Many people, including myself, used to think that Penang Hokkien is only a spoken language. It couldn’t be further from the truth. The written language existed way before Mandarin was made the national language of China.
Today, with computer technology, we are able to use Romanisation to help us easily type Penang Hokkien in Chinese characters. That said, you would have to be familiarized with the Penang Hokkien Romanisation System. This system is customized from Taiwanese Romanisation System (Tailo), a transcription system officially promoted for Taiwanese Hokkien by Taiwan’s Ministry of Education.
Even if you have no interests in typing Hokkien in Chinese, it is still beneficial to learn the Penang Hokkien Romanisation System. WIth one standardized system, there is no confusion of how you write and pronounce Penang Hokkien words.
- Penang Hokkien Romanisation System: How to use alphabets to type Penang Hokkien words.
- Typing Penang Hokkien on a Computer: Learn how to install input method on your computer to start typing Penang Hokkien.
Listen to this episode to learn more:
PGHK #537 Siá Hok-kiàn (寫福建)
