Brunei Darussalam Languages & Literature Draft

1. BRUNEI DARUSSALAM
LANGUAGES AND
LITERATURE

2. SELAMAT PETANG
(Good Afternoon)

3. SELAMAT DATANG KE
BRUNEI INDAH
DARUSSALAM
(Welcome to Beautiful Brunei
Darussalam)

4. •There are a number of languages spoken in Brunei. The official language of the
state of Brunei is Standard Malay, the same Malaccan dialect that is the basis for
the standards in Malaysia and Indonesia. This came into force on 29 September
1959, with the signing of Brunei 1959 Constitution.
LANGUAGES OF BRUNEI

5. • The Malay language is the standard language for many of the peoples of Maritime
Southeast Asia and is spoken as a lingua franca in Brunei.The official standard for the
language, has been defined and agreed upon by the Language and Literature Bureaus
of Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei.Standard Malay is also accepted in the printed form
and is used in all official Brunei government media.
STANDARD MALAY

6. • The local dialect, Melayu Brunei (Brunei Malay), is the most widely spoken language.It is spoken by about 266,000
people.About 84% of its words are cognate with Standard Malay, while 94% are reported to be cognate with
Kedayan.
• Brunei Malay is also spoken as a lingua franca in some parts of East Malaysia such as the Federal Territory of
Labuan, the districts of Limbang and Lawas (Sarawak) and the districts of Sipitang, Beaufort, Kuala Penyu and
Papar (Sabah). It is expanding at the expense of the indigenous minority languages.
• Although its lexis is 84% cognate with Standard Malay, Brunei Malay is mostly mutually unintelligible with other
dialects of Malay.
BRUNEI MALAY

7. • English is widely used as a business and official language and it is spoken by a majority of the population in Brunei. There
are two daily English language newspapers, Borneo Bulletin and The Brunei Times, but only one daily newspaper in Malay,
Media Permata, which is published six times a week (as there is no Sunday edition).
• The bilingual system of education was introduced in 1985, with the first three years taught in Malay while English was the
medium of instruction for most subjects from the fourth year of primary school onward,so all school children have had
substantial exposure to English since then. In 2008, the new SPN21 education system was introduced, and from then on,
math and science have been taught in English from the start of primary school, so the role of English is even more firmly
established.
ENGLISH

8. • One result of the promotion of both English and Malay in Brunei is that minority languages,
such as Tutong and Dusun, tend to get squeezed out. Noor Azam has described the situation
using the Malay proverb: Gajah berperang, pelanduk mati di tengah-tengah. ('When elephants
fight, the mouse-deer between them dies.')Some features of the pronunciation of English in
Brunei are: the TH sound at the start of words such as thin and think tends to be pronounced
as; vowel reduction is mostly avoided in function words such as of and that;and there seems to
be an increasing incidence of rhoticity.

9. • The Chinese minority in Brunei speak a number of Chinese varieties. The Hokkien (Min Nan) tongue
predominates in the Brunei-Muara and Temburong districts, while Cantonese and Hakka speakers are mostly
concentrated in the Seria and Kuala Belait areas of the Belait district.Other varieties of Chinese spoken in
Brunei include Hoisan, Fuchow and Hainanese.
• Mandarin is the language of instruction at the primary level in the private Chinese schools, and is taught as a
subject at the secondary level.Mandarin is also used as the lingua franca among the Chinese community.
CHINESE

10. • There are five minority peoples native to Brunei, each with their own language: Tutong,
Belait, Dusun, Bisaya, and Lun Bawang ('Murut'). They are less than 40% cognate with
Brunei Malay, and are being replaced with it through intermarriage and conversion to Islam.
• Iban, Penan, and Melanau are spoken by immigrants from Sarawak.
MINORITY LANGUAGES

11. • Arabic is the language of the Quran and is used by Islamic scholars in Brunei. The
official religion of Brunei is Islam and as such, all adherents of the faith possess some
proficiency in reading and speaking Arabic.
• Arabic is taught in schools, particularly religious schools, and also in institutes of higher
learning.As of 2004, there are six Arabic schools and one religious teachers' college in
Brunei.
ARABIC

12. • The Indian minority in Brunei originates mostly from southern India. They are joined by
a relatively large expatriate community, estimated at about 7500, from India.
• Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu and Hindi are some of the Indian languages spoken in Brunei.
INDIAN LANGUAGES

13. • There is also a contingent of Nepali soldiers of the Gurkha Reserve Unit in Sungai Akar
camp and 1st and 2nd Battalion of the Royal Gurkha Rifles stationed in Seria, Brunei.
The language spoken by most of these soldiers is Gurkhali. There are Gurkhali languages
services provided by Radio Television Brunei and the British Forces Broadcasting Service.
NEPALI LANGUAGES

14. THE NATIONAL LANGUAGE OF BRUNEI
DARUSSALAM

15. • Brunei Malay (Bahasa Melayu Brunei), or Kedayan (Kadaian), sometimes conflated as
Brunei-Kadaian, is the national language of Brunei and a lingua franca in parts of East
Malaysia. It is not the official language of Brunei, which is standard Malay, but is socially
dominant and is replacing minority languages. It is quite divergent from standard Malay
and is mostly mutually unintelligible with it.
BRUNEI MALAY LANGUAGE

16. • A pidginized variant of Brunei Malay, known as Sabah Malay, is a local trade
language.
PIDGIN

17. • Saya/Aku = I/me
• Awak/Kau (Ko) =You
• Kami = We/us
• Kamu =You guys / you all (can be just You)
• Biskita = You (usually use to address older people)
/ us
BRUNEI-MALAY ENGLISH DICTIONARY

