Hadi a.k.a tianggol had commented, quoting historians that the three Malay words are kayu (wood), batu (stone) and babi (pig) with some historians proving that padi(rice grain) is also a malay word. Now (in year 2003), a prasasti (writings/carvings monoliths on stones) excavated in Vietnam (known before as Champa) dated 4th century A.D. has revealed that the three words are Tanah (soil), Besi (steel) and Babi (INTAN,1992). Few more historians also went so far to believe that the "only-three-words" doctrine were mooted by orientalists to suppression purposes of the people of the 'Nusantara' (Nusanatara consisting of countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia, Southern Thailand, Taiwan, to Hawaii and to Madagascar). Their claim is backed by the inscriptions dated 684 A.D., where 120 species of plants were deciphered from ancient Malay proverbs (Mohamazain,2003), which would only mean that original Malay words are in fact, in abundance.
hi.. i dont know how true is this fact is? maybe someone can try to do a deep research on this :-
The Malays are originally from Sumatera, Indonesia. They 'run' from Sumatera to Tanah Melayu and settledown till today. They are actually the immigrants and the meaning of word "malay" is "run". (this was told by some of the old folks in my hometown)..
Personally, i dont think malay have their original word as claimed because The Malay language as we know it today is already fully impregnated and enriched with many foreign words. This is good. Malay, therefore, has been a bahasa rojak from early times itself.
The very word “Melayu” itself is most probably of Indian origin from the words “Malai Ur,” which means land of mountains in Tamil. Singapur, Nagapur and Indrapur are very common Indian names that have similar backgrounds.
The early Indians were probably inspired by the main mountain range that looks like a backbone for the Malay peninsula and thus named it Malaiur. The word “malai” is undoubtedly Indian in origin as is the case with the word Himalayas and we all know where it is situated.
The English word “Malaya” is a further corruption of the word by the British who themselves are very good at corrupting the pronunciation and spelling of and changing the names of indigenous places worldwide to suit their tongue’s capability. The Malay word “Melayu” with the missing “r “ is closer to the original name “Malaiur”.
To my knowledge, the hundreds of Malay words of Indian origin have not been catalogued by anyone except perhaps the noted Malay scholar Zaaba. Even if such an effort has been made, it is definitely not widely known or ever published.
Many Malay words, from describing Malay royalty (Raja, Putera, Puteri, Maha, Mulia, Seri, etc) and common everyday terms (bakti, suami, cuma, dunia, bumi, jendela, serpu, kerana), all have Indian connections. The undeniable Indian connection in the word “Indonesia” is also reflected in the name itself.
TWO of the most common words in Malay language are Abang and Awang, which are unique as they were also used as honorary titles, which then become a mark of hereditary for some groups in Brunei Darussalam and Sarawak. In Sarawak, Abang is a special title given to those who were descendants of the original Abang only. This is the same for the word Awang, which is used for those of Awang lineage.
These two titles, he said, actually originated from the palace, or were awarded to a king to accredit his duties or services. In addition, men who worked in the palace were known as Awang-Awang. In Brunei, the word awang functioned as a title or a signature of a male name. The word has the same meaning as Encik in Malaysia, Bapak in Indonesia or 'Mister' in English. However, its usage is still limited in a formal situation or in writings.
In an informal situation, the word will only be uttered to someone younger or of the same age. It would be considered to be rude if it was uttered to someone older or of a higher position.
Meanwhile, the use of the word abang is no difference from those used in other places within the Malay world. It is taken to mean an older man, or a wife's name for her husband.
The Majapahit Empire used Jawa as their ruling language. Although the Malay language had been used as the main medium in the Malay archipelago, bit and pieces of this ruling language would dissipate into the people of the countries under its control at that time.
The historical relation between Brunei and Sarawak began for a long time, in which Sarawak was once under the ruling of Brunei. Due to the mobility of its people, it would influenced the language.
