| Jambi Malay | |
|---|---|
| |
| بهاس جمبي | |
| Native to | Indonesia (Jambi) |
| Region | Sumatra |
| Ethnicity | Jambi Malay,Batin, etc. |
Native speakers | (1 million cited 2000 census)[1] |
Austronesian
| |
| Dialects |
|
| Latin (Indonesian alphabet) Jawi | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | jax |
| Glottolog | jamb1236 |
 Areas where Jambi Malay is a majority Areas where Jambi Malay is a minority | |
| This article containsIPA phonetic symbols. Without properrendering support, you may seequestion marks, boxes, or other symbols instead ofUnicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, seeHelp:IPA. | |
Jambi Malay (bahaso Jambi orbaso Jambi,Jawi: بهاس جمبي), is aMalayic language primarily spoken by theJambi Malay people inJambi,Indonesia, but also spoken by migrants who have settled in Jambi. Jambi Malay is considered as a dialect of theMalay language that is mainly spoken in Jambi, but it is also used in the southern part ofRiau and the northern part ofSouth Sumatra.[2] In Jambi, Jambi Malay has eight dialects, including theTanjung Jabung dialect,Jambi City dialect,Muaro Jambi dialect,Batanghari dialect,Tebo dialect,Bungo dialect,Sarolangun dialect, andMerangin dialect. Jambi Malay is used as alingua franca and for interaction among the various ethnic groups in Jambi. The differences between each dialect in Jambi Malay range from about 51 to 80 percent.[3]
Historically, the people of Jambi are part of theMalay world. This can be seen from archaeological and historical research findings, such as the discovery of charters and inscriptions like the Karang Berahi andKedukan Bukit inscriptions, which use the structure of the Malay language, commonly referred to asOld Malay. The Karang Berahi and Kedukan Bukit inscriptions were found in the upper reaches of Jambi, located on the banks of theMarangin River, a tributary of theBatang Hari River.[4] Between the 17th century and the 19th century, Jambi was part of the MalaySultanate of Jambi, which also encompasses parts of Riau and South Sumatra.[5] Due to influences fromJavanese culture and cordial relations between the Jambi Sultanate and theMataram Sultanate in the past, Jambi Malay has absorbed significant loanwords fromJavanese.[5][6]
Jambi Malay is a dialect ofMalay, which is a member of theAustronesian family of languages, which includes languages fromTaiwan, Southeast Asia and the Pacific Ocean, with a smaller number in continental Asia.Malagasy, a geographic outlier spoken inMadagascar in the Indian Ocean, is also a member of this language family. Although these languages are not necessarilymutually intelligible to any extent, their similarities are often quite apparent. In more conservative languages like Malay, many roots have come with relatively little change from their common ancestor,Proto-Austronesian language. There are manycognates found in the languages' words for kinship, health, body parts and common animals. Numbers, especially, show remarkable similarities.[7]
Jambi Malay is closely related toPalembang Malay spoken in neighboringSouth Sumatra, specifically in terms of phonology and vocabulary.[8] It is also related toRiau Malay spoken inRiau and thesurrounding islands, andBengkulu Malay spoken inBengkulu.
Speakers of Jambi Malay are distributed throughout Jambi as well as the southern part ofRiau.[9] Jambi Malay is the most widely spoken language in eastern Jambi and is also partially spoken in western Jambi, whereKerinci andMinangkabau dominate. Jambi Malay is the dominant language across most regencies and cities in Jambi, except forKerinci Regency and the city ofSungai Penuh in western Jambi.[10] Meanwhile,West andEast Tanjung Jabung Regency currently lack a dominant language due to an influx oftransmigrants from other parts of Indonesia who speak their regional languages, such asJavanese andBugis.[10] TheBatin people, a subgroup of theMinangkabau people living in Jambi, speaks a dialect of Jambi Malay that is heavily influenced byMinangkabau.[11]
In Jambi,Indonesian is the primary language used in formal situations and education, while Jambi Malay serves as thelingua franca in informal contexts. It facilitates communication among the diverseethnic groups residing in Jambi, such as theJavanese,Banjarese andBugis.[12] Migrants in Jambi tend tocode-switch between Jambi Malay,Indonesian and theirnative languages, especially in the market.[13][14] In addition, Jambi Malay is also spoken by Jambi diaspora living in other parts of Indonesia. Malay is the everyday language of the Jambi people, passed down by their ancestors throughout their lives. The use of Malay as a daily spoken language also impacts various fields such as history, religion, business, education, customs, traditions, architecture, literature, writing, as well as art and culture.[9] Based on historical evidence that has been found, such as inscriptions discovered in Jambi,Palembang, andBangka, it can be concluded that the Malay language, which has long been used inIndonesia, especially inSumatra, was prevalent in a major influential kingdom at that time. The development of Malay was closely linked with the growth and expansion ofSrivijaya Empire.[9] The rise of Malay kingdoms andsultanates such as theJambi Sultanate also contributes to the spread of Malay in Jambi.
