[1] Mukomuko is closely related to the Minangkabau language and shares similarities with the Pancung Soal dialect, spoken in the southern part of Pesisir Selatan Regency in West Sumatra.

Traditionally, culturally, and linguistically, they are closely related to the Pesisir Selatan of West Sumatra.

In addition to the Minangkabau, the southern part of Mukomuko regency is inhabited by the Pekal people.

[7][6] However, since the British colonial period, the Mukomuko region has been politically separated from West Sumatra.

Since then, the Mukomuko people have been separated from their relatives in West Sumatra, which continued to the Dutch colonial period, the Japanese occupation, and into the independence era.

[7] Centuries of separation have resulted in the Mukomuko language gradually diverging from standard Minangkabau, particularly in its vocabulary.

Lexically, the Mukomuko language shares approximately 86% to 90% of its vocabulary with the Pesisir Selatan dialect.

Due to these linguistic similarities, some research suggests classifying Mukomuko as a dialect of Minangkabau.

[18] Along with Indonesian, Malay, and other related languages, the word order in Mukomuko is typically subject-verb-object (SVO).

While there are notable exceptions, the grammar structure of the Mukomuko language shares many similarities with Indonesian and Malay.

The prefixes found in Mukomuko are N-, ba-, di-, ta-, paN-, and sa-.

Words like imam ('priest'), jawing ('cow'), bining ('wife'), and pamalaih ('lazy person'), for instance, are nouns because they refer to humans, animals, objects, and concepts or ideas.

Words such as katuo ('leader'), palupo ('forgetful person'), saruling ('flute'), gelembung ('bubble'), and kamunieng ('murraya paniculata') are examples of derived nouns that have received these affixes.

Examples are kurang eloq ('less good'), lebih kumuh ('more dirty'), and paling tinggi ('the tallest').

Adjectives can be repeated with the prefix sa- and the suffix -nyo, such as samasin-masinnyo ('as salty as it gets'), sagedang-gedangnyo ('as big as it gets'), and sakughuieh-kughuiehnyo ('as sharp as it gets').

Words like masin ('salty'), gedang ('big'), ghaming ('noisy'), tingging ('tall'), eloq ('beautiful'), and tipih ('thin') are examples of monomorphemic adjectives.

Words like sighah-sighah ('red-red'), malung-malung ('shy-shy'), gedang-gedang ('big-big'), putih-putih ('white-white'), ghaiin-ghaiin ('diligent-diligent'), and tingging-tingging ('tall-tall') are examples of polymorphemic adjectives.

Words like sangat ('very'), hinyo ('only'), capeq ('immediately'), jo ('just'), nian ('extremely'), talalung ('too much'), hapieng ('almost'), jaghang ('rarely'), coq ('often'), mukien ('maybe'), and teruih ('always') are examples of monomorphemic adverbs.

However, in casual and less formal conversations, the position of aban at the beginning of sentences is often replaced by ban.

The required information may concern people, things, choices, reasons, time, place, manner, tools, or companionship.

The northern dialect is spoken by speakers in the city of Mukomuko and its surrounding areas bordering West Sumatra, while the southern dialect is spoken in the southern part of Mukomuko regency bordering North Bengkulu Regency.

The southern dialect is more influenced by other languages due to community mobility and the presence of transmigrants from other regions such as Java.

It is estimated that 90% of Mukomuko's vocabulary is derived from Minangkabau, specifically the Pesisir Selatan dialect.

In addition, Mukomuko has also absorbed words from standard Indonesian, the official language of Indonesia, as well as Javanese brought by transmigrants from Java.

The table below provides examples of common Mukomuko vocabulary used on a daily basis in both the northern and southern dialects, along with their Minangkabau, Indonesian, and English translations.

Oral literature in Mukomuko refers to a traditional form of storytelling that is passed down verbally.

[34] This type of literature is typically old, anonymous, and features a traditional style with content that is both captivating and reflective of a society that existed before the advent of writing.

Existing prose forms of Mukomuko's oral literature include folk tales such as Dendam Tajelo, Unggen Bemban, Gadih Basanai, Jodah Sarabing, and Bujang Tuo.

[34] Below is an example of the traditional Mukomuko Gurindam, a type of irregular verse form of poetry renowned throughout the Malay world.

It is presented alongside its Indonesian and English translations: Pilih-pilih tempat ban manding, Kasatu teluq kaduo tenang Ka duduq taman tupian, Alung tasanda ka durian Pilih-pilih tempat ban jading, Kasatu Elos kadua senang Namboa orang buruq ka kaban jangan, lsuq manyesa kemudian Biriq-biriq tebang ka Manan, lnggap di kota Maleoboro Daghing niniq sampai ka maman, Pilih-pilih tempat mandi, Kesatu teluk kedua tenang Ka duduk taman tepian, Alu tersandar ke durian Pilih-pilih tempat kau jadi, Kesatu bagus kedua senang Namun orang buruk kepadamu jangan, Esok menyesal kemudian Birik-birik terbang ke Manak, Hinggap di kota Maleoboro Dari nenek sampai ke paman, Kini turun pula kepada beliau ini Carefully choosing a bathing place, The first bay, the second tranquil Sitting at the park's edge, The pestle leans against the durian Choose the place where you become, The first is good, the second is happy Yet if someone treats you poorly, don't, Regret arrives tomorrow The grains scatter, journeying towards Manak, Settling in the city of Maleoboro From grandmother to uncle, Now it descends upon this person Note: 'Maleoboro' refers to Fort Marlborough, a British fort in Bengkulu City.