The higherregisters of the language borrow extensively fromJavanese: an old form of classical Javanese,Kawi, is used in Bali as areligious and ceremonial language, while most of Balinese speakers use the lowregister known asKapara Balinese as their everyday language.[6] Most speakers of Balinese also speakIndonesian for official and commercial purposes as well as a means to communicate with non-Balinese-speakingIndonesians.
The 2000 national census recorded 3.3 million people speakers of Balinese, however the Bali Cultural Agency estimated in 2011 that the number of people still using the Balinese language in their daily lives is under 1 million. The language has been classified as "not endangered" byGlottolog.[7]
Distribution map of the Balinese language in Bali and Java islands (red)
According to the 2000 census, the Balinese language is spoken by 3.3 million people in Indonesia, mainly concentrated on the island of Bali and the surrounding areas.
In 2011, the Bali Cultural Agency estimated that the number of people still using the Balinese language in their daily lives onBali Island does not exceed 1 million, as in urban areas their parents only introduce theIndonesian language or even English as a foreign language, while daily conversations in the institutions and the mass media have disappeared. The written form of the Balinese language is increasingly unfamiliar and most Balinese people use the Balinese language only as a means of oral communication, often mixing it with Indonesian in their daily speech. However, in the transmigration areas outside Bali Island, the Balinese language is extensively used and believed to play an important role in the survival of the language.[14]
The official spelling denotes both/a/ and final/ə/ by⟨a⟩. However,⟨a⟩ is usually pronounced[ə] when it ends a word, and[ə] occurs also in prefixesma-,pa- andda-. In non-final positions,/ə/ is denoted by ⟨e⟩.[15]
Depending on dialect, the phoneme/t/ is realized as a voicelessalveolar orretroflex stop. This is in contrast with most other languages in western Indonesia (includingStandard Indonesian), which have a dental/t/ patterning with an otherwise alveolar phoneme series.[12]
Even though most basic vocabulary in Balinese and Indonesian originates from Austronesian andSanskrit, many cognates sound quite different between languages.[16] Balinese has four differentregisters: low (basa ketah), middle (basa madia), and high (basa singgih), the uses of which depend on the relationship and status of those speaking and those being spoken about, and most of Balinese speakers use the low register also known asKapara Balinese orCommon Balinese language (fromKepara which literally means 'commonplace')[17][6]. High Balinese is not commonly used except to speak topedandas, so few are fluent in it.[18] The common mutations in inherited Balinese words are:
r > h / #_, r > h / V_V, and r > h / _#. That is, r mutates into h at the beginning of every word, the end of every word, and between any two vowels.
h > ø / !_#. The phoneme h is lost everywhere except at the ends of words.
However, these mutations are not expressed in High Balinese, indicating that High Balinese contains manyloanwords fromSanskrit and (Old)Javanese. These loanwords are identical in sound to their modern Javanese cognates, but reflect fifteenth-century usages from Old Javanese.[17]
In the standard Balinese the final orthographic-a is a schwa [ə].[19][20]
Basic Vocabulary Comparison
English
Low Balinese
High Balinese
Indonesian
Old Javanese
Javanese
this
ené
niki
ini
iki
iki (ngoko),punika (krama)
that
ento
nika
itu
ika
iku,kuwi, (ngoko),menika (krama)
here
dini
driki
di sini
kéné (ngoko),
mriki,ngriki (krama)
there
ditu
drika
di sana,di situ
kana (ngoko),
mriku,ngriku,mrika,ngrika (krama)
what
apa
napi
apa
apa (ngoko)
punapa,menapa (krama)
human
manusa,jelema
jadma
manusia
jadma
uwong, manungsa (ngoko)
tiyang,jalma (krama)
hair
bok
rambut
rambut
rambut
rambut (ngoko),rikma (krama)
fire
api
gni
api
gĕni
geni
child
panak
pianak,oka
anak
anak (ngoko)
putra,siwi (krama)
life
idup
urip
hidup
urip
urip (ngoko),gesang (krama)
to drink
nginem
nginem
minum
manginum
ngombé (ngoko),ngunjuk (krama)
big
gedé
ageng
besar,gede
gĕḍe
gedhé (ngoko),ageng (krama)
new
baru
anyar
baru
(h)añar
anyar (ngoko),énggal (krama)
day
wai
rahina
hari
rahina
dina (ngoko), dinten (krama)
sun
matan ai
surya
matahari
surya
sréngéngé (ngoko),surya (krama)
lake
danu
tlaga
danau
ranu
tlaga,ranu
egg
taluh
taluh
telur
ĕṇḍog
endhog (ngoko),tigan (krama)
friend
timpal
suwitra
teman
kañca, mitra, sakhā
kanca, kenalan, mitra
to sightsee
melali-lali
malelancaran
tamasya
name
adan
parab,wastan
nama
(h)aran,parab
aran, jeneng (ngoko),wasta (krama),asma (krama inggil)
The numerals 1–10 have basic, combining, and independent forms, many of which are formed throughreduplication. The combining forms are used to form higher numbers. In some cases there is more than one word for a numeral, reflecting the Balineseregister system;halus (high-register) forms are listed in italics.
