Yawi, known as Melayu Pattani in Malay is a Pattani dialect of Malay. It is widely spoken in southern Thailand provinces of Narathiwat, Yala, Songkhla, and Pattani. It is estimated that there are three million Yawi speakers [1]. It is not to be confused with Jawi and southern Thai dialect. The Malay language, also known locally as Bahasa Melayu, is an Austronesian language spoken by the Malay people who are native to the Malay peninsula, southern Thailand, Singapore, central eastern Sumatra, the Riau islands, and parts of the coast of Borneo. ... Mueang Pattani is a city in the far south of Thailand, near the boundary to Malaysia. ... The Jawi alphabet. ...

Yawi has its roots in spoken Malay language and utilizes Arabic script in writing. Hence, it is unintelligible to most Thais. Malay and possibly Yawi once had influence as far north as Phuket (originated for the Malay word bukit or hill) and Surat Thani during the times of Srivijaya. In fact, a large number place names south of Phuket are of Malay origin. The Arabic alphabet is the script used for writing the Arabic language, which is the language of the Quran, the holy book of Islam. ... Phuket (Thai ภูเก็ต) is one of the southern provinces (changwat) of Thailand. ... Surat Thani (Thai สุราษฎร์ธานี) is a city in southern Thailand. ... Srivijaya (-sri meaning glitters or radiant, -jaya meaning success or excellence) was an ancient Malay kingdom on the island of Sumatra which influenced much of the Malay Archipelago. ...

The Melayu Pattani dialect is similar to that of Kelantanese Malay. State Motto: Capital Kota Bharu Sultan Tuanku Ismail ibni al-Marhum Sultan Yahya Petra Chief minister Tuan Guru Dato Haji Nik Aziz Nik Mat Area 14,922 km² Population 1. ...