Tenggerese
Tengger Javanese
Basa Tengger ꦧꦱꦠꦼꦁꦒꦼꦂ
Pronunciation	[basatəŋgəɾ]
Native to	Indonesia (East Java)
Region	Areas surroundingBromo Tengger Semeru National Park inPasuruan Regency,Probolinggo Regency,Malang Regency, andLumajang Regency
Ethnicity	Tenggerese people
Native speakers	30,000 (2008)[1]
Language family	Austronesian Malayo-Polynesian Javanese Tenggerese
Early form	Old Javanese
Writing system	Latin (Javanese alphabet) Javanese
Language codes
ISO 639-3	tes
Glottolog	teng1272
Areas where Tenggerese is spoken by a majority of the population   Areas where Tenggerese is spoken by a significant minority of the population
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Tenggerese (Tenggerese: ꦧꦱꦠꦼꦁꦒꦼꦂ,Basa Tengger), sometimes referred to asTengger Javanese, is a dialect ofJavanese spoken by theTenggerese people, a subgroup of theJavanese who live in villages located in the mountainous areas surrounding theBromo Tengger Semeru National Park, administratively within the regencies ofPasuruan,Probolinggo,Malang, andLumajang inEast Java,Indonesia. The language differs significantly from modern Javanese, as it retains many features ofKawi, or Old Javanese, particularly in its phonology and vocabulary—a result of the geographic isolation of its speakers.^[2] Some linguists, however, consider Tenggerese a descendant of the ancient Kawi language, as it preserves archaic vocabulary no longer found in modern Javanese.^[3] The language differs markedly from the Arekan Javanese dialect spoken in the surrounding regions and is more closely related to theOsing language ofBanyuwangi, which likewise preserves many features of Kawi.^[4]

In the Tenggerese villages within the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park, the Tenggerese language remains widely spoken as a means of daily communication and continues to be used in cultural practices and rituals such as ancestral worships.^[5] The Tengger language consists of several varieties and isolects that may differ between villages in vocabulary and grammar, largely due to geographic separation.^[6] In recent times, it has been increasingly influenced by the Arekan dialect of Javanese, which is widely spoken in East Java, as well as byIndonesian, the national language of Indonesia, particularly in formal domains such as education. Today, most Tenggerese people are bilingual or even trilingual.^[7] Code-switching between Tenggerese, Arekan Javanese, and Indonesian is common among the Tenggerese-speaking community, particularly in interactions with non-Tenggerese speakers.^[8]

In local terminology, the Tengger language is known asCārabasa Tengger orPiwākyan Tengger. The wordcārabasa is thought to be a blend of theOld Javanese termsuccāraṇa andbhāṣa (fromSanskrit), meaning "word expression." Meanwhile, the termpiwākyan, derived from the Old Javanese wordwākya, carries the meaning "voice expression." The nameTengger itself refers to the ethnonym of the indigenous inhabitants of theTengger Mountains and surrounding areas. The Tengger people call their languagebasa dhuwur 'high language' or Tengger Javanese, while the East Javanese dialect of Javanese (Arekan) is referred to asbasa ngisor 'low language', a dialect spoken by communities living in the lowlands below the Tengger highlands.^[9] This distinction reflects the fact that all Tengger settlements are located at higher elevations compared to those of the Arekan Javanese.^[9]

Linguistically, the Tengger language is classified as a dialect ofJavanese, which belongs to theMalayo-Polynesian branch of theAustronesian language family. Like other modern Javanese dialects, Tengger Javanese is derived from Middle Javanese, although it has retained a number of archaic lexical items. Genealogically, Tengger Javanese is part of the Eastern Javanese variety and is related to other Eastern Javanese dialect groups, particularly the Arekan dialect cluster (such as the Gresik and Malang–Surabaya dialects), as well as theOsing language. Unlike speakers of the Osing language, who reject the idea that Osing is a Javanese dialect, Tenggerese speakers openly acknowledge that their language is a dialect of Javanese.^[10]

Tenggerese is primarily spoken by theTenggerese people who inhabit areas in and around theBromo Tengger Semeru National Park inEast Java, which is administratively divided among the regencies ofPasuruan,Probolinggo,Malang, andLumajang. Tenggerese villages are concentrated in eastern Malang, southern Pasuruan, southwestern Probolinggo, and northwestern Lumajang. The Tengger people form the majority population in Tosari District (Pasuruan) and Sukapura District (Probolinggo). They are also found in several other villages, including Ledokombo, Pandansari, and Wonokerso in Sumber District (Probolinggo); Keduwung in Puspo District (Pasuruan); Kayu Kebek and Ngadirejo in Tutur District (Pasuruan); Ngadas in Poncokusumo District (Malang); as well as Argosari and Ranu Pani in Senduro District (Lumajang).^[11] Of all the villages, only Ngadas and Ranu Pani fall within the boundaries of the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park, and are therefore designated as protected conservation areas.^[12] Most of the Tengger villages are located in mountainous and rugged terrain at elevations of up to 2,100 meters above sea level.^[12] Their relative isolation—from one another as well as from the outside world—has not only helped preserve the language but also fostered noticeable variation in Tenggerese across different villages.^[13]

