:: I'm Wondering...

Anonymous: When i read through ariya poem seem like i read Indian Language. Reading Cham script is like reading Chinese or Indian Scripts. The writing is very weird.

naiCampa: I’m not surprise for this statement. U know about Khmer Rouge and the wickedness, U know abt JFK of the USA, U know about Shakespeare and his sonnets, U know abt Charles Darwin and his evolutionary theories, U know abt World Wars and the consequences..U know who invented the ball-pens..U know almost everything that your brain capable to. But, U never know about YOURSELF. All U know is that “I am a Cham”, “We have the language”, “We lost our country but not the people”. But sadly, U hv no proof for your statements! U dun even speak in “the language” U own. Sure, U can say that I’m insane because I’m doing something that many people won’t get to understand. Hahh, even I myself feel tht way sometimes, but wht to do? I can’t choose the gene type which I’m inheriting, also, I can’t choose the language in my tounge. All I can do is that tracing wht is mine. Ancient Cam script is one of our possession. Well, briefly speaking, let me ask U a simple question – do U feel weird with the Cambodian script in this clip?

I bet U will answer “NO”. Haha..isn’t it seemed to be alike to the Indian script…?

I am a Cam girl from Campa Kingdom, and I'm considered "freaky" when I'm learning my native form of writings; while U are also a Cam from Campa, but U seemed to be so familiar with the script which is not yours. This is not juz weird, but EXTREMELY weird!

Now I’m wondering…

*Sorry radiosapcham.com, I need to "borrow" your clip, dun sue me, I hv no money!

:: Wahai Taong Abih Urang Islam

Sap adaoh khaol dahlak di ChauDoc… Daok ralo kadha lak wak oh njep, cang duah tuk halei mbek wek...

~Wahai Taong Abih Urang Islam~

Wahai taong (a)bih

Ikhwan-ikhwan kung Islam

Taong (a)bih (a)pan gam

Taong (a)bih.. taong (a)bih sahabat

Peng waik nasihat saong jier di hatai

Brei srem mâgru hai ka hukum Po drei

Kung Po Nyu brei hu drei jieng Islam

Kung Po (a)nit ranam di Palei A-khirat

Kung ndail rup drei

Brei rumiak.. brei rumiak pa-ndi biniai

Brei khria ngap (a)mal

Ngap (a)mal.. ngap (a)mal siam makrâ

Tuei jalan Po pandar

Tuei jalan Po pagop

Khria ngap paginaop

Khria ngap waik panjep

Dom-dom danak dak sunat dan phardu

Khria srem mâgru hai paca-mbas padeng gruk

Juai nah drei mâk ta hu haong mblah tuei gep

(Mâ)yah lac.. (mâ)yah lac ngap njep

(Mâ)yah lac ngap njep hu pahala Po brei

Brei (ha)der waik drei.. brei (ha)der waik drei yakin di hatai

Kung ndail calah matai..kung ndail calah matai

O waik hi klah kung suei kung drah

Rel-rel mada nyawa

Klah o mersa maot nyu..maot nyu mâk nyawa

Nyu mâk haong senang senia

Mângaok (u)rang.. mângaok (u)rang kung mada iman

Nyu mâk haong kan daman mângaok (u)rang kung mada (ha)duissa

Kung ma-in sa-mbai suka brei caga hai waik drei

Tel nao harei (ha)dei labik Po jumrah

Ngap siam ngap ka-njah oh mada lingiw ta-ndap

This singer is from Chau Doc, my origin but not in the same village. So, the dialect is a bit different ..eg: he pronounces "hader" while I pronounce "hadar"..."wer" ~ "war"..emm.. I'm confuse with the areas in Angiang province - ChauPhong, ChauGiang...ChauDoc...wht on Earth are those places???? Very blur in my head.

This song is mostly in Cam language, sure. However it contains many Malay and Arabian words, also some Khmer words, while no Vietnamese words detected. But the melody is in Vietnamese culture.

1) Wahai(Malay) = Cam: somewhat like "Aey" "Wey" "Hec"...

2) Ikhwan(Arab) - Cam: "Gep gan". I spelled "ikwan" in Akhar Thrah because we dun have "paoh Khak" there. If I use "Khak", it will be read as "ikhawan".

3) Sahabat(Arab) = Cam: "Gep gan". Errkk..I dun know how to explain the difference between "ikhwan" and "sahabat" ..and another confusing Arabian word "khali" ...these words bring the same meaning as "friend".. [I'm juz a silly girl!].

4) Nasihat(Arab) = Cam: "Pataow pahader". ~Advice.