In the standard Balinese the final orthographic-a is a schwa [ə].[19][20]
Like English, Balinese has compound forms for the teens and tens; however, it also has a series of compound 'tweens', 21–29. The teens are based on a root*-welas, the tweens on-likur, and the tens are formed by the combining forms above. Hyphens are not used in the orthography, but have been added to the table below to clarify their derivation.
Unit
Teens
Tweens
Tens
1
solas 11
se-likur 21
(a-dasa 10)
2
rolas 12
dua-likur 22
duang-dasa 20
kalih-likur
kalih-dasa
3
telu-las 13
telu-likur 23
telung-dasa 30
tigang-likur
tigang-dasa
4
pat-belas 14
pat-likur 24
petang-dasa 40
5
lim-olas 15
salaé 25
seket 50
6
nem-belas 16
nem-likur 26
nem-dasa 60
7
pitu-las 17
pitu-likur 27
pitung-dasa 70
8
pelekutus 18
ulu-likur 28
kutus-dasa, ulung-dasa 80
9
siang-olas 19
sanga-likur 29
sia-dasa, sangang-dasa 90
The high-register combining formskalih- 2 andtigang- 3 are used with-likur, -dasa, and higher numerals (below), but not for the teens.
The teens are from Javanese, where the-olas forms are regular, apart frompele-kutus 18, which issuppletive.Sa-laé 25 (one thread [of 25Chinese coins]), andse-ket 50 (one tie [of two threads of coins]) are also suppletive, and cognate with Javanesesəlawé 25 andsəkət 50.
There are additional numeralspasasur ~ sasur 35 andse-timahan ~ se-timan 45 (one opium packet [costing 45 coins]), and a compoundtelung-benang (three threads [of coins]) for 75.
* A less productive combining form ofa- 1 issa-, as can be seen in many of the numbers below. It,ulung-, andsangang- are fromJavanese.Tiga 3 is from Sanskrittrika.Dasa 10 is from Sanskritdaśa.
The unit combining forms are combined withatus 100,atak 200,amas 400,tali 1000,laksa 10,000,keti 100,000, andyuta 1,000,000 as they do withdasa 10:
100
s-atus
200
s-atak
300
telung-atus(tigang-atus)
400
s-amas
500
limang-atus
600
telung-atak(tigang-atak)
700
pitung-atus
800
domas ( ← *dua-amas or *ro-amas)
900
sanga
1000
siu
1200
(e)nem-bangsit
2000
duang-tali(kalih-tali)
1,000,000
a-yuta
Atak is a 'bundle' (of 200 coins) andamas is 'gold' (a gold coin being worth 400 copper coins). In addition, there iskarobelah 150,lebak 175, andsepa (onepa?) for 1600. At leastkarobelah has a cognate in Javanese,ro-bəlah, wherero- is the short form for two (as inrolas 12).
Kinship terms can be used as pronouns. If these pronouns are used asagents, they refer to either the speaker or the listener, depending on context.[21] Though first and second person pronouns need no antecedent to be understood, third person pronouns do.[22]
^abThe suffix-an can be added to make the expression indefinite. If-an is added,di is obligatory, unless the suffixed adverb is prefixed withibi.
For present tense, the adverbjani ("now") can be either definite or indefinite depending on context. Its more emphatic form,jani san ("right now"), is definite. The indefinite wordajanian ("up to now") refers to any time before or during the utterance.
^ When used withoutbuin, this expression can be indefinite without modification.
^abcThe suffix-an can be added to make the expression indefinite.
