Khmer, try the following exercises:

1. Practice describing objects around you using the correct gender marker. For example, a table is feminine 'តុ' ('toh'), while a book is masculine 'សៀវភៅ' ('seivop'). 2. Write down ten sentences using the correct verb form for masculine and feminine nouns. 3. Read a passage, and identify the gender markers used in the text.

To improve your Central Khmer Grammar, you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

Sources

• Central-khmer Grammar - Conditional Mood

Other Lessons

• Plurals
• Pronouns
• Give your Opinion
• Questions
• Adjectives
• How to Use Be
• Negation
• How to Use Have
• Conditional Mood