Nepali is spoken by over 30 million people around the world. It is the official language of Nepal and one of the 22 official languages spoken in India states of Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram and Uttarakhand. It is also spoken by Nepalese communities living in Bhutan, Myanmar, Middle East, Brunei, Malaysia, the United States and other parts of Europe.
Malay, on the other hand, is spoken by over 290 million peoplestrong> worldwide. It is the official language of Malaysia and Brunei. Additionally, it is also spoken in Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand.
Nepali and Malay are two distinct languages with different linguistic origins. Nepali belongs to the Indo-Aryan language family and is closely related to Hindi and other languages spoken in the Indian subcontinent. Malay, on the other hand, is an Austronesian language and is part of a larger language family that includes Indonesian, Javanese, and Tagalog.
When it comes to grammar, Nepali has a subject-object-verb sentence structure, similar to Hindi and Urdu. On the other hand, Malay follows a subject-verb-object sentence structure.
Furthermore, the writing systems used by the two languages are also different. Nepali uses the Devanagari script, similar to Hindi, while Malay uses the Latin alphabet known as Rumi script.
Despite these differences, both languages share some similarities. For example, both Nepali and Malay have a rich vocabulary influenced by their cultural and historical backgrounds. They also have regional dialects and variations that add to the linguistic diversity of their respective regions.
In addition to their languages, Nepali and Malay cultures have several similarities. Both cultures emphasise respect for elders and value family and community bonds. Festivals and religious celebrations such as Dashain and Tihar in Nepal and Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Deepavali in Malaysia play an important role in both cultures, with vibrant traditions and customs. Traditional clothing, such as the sarong in Malay culture and the Daura Suruwal in Nepali culture, showcase the cultural identity and heritage of the communities. Hospitality and food are also highly valued, with both Nepali and Malay cuisines offering a wide array of flavours and dishes.