Currently, Jambi Malay course is being taught by theUniversity of Jambi's Faculty of Teacher Training and Education as part of the Indonesian Language and Literature Education study program. The course description for the Jambi Malay course, as formulated by the program's curriculum development team, is: "Students will appreciate cultural diversity by mastering the characteristics of Jambi Malay and applying this knowledge in various Jambi Malay cultural and literary activities.[15] On the other hand, there have been proposals to include Jambi Malay in the elementary school curriculum throughout Jambi as part of an effort to preserve the language.[16]
There are eight different dialects of Jambi Malay, including theTanjung Jabung dialect,Jambi City dialect,Muaro Jambi dialect,Batanghari dialect,Tebo dialect,Bungo dialect,Sarolangun dialect, andMerangin dialect.[3] Each dialect has its own subdialects, which may also differ from one another. Nevertheless, all of these dialects are generally mutually intelligible.
The Jambi City dialect is regarded as theprestigious dialect of Jambi Malay due to Jambi City's historical and cultural significance as the seat of ancient Malay kingdoms and sultanates.[17] Interestingly, Jambi City itself has two urban areas separated by theBatang Hari River, where each area has its own sub-distincts dialect: Jambi Kota dialect and Jambi Kota Seberang dialect.[18] Jambi Kota and Jambi Kota Seberang are administratively part of the city of Jambi. However, they exhibit different variations of the Malay language. For example, 'close the door' in Jambi Kota Malay istutup pintu, which is the same as inIndonesian, while in Jambi Kota Seberang Malay it iskancing lawang, which is the same as inJavanese. These examples differ lexically but share similar meanings and usage. Jambi Kota and Jambi Kota Seberang differ significantly because historically, Jambi Kota Seberang served as a center of concentration for nativeMalay inhabitants and some immigrants, while Jambi Kota served as the administrative center. Lexically, some vocabulary in the Jambi Kota Seberang dialect may not be understood by speakers of the Jambi Kota dialect.[18]
The Jambi Malay dialects spoken outside the city of Jambi exhibit even greater variation compared to those spoken within the city limits. These dialects differ in lexicon, phonology, and grammar. For example, words that end with the vowel "a" inIndonesian normally become "o" in the Jambi Malay variety spoken in Jambi City, such asmata 'eye' →mato,lada 'pepper' →lado andapa 'what' →apo.[19] However, in the Tanjung Jabung dialect, words ending with the vowel "a" change to "e", and in some cases, the letter "a" changes to "i", such askemana 'go where' →kemine,siapa 'who' →siape andapa 'what' →ape. From a phonological perspective, the Jambi Malay dialect inEast Tanjung Jabung Regency closely resembles to the Malay dialect spoken inRiau and theMalay Peninsula.[19] Additionally, each variety may also show influences from other languages. For example, the Malay dialect spoken inBungo andTebo Regency is influenced byMinangkabau, owing to its proximity toWest Sumatra and manyMinangkabau migrants inhabiting the region.[20] On the other hand, the Jambi City dialect, similar toPalembang Malay spoken in Palembang, has strong influence fromJavanese, as Javanese was once the court language of theJambi Sultanate.[19][10]
Below are examples of lexical differences in Jambi Malay based on each dialects:[10]
