RI solved national language puzzle 20 years before indpendence<\/p>\n
By V. Anjaiah<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The respected language expert Dr. Harimurti
\nKridalaksana says in one of his books that the official language
\nBahasa Indonesia is the pride of the nation. Without it this
\ncountry wouldn't have achieved either its independence nor
\nnational unity.<\/p>\n
It is true that Bahasa, as it is popularly called, gave
\nmomentum to the embryonic concept of Indonesian nationalism and
\nsounded a death-knell for 300 years of Dutch colonialism shortly
\nafter the turn of this century. The infant language united an
\nenormous country that is extremely diverse, not only
\ngeographically and ethnically, but also religiously and
\nculturally.<\/p>\n
Moreover, Indonesia is perhaps the only developing country in
\nmodern times which chose its national language from a lengthy
\nlist of languages -- almost without controversy.<\/p>\n
Linguistically, Indonesia and its more than 400 languages and
\ndialects is ranked second in the world after India, which tops
\nthe list with 1,652 languages and dialects (1971 census).<\/p>\n
Unlike many countries, Indonesia solved the puzzle of national
\nlanguage 20 years before its independence in 1945 and used it as
\na weapon to liberate itself from the colonial yoke.<\/p>\n
At a time when countries, such as Canada, Belgium, India and
\nthe Philippines, are scratching their heads trying to find a
\nsolution to their language problems, one may wonder how things
\nwent so differently in a country like Indonesia. What was the
\nsecret behind this unique achievement?<\/p>\n
The credit must go to Indonesia's young people of the time,
\nwho made the impossible task quite possible.<\/p>\n
On Oct. 28, 1928, 750 of the archipelago's young men and women
\nput aside their regional, cultural and ethnic differences. Youth
\norganizations from all corners of Indonesia, such as Jong Java,
\nJong Sumatranen Bond, Pemuda Indonesia, Sekar Rukun, Jong
\nIslamieten Bond, Jong Batak Bond, Jong Celebes, Pemuda Kaum
\nBetawi, and Perhimpunan Pelajar-Pelajar Indonesia, not only
\nunited themselves, but also took the important Sumpah Pemuda
\n(Youth Pledge). This oath, made at the end of Second Youth
\nCongress held in Gedung Kramat Raya 126, Jakarta, changed the
\ncourse of history for this nation.<\/p>\n
The Sumpah Pemuda freed Indonesia from the many ills plaguing
\nattempts at unity because it straightforwardly stated that
\nhenceforth there would be one only homeland and one nation --
\nIndonesia -- and one language --Bahasa Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Though the language was mentioned last in the pledge, one
\nshould not think that it was not given priority.<\/p>\n
\"All three items listed in the Sumpah Pemuda are equally
\nimportant and cannot be separated from one another. They are
\nmeant for building Indonesia Raya (Great Indonesia),\" Syahrial, a
\nlecturer who teaches Bahasa Indonesia to foreigners at the
\nUniversity of Indonesia, the country's premier educational
\ninstitute, said recently.<\/p>\n
Bahasa Indonesia is the soul of this nation and a symbol of
\nPersatuan (national unity). During the colonial regime the word
\nPersatuan came to \"independence\" because the Dutch colonial
\ngovernment prohibited the usage of words like \"freedom\" and
\n\"independence\" in public meetings.<\/p>\n
Many foreigners Indonesia may not know that the term
\n\"Indonesia\" did not come into existence until 1850. It was first
\nused by James Richardson, a Singapore-based British
\nanthropologist, to refer the archipelago situated between the two
\ncontinents of Asia and Australia. Indonesia's present national
\nlanguage was adopted from Bahasa Melayu, or the Malay language, a
\nlanguage spoken in a small area called Riau, Sumatra. It was
\nrenamed Bahasa Indonesia in 1928.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, there is no information as to who suggested the
\nname Bahasa Indonesia at the Second Youth Congress. Several books
\non the history of the Indonesian language have suggested, though
\nnot conclusively, that it was Mohammad Yamin, an ambitious
\nstudent leader from Sumatra and one of the architects of Sumpah
\nPemuda, who proposed in the congress that Bahasa Melayu be made
\nthe national language. The participants of the congress
\noverwhelmingly supported Yamin's idea and adopted it as the
\nBahasa Persatuan to be called by a new name: Bahasa Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Indonesia's adoption of Bahasa Melayu as a national language
\nserves as an ideal example for many countries on how to solve the
\nlanguage problem.<\/p>\n
The choice made is very interesting in light of the fact that
\nBahasa Melayu was, at the time, only spoken on a daily basis by
\naround 10 percent of the population. Yet it received overwhelming
\nsupport from all over Indonesia, including from the Javanese, who
\nconstituted over 40 percent of the population, and spoke a
\ndifferent language called Bahasa Jawa.<\/p>\n
One might ask why the Malay language was selected as the