From the angle of language, it can be proven that abang is an original Malay word, while awang was a borrowed word from Jawa. Sarawak, had managed to maintain the word abang due to the influence of Brunei empire.
The word awang was said to be borrowed from Jawa, might be due to the relationship between the two empires, either from Jawa directly from other countries under the control of Majapahit.
Sample of some major Malay dialects English = Where are you going on the bicycle? May I follow you?
Standard Malay (formal) = Ke mana anda hendak pergi dengan basikal itu? Bolehkah saya ikut? Indonesian (formal) = Ke mana kamu akan pergi dengan sepeda itu? Bolehkah/boleh saya ikut? Indonesian (informal) = Lu mau naik sepada ke mana? Boleh ikut nggak? Minangkabau = Kau andak pai kama jo sapedo tu? Buliah ikuik indak? Palembang = Kau nak pergi ke mano ngan sepedo tu? Pacak melok dak? Terengganu = Mung nok gi mane naik basikal? Buleh ikut? Kelantan = Mu nok gi ma'no naik basika tuh? Buleh aku ikut? Penang = Hang nak pi mana naik basikal tu?Aku ikut boleh tak? Kedah = Hang nak pi mana naik gerek tu? Aku ikut buleh dak? Negeri Sembilan = Ekau nak poie mano naik basikal tu? Boleh den ikut? Brunei = Kamana kau babasikal ah? Bulih ku turut? Sarawak = Ke sine kitak maok make basikal? boleh sik kamik ngekot? Sabah = Mana ko mo pigi sama itu beskal? Buli sia ikut ka?" Singapore = Ke mana awak hendak pergi dengan basikal itu? Boleh saya ikut?
I , at first, had mixed opinions about this one. I understand that it is quite a popular rumour ( i say rumour because apparently there aren't many research on the subject),and it seems logical because even today alot of malay words are derived from other languages.But surely, malays have more than 3 original words, since malays did have their own heriacy of royalty. But this brings us to a dead end because even the word raja is derived from sanskrit, and most of the classic malay words like bendahara, istana are from other origins.
First i searched for the 3 original words, and i found out from a website that it was batu, api and babi, but unfourtunately there wasn't any other additional information on the original words. So,next i searched for Malay words in the english language. and here is the list of words i found:
Agar (also 'agar-agar') a gelatinous substance obtained from various kinds of red seaweed and used in biological culture media and as a thickener in foods.
Amok ('berserk'), as in 'to run amok'
Bamboo from bambu
Banteng from "banteng", 'a SE Asian forest ox that resembles the domestic cow, domesticated in Bali [Bos javanicus.]'
Caddy from kati (a measurement unit, whereby 1 kati = approximately 600 g)
Cockatoo from kakak or sister and tua or older (burung kakaktua lit. the elder sister bird))
Compound (enclosed group of buildings) by folk etymology from kampung or 'village'
Cooties from kutu, 'lice'
Dammar from damar, 'resin; resin obtained
from various mainly Indo-Malaysian trees, used to make varnish.'
Dugong from duyung, 'mermaid'
Durian from duri 'thorns', hence
durian, 'thorny'
Gambier from gambir(the name of the plant), an astringent extract of a tropical Asian plant, used in tanning'
Gecko from geko,gekok
Gingham from ginggang
Gutta-percha (a type of tree whose sap is used in the manufacture of synthetic rubber) from getah, 'rubber' and perca, 'scrap/piece'; hence getah perca, 'a scrap/piece of rubber'
Junk (type of boat) from jong
Kapok from kapuk, 'a fine fibrous substance which grows around the seeds of a ceiba or silk-cotton tree, used as stuffing for cushions'
Kapur from kapur a large tropical tree which yields light brown wood, edible fruit, and camphor [Genus Dryobalanops.]
