Javanese language

Javanese language
Name	Javanese
Nativename	ꦧꦱꦗꦮ, Basa Jawa
States	Indonesia
Region	Java (Central Java, East Java, Yogyakarta)
Ethnicity	Javanese people
Speakers	~68 million
Date	2010
Familycolor	Austronesian
Fam2	Malayo-Polynesian
Fam3	Javanese
Script	Javanese script, Latin script, Pegon script
Iso2	jav
Iso3	jav
Glotto	java1253
Glottorefname	Javanese
Notice	IPA

Javanese language is a major Austronesian language spoken predominantly by the Javanese people on the island of Java in Indonesia. It is the native language of over 68 million people, making it one of the most widely spoken languages in Southeast Asia and a significant regional language within the Republic of Indonesia. The language possesses a rich literary tradition, a complex system of speech levels, and has been written in several scripts throughout its history.

History

The earliest attested form, known as Old Javanese or Kawi, is found in inscriptions from the 9th century, such as the Sukabumi inscription, and flourished as a literary language during the era of the Medang Kingdom and later the Majapahit Empire. This classical language was heavily influenced by Sanskrit and was used in the composition of epic poems like the Kakawin Ramayana. The transition to Middle Javanese occurred around the 13th to 16th centuries, coinciding with the spread of Islam in Indonesia and the rise of Islamic sultanates, which introduced Persian and Arabic lexical elements. The modern form developed after the 17th century, influenced by contact with European colonial powers, notably the Dutch East India Company and later the Dutch Empire.

Geographic distribution

Javanese is primarily spoken in the central and eastern parts of Java, including the provinces of Central Java, East Java, and the Special Region of Yogyakarta. Significant communities of speakers exist in other Indonesian islands due to government-sponsored transmigration programs, particularly in Lampung, South Sumatra, and West Kalimantan. Overseas, Javanese-speaking communities are found in Suriname, a legacy of colonial indentured labor under the Dutch Empire, as well as in New Caledonia, Malaysia, and Singapore.

Phonology

The phonological system includes six vowel phonemes and twenty-one consonant phonemes. It features a distinction between dental and retroflex stops, a trait shared with neighboring languages like Balinese and Sundanese. Stress typically falls on the penultimate syllable, and the language lacks phonemic tone. Historical sound changes from Old Javanese include the merger of certain vowel sounds and the simplification of consonant clusters.

Grammar

Grammar is characterized by its agglutinative nature, using affixes to indicate voice, mood, and grammatical relations. It employs a base actor voice and patient voice system common to many Western Malayo-Polynesian languages. There is no grammatical gender, and pluralization is often not marked morphologically. Word order is typically subject-verb-object, but can be flexible due to the voice system. Notably, it lacks a copula verb in equational sentences.

Vocabulary

The core vocabulary is Austronesian, but the lexicon reflects a long history of contact. Early strata include extensive borrowings from Sanskrit, evident in terms related to religion, administration, and literature. Later, significant influxes came from Arabic and Persian, especially concerning Islam and trade. The colonial period added many loanwords from Dutch, and the modern national language, Indonesian, is also a major source of contemporary neologisms. The speech level system requires different vocabulary for different social contexts.

Writing systems

Historically, the primary script was the Javanese script, a descendant of the Brahmi script via the Kawi script, and is still taught in Central Java and Yogyakarta. The Pegon script, an adapted form of the Arabic script, has been used for centuries, particularly in Islamic religious contexts. Since the early 20th century, the Latin script, standardized by colonial scholars and later the Indonesian government, has become the dominant writing system for everyday use, influenced by orthographies developed for Dutch and Indonesian.

Sociolinguistics

A defining sociolinguistic feature is its intricate system of speech levels, primarily the contrast between informal Ngoko and polite, formal Krama, which dictates vocabulary choice based on the relative social status and familiarity between speakers. While it has a vast number of speakers, its use in formal education, media, and public administration is limited compared to the national language, Indonesian, leading to concerns about domain shift. Preservation efforts are promoted by cultural institutions like the Yogyakarta Sultanate and the Central Javanese government.

Category:Languages of Indonesia Category:Javanese language