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The Malay language, also known locally as ''Bahasa Melayu'', is an Austronesian Language spoken by the Malay People who reside in the Malay peninsula, southern Thailand , Philippines , Singapore , central eastern Sumatra , the Riau islands, and parts of the coast of Borneo . It is an Official Language of Malaysia , Brunei and Singapore . It is also used as a working language in East Timor . It is very similar to (and mutually intelligible with) Bahasa Indonesia , the official language of Indonesia , but differentiated in name for political reasons. The official standard for Malay, as agreed upon by Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei, is Bahasa Baku, the language of the Riau Islands , long considered the birthplace of the Malay language. In Malaysia, the language is known as ''Bahasa Melayu'' or ''Bahasa Malaysia'', which means the Malay, or Malaysian, language. The latter term, which was introduced by the National Language Act 1967, was predominant until the 1990s, when most academics and government officials reverted to the older term, which is used in the Malay version of the Federal Constitution. Indonesia adopted a form of Malay as its official language upon independence, naming it (Straits Chinese, a hybrid of Chinese settlers from the Ming Dynasty and local Malays) is a unique Patois of Malay and the Chinese dialect of Hokkien , which is mostly spoken in the former Straits Settlements of Penang and Malacca . The use of this interesting language is dying out, however, with the Peranakan now choosing to speak either Hokkien or English. Malay is normally written using the Roman Alphabet , although a modified Arabic script called Jawi also exists. It is an Agglutinative Language , meaning that the meaning of the word can be changed by adding the necessary prefixes or suffixes. Root words are either nouns or verbs, e.g. ''masak'' (to cook) yields ''memasak'' (cooks, is cooking, etc.), ''memasakkan'' (cooks, is cooking for etc.), ''dimasak'' (cooked - passive) as well as ''pemasak'' (cook - person), ''masakan'' (cooking, cookery). Many initial consonants undergo mutation when prefixes are added: e.g. ''sapu'' (sweep) becomes ''penyapu'' (broom); ''panggil'' (to call) becomes ''memanggil'' (calls, is calling, etc.), ''tapis'' (sieve) becomes ''menapis'' (sieves, is sieving, etc.) Another distinguishing feature of Malay is its use of Measure Words (''penjodoh bilangan''). Extent of use The extent to which Malay is used in these countries varies depending on historical and cultural circumstances. Bahasa Melayu is the national language in Malaysia by article 152 of the Malaysian Constitution , and became the sole official language in West Malaysia in 1968 , and in East Malaysia gradually from 1973 . English continues, however, to be widely used in professional and commercial fields and in the superior courts. Chinese, Indian and other minority languages are also commonly used by the country's large ethnic minorities. The situation in Brunei is similar to that of Malaysia. In Singapore, Malay was historically the ''lingua franca'' among people of different races and nationalities. Although this has largely given way to English, Malay still retains the status of national language and the National Anthem , Majulah Singapura is entirely in Malay. Most residents of the five southernmost provinces of Thailand — a region that, for the most part, used to be part of an ancient Malay kingdom called Pattani — speak a dialect of Malay called Yawi (not to be confused with Jawi), which is similar to Kelantanese Malay, but the language has no official status or recognition. By contrast, Bahasa Indonesia has successfully become the ''lingua franca'' for its disparate islands and ethnic groups, in part because the colonial language, Dutch, is no longer commonly spoken. (In East Timor , which was governed as a province of Indonesia from 1976 to 1999 , Bahasa Indonesia is widely spoken and recognised under its Constitution as a 'working language'.) Malaysians are easily identified due to the fact that they change their speaking styles in accordance with the person being spoken to. They may adopt a completely different set of slangs and accents when speaking to someone of a different race, or of a similar race. This is not, however, a form of discrimination -- it is considered casual and endearing. Phonology There are two vowels represented by the letter "e", i.e. and []. Learners of Malay are expected to distinguish between the two sounds while learning each new word. In some parts of Peninsular Malaysia, especially in the central and southern region, most words which end with the letter ''a'' tends to be pronounced as ]. Borrowed words The Malay language has many words borrowed from Arabic (in particular many religious terms), Sanskrit , Tamil, Portuguese , Dutch , certain Chinese Dialects and more recently, English (in particular many scientific and technological terms). Some examples follow:
Some Malay words have been borrowed into English. See the at Wiktionary , the free dictionary and Wikipedia's sibling project. Malay language has also heavily influenced the forms of colloquial English spoken in Malaysia ( Manglish ). Some simple phrases in Malay About 10% of Malay words are originated from Sanskrit and some Indian languages. For example the words
Usage among the younger generation While typing their SMS on their mobile phones, or being logged into Internet Chat Rooms , Malay-speaking youths tend to abbreviate their words to save message space or simply be quick in sending their messages, e.g. x - ''tak'', ''tidak'' (no; not); '''bkn''' - ''bukan'' (not); '''bleh''' - ''boleh'' (can, i.e. able to). They even alter the spellings of certain full words, e.g. '''ko''' - ''(eng)kau'' (you); '''ye''' - ''ya'' (yes). They even merge two words into a new one in place of a word of the same meaning in formal Malay, e.g. ''diorang'' (''dia'' and ''orang'') - ''mereka'' (they). There are a new set of slangs spoken by the urban youth, which may not be familiar to the older generation, e.g. ''awek'' (girl); ''balak'' (guy); ''usya'' (survey); ''skodeng'' (peep); ''cun'' (pretty); ''poyo'' (horrible, low-quality) etc. The youth also tend to mix Malay with English words, forming Bahasa Rojak . Example of this pidgin is:'' Bestlah tempat ni'' (This place is cool);''kau ni '''terror''' lah'' (How daring you are; You're fabulous). This issue has raised the displeasure of language purists in Malaysia, in their effort to uphold the proper use of the national language. See also
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