| Standard Indonesian | Mudung Laut (Jambi City) | Dusun Teluk (Batanghari) | Lubuk Kepayang (Sarolangun) | Muara Siau (Merangin) | Suo Suo (Tebo) | Dusun Danau (Bungo) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| tangan 'hand' | taŋan | taŋan | taŋan | taŋan | taŋan | taŋan |
| kiri 'left' | kiʁi | kiri | kiʁin | kidaw | kiʁi | kidaw |
| datang[a] 'arrive' | tibo | tibo | tibʊ | tibo | tibo | tibo |
| tahu 'know' | tau | səntuw | taum | tau | tau | tau, ŋ-aʁəti |
| darah 'blood' | daʁah | dara | daʁah | daʁah | daʁah | daʁah |
| tertawa 'laugh' | tɐtawo | tawo | gəlaʔ | gilaʔ | gəlaʔ | gəlaʔ |
| tidur 'sleep' | maʁiŋ | te̝dʊr | tidʊʁ | tiduː | tidʊʁ | tidua |
| anak 'child' | budaʔ | anaʔ | budaʔ | anaʔ | anaʔ | anaʔ |
Like many otherregional languages in Indonesia, there is no standardizedphonological system for Jambi Malay. On the other hand, each dialect of Jambi Malay may exhibit unique phonological features. The table below illustrates the phonology of the Jambi City dialect, which is considered theprestigious dialect of Jambi Malay, based on the phonological system developed by Gani et al. (2000).[21]
LikeIndonesian and otherMalayic languages, Jambi Malay has fiveVowels, which are /i/, /e/, /a/, /o/, and /u/.[21] The position of each vowel can be seen in the following diagram:
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High | i | u | |
| Mid | e | o | |
| Low | a |
There are only fivediphthongs in Jambi Malay, which are /ay/, /aw/, /oy/, /uo/ and /ie/.[22] The table below demonstrates to whether the sequences areopening or closing (i.e., whether they are moving towards open/low vowels or closed/high vowels).
| Open syllable | Closed syllable | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Opening | uo | uondi 'lottery' uontal 'throw' | |
| Closing | ay | damay 'peace' gulay 'gulai' | |
| aw | kacaw 'chaos' lampaw 'exceed' | ||
| oy | oy 'hi' amboy 'wow' | ||
| ie | ienjak 'step' ientiep 'peek' | ||
In Jambi Malay, there are nineteenconsonant phonemes: /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/, /t͡ʃ/, /d͡ʒ/, /k/, /ɡ/, /ʔ/, /s/, /h/, /m/, /n/, /ŋ/, /ɲ/, /r/, /l/, /w/, and /j/.[23]
| Bilabial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ɲ | ŋ | ||
| Plosive | voiceless | p | t | t͡ʃ | k | ʔ |
| voiced | b | d | d͡ʒ | ɡ | ||
| Fricative | s | h | ||||
| Semivowel | w | j | ||||
| Lateral | l | |||||
| Trill | r | |||||
Notes:
Stress in Jambi Malay is divided intoword stress andsentence stress. Word stress does not distinguish meaning and usually falls on the final syllable.[24] For example:
Sentence stress generally falls on the final syllable of the last word in the sentence. For example:
Along withIndonesian,standard Malay, and otherMalayic languages, the word order in Jambi Malay is typicallysubject-verb-object (SVO). While there are notable exceptions, the grammar structure of Jambi Malay shares many similarities with Indonesian and standard Malay.
Jambi Malay has a number of affixes that can join with the base word to form an affixed word. There are three types of affixes in Jambi Malay are:prefixes,suffixes, andinfixes.[25] Similar to other Malayic languages, Jambi Malay words are composed of a root or a root plus derivational affixes. The root is the primary lexical unit of a word and is usually bisyllabic, of the shape CV(C)CV(C). Affixes are "glued" onto roots (which are either nouns or verbs) to alter or expand the primary meaning associated with a given root, effectively generating new words.