\nnational language instead of Javanese, when Bahasa Jawa had more
\nnative speakers than any of the languages in the whole of
\nSoutheast Asia.<\/p>\n
The fact was that the Malay language was the lingua franca of
\nthe Indonesian archipelago and had been used as a language of
\ntrade since ancient times. It had come to be known primarily as
\nMelayu Pasar (Malay Bazaar) language.<\/p>\n
Apart from in the Indonesian archipelago, it is widely spoken
\nby the people of southern Thailand, Mindanao island, the
\nPhilippines, Brunei, Singapore and Malaysia.<\/p>\n
Explaining the selection of the Malay language, the late Sutan
\nTakdir Alisjahbana, a great Indonesian literary and cultural
\nfigure and well-known educator, said, \"It was the simplicity and
\nstructure of Malay that made it easy to learn. Moreover, there is
\nno hierarchy in the Malay language unlike in Javanese, which has
\ndifferent levels such as Krama Inggil, Krama and Ngoko, making it
\ndifficult to learn.\"<\/p>\n
The whole process, however, was not without obstacles. The
\nDutch colonialists tried to impose Dutch as the national
\nlanguage, but patriotic Indonesians outrightly rejected the
\nlanguage of their oppressors. And the Javanese also opposed a
\nDutch minority group, who loved the Javanese language and culture
\nand who were pushing to have the Bahasa Jawa made the national
\nlanguage. But above all, what made the dream of Yamin and his
\nfriends into reality was the Javanese people's tolerance.<\/p>\n
Bahasa Indonesia is unique in that it is a more democratic and
\nflexible language than any other language in Southeast Asia. The
\nMalay language had interacted with many languages, such as
\nSanskrit, Arabic, Chinese, Tamil, Telugu, Portuguese, Dutch and
\nEnglish, and as a result Yamin was right in propagating this
\nlanguage as symbol of national unity.<\/p>\n
Since its birth, Bahasa Indonesia has never looked back.<\/p>\n
Some people credit its rise to Japan's brief occupation of
\nIndonesia during World War II, because the occupation forces
\nmandated it as the official language. Though this might be
\npartially true, it was the Indonesians' love for this language
\nthat has made it a perfect national language for almost seven
\ndecades.<\/p>\n
After independence, the status of Bahasa was clearly stated in
\nArticle 36 of the 1945 Constitution: \"the Indonesian state
\nlanguage will be Bahasa Indonesia\".<\/p>\n
Yet according to Pusat Bahasa (the Indonesian Language
\nInstitute), very few people (not more than eight percent) can
\nspeak a pure and standard form of the language. Many people mix
\nBahasa with either regional languages or local Malay dialects.
\nOthers have the misconception that the language is too young and
\ncannot compete with other modern languages, therefore, or because
\nthey think it is very easy to learn, they don't take the time to
\nlearn it properly.<\/p>\n
\"Before Sumpah Pemuda, Bahasa Melayu was already a full-
\nfledged language,\" says Harimurti, adding that Bahasa Indonesia
\nis without a doubt as legitimate as any other modern language.<\/p>\n
On the surface Bahasa might extremely look easy to learn, but
\none has to face several constraints in order to master it.<\/p>\n
\"Many foreigners and Indonesians themselves acknowledge that
\nBahasa Indonesia is easy. I wouldn't agree with this. For example
\nI have been studying this language for more than three years and
\nstill find it difficult,\" said Min Choi, a Korean student who is
\nstudying Bahasa at the University of Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Since Sumpah Pemuda has become a strong pillar of the
\nIndonesian nation, Indonesia has proved to the world that
\nhumankind, despite a variety of differences, can live
\nharmoniously by respecting each other and each other's languages.
\nIt has taught us important values like musyawarah (consensus),
\ngotong-royong (cooperation), tolerance, peaceful-coexistence and
\nunity in diversity.<\/p>\n
In a modern world where geographical boundaries are narrowing
\nfast, the message of Sumpah Pemuda_-- \"one country, one nation,
\none language\" -- reminds us of what Erik Paul Rolf, an American
\nauthor, journalist, and authority on Indonesian matters, rightly
\nsaid: \"One Language, One Humanity, One Planet.\"<\/p>\n
The writer is an Indian student studying the Indonesian
\nlanguage at the Faculty of Letters of the University of
\nIndonesia, Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Window A: Indonesia solved the puzzle of national language 20 years before
\nits independence in 1945 and used it as a weapon to liberate itself
\nfrom the colonial yoke.<\/p>\n
Window B: Indonesia's adoption of Bahasa Melayu as a national language
\nserves as an ideal example for many countries on how to solve the
\nlanguage problem.<\/p>\n
Window C: Bahasa Indonesia is unique in that it is a more democratic and
\nflexible language than any other language in Southeast Asia.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ri-solved-national-language-puzzle-20-years-before-indpendence-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}