Komodo from komodo
Kris (also archaic 'creese') from keris, 'a Malay/Indonesian dagger with a wavy-edged blade'
Mangosteen from manggustan
Meranti from meranti, 'white, red, or yellow hardwood from a SE Asian tree (genus Shorea)'
Merbau from merbau, 'the hardwood of a SE Asian tree (genus Intsia)'
Orangutan from orang hutan or 'people of the jungle'
paddy as in 'paddy-field' or 'rice paddy', from padi, referring to the rice plant Oryza sativa.
Pandanus from pandan, 'a tropical tree or shrub with a twisted stem, long spiny leaves, and fibrous edible fruit.[Genus Pandanus.]' Pangolin from pengguling, 'one that rolls/curls'
Parang from parang, 'a Malayan machete',
Proa (also 'prahu' or 'prau') from perahu, 'a Malaysian or Indonesian sailing boat, typically having a large triangular sail and an outrigger'
Rambutan from rambut 'hair', hence rambutan, 'hairy'
Ramie from rami, 'the plant of the nettle family which yields this fibre, native to tropical Asia. [Boehmeria nivea.]' Rattan from rotan
Sago from sagu, '(sago palm) the palm from which most sago is obtained, growing in freshwater swamps in SE Asia. [Metroxylon sagu.]; any of a number of other palms or cycads which yield a similar starch. ' Sarong from sarung, 'wrap/sheath'
Satay (also 'sate') from Malay satai,
Javanese/Indonesian "sate", 'an Indonesian and Malaysian dish consisting of small pieces of meat grilled on a skewer and served with spiced sauce.'
Trepang from teripang/trepang
Since these words are recognised malay words in the english language, i think it is safe to conclude that the malay language does not only have 3 original words.
G.vijaya According to my research one well-known historian has pointed out that only three Malay words are exclusively Malay: kayu (wood), batu (stone) and babi (pig). While, another historian has added padi (rice field) and two or three other words to that list. Most Malay words came from other languages including Sanskrit, Arabic, Javanese, Portuguese and English. For many centuries Malays have had a flair for adopting foreign words and adapting them to suit their language needs. A closer look at the English words in the above list shows that while some of them are in their original English form (bank, hospital, and hotel), this is only because their spelling suits Malay conventions of spelling and pronunciation. Other words are altered to reflect these conventions, and these alterations make the words uniquely Malay despite their English origins. This is the case of the word bajet, which has prompted some purists to question why the government didn't use the Malay term, anggaran belanja (at least I think that's the official term, I'll have to check a dictionary). The government has explained that the old term does not adequately express the exact meaning of a budget being tabled by the government, so the English word has been adopted, albeit in a modified form.
For more than a thousand years the Malays owed their civilization to Hindus.Pse refer to Malaya and its History by Richard Winstedt who was formely the Malayan Civil Service and Reader in Malay in the University of London.
Well to me if you strip off the Austronesian roots of Malay of course it'll leave just 2 or 3 words left that are pure Malay.. I mean probably most of everyday word for stuff that Pre-Indian/Arabic/English Malays had are Purely Malay..If you strip down English from everything including German Roots you'll be left with almost exactly 2-3 words that are purely English.. I mean I think the word Aku/saya(I/Me) and Engkau/Kamu/Awak (you) are pure Malay(Not Stripping out the Austronesian Roots) in a sense.. If you chose to purify a language with no roots at all.. that's crazy talk.. For me,I just don't like foreign words to be just borrowed in like it's not a big deal.. albeit English,Portugese,Dutch,Sanskrit,Arabic,Tamil,and other foreign languages.. Austronesian languages have the similar words because they're a family group, much like Romance ,Slavic or Germanic languages.. They all have the same root meaning they may have similar words and phrases and denying that fact is just Idiocy..