5) Sunat(Arab) = $%$#%^@! I'm stucked, dun know how to explain.

6) Fardhu(Arab) = Same thing, dun know how to translate the meaning.

7) Yakin(Malay) = English: be sure, confident. Cam = ?

8) Maot(Arab) = English: death..Cam = tuk matai...[?]

9) Iman(Arab) = English: faith, belief in Allah. Cam = jier saong gi-mbak saong Allah

10) Dun get confuse with "haduissa" and "haduissak".

11) Sa-mbai(Khmer)

12) Suka(Malay) = or we can call it the Melayo-Polynesian word.

13) Jumrah = Somewhere like "a court", but "jumrah" is a verb, not a noun. ...I dun know whether it's Khmer's or Cam's... [?]

I tried to write in Huruf Cam, but I'm having a little problem with the huruf "njak"...so, later.

:: Harei Pagé Raya Patrah

Sap adaoh “cha cha cha” drei di Palei Kur…

~Harei Pagé Raya Patrah~

Harei pagé Raya Patrah

Drei anâk Cam

Kabak lakau ma-aph (a)maik (a)mâ

Brei drei kanal nao waik

Haong (a)maik (a)mâ

Drei (ha)duissa lo lo

Di klak juai semyang

Brei srem mâgru

Brei thau lo (ha)duissa

(U)rang (ha)lei nao ma-aph o

Po binasa

Mada o hu harei siam

“Mba” drei khin siam makrâ

Drei jeng anâk

Mada lac jaik (a)tah o

Brei drei nao nyu hu

Nao lakau ma-aph

Huec Po brei drei siam

Drei nao ma-aph (a)maik (a)mâ

Huec hu siam

Nao jalan akhirat

Ginaop rup umat di klak juai

Nao lakau ma-aph (a)maik (a)mâ

Well...I'm not used to write in Akhar Thrah, plus, I'm confuse with the "balau", the "Mâk" and "Mak".."S1" "S2"..and many more..urrgghhh!! ..So..I did a lot of mistakes....ermm..but..I hd corrected it..then..I put the correct one as a new presentation, which you can see in the pictures above..I hv no mood to edit the video............ Tell me if the correction is still incorrect, thank U. [Arggghh, tension aku!]

This song is cute, and simple. I like it. I want to state my very appreciation to radiosapcham.com for ..errkk..for many reasons. I have no idea to write anything rite now..my head stucked! Hhhellpp!

:: Ikak Tian Ka Anâk Nao Bac

Manyi adaoh drei di Panran...

This song is specially dedicated to my mom and dad, also an alert to my younger brother.

Adei ley, peng baik sa-ai ndom ni..

Adei nao bac klak sang klak palei..

Kayua nan inâ imâ ciip rambah rambi..

Juai wer apakar inâ saong imâ juai adei..

Bac bitanat hadei hu phuel ka paran drei..

Adei hadah mbaok inâ imâ jang buei rei..

:: Raksa Rasam Cam

Manyi adaoh ita mâng Nager Kur...

~Raksa Rasam Cam~

Islam ugama bangsa Cam drei

Daok ngap rel harei

Lakei kamei di Palei Kemboja

Ndih sanâng harei malam

Haong sambai senang senia

Hu oh ndail mada

Ugama di klak oh rei

Hukum sah batal halal haram

Taong (a)bih drei Cam

Rel malam ndail klak oh wer

Mbâng huak chung njep

Kayua rup drei thau

Ngap chung drei (ha)der

Lakau ma-aph brei drei siam makrâ

Hukum ngaok kamei

Rel harei tacei pataow

Pambeng huak anâk tacaow

Pamâgru ilimo bac da-a

Chamnék pasang lakei

Rel harei pataow pa(ha)der

Kabak nao duah mbeng

Raong ba anâk tacaow grusa

Khan pataik aw (a)tah

Tambak kama gaom (a)kaok

Cam Kraong Cam Ngaok

Hukum yang sempurna

Lakhah anâk lakhah tacaow

Tuei jalan ugama

Yang sambai suka

Raksa prabini Cam

A video I edited from U-tube, a Cambodian Cam song. Good, but I dun like the melody as I’m not used to Khmer culture. The singer’s pronunciation is more likely to Sihanouk’s tounge. This is juz a comment okay, not a condemn, dun be so tight-minded.

I want to explain the words I’m not following the lyrics given:

1) Rel harei – if we read the old Cam scripts it is “rim harei” but nowadays we used to use “rel harei”. This word is used by the Angiang-PaleiKur Cams…haha..it is actually a Cambodian word. So now, try to start using that “rim harei” ok.. =). I kept the word “rel harei” while editing because it had been a Cam word (borrowed of course).