A prefix or initial affix is an affix added to the beginning of a word. Jambi Malay has nine prefixes, namelypa- ,paN- ,ma- ,maN- ,ba- ,sa- ,ta- ,di- , andka- , in which the standardIndonesian equivalents arepe- ,peN- ,me- ,meN- ,ber- ,sa- ,ta- ,di- , andka- respectively.[25] In Jambi Malay, the prefixpa- functions as a noun-forming affix. In morphological processes, the prefixpa- can signify an actor, habit, or instrument. For example:
In Jambi Malay, the prefixpaN- has various forms, namelypam-,pan-,pang-, andpany-. In morphological processes, this prefix functions can signify an actor, habit, or instrument. For example:
The prefixma- in the morphological processes of Jambi Malay functions as a verb-forming affix and signifies 'to do' or 'to perform'. For example:
The prefixmaN- in Jambi Malay has various forms, namelymam-,man-,mang- andmany-. In the morphological process, this prefix functions as a verb-forming element and has the meaning 'to do'. For example:
The prefixba- in the morphological process of Jambi Malay functions as a verbal prefix and carries the meaning 'to do or to have. The prefixba- has one variant form, namelybal-. For example:
The prefixsa- in the morphological process of Jambi Malay functions as a noun-forming element and means 'one, whole, or same. For example:
The prefixta- in the morphological process of Jambi Malay functions as a verb-forming element and means 'unintentionally or able to. For example:
The prefixdi- in the morphological process of Jambi Malay functions as a verb-forming element and means 'to perform an action'. For example:
The prefixka- in the morphological process of Jambi Malay functions as a verb-forming element. This prefix has very limited distribution. For example:
In Jambi Malay, there are three differentsuffixes:-kan, -i, and -an, which are very similar to standardIndonesian.[26] The suffix-kan in the morphological process of Jambi Malay means 'commanding or emphasizing'. For example:
The suffix-i in the morphological process of Jambi Malay also carries the meaning of 'commanding or emphasizing'. For example:
The suffix-an in the morphological process of Jambi Malay functions as a nominalizer and means 'place, tool, or result. For example:
In Jambi Malay, there are three forms ofinfixes:-al-,-aR-, and-am-. The infix-al- functions as a nominalizer and means 'tool'.[27] For example:
The infix-aR- means 'resembling' or 'like' and functions as a form for creating nouns and adjectives. For example:
The infix-am- functions as a form for creating adjectives and means 'having' or 'like'. For example:
Reduplication is the process of forming words through repetition. In Jambi Malay, reduplication can take the forms of full reduplication, partial reduplication, and sound change reduplication.[28] Full reduplication in Jambi Malay can involve nouns, verbs, adjectives, pronouns, numerals, and adverbs. Fully reduplicated words formed from nouns in the morphological process of Jambi Malay signify plural markers. For example:
Fully reduplicated words from verbs have the meaning of being aimless or random. For example:
Fully reduplicated words formed from adjectives in the morphological process of Jambi Malay have the meaning of frequent or indicate plurality. For example:
Fully reduplicated words formed from pronouns in the morphological process of Jambi Malay indicate plurality or frequency. For example:
Fully reduplicated words formed from numerals in the morphological process of Jambi Malay have the meanings of 'each' or indicate 'details'. For example:
Fully reduplicated words formed from adverbs in the morphological process of Jambi Malay indicate quality markers. For example:
Partial reduplication usually involves words with affixation. Partial reduplication in the morphological process of Jambi Malay can occur with nouns, verbs, adjectives, numerals, and adverbs. Partial reduplication formed from nouns in the morphological process of Jambi Malay signifies plural markers. For example:
Partial reduplication formed from verbs in the morphological process of Jambi Malay signifies plural markers or lack of direction. For example:
Partial reduplication formed from adjectives in the morphological process of Jambi Malay signifies plural markers, quality markers, contrived characteristics, or intentionality. For example:
Partial reduplication formed from numerals in the morphological process of Jambi Malay is not commonly found. This type of reduplication signifies plural markers or qualities. For example
Partial reduplication originating from adverbs in the morphological process of Jambi Malay is also not commonly found. This type of reduplication signifies specific times, limits, or conditions. For example:
Sound change reduplication in the morphological process of Jambi Malay occurs in nouns, verbs, and adjectives. Sound change reduplication originating from nouns in the morphological process of Jambi Malay has the meaning of 'various' or 'diverse'. For example:
Sound change reduplication originating from verbs in the morphological process of Jambi Malay signifies quality markers, plural markers, or unpredictability. For example:
Sound change reduplication originating from adjectives in the morphological process of Jambi Malay signifies quality markers or lack of direction. For example:
Nouns are a class of words that can typically function as the subject or object of a clause. This class of words is often associated with people, things, or entities that are treated as objects. Examples of nouns in Jambi Malay arejalo 'net',manggo 'mango',keries 'kris',sarap 'trash', andpasier 'sand'.[29] Examples of the usage of these words in sentences is as follows:
A noun phrase is a phrase that has the same distribution as a noun word class. Noun phrases in Jambi Malay can be seen in the following examples. Noun phrases in Jambi Malay categorically have several processes, such as noun followed by other nouns, noun followed by verbs, noun followed by numerals and noun followed by adverbs.[30] Examples of noun followed by other nouns are:
Examples of noun followed by verbs are:
Examples of noun followed by numerals are:
Examples of noun followed by adverbs are:
Verbs are a class of words that typically function as predicates. Semantically, this class of words describes an action. Examples of verbs in Jambi Malay arecari 'search',gantuong 'hang',tiduok 'sleep',mbek 'take', andbagi 'give'.[29] The usage of these words in sentences is as follows.
