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What Is Indonesian?

Indonesian is the national language of the Republic of Indonesia. In Indonesian, it is called Bahasa Indonesia, which just means “the language of Indonesia.” Indonesian is a form of Malay, a Southeast Asian language with a long history, and is a member of a family of languages called Austronesian, which is widely spread in the Pacific region.

Before World War II, when Indonesia was still the Netherlands East Indies, nationalist leaders saw the advantages of adopting Malay as the language of the country (which they called Indonesia), as it was already widely known and had long been used for purposes of trade and administration.

As the national language, Indonesian is taught in all schools, and is used from one end of the country to the other— anywhere you go, you will be able to use it.

But Indonesian is not the only language spoken in Indonesia. In fact, there are many languages—as many as there are ethnic groups living in the various islands of the archipelago. According to one estimate, there are 241 of these regional or ethnic languages. And some of them are quite large and important, such as Javanese (spoken in Java), with around 100 million speakers. So if you happen to be in the provinces, and find that you can’t understand what’s being said, it’s very likely that people are using their own, local, “home” language, not Indonesian.

So the importance of Indonesian as a unifying factor is plain. This is why it is taught everywhere, and the government promotes its “good and correct” use. It is the only way people from different regions can communicate—and it is the obvious way for Indonesians and foreigners to communicate as well.

In the colonial period, Dutch was used by the elite, and many Dutch words found their way into Indonesian. These days, we find English loanwords, but please don’t expect many people to speak more English than a few basic words (especially outside the big cities)—it’s better for you to try to use Indonesian. As soon as you utter a few phrases of Indonesian, people will be delighted with your efforts, and will praise you: Lancar sekali! “You’re very fluent!”

Indonesian is a flexible, well-developed modern language, capable of being used for any technical field, such as banking and commerce, science and technology, law and education. It has a distinctive sound: smooth and soft, sweetly flowing, without heavy stresses—the syllables tumble over each other like a babbling brook.

The national language of Malaysia, Bahasa Malaysia, is basically the same language as Indonesian, but there are many differences in vocabulary, so it is better not to treat them as equivalent. The differences are more than British and American English. Malay is also a regional language in some places, such as parts of Sumatra and Kalimantan, but again these varieties are by no means identical with Indonesian.

Being a national, standard language, Indonesian has accents rather than dialects (regional variations). There are differences in pronunciation from place to place, though, because of the influence of the local language: you can hear whether a person is from Java or Bali, for example.

Jakarta is a case apart, however. The local language there is a variety of Malay, sometimes called Bahasa Jakarta (the language of Jakarta) or even dialék Jakarta (the dialect of Jakarta). This is a very fast, lively and slangy kind of language, spoken (but not normally written) as a means of everyday communication among the inhabitants of the capital. This language became established in the course of the 19th century, and represents the form used by a range of ethnic groups, including not only the “natives” but also the Chinese and Europeans, as well as those of mixed descent, in the context of trade, the household and local administration. So the language of Jakarta is by no means identical with Indonesian as taught in school and used in the media. What people actually speak depends on what the situation is: formal or informal. The vocabulary and style are adjusted—the speaker chooses from a range of possibilities. It’s clear, even in English, that slang isn’t appropriate on a formal occasion, and you don’t need to stand on ceremony when at home or out with friends. Someone learning Indonesian should be aware of the difference.

The Language Used in This Book

As we mentioned above, Indonesians use differing forms of Indonesian when they are in formal and informal situations. The purpose of this book is to enable you to speak as soon as possible, and so the language found in the following chapters is oriented towards the style of spoken Indonesian. This has two consequences.

Firstly, some words we will introduce to you in this book are very commonly used in spoken language, but do not appear in formal Indonesian. For example, lagi (in the process of) and dikasih (to be given) appear as sedang and diberi in the formal language. We have, however, avoided the use of slang, so you need not be concerned about offending anyone! Lagi and dikasih will not be found in situations where formal language is called for, such as formal correspondence or official speeches.

Secondly, the sentences found in this book have been created with brevity in mind. Spoken Indonesian is more economical than written Indonesian. We have left out pronouns such as “you” or “we,” in sentences where you would have to use them in the equivalent sentence in English. Exactly who is being referred to should be clear from the context of the exchange. Furthermore, the device of intonation is often used to indicate meaning in Indonesian. Indonesian does have words that indicate a question is being asked, but in this book we have omitted them, and encourage you to use intonation devices, such as a rising tone, to give the impression you are asking a question.

Making Sentences in Indonesian

Every language has its own way of stringing words together to make sentences. One language finds it necessary to include (or leave out) certain items or to stress certain aspects, while another does it some different way. Never expect another language to be the same as your own, in sound or construction. Each language has a different way of saying things.

You don’t need to learn a vast number of words in order to master the elements of a language; this is the basic principle of this book. In fact the method here will be to present ten basic words per chapter, put them into various contexts, and offer some explanations. Take note of the repeated patterns in word order; knowledge of these will help you to create sentences with other words. Then together with the words found in the list at the end, you’ll be able to say 1,000 things.