2) Kampujia – it should be in Malay spelling actually, because if U write in English it will be “Cambodia” while in Khmer Language it is “Khmer”, in Cam Language it is “Kur”. So, that “Kampujia” is a Malay word PRONOUNCED by the Cams. That is why I wrote “Kemboja” in Akhar Thrah.

3) “Haong” is correspond to “saong”, many of the Angiang-PaleiKur pronounce “haong”, so I kept that word because it is not a mistake.

4) “Senang senia” – I dun know whether our siblings in Ninh Thuan will understand these words. They are Cam words, the Malays have the same word; “senang” which means “comfort”. Or..we borrowed the word..? I hv no idea.

5) Chung – Cambodian word, refer to Aymonier Dict. pg 138.

6) Maaf – I spelled “maaph” because I dun see the letter “F” in Cam language! Hihihi..

7) Chamnek – this is totally in Cambodian language, I can’t find it in the dictionary, and I never used this word for the rest of my life. Meaning that, I’m a girl who was born in Vietnam and never been to Cambodia, so I never heard it. Malay: pihak, English: party (in group impression, not birthday party!)

8) Gruasa – I dun use this word, but I understand it. I think it is pronounced “grusa” that is why I didn’t use “takai kuak” in Akhar Thrah. Cam: mangawom, Malay: keluarga, English: family.

9) Samfarna – Malay word, “sempurna” actually.

10) “Sabhai” – “sambai”, Cambodian word. Cam: cheh, English: happy

10) Suka – Malay word. I thought this is Cam word before… Cam: takrâ…sambai suka = cheh chai… Wht about “buei baiy” ..???

11) Prabini = ?

:: Studying Literature - Ariya Cam Bani

Ariya Cam Bani is a popular literature I think, because I’ve heard about this ariya before but never have a chance to read it. Actually I dun know how to read before..hihihi... The Cams use the terminology “Bani” to refer to the earlier Islamic influence in Campa kingdom. We can divide it into two meanings for the nowadays understanding, but please notify that this is juz my personal perspective – First group is the “Bani Cam” group. They think that “Bani” means “religion” which hooked to the orthodox Islamic practice. Eg: they do believe in Allah and Muhammad, performing solah, fasting, and also doing hajj, but it’s only the elders who fulfill the religious orders (in their ways) to represent the whole villagers in one village. Ok, enough about that because I dun know their ritual. The second group is the “Muslim Cam” group. This group is fully pure Muslim, and their practices are based on the holy Quran and hadith. I’m in this kind of group. Well, this group knows about the “Bani Cams” and how they practice but the Muslim Cams use the terminology “tamâ Bani” to refer to the mualaf (the person who convert himself into Islam). Huhh..it’s a bit debatable here as the right word should be “”tamâ Islam” not “tamâ Bani”. “Bani” doesn’t bring any meaning of “religion” or “Islam”. “Bani” is actually an Arabic word which means “Son”/“Anâk”. Dun believe me? Get an Arabic dictionary and search “Bani / Bin".

Enough for the introduction, now let’s head to the content of this ariya. Honestly, I dun really understand what is this literary writing is about. I know it is not a straight-forward poetry but symbolic instead. However, I don't know how to clarify what were the symbols symbolized. I can’t really classify whether the narrator was in the first person point of view or the third person point of view. I also cannot able to figure out the plot, I don’t know which part was the climax, and I don’t understand the ending. The writer put in the dialogue element, causing me a big problem because I cannot detect the speech belonged to whom. Thus, I can’t figure out the characteristic of the main characters in this ariya.

What do I understand is that this ariya is about a girl who was in love with a guy, who’s a Bani Cam but they dun get their families blessing, due to the different religion. Have U ever heard about “Romeo & Juliet”...or “Laila Majnun”? Their feeling towards each other is someway somehow alike to both Laila and Majnun. Laila is like a princess, while Majnun is just an ordinary guy. Majnun (Arab) = crazy / gila. This ariya is challenging as the usage of the language is awesome. Besides, I don’t know “love” words or expressions in my language, daddy never taught me. If not because of this ariya, I’ll never know what is “passion” or “darling” for the rest of my life. Hmm..I prefer to be frank. I found out that many literary devices applied in this ariya – the monologue, dialogue, hyperbole, foreshadow, poetic words, idioms...making the storyline hard to be understood. I studied the craftsmanship in the ariya myself, and I dun exactly know what I was doing! It took me one month to study, yet, I'm still not able to fully understand it. Too many strong words I never heard..headache! Below is the result:

- ELEMENTS OF THE ARIYA -

Speaker/ Persona

It seemed to be a dialogue between a guy and a girl.