A verbal phrase is a phrase that has the same distribution as a verb word class. Verbal phrases in Jambi Malay can be seen in the following examples:[31]
Adjectives are words that describe nouns. Examples of adjectives in Jambi Malay arebesak 'big',baiek 'good',elok 'nice',cantiek 'pretty', andbaru 'new'.[32] The usage of these words in sentences is as follows:
Numerals are words that indicate numbers or quantities. Examples of numerals in Jambi Malay aresekok 'one',duo 'two',galo 'all',banyak 'many', anddikiet 'a few'.[33] The usage of these words in sentences includes the following:
Number phrases are phrases that have the same distribution as numerals. Numeral phrases in Jambi Malay can be seen in the following examples:[34]
Adverbs are words that describe an action or a state. Examples of adverbs in Jambi Malay includesore 'afternoon',kemaren 'yesterday',perna 'ever',kagek 'later', andsekarang 'now'.[35] The usage of these words in sentences is as follows:
Adverbial phrases are phrases that have the same distribution as adverbs. Adverbial phrases in Jambi Malay can be seen in the following examples:[36]
Pronouns are words that replace nouns or noun phrases. In Jambi Malay, these words consist ofpersonal pronouns,interrogative pronouns anddemonstrative Pronouns.[37] Personal pronouns are words that indicate persons, such assayo 'I (formal)',aku 'I (informal)',kami 'we (exclusive)',kito 'we (inclusive)',kamu 'you (semiformal)',awak 'you (informal)',kau 'you (informal)', anddio 'he/she'. Usage of the pronouns can be seen in the following example:
Interrogative pronouns are words that function as substitutes for the persons being asked about. In Jambi Malay, these words includeapo 'what' andsapo 'who'. Usage of the pronouns can be seen in the following example:
Demonstrative pronouns are words that function to indicate something. In Jambi Malay, these words includeiko 'this' anditu 'that'. Usage of the pronouns can be seen in the following example:
Due to historical contacts withJavanese people andculture, as well as the increasing influx ofmigrants fromJava, Jambi Malay has been influenced byJavanese, especially the dialect spoken inJambi City and the surrounding area. Words that have been absorbed from Javanese includegawe 'to work',kembang 'flower',buntut 'tail', andkuping 'ear'.[10] The influence of Javanese on Jambi Malay diminishes westward along theBatanghari River. Jambi Malay has also been influenced byMinangkabau, particularly the dialect spoken in western Jambi, specifically inBungo andTebo Regency, due to the proximity toWest Sumatra and the migration ofMinangkabau people from West Sumatra. Minangkabau is considered thelingua franca in western Jambi, which is why it influences the Jambi Malay spoken in that region.[10] Additionally, there are also some influences from theKerinci language in the dialects spoken inMerangin andSarolangun Regency. Jambi Malay is very similar to Kerinci and Minangkabau, though they are generally notmutually intelligible. It is estimated that up to 80% of Kerinci vocabularies has similarity with Jambi Malay, while it is estimated that 77% of Jambi Malay vocabularies has similarity with Minangkabau.[38]
Like otherregional languages in Indonesia, Jambi Malay has also received significant influences from standardIndonesian, which continues to increase, due to its status as the national language andlingua franca in official environments. Lastly, similar to Indonesian and other regional languages, there is also some limited lexical influence fromDutch, such as the wordslap 'wipe',pol 'full' (from Dutchvol), andreken 'count'.[10]
Below are examples of commonly used Jambi Malay vocabulary along with their Indonesian and English translations:
| Number | Jambi Malay | Indonesian | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | sekok | satu | one |
| 2 | duo | dua | two |
| 3 | tigo | tiga | three |
| 4 | empat | empat | four |
| 5 | limo | lima | five |
| 6 | enam | enam | six |
| 7 | tuju, tujuh | tujuh | seven |
| 8 | lapan | delapan | eight |
| 9 | semilan | sembilan | nine |