The wordbuin/bin ("again") is obligatory forpuan andtelun to clarify that they are not being used for their past tense meanings.Mani,manian, andpuan can all be prefixed withmani to refer to the future.[citation needed]
Of the two dative suffixes,-ang and-in,[18] the latter should be used if the object is animate.[24] The suffix-né / -é marks nouns for bothdefiniteness andpossession.[23]
Nouns come before their modifiers, and are often marked with adeictic word,ento 'that' orené 'this,'" to show that any modifiers act as modifiers instead of as verbs. The definite marker can also be attached to modifiers, especially any which conveys "an inherent property of its referent."[22] Adjectives following possessive (and therefore definite) nouns function aspredicative, while adjectives following unmarked nouns function as attributive.[23]
Two types ofserial verb constructions occur in Balinese. Both verbs are always fully inflected, but in the first type, the verbs have the same agent, whereas in the second, the object of the first verb is the subject of the second.[25]
The word order is similar to that ofIndonesian, and verb and nouninflectionalmorphology is similarly minimal. However,derivational morphology is extensive, and suffixes are applied to indicate definite or indefinite articles, and optionally to indicatepossession.[15]
The default, unmarked word order of Balinese isPatient VerbAgent. If the agent is a third person pronoun, it is attached to the verb as theclitic suffix-a.
This default word order can be reversed (Agent Verb Patient) with a nasal prefix on the verb. The nasal-marked word order cannot be anactive construction, because it is marked, nor can it beantipassive, because the patient can't be omitted. It is considered a second type oftransitive voice.
There is a true passive voice (Patient Verb Agent) borrowed fromJavanese and marked by the verbal prefixka-. It is used mostly in high registers. If the agent of this passive construction is third-person, it must be preceded by apreposition. If it is not third-person, it cannot be preceded by a preposition.
The second true passive voice (Patient Verb), marked by the verbal prefixma-, always omits the agent. It connotes a complete event and is only available to some verbs.[21]
Balinese has 2 main dialects, the Highland dialect and the Lowland dialect. The difference between the two dialects lies in the variety of vocabulary, phonology, and usage of register (e.g. High register vs. Low register). Highland dialect, also referred as Bali Aga dialect, has fewer high register variations, while the lowland dialect recognises both high register and low register.[26][27]
Distribution map of Highland Balinese languages (the map does not show the distribution in Badung and Tabanan regencies)
The highland dialect, also known as Bali Aga [dialect] is a dialect of the Balinese language spoken by theBali Aga people in mountainous areas and northern part ofBali, especially in the mountain range ofKintamani, and regencies nearby such asBangli,Buleleng, andKarangasem, as well inNusa Penida.[26] According to Bawa (1983:394), the highland dialect is grouped into three main usage areas, namely the eastern, northern, and western regions which are detailed as follows:
Overall, there are two Highland sub-dialects that are distinct from varieties spoken in the area mentioned. Those sub-dialects areNusa Penida dialect, spoken mostly inNusa Penida, and Kapara dialect (also called asBali Kapara) notably spoken inSembiran village,Tejakula District,Buleleng Regency with an estimated 4,883 users.[26] Nusa Penida dialect was thought to be a different dialect, but there is some indication thatNusa Penida dialect might be a sub-dialect of the highland dialect. According to Jendra, et al. (1997), both Nusa Penida and Highland dialects share the same phonological pattern as explained below:[28]
presences of/h/ in the middle of word, such as in/bəhas/;[1]
the intonation of speakers' speech tends to have a fast tempo andlouder stress
However, there are other notable differences between the two dialects, namely theabsence or reduction of the distribution of the phoneme/a/ in word-final positions.
Currently, the Nusa Penida dialect is widely used only inNusa Penida inKlungkung Regency. However, it is important to note that not all communities in Nusa Penida use the Nusa Penida dialect. There are several groups of people who communicate using different dialects. On the islands ofNusa Lembongan andNusa Ceningan, which are located next to Nusa Penida, as well as in a small part of Nusa Penida close to these islands, there is a distinct dialect that is quite different from the Nusa Penida dialect. One of the most striking differences is in words likeéda (you) andkola (I) in the Nusa Penida dialect. Speakers of the Nusa Lembongan dialect use words likecai orci (you) andcang (I). Another example isəndək (Nusa Penida dialect) andtusing orsing' (Nusa Lembongan dialect),géléng-cenik,hangkén-kénkén, and so on.[28] Only 13 out of 16 villages in Nusa Penida use the Nusa Penida dialect. The remaining villages either speak the Nusa Lembongan dialect or a dialect resembling mainland Klungkung Balinese.[28]
The Nusa Penida dialect is also used outside Nusa Penida, mainly due to the migration of its speakers following the eruption ofMount Agung in 1963. Significant speakers relocated to southernSumatra, particularly toBandar Lampung,Palembang,Mesuji, andSouth Lampung.
The Balinese script (Aksara Bali,ᬅᬓ᭄ᬱᬭᬩᬮᬶ), which is arranged asHanacaraka (ᬳᬦᬘᬭᬓ), is anabugida, ultimately derived from theBrāhmī script ofIndia. The earliest known inscriptions date from the 9th century AD.[29]
Few people today are familiar with the Balinese script.[30] The Balinese script is almost the same as theJavanese script.
