The Myeik dialect, also known as Beik in Burmese, Mergui and Merguese in English, and Marit (มะริด) in Thai, is a divergent dialect of Burmese, spoken in Myeik, the second largest town in Tanintharyi Region, the southernmost region of Myanmar. Beik shares many commonalities with the Tavoyan dialect, although there are substantial differences especially with regard to phonology.
Phonology
Consonants Beik possesses 27 consonant phonemes: Bilabial Dental Alveolar Postalveolarand palatal Velar andlabiovelar Glottal Placeless Plosive and affricate Nasal Fricative Approximant Lateral Unlike Standard Burmese, the Myeik dialect does not have any preaspirated consonants. Phonemes unique to the Myeik dialect include and .
Mergui Archipelago Vowels The Myeik dialect has three types of vowels: plain, nasalized and glottalized, with each type having seven vowels. Monophthongs Diphthongs Front Back Front offglide Back offglide Close Close-mid Open-mid Open
Notes
References