| 10 | sepuluh | sepuluh | ten |
| 11 | sebelas | sebelas | eleven |
| 20 | duo puluh | dua puluh | twenty |
| 50 | limo puluh | lima puluh | fifty |
| 100 | seghatus | seratus | one hundred |
| 500 | limo ghatus | lima ratus | five hundred |
| 1000 | seghibu | seribu | one thousand |
| 5000 | limo ghibu | lima ribu | five thousand |
| 100,000 | seghatus ghibu | seratus ribu | one hundred thousand |
| 1,000,000 | sejuto, sekok juto | sejuta, satu juta | one million |
| Jambi Malay | Indonesian | English |
|---|---|---|
| iko, ko | ini | this |
| itu, tu | itu | that |
| siko | sini | here |
| situ, sano | situ, sana | there |
| disiko | disini | over here |
| disitu, disano | disitu, disana | over there |
| kighi | kiri | left |
| kanan | kanan | right |
| atas | atas | up |
| bawah | bawah | down |
| utagho | utara | north |
| selatan | selatan | south |
| timugh | timur | east |
| barat | barat | west |
| Jambi Malay | Indonesian | English |
|---|---|---|
| aku, sayo | aku, saya | I, me |
| anda | anda | you (formal) |
| kamu, kau | kamu | you (informal) |
| dio | dia | he/she |
| kami | kami | we (exclusive) |
| kito, kita | kita | we (inclusive) |
| megheka | mereka | they/them |
| Jambi Malay | Indonesian | English |
|---|---|---|
| siapo | siapa | who |
| apo | apa | what |
| ngapo | kenapa, mengapa | why |
| mano, dimano | mana, dimana | where |
| kapan | kapan | when |
| macam mano | gimana, bagaimana | how |
| beghapo | berapa | how much |
| kalu | bila, apabila, kalau | if |
| Jambi Malay | Indonesian | English |
|---|---|---|
| aek | air | water |
| batang | pohon | tree |
| sunge | sungai | river |
| utan | hutan | forest |
| pante | pantai | beach |
| lanang, jantan | pria, laki-laki | man |
| betino | wanita, perempuan | woman |
| tana | tanah | land, ground, soil |
| jalan | jalan | road |
| kudo | kuda | horse |
| budak, anak | anak | child, kid |
| negagha | negara | country |
| sughat | surat | letter |
| Jambi Malay | Indonesian | English |
|---|---|---|
| makan | makan | eat |
| minum | minum | drink |
| tidugh | tidur | sleep |
| laghi | lari | run |
| masu, cuci | basuh, cuci | wash |
| gawe | kerja | to work |
| tegak | berdiri | to stand |
| gambagh | gambar | to draw (a picture) |
| teghbang | terbang | to fly |
| tengok | lihat, tengok | see |
| bayagh | bayar | pay |
| bausaho | berusaha | to try (an attempt) |
| ambik | ambil | take |
| Jambi Malay | Indonesian | English |
|---|---|---|
| tinggi | tinggi | tall |
| cantiek | cantik | pretty |
| elok, baiek | bagus, baik | good |
| lebagh | lebar | wide |
| lentugh | lemas, lentur | weak, frail |
| besagh, besak | besar, gede | big, large |
| litak | cape, letih | tired |
| teghang | terang | bright |
| sio-sio | sia-sia | vain |
| cipit | sipit | slit-eyed |
| lamo | lama | long (time) |
| kecik | kecil | small |
| aluos | alus | soft |
| sakiet, sakit | sakit | sick |
| bersi | bersih | clean |
| dikiet | dikit | little |
Like many other Malay varieties, Jambi Malay is written in bothLatin andJawi script (locally known as Arab-Melayu). There are slight differences between the Jawi alphabet used in Jambi Malay and the one used in standard Malay. For instance, the letter "fa" is represented by the character ف in standard Malay, whereas in Jambi Malay, the character ڤ is used instead.[15]
Historically, Jawi was the commonly used script in theMalay world before the introduction of the Latin script throughEuropean colonization. The Jawi script spread with the onset of Islamization in Southeast Asia between the 13th to 14th century. It was used in royal correspondences, decrees, as well asliterature such as poems and folklore by Malay kingdoms, becoming a traditional symbol ofMalay culture and civilization.[39] In Jambi, Jawi held a significant place in administrative and literary functions, reflecting the deep-rooted Islamic and Malay cultural heritage. However, the use of Jawi in Jambi has declined significantly due to the introduction of the Latin script by the Dutch during thecolonial period. This shift was further reinforced by the adoption ofIndonesian as the official language after Indonesia's independence, which uses the Latin alphabet. Today, the use of Jawi in Jambi is predominantly limited to older generations and cultural or ceremonial contexts.[40] It is often seen in traditional arts, cultural events, and religious contexts, serving as a reminder of the region's rich historical and cultural legacy.[15]