Hadi a.k.a tianggol had commented, quoting historians that the three Malay words are kayu (wood), batu (stone) and babi (pig) with some historians proving that padi(rice grain) is also a malay word. Now (in year 2003), a prasasti (writings/carvings monoliths on stones) excavated in Vietnam (known before as Champa) dated 4th century A.D. has revealed that the three words are Tanah (soil), Besi (steel) and Babi (INTAN,1992). Few more historians also went so far to believe that the "only-three-words" doctrine were mooted by orientalists to suppression purposes of the people of the 'Nusantara' (Nusanatara consisting of countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia, Southern Thailand, Taiwan, to Hawaii and to Madagascar). Their claim is backed by the inscriptions dated 684 A.D., where 120 species of plants were deciphered from ancient Malay proverbs (Mohamazain,2003), which would only mean that original Malay words are in fact, in abundance.
ReplyDeleteHmm,interesting...this is the meaning of research...you've nailed it Hadi....
ReplyDeleteWhat's happening?No comments?Hmmm...will give you guys till the end of this week...
ReplyDeletehi.. i dont know how true is this fact is? maybe someone can try to do a deep research on this :-
ReplyDeleteThe Malays are originally from Sumatera, Indonesia. They 'run' from Sumatera to Tanah Melayu and settledown till today. They are actually the immigrants and the meaning of word "malay" is "run". (this was told by some of the old folks in my hometown)..
Personally, i dont think malay have their original word as claimed because The Malay language as we know it today is already fully impregnated and enriched with many foreign words. This is good. Malay, therefore, has been a bahasa rojak from early times itself.
ReplyDeleteThe very word “Melayu” itself is most probably of Indian origin from the words “Malai Ur,” which means land of mountains in Tamil. Singapur, Nagapur and Indrapur are very common Indian names that have similar backgrounds.
ReplyDeleteThe early Indians were probably inspired by the main mountain range that looks like a backbone for the Malay peninsula and thus named it Malaiur. The word “malai” is undoubtedly Indian in origin as is the case with the word Himalayas and we all know where it is situated.
The English word “Malaya” is a further corruption of the word by the British who themselves are very good at corrupting the pronunciation and spelling of and changing the names of indigenous places worldwide to suit their tongue’s capability. The Malay word “Melayu” with the missing “r “ is closer to the original name “Malaiur”.
To my knowledge, the hundreds of Malay words of Indian origin have not been catalogued by anyone except perhaps the noted Malay scholar Zaaba. Even if such an effort has been made, it is definitely not widely known or ever published.
Many Malay words, from describing Malay royalty (Raja, Putera, Puteri, Maha, Mulia, Seri, etc) and common everyday terms (bakti, suami, cuma, dunia, bumi, jendela, serpu, kerana), all have Indian connections. The undeniable Indian connection in the word “Indonesia” is also reflected in the name itself.
TWO of the most common words in Malay language are Abang and Awang, which are unique as they were also used as honorary titles, which then become a mark of hereditary for some groups in Brunei Darussalam and Sarawak. In Sarawak, Abang is a special title given to those who were descendants of the original Abang only. This is the same for the word Awang, which is used for those of Awang lineage.
ReplyDeleteThese two titles, he said, actually originated from the palace, or were awarded to a king to accredit his duties or services. In addition, men who worked in the palace were known as Awang-Awang. In Brunei, the word awang functioned as a title or a signature of a male name. The word has the same meaning as Encik in Malaysia, Bapak in Indonesia or 'Mister' in English. However, its usage is still limited in a formal situation or in writings.
In an informal situation, the word will only be uttered to someone younger or of the same age. It would be considered to be rude if it was uttered to someone older or of a higher position.
Meanwhile, the use of the word abang is no difference from those used in other places within the Malay world. It is taken to mean an older man, or a wife's name for her husband.
The Majapahit Empire used Jawa as their ruling language. Although the Malay language had been used as the main medium in the Malay archipelago, bit and pieces of this ruling language would dissipate into the people of the countries under its control at that time.
The historical relation between Brunei and Sarawak began for a long time, in which Sarawak was once under the ruling of Brunei. Due to the mobility of its people, it would influenced the language.