Schools in Bali today teach a Latin alphabet known asTulisan Bali.[18] The standard alphabet is as follow:[31]
Letter
Name (Balinese)
IPA
Diacritics
A, a
a [a]
/a/
–
B, b
bé [be]
/b/
–
C, c
cé [ce]
/t͡ʃ/
–
D, d
dé [de]
/d/
–
E, e
é [e]
/e/ or /ə/
é
F, f
éf [ef]
/f/
–
G, g
gé [ge]
/g/
–
H, h
ha [ha]
/h/
–
I, i
i [i]
/i/
–
J, j
jé [d͡ʒe]
/d͡ʒ/
–
K, k
ka [ka]
/k/
–
L, l
él [el]
/l/
–
M, m
ém [em]
/m/
–
N, n
én [en]
/n/
–
O, o
o [o]
/o/
–
P, p
pé [pe]
/p/
–
Q, q
ki [ki]
/k/ (loanwords)
–
R, r
ér [er]
/r/
–
S, s
és [es]
/s/
–
T, t
té [te]
/t/
–
U, u
u [u]
/u/
–
V, v
fé [fe]
/f/ (loanwords)
–
W, w
wé [we]
/w/
–
X, x
éks [eks]
/ks/ (loanwords)
–
Y, y
yé [je]
/j/
–
Z, z
zét [zet]
/z/ (loanwords)
–
The Balinese spelling system using Latin letters was implemented in 1974. This spelling system was implemented after the government established theImproved Spelling System (Eyd) for Indonesian in 1972. The purpose of implementing the EyD Bali Latin was to standardize the Balinese language without eliminating its unique characteristics. The EyD Bali Latin is based on the 26-letter Latin alphabet with 1diacritic namelyé. Several consonants such as /f/, /kh/, /q/, /sy/, /v/, /z/, /x/ are used to write foreign loanwords.[32]
Sami manusané sané nyruwadi wantah mardéka tur maduwé kautamaan lan hak-hak sané pateh. Sami kalugrähin papineh lan idep tur mangdané paḍa masawitra melarapan semangat pakulawargaan.
IPA
/ˈsami manʊˈsane ˈsane ɲruˈwadi ˈwantaʰ mərˈdɛka tur maˈduwe kawtaˈmaan lan hakˈhak ˈsane ˈpatəh//ˈsami kaluˈgrahin paˈpineh lan iˈdəp tur maŋˈdane ˈpadə masaˈwitrə məlaˈrapan səmaˈŋat pakulawraˈgaan/
Sound sample
English
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.[33]
^1 In Balinese script,Sanskrit andKawi loanwords tend use conservative orthography as standard form in Balinese script. The word for language,basa, in Balinese is a loanword fromOld Javanesebhāṣa which came from the Sanskrit wordभाषाbhāṣā, hence it is written according to Sanskrit and Old Javanese spellingᬪᬵᬱᬩᬮᬶ in Balinese script. Theᬩᬲᬩᬮᬶ form in Balinese script is used by beginner writers. Meanwhile, diacritics are not written in the current romanization of the Balinese language. Thus, bothᬪᬵᬱᬩᬮᬶ andbasa Bali are the standard forms.
^abTryon, Darrell T. (June 2011).Comparative Austronesian Dictionary: An Introduction to Austronesian Studies. De Gruyter. p. 497.ISBN978-3-11-088401-2.
^abClynes, Adrian (1995).Topics in the Phonology and Morphosyntax of Balinese (PhD thesis). Australian National University.doi:10.25911/5d77865d38e15.hdl:1885/10744.
^Adelaar, K. Alexander (2005). "The Austronesian languages of Asia and Madagascar: a historical perspective". In Adelaar, K. Alexander; Himmelmann, Nikolaus (eds.).The Austronesian languages of Asia and Madagascar. London: Routledge. pp. 1–42.
^abcUmiyati, Mirsa; Darmawan, Ida Bagus Yoga Danu; Sujaya, Nyoman. "The Grammatical Behaviour of Balinese Adjectives on Phrases and Clauses".Linguistics Program, Warmadewa University.
^Sukarini; Indrawati, Mas. "The Balinese Serial Verb Construction and Their Equivalences in English".Global Journal of Interdisciplinary Social Sciences.ISSN2319-8834.
^Beratha, Ni Luh Sutjiati (1992).Evolution of Verbal Morphology in Balinese (PhD thesis). Australian National University.doi:10.25911/5d7786429c1ff.hdl:1885/109364.
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