Guy: “Mayut dreh yau ni aey haleng”. Haleng is girl darling.

Girl: “Kau huec kanda pacei puec suei”. Pacei refers to a beloved guy.

Setting

(1) Background Setting

:: The girl’s house – “Sang suer mariah siam ndei”

:: The guy’s bedroom – “Tamâ tel duk cei ndih”

:: A path in a bush – “Rimaong daok pagrang di krâh jalan”

:: A tree – “Ala phun hara tattey rambah”

:: A forest (?) – “Ka than kau rimbah mai daok di glai”

(2) Time Setting

:: Night – “Malam ndih sa tuk min wer”

:: Afternoon – “Amâ amaik patey kau di pandiak”

Themes

:: Love and Passion between both guy and girl is the main theme.

:: Sacrifice is another theme. The girl was willing to abandon her family and against the tradition for her beloved guy.

:: Antagonism showed by the girl’s parents when her mother beat her hard when she knew the affair.

Motif

:: Love

:: Craze

:: Enthusiasm

:: Belief and tradition

Tone & Mood

:: Sad and gloomy.

Structure & Style

:: This ariya is a symbolic poem.

:: Rhyme scheme:

(1) ab, bc, cd, de, ef....

Ni ariya sa-ai ngap (a)

Panâh ba tabiak, piéh ka ra peng,, (b)

Mayut dreh yau ni aey haleng (c)

Kau ngap blaoh padeng, dom ayamân,, (d)

Anit saong ranam klaoh prân (e)

Haké hu damân mbeng saong anguei,, (f)

Kau huec kanda pacei puec suei (g)

Klak kau matuei luai pacalah,, (h)

Kau o klak nai ah (i)

Kau huec calah yua amaik amâ,, (j)

Haley tian kau praong lo ka hâ (k)

Amaik saong amâ kau ndua sa gah (l)

(2) Parallelism (?)

Ni ariya sa-ai ngap,

Panâh ba tabiak piéh ka ra peng,,

Mayut dreh yau ni aey haleng,

Kau ngap blaoh padeng dom ayamân,,

:: Poetic Devices:

(1) Antagonist characteristic showed by the girl’s family.

“Inâ pacalah kau di pacei"

(2) Dialogue

“Cei ley kau biai yau ni baik ah, than drei rambah o bik payau” – She talked to him.

“Adei ley amaik amâ ké thau, kau ciip ndua maluw gep gan ra klao” – He talked to her.

(3) Monologue

“Aey juk gila o dreh yau urang”

(4) Hyperbole

“Raiy rup dahlak yaom ndae candiéng”

(5) Object Imagery – ciéw, kajang, ba-ar, hahuei; Color Imagery – Mâriah.

(6) Anthropomorphism

“Tamia di mblang sa drei pabaiy”

(7) Metaphor

“Huak oh tamâ ndih jang oh wer”

(8) Foreshadow

“Mâyah lac mâtai, ndih sa lubang”

(9) Simile

“Pajaih nai pajaih ciim heng”

(10) Repetition

“Anit saong ranam praong lo, likau dher di Po taom sa anih” ... “Anit saong ranam praong lo, likau dhar di Po drep o salih”

(11) Symbolism

“Sang suer inâgaray kaong dar” – Huge house symbolizes wealth and riches.

(12) Assonance

“Cakaong baong kanai ba nao” …”amaik amâ batuk éw mai tanyi”

(13) Alliteration

“Dahlak daok gandeng blaoh lua tamâ” …”sa-ai sait paga blaoh nao talaih”

(14) Anaphora

“Cuh aem kanai biak ligaih"…“Cuh aem amaik amâ o laow” …”Cuh aem kanai biak ndang”

(15) Responsi

“Cakong mai pajaik nyaom aia mariak” …”Cakong mai pajaik blaoh buh limaow"

* Dahlak copy mângaok copy min ariya ni..biak dahlak hawing saong hadom abaoh panuec dalam ni wak oh sa jalan wak. Pagep : “ra”, “hâ”, “o” wak saong “balau” ngan oh hu “balau”...”ranem” ngan “dher”...mâda kanain wak hu “paoh thek”, kanain krei wek oh hu. Akhar “Mâk” “Mak” ngan..“rambah” “rimbah”....?