Mandarin-speaking Malay mother-daughter: Learning more languages promotes unity


Photos By YAP CHEE HONG

The bond between Fatimah (left) and her mother Arba deepens through their shared language.

In Fatimah Noryyah’s household, conversations often flow between Bahasa Malaysia, English, and Mandarin. Sometimes, they are even sprinkled with Korean and Japanese phrases from K-dramas and J-pop songs.

For Fatimah, 17, and her mother Arba Ali, 53, being multilingual isn’t unusual – it’s just part of being Malaysian.

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