Tenggerese is the primary language used in daily communication within the Tengger community. It is mostly employed in informal and semi-formal settings, such as conversations with family and friends or in village meetings. In formal contexts, such as schools, Standard Javanese andIndonesian are generally used, although Tenggerese may also be spoken when the teachers are native Tengger speakers.^[10] The language also plays an important role in cultural life, being used in traditional ceremonies and rituals, particularly in the recitation of mantras and oral literature such as folktales. Traditional Tengger ceremonies, including weddings, continue to be conducted in Tenggerese. Tenggerese speakers, especially adults, are generally bilingual or trilingual. They are proficient in Tenggerese and Arekan Javanese (basa ngisor). Tenggerese is used in communication among fellow Tengger people, whilebasa ngisor is employed when speaking with non-Tengger Javanese. Althoughcode-switching occurs when necessary, Tenggerese remains the consistent medium of communication within the community, even in the presence of outsiders.^[14] In addition, most speakers are fluent in Indonesian, the national language, and many also have competence inEnglish, due to theBromo Tengger Semeru National Park being a major tourist destination frequently visited by international travelers.^[15]

Tengger villages in and around theBromo Tengger Semeru National Park are geographically separated by mountain slopes and forests, making them difficult to access. This isolation has contributed to the development of variations in the Tenggerese language, particularly in phonology and vocabulary. Nevertheless, these local differences are relatively minor, and the varieties remainmutually intelligible.^[14] The variety most commonly regarded as the “standard” is that of Ngadisari village in Sukapura,Probolinggo.^[14]

There are minor vocabulary differences among the various Tenggerese villages. For example, the wordreyang 'I (male speaker)' is used in Ngadisari as a subject pronoun. In Ngadas village inMalang, however, although the word is known, it is never used; instead, the formeyang 'I (male speaker)' is employed, both as a subject and as a possessive suffix. Thus, the sentenceReyang kate nang pasar 'I want to go to the market', as spoken in Ngadisari, would be expressed in Ngadas asEyang kate nang pasar. Another difference can be seen in the imperative form. In Ngadisari, the formgawanen 'bring [it]' is used consistently, whereas in Ngadas it becomesgawaen. Similarly, the Ngadisari formnak gawa 'bring [it]' corresponds tonik gawa in Ngadas.^[16] Certain Tenggerese varieties have also come under the influence of the Arekan dialect of Javanese, as reflected in the adoption of loanwords.^[13]

Phonological differences can be observed among the Tenggerese varieties spoken in different villages. InPasuruan Regency, for example, the speech of Ngadirejo differs systematically from that of Mororejo. In Ngadirejo, the word for ‘you’ issiro /sirɔ/, while in Mororejo it issira /sira/, showing a difference in the vowel phoneme. Similarly, in Ngadirejo the numeral ‘six’ isenem /ǝnǝm/, whereas Mororejo speakers usenenem /nǝnǝm/, which involves the addition of an extra syllable. A comparable pattern can be seen in the word for ‘sick’, which appears asloro /lɔrɔ/ in Ngadirejo but aslara /lara/ in Mororejo.^[6]

Tenggerese, like many otherregional languages in Indonesia, lacks a standardized phonological system. Nevertheless, many of the phonological system designed for Tenggerese is loosely based on standardIndonesian orthography, especially the system created by the IndonesianMinistry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology.

LikeStandard Javanese, Tenggerese has six vowels. These vowels are /i/, /e/, /ə/, /a/, /u/, and /o/.^[17]

Notes:

• In writing,/e/ and/ə/ are both represented as⟨e⟩.

Tenggerese has 20 consonants.^[18]

Notes: In writing, the following phonemes are represented as thus:

• /ŋ/ is⟨ng⟩
• /ɲ/ is⟨ny⟩
• /t͡ʃ/ is⟨c⟩
• /d͡ʒ/ is⟨j⟩
• /j/ is⟨y⟩
• /ʈ/ is⟨ṭ⟩ or⟨th⟩
• /ɖ/ is⟨ḍ⟩ or⟨dh⟩

A few examples of words in Tenggerese:

When the letter "A" is read as "O" in modern Javanese, in Tenggerese it is still read as "A".^[19]

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