From the angle of language, it can be proven that abang is an original Malay word, while awang was a borrowed word from Jawa. Sarawak, had managed to maintain the word abang due to the influence of Brunei empire.
The word awang was said to be borrowed from Jawa, might be due to the relationship between the two empires, either from Jawa directly from other countries under the control of Majapahit.
Sample of some major Malay dialects
ReplyDeleteEnglish = Where are you going on the bicycle? May I follow you?
Standard Malay (formal) = Ke mana anda hendak pergi dengan basikal itu? Bolehkah saya ikut?
Indonesian (formal) = Ke mana kamu akan pergi dengan sepeda itu? Bolehkah/boleh saya ikut?
Indonesian (informal) = Lu mau naik sepada ke mana? Boleh ikut nggak?
Minangkabau = Kau andak pai kama jo sapedo tu? Buliah ikuik indak?
Palembang = Kau nak pergi ke mano ngan sepedo tu? Pacak melok dak?
Terengganu = Mung nok gi mane naik basikal? Buleh ikut?
Kelantan = Mu nok gi ma'no naik basika tuh? Buleh aku ikut?
Penang = Hang nak pi mana naik basikal tu?Aku ikut boleh tak?
Kedah = Hang nak pi mana naik gerek tu? Aku ikut buleh dak?
Negeri Sembilan = Ekau nak poie mano naik basikal tu? Boleh den ikut?
Brunei = Kamana kau babasikal ah? Bulih ku turut?
Sarawak = Ke sine kitak maok make basikal? boleh sik kamik ngekot?
Sabah = Mana ko mo pigi sama itu beskal? Buli sia ikut ka?"
Singapore = Ke mana awak hendak pergi dengan basikal itu? Boleh saya ikut?
I , at first, had mixed opinions about this one. I understand that it is quite a popular rumour ( i say rumour because apparently there aren't many research on the subject),and it seems logical because even today alot of malay words are derived from other languages.But surely, malays have more than 3 original words, since malays did have their own heriacy of royalty. But this brings us to a dead end because even the word raja is derived from sanskrit, and most of the classic malay words like bendahara, istana are from other origins.
ReplyDeleteFirst i searched for the 3 original words, and i found out from a website that it was batu, api and babi, but unfourtunately there wasn't any other additional information on the original words. So,next i searched for Malay words in the english language. and here is the list of words i found:
Agar (also 'agar-agar')
a gelatinous substance obtained from various kinds of red seaweed and used in biological culture media and as a thickener in foods.
Amok ('berserk'), as in 'to run amok'
Bamboo from bambu
Banteng from "banteng", 'a SE Asian forest ox that resembles the domestic cow, domesticated in Bali [Bos javanicus.]'
Caddy from kati (a measurement unit, whereby 1 kati = approximately 600 g)
Cockatoo from kakak or sister and tua or older (burung kakaktua lit. the elder sister bird))
Compound (enclosed group of buildings) by folk etymology from kampung or 'village'
Cooties from kutu, 'lice'
Dammar from damar, 'resin; resin obtained
from various mainly Indo-Malaysian trees, used to make varnish.'
Dugong from duyung, 'mermaid'
Durian from duri 'thorns', hence
durian, 'thorny'
Gambier from gambir(the name of the plant), an astringent extract of a tropical Asian plant, used in tanning'
Gecko from geko,gekok
Gingham from ginggang
Gutta-percha (a type of tree whose sap is used in the manufacture of synthetic rubber) from getah, 'rubber' and perca, 'scrap/piece'; hence getah perca, 'a scrap/piece of rubber'
Junk (type of boat) from jong
Kapok from kapuk, 'a fine fibrous substance which grows around the seeds of a ceiba or silk-cotton tree, used as stuffing for cushions'
Kapur from kapur a large tropical tree which yields light brown wood, edible fruit, and camphor [Genus Dryobalanops.]
