Everything You Need To Learn Burmese

Everything You Need To Learn Burmese

Burmese, or မြန်​မ​ာ (pronounced: mranma) as it’s known in Burmese, is a branch of the Tibeto-Burman family and is closely related to Tibetan. Spoken by over 40 million people, it plays an important role in the cultural life of Myanmar, in which it is both the main language and lingua franca.

For the most part, Burmese seems to be an important enough language to warrant its teaching, at least in book form, as there are plenty of Burmese course books available to help learners get a footing in the language.

Other types of content is still limited, however, but this is slowly changing, thanks to the Internet.

Burmese Language Learning Books

The most typical Burmese course book, like those for other languages, will focus on all the essentials you need to gain a strong foundation in the language: the alphabet; pronunciation; basic phrases; grammar and sentence structure.

Even if speaking is your primary focus, and you don’t want to get bogged down with too much grammar at the outset, it’s still good to keep a book that covers those topics close by. You’ll need to refer to it as you advance in your Burmese studies.

Burmese is written using the Burmese script/alphabet, which means you’ll need a Burmese workbook that teaches you how to read and write it, otherwise you won’t be able to progress.

A good, concise Burmese dictionary with additional romanized text will also be an invaluable asset in your Burmese arsenal.

Burmese (Myanmar): An Introduction to the Spoken Language
Amazon.com
Burmese (Myanmar): An Introduction to the Spoken Language
Easy Burmese: A Complete Language Course and Pocket Dictionary in One
Amazon.com
Easy Burmese: A Complete Language Course and Pocket Dictionary in One
Burmese: A Gateway to an Intriguing Language
Amazon.com
Burmese: A Gateway to an Intriguing Language
Colloquial Burmese: The Complete Course for Beginners (Book Only)
Amazon.com
Colloquial Burmese: The Complete Course for Beginners (Book Only)
Burmese for Beginners
Amazon.com
Burmese for Beginners
Pocket Burmese Dictionary
Amazon.com
Pocket Burmese Dictionary
Survival Burmese Phrasebook & Dictionary: with Manga Illustrations
Amazon.com
Survival Burmese Phrasebook & Dictionary: with Manga Illustrations
English-Burmese Word-to-Word Dictionary: Suitable for Exams
Amazon.com
English-Burmese Word-to-Word Dictionary: Suitable for Exams
Burmese-English English-Burmese Compact Dictionary
Amazon.com
Burmese-English English-Burmese Compact Dictionary
Essential Burmese Phrasebook & Dictionary: Speak Burmese with Confidence
Amazon.com
Essential Burmese Phrasebook & Dictionary: Speak Burmese with Confidence
Burmese: A Comprehensive Grammar
Amazon.com
Burmese: A Comprehensive Grammar

Burmese Children’s Books

Reading Burmese children’s books is a great way to gain some comfort with the language in general, and an excellent way for beginners to put their limited skills into practice.

The wonderful thing about Burmese books written for young children is that they’re designed to be easy, fun reads, with a simple vocabulary and style, making them perfect for newbies.

What’s more, many of the Burmese kids’ books on this list are bilingual English-Burmese, meaning that you can check your comprehension as you read.

My First Myanmar (Burmese) Alphabets Picture Book with English Translations
Amazon.com
My First Myanmar (Burmese) Alphabets Picture Book with English Translations
The Number Story: English-Burmese Children's Counting Book
Amazon.com
The Number Story: English-Burmese Children's Counting Book
My First Words at Home: Burmese Karen/English Children's Book
Amazon.com
My First Words at Home: Burmese Karen/English Children's Book
My Face Book: Burmese Karen/English Children's Book
Amazon.com
My Face Book: Burmese Karen/English Children's Book
Good Night, Little Sea Otter: Burmese/English Children's Book
Amazon.com
Good Night, Little Sea Otter: Burmese/English Children's Book
Am I small? ငါက သေးငယ်လား?: Children's Picture Book English-Burmese/Myanmar
Amazon.com
Am I small? ငါက သေးငယ်လား?: Children's Picture Book English-Burmese/Myanmar
The Lion's Share (ခြင်္သေ့၀ေစု): English Animal Idioms in Burmese-English
Amazon.com
The Lion's Share (ခြင်္သေ့၀ေစု): English Animal Idioms in Burmese-English
The Shwedagon Pagoda Mouse: English-Burmese Edition
Amazon.com
The Shwedagon Pagoda Mouse: English-Burmese Edition
When Someone is Afraid (Burmese Karen/English)
Amazon.com
When Someone is Afraid (Burmese Karen/English)

Burmese Digital Courses

Learning Burmese with an e-course is an excellent choice for people who like to work at their own pace, or those who learn best via audio.

Sadly, Burmese digital courses aren’t in abundance, so your choices are limited.

Udemy does currently offer a popular Burmese course, which is affordable, varied in its teaching materials, and can be accessed from any device. You also get lifetime access to future updates, and a community of learners with whom you can interact to stay motivated.

BURMESE UDEMY COURSES

Burmese Udemy