It's the second day of Chinese New Year, and I'm still lazing around in my old home back in JB (Johor Bahru, for all you non-Malaysians). And I caught myself using the phrase “han-na” in reply to something my mother was saying. I'm not too sure if this is standard Penang Hokkien usage or just us, but “han-na” is used as a response when you are obliged to do something.
Specifically, it will come out when you are reminded to do something in the future. For example, if your mother says something along the lines of: remember to ask your sister to print the itinerary, you can reply with “han-na” as an indication that, yes, you will ask your sister to do that.
You could always use the swiss army knife of replies: “orh”, but “orh” can sometimes be too general. The use of “han-na” implies that you've not only heard the request but are also obliged to carry out said request.
The intonation of “han-na” is also important. A neutral sounding “han-na” is appropriate for all circumstances, where the “na” is subdued. But if the exact same request is repeated multiple times, you can use an exaggerated “han-na”, by dragging out the last syllable, to express your exasperation, becoming “han-naaa”.
“Han-na” can be used in another context to mean “yes, of course”. It is usually invoked when you someone asks you a painfully obvious question. For example, if someone asks you, “You mean there are 7 colours in the rainbow?”, you can reply ”Han-na!” with the tone of “na” going up. If this description is as clear as mud, maybe listen to the audio 👇.
̦今天年初二，而我还赖在新山的老家。无意间注意到自己用了「喊拿」这个词回答母亲的某个问题。我也不清楚这是正统槟城福建话或则是我们家的用词，但是「喊拿」的用意是你愿意履行要求。
要说详细一点就是当你被提醒做某件事时，你可以用「喊拿」表明你会去做。例如，妈妈要是说：记得叫姐姐把行程印出来哦，你可以回答「喊拿」，来表示你会去提醒姐姐。
当然，你可以选择用最常用的「哦」来回答，但是有时「哦」的定义并不明确，你「哦」可能只是个敷衍的答复，但是用「喊拿」表示你真的会去做。
「喊拿」的音节也非常重要。「拿」平时是用第三声来念，但是如果同样的要求再而三的重复，你可以把「拿」拖长来念，表示你已经有些不耐烦。
最后，「喊拿」也有另外一个用法，就是「那当然」的意思。通常用在回答一些非常明显的问题。例如，有人问你，彩虹真的有七个颜色吗？你可以回答「喊呐」，「呐」用第四声来念。如果读不明我在说啥，不妨听听录音吧👇。