Komodo from komodo
Kris (also archaic 'creese')
from keris, 'a Malay/Indonesian dagger with a wavy-edged blade'
Mangosteen from manggustan
Meranti from meranti, 'white, red, or yellow hardwood from a SE Asian tree (genus Shorea)'
Merbau from merbau, 'the hardwood of a SE Asian tree (genus Intsia)'
Orangutan from orang hutan or 'people of the jungle'
paddy as in 'paddy-field' or 'rice paddy', from padi, referring to the rice plant Oryza sativa.
Pandanus from pandan, 'a tropical tree or shrub with a twisted stem, long spiny leaves, and fibrous edible fruit.[Genus Pandanus.]'
Pangolin from pengguling, 'one that rolls/curls'
Parang from parang, 'a Malayan machete',
Proa (also 'prahu' or 'prau') from perahu, 'a Malaysian or Indonesian sailing boat,
typically having a large triangular sail and an outrigger'
Rambutan from rambut 'hair', hence rambutan, 'hairy'
Ramie from rami, 'the plant of the nettle family which yields this fibre, native to tropical Asia. [Boehmeria nivea.]'
Rattan from rotan
Sago from sagu, '(sago palm) the palm from which most sago is obtained, growing in freshwater swamps in SE Asia. [Metroxylon sagu.]; any of a number of other palms or cycads which yield a similar starch.
'
Sarong from sarung, 'wrap/sheath'
Satay (also 'sate') from Malay satai,
Javanese/Indonesian "sate", 'an Indonesian and Malaysian dish consisting of small pieces of meat grilled on a skewer and served with spiced sauce.'
Trepang from teripang/trepang
Since these words are recognised malay words in the english language, i think it is safe to conclude that the malay language does not only have 3 original words.
G.vijaya
ReplyDeleteAccording to my research one well-known historian has pointed out that only three Malay words are exclusively Malay: kayu (wood), batu (stone) and babi (pig). While, another historian has added padi (rice field) and two or three other words to that list. Most Malay words came from other languages including Sanskrit, Arabic, Javanese, Portuguese and English. For many centuries Malays have had a flair for adopting foreign words and adapting them to suit their language needs. A closer look at the English words in the above list shows that while some of them are in their original English form (bank, hospital, and hotel), this is only because their spelling suits Malay conventions of spelling and pronunciation. Other words are altered to reflect these conventions, and these alterations make the words uniquely Malay despite their English origins. This is the case of the word bajet, which has prompted some purists to question why the government didn't use the Malay term, anggaran belanja (at least I think that's the official term, I'll have to check a dictionary). The government has explained that the old term does not adequately express the exact meaning of a budget being tabled by the government, so the English word has been adopted, albeit in a modified form.
What about Belachan?Is it from Malaysians Malay or Indon?
ReplyDeleteFor more than a thousand years the Malays owed their civilization to Hindus.Pse refer to Malaya and its History by Richard Winstedt who was formely the Malayan Civil Service and Reader in Malay in the University of London.
ReplyDeleteWell to me if you strip off the Austronesian roots of Malay of course it'll leave just 2 or 3 words left that are pure Malay.. I mean probably most of everyday word for stuff that Pre-Indian/Arabic/English Malays had are Purely Malay..If you strip down English from everything including German Roots you'll be left with almost exactly 2-3 words that are purely English.. I mean I think the word Aku/saya(I/Me) and Engkau/Kamu/Awak (you) are pure Malay(Not Stripping out the Austronesian Roots) in a sense.. If you chose to purify a language with no roots at all.. that's crazy talk.. For me,I just don't like foreign words to be just borrowed in like it's not a big deal.. albeit English,Portugese,Dutch,Sanskrit,Arabic,Tamil,and other foreign languages.. Austronesian languages have the similar words because they're a family group, much like Romance ,Slavic or Germanic languages.. They all have the same root meaning they may have similar words and phrases and denying that fact is just Idiocy..
ReplyDelete