18. • Atu = That
• Ani = This
• Makan = eat
• Cinta = love (address to loves one)
• Suka = like
• Mana? / Ke mana? /Di mana? = Where? / To
where? / To Where?
BRUNEI-MALAY ENGLISH DICTIONARY

19. • Si awang = That Lad / That Boy
• Si dayang = That girl
• Lelaki/Laki-laki = Guys / Boys / Men
• Perempuan / Bini-bini = Girls / women
• Budiman = Gentlemen
• Kebawah Duli = His Majesty
BRUNEI-MALAY ENGLISH DICTIONARY

20. • Peramba = I (when talking with Royalty of Bolkiah
Family)
• Awu/Ya = Yes
• Inda/Tidak = No
• Siuk = Expression when feeling extreme fun (I.e.
Shiok in Singapore and Syok in Malaysia)
BRUNEI-MALAY ENGLISH DICTIONARY

21. • "Ia atu bini-bini." = She is a lady.
• "Sudah ko makan?" = Have you eaten?
• "Awda mendapat cabutan bertuah" = You received a
lucky draw.
• "Ko" = You ( short version of Malay Standard 'Kau' )
• "Awda“ (A combination of AWang and DAyang (Equivalent
to Mr. and Miss) = You. Generally used to address the
public.
EXAMPLES:

22. • "Bini-bini" = lady ("bini" is also used in Malaysian Malay, bini however means
wife. However, in Malaysian and Singaporean Malay, this is not considered a
polite word either refer to someone's wife or to refer to one's own wife to friends,
relatives, strangers etc. In Malaysia and Singapore, the word ' isteri ' is used in
polite company. 'Orang Rumah' is also acceptable, the term literally means '
Person of the House'. In Indonesia, 'istri' is used. )
• "Baiktah" ("Baik saja" in Malay) = might as well
• "tarus" = straight ahead, immediately (spelled and pronounced 'terus' in standard
Malay)
• "Kitani" = We ( might be corrupted from ' Kita Ini ' - meaning ' Us Here ' in Malay
)
• "Karang" = later
EXAMPLES:

23. • "Ani" = this (' ini 'in Malay Standard)
• "Awu" = yes
• "Inda" = no
• "Kita" = us (might be referring to older person as ' you ')
• "Manada" = No way (denial words, also used in Malaysia)
• "Orang Putih" = Literally mean White People, to refer the Westerner or any
foreigner with white skin.
• "Kaling" = referring to any Indian ethnics that live and works in Brunei
(however, it is consider impolite word in Malaysia and Singapore which is
"Keling")
EXAMPLES:

24. • The vocabulary of Brunei Malay has been collected and published by several western
explorers in Borneo including Pigafetta in 1521, De Crespigny in 1872, Charles Hose in
1893, A. S. Haynes in 1900, Sidney H. Ray in 1913, H. B. Marshall in 1921, and G. T.
MacBryan in 1922, and some Brunei Malay words are included in "A Malay-English
Dictionary" by R. J. Wilkinson.
STUDIES:

25. • Brunei Darussalam is a multiethnic society in which one ethnic group, the Barunay, has a
monopoly of political power. Variations in tradition among other ethnic groups are not
regional but cultural, social, and linguistic. Indigenous Muslims usually are referred to as
Brunei Malays even if they are not native speakers of the Malay language.
LITERATURE OF BRUNEI DARUSSALAM

26. • The Language and Literature Bureau promotes the development of literature and folklore and
publishes textbooks in Malay and English for use in primary and secondary schools. A form
of poetry known as sajak is popular with schoolchildren. A number of local authors have
become well known. The most famous work of traditional literature is the epic poem Sya'ir
Awang Simawn , which recounts the exploits of the culture hero.
LITERATURE OF BRUNEI DARUSSALAM

27. • Simawn and constitutes a traditional history of the sultanate. Most literature
in Brunei is either written in Malay or in English.
• The most popular form of literature is a poetry style called sajak.
LITERATURE OF BRUNEI DARUSSALAM

28. • Sajak is a Malay free-form style (meaning “rhyme” in English) that was full of nationalistic symbolism
once used as a means of propaganda during the days when the Japanese occupied the island during
WWII. There aren’t a lot of Bruneian writers that are well-known outside of the region, but the most
famous work that came out of Brunei is the epic poem called Sya’ir Awang Simawn, about a famous
hero to their culture. However, there are a few books mentioned which use Brunei as its setting. One
is a book called Armageddon by Dan Brown.
LITERATURE OF BRUNEI DARUSSALAM

29. • Another is an Anthony Burgess novel called Devil of a State. The Language and Literature Bureau is
the country’s main ministry in charge of the promotion and development of literature and folklore.
This office produces a series of textbooks in both English and Malay for use by students. The most
popular form of traditional writing is a form of poetry called sajak. Although a handful of local authors
have become well known in the literary world, Brunei is not very prolific. The nation’s most famous
piece of traditional literature is the epic poem Sya’ir Awang Simawn, which tells the story of a cultural
hero.
LITERATURE OF BRUNEI DARUSSALAM

30. • Brunei has, however, been the setting for a few modern novels by Western authors. Dan
Brown’s novel Armageddon takes place mainly in Brunei and details a fictional attack on the
nation by the group of Islamic fundamentalists. Another famous story featuring Brunei is
Devil of a State by Anthony Burgess. In this novel, the building of the Sultan Omar Ali
Saifuddin’s mosque in the capital Bandar Seri Begawan is