There have been efforts initiated by the Jambi provincial government to preserve the usage of the Jawi script. For instance, all government institutions signs in Jambi are now written in both Latin and Jawi script.[40] In addition, theUniversity of Jambi frequently conducts workshops to promote the Jawi script, alongside offering courses in Jambi Malay where students learn how to read and write using the Jawi script.[15] In certain Islamic schools in Jambi, the Jawi script is still used for religious Islamic writing and poetry, especially for writingQur'anic commentaries.[41]
Along with other Malay dialects, Jambi Malay has rich literatures that has been preserved for generations, locally known asSeloko.Seloko is a form of oral tradition that has been passed down through generations.Seloko is often presented during traditional ceremonies, such as wedding ceremonies.Seloko contains a set of norms that regulate the daily lives of its community members, with rules that, if violated, can lead to sanctions.[42] Besides containing norms with corresponding sanctions for violations,Seloko also includes advice and messages intended to guide community members towards safety in their social interactions and daily lives. These norms and pieces of advice are conveyed through expressions in the form of proverbs,pantuns (traditional Malay poetry), or aphorisms. Jambi's traditionalSeloko is not merely about proverbs, aphorisms, or pantuns, but goes deeper to represent a philosophy of life that forms the foundation of Jambi's cultural identity. A person who recitesSeloko is called aPenyeloko.[43] APenyeloko typically uses steady rhyme and meter in delivering theirSeloko, making it engaging and keeping the listeners interested.Seloko is often delivered using sentences that employ figures of speech like similes and metaphors, which means not everyone can fully grasp its meaning. Seloko is also commonly used by religious figures in Jambi to promote religious values to the local community.[44] Below are some excerpts of pantuns that originated from Jambi:
| Jambi Malay | Indonesian | English |
|---|---|---|
| Ambil lelapo di lubuk ruso Buatlah atap dari pandan. Supayo mantap menyambut puaso Mari kito saling memaafkan. | Ambil kelapa di lubuk rusa Buatlah atap dari pandan. Supaya mantap menyambut puasa Mari kita saling memaafkan. | Pick the coconut inside the deer Make a roof from pandan leaves. To ensure readiness for fasting Let us forgive one another |
The pantun above explains the value of religious character education. This information aims to ensure steadfastness and focus in carrying out fasting during the month ofRamadan and to avoid disturbances in the mind. It is advisable to forgive each other before the fasting month begins to erase sins committed in the past, whether intentional or unintentional.
| Jambi Malay | Indonesian | English |
|---|---|---|
| Apo tando parang berkarat Matonyo pepat kurang betaji. Apo tando orang beradat Bekerjo giat senang mengaji. | Apa tanda parang berkarat Matanya pepat kurang betaji. Apa tanda orang beradat Bekerja giat senang mengaji. | What are the signs of a rusty machete His eyes are flat and less pointed. What are the signs of civilized people Work hard and enjoy reading the Koran |
The pantun above also explains the value of religious character education. The quote signifies the customs of the people of Jambi, who work diligently and never give up despite their circumstances. Additionally, these people always rememberGod to avoid calamities that may befall them. Ways of remembering God include performing the five daily prayers, engaging indhikr (remembrance of God), and placing trust in God's will (tawakkal).
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