Language Month

Kompas/Wawan H Prabowo

One part of the Jakarta Youth Pledge museum which was enshrined on Tuesday (27/10/2020).

October has been commemorated as the month of language, with the Youth Pledge of 28 Oct., 1928, as a milestone that made the Indonesian nation maintain one language of unity: Indonesian. The role of the Indonesian language as a part of national identity and a symbol of unity cannot be doubted. The question is, what is the position and function of regional languages in strengthening nationalism? What is the meaning of ethnic languages in relation to the national culture?

Indonesia is a multilingual and multicultural country. There are 746 ethnic languages from various regions in the country, from Sabang to Merauke. The wealth of such a variety of languages places Indonesia as one of the largest language laboratories in the world. As quite frequently written, Papua is an area with the largest number of tribes and languages in Indonesia, with around 300 tribes and more than 270 ethnic languages.

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Even Aceh, which is once in a while seen as having a homogeneous identity, in reality has significant diversity, namely nine tribes and languages. Aceh is of course the largest tribe and language, followed by the tribe and language of Gayo. Other languages and their cultures are Tamiang, Alas, Aneuk Jamee, Kluet, Singkil, Defayan and Sigulai. This has not included the variety of dialects, such as between Aceh Pidie and Aceh Lhokseumawe or between Gayo Takengon and Gayo Lues. The diversity of languages and cultures in Aceh, for example, is reflected in the differences in the values that are adopted. Even though there are similarities, the set of values in Aceh is called Hadih Maja or Narit Maja. Meanwhile, in Gayo it is called Peri Mestike. The reproduction of values in Aceh is carried out through Doda Idi's poetry, while in Gayo through Janyun's poetry (Suganda, 2021:37-38).

KOMPAS/ALIF ICHWAN

A resident passes in front of a mural of ethnic diversity in the Pasar Minggu area, Jakarta, Saturday (31/3/2018).

A part of the wealth of our ethnic languages has become extinct and some others are on the brink of extinction. Those that have gone extinct include Hoti, Hukumia, Hulung, Serua, Te'un, Palumata, Loun, Moksela, Naka'ela, Nila, Ternateno, Ibu, Saponi and Mapia. Meanwhile, others which are on the brink of extinction consist of 163 ethnic languages. A language is considered able to survive the threat of extinction if it has at least about 1,000 speakers, and the above-mentioned languages have of less than 500 speakers (Patji, 2021: 318-320).

What is the meaning of the extinction of a language from a cultural perspective? As written in the book Membangun Nasionalisme Melalui Bahasa dan Budaya (Building Nationalism through Languages and Cultures, Kompas Book Publishing), which will be launched on 28 Oct., “With languages, the cultural systems and values of a community group are inherited and transmitted from generation to generation. Ethnic languages also play an important role in the identity of an ethnic group.”

The loss of language also means the loss of prehistoric knowledge and traditional ecological knowledge.

Basically, the loss or extinction of a language means the loss of a culture. If we view culture as a perspective in seeing the world, the extinction of a particular ethnic language means the loss of a perspective in viewing the world, the universe and everything in it. The loss of language also means the loss of prehistoric knowledge and traditional ecological knowledge.

Due to the importance of language as the guardian of culture and national identity, several regulations have been enacted to protect it, including Article 32 Paragraph 2 of the 1945 Constitution, a result of the fourth amendment. It states, "The state respects and maintains regional languages as national cultural riches."

DIDIE SW

Didie SW

The government then issued Law No. 24/2009 on the flag, language and state symbol and national anthem. This was followed by Government Regulation No. 57/2014 on the development, guidance and protection of languages and literature and the improvement of the function of Indonesian. Another regulation is Home Affairs Minister Regulation No. 40/2007 on guidelines for regional heads in preserving and developing the state language and regional languages.

Several countries face problems with such multilingualism and multiculturalism, including those in Europe. Because ethnic languages are both a self and group identity and can be symbols of nationality, several countries are divided because of language and culture issues.

Canada, for example, once faced a quite serious linguistic conflict and crisis in the 1960s, between English and French in Quebec. Belgium also used to face divisions over languages, between Flanders and Wallonia. Likewise with the Kurds in Turkey.

Important debates related to nationalism, languages and cultures, among others, are positioned in the concept of "uniformity and diversity". If uniformity in a particular national language is too dominant, the negative excess can be in the form of repression of local languages and cultural treasures. It is possible that local or ethnic languages will go extinct. However, if diversity is too strong and nothing binds together the national fabric, it can trigger disintegration or division of a nation (Suganda, 2021: 67).

This is what increasingly undermines ethnic languages and speeds up their extinction, partly because they are no longer used by speakers and their children, who are more interested in national and international languages.

The next challenge is, of course, globalization, with the presence of international languages that are more economically valuable and increasingly provide access to knowledge, such as English. This is what increasingly undermines ethnic languages and speeds up their extinction, partly because they are no longer used by speakers and their children, who are more interested in national and international languages.

KOMPAS/HERU SRI KUMORO

A mural about respecting differences on a wall in Serpong, South Tangerang, Friday (6/3/2020).

Worries about the position of regional languages in the midst of this global current are sadly disclosed by Yohanes Manhitu, who is quoted in the book above as saying, “The prestige of [international] languages has beaten our national language, especially with English — which is dubbed the international language. […] Why are there still a number of people who continue to take care of local languages even though their efforts can be said to be like fixing old carriages that are expected to run on new tracks? People may make fun of regional languages that are considered not to bring cash flow to their pockets or accounts. However, from a cultural point of view, people who love the culture of their nation will cry in their hearts thinking about the fate of regional languages, which in general never experience improvement and progress and are even more sidelined in the linguistic arena in this global village.”

The various challenges of globalization related to languages and cultures are topics of a second book, which will also be launched in this “Language Month”, namely Globalisasi dan Transformasi Sosial Budaya: Pengalaman Indonesia (Globalization and Sociocultural Transformation: The Indonesian Experience). The two above-mentioned books were written by professors at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) or BRIN, some of whom have died in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, such as Muhammad Hisham, John Haba and Abdul Rachman Patji.

AHMAD NAJIB BURHANI, Research professor at the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN)

(This article was translated by Hyginus Hardoyo).