This article is a preliminary comparison of the phonological features of the subdialects of Sarawak Malay. The comparison covers basic phonological features that include phonemes inventory and their distribution in words, diphthongs, and vowel and consonant clusters. The survey is important as the basis for future research on the subdialect mapping of Sarawak Malay. Without the fundamental description of each subdialect in the aspects of phonology, lexical and, to some extent, grammar, it is difficult to research on the development of Malay subdialects in Sarawak. The data for this study were compiled by the present authors and also from the works of past researchers on the subject. The subdialects compared include those of Kuching, Tambirat, Kabong, and Debak, which also represent four focal areas of the Malay population in Sarawak. Two subdialect clusters were identified, namely the subdialect cluster of Kuching and another cluster spoken by the coastal Malays in Western Sarawak. The former group includes varieties in Malay villages in Bahagian Kuching, the surrounding basin of Sg. Sarawak, Sematan, Santubong, and Bako. The latter group includes varieties in the Kalaka-Saribas area in Bahagian Sri Aman and Betong, as well as in Bahagian Samarahan in Btg Sadong and its surrounding areas, namely Asajaya, Simunjan, and Sebuyau. This latter group is more phonologically heterogeneous than the former group, and shares some distinctive phonological features, such as the 8-vowel system, the absence of phoneme /-É£/ at word end, as well as diversity in diphthongs. At the same time, they also display phonological differences, such as the realisation of phoneme /-a/ to /-ə/ or /-o/, or maintenance of /-a/ at word end

It is not possible to determine the exact number of indigenous languages of Sarawak, one reason being the dialect-language dichotomy, as some isolects has not been ascertained. Ethnic labels may not reflect a linguistically homogenous group. That is to say that the language varieties spoken by an ethnic group may have a dialectal relationship with one another, or they may be heterogeneous, which means they are mutually unintelligible. This paper reports on the results of a lexicostatistic study that examines linguistic affiliation of a group of languages found along the Tinjar-Baram river basin, namely Berawan, Bakong, Narom, Kiput, Dali,’ and Miriek, and also their links with Kenyah Long Terawan, Lepo’ Tau and Belait in nearby Brunei. The paper also traces their historical past and describes how languages spoken by these ethnolinguistic groups have become affiliated to each other. For some reason or another, e.g. migration in search of greener pastures, internal rivalry or/and conversion to modern religions, these indigenous communities are forced to move away from their original speech communities, and they call themselves by different names in their new localities, usually after the name of a river or a mountain. These factors and categorisation on the basis of similar cultural attributes have caused misinterpretation of the identity of the indigenous groups in the past. The paper will clarify some of the misconceptions regarding the ethnolinguistic groups in the region.