A Trengganu vocabulary
A Trengganu vocabulary compiled by P.A.B. McKerron, M.C.S., a colonial administrator who served in the State, published in the Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, Vol. 9, Part I (1931), pp. 123–128.
Summary
The vocabulary is divided into two parts. Part I (pp. 123–125) collects words jotted down during a two-and-a-half-year residence in Trengganu, comprising terms either absent from Wilkinson’s Malay Dictionary or used locally with a different meaning or shade of meaning. Entries marked (B) were gathered in the Besut District, where the local speech is described as almost a pure Kelantan dialect. The list covers everyday vocabulary including agricultural terms, local topography, and colloquial expressions.
Part II (pp. 125–128) consists of words commonly encountered in official correspondence in Trengganu, which at the time was still conducted in Jawi script. A large proportion of these are Arabic loanwords that have acquired specialised administrative or legal meanings in the State, such as guaman (case), ishtar (proclamation with force of law), and tauliah (a commission signed by the Sultan). McKerron notes that knowledge of these terms would be extremely useful to a Government officer taking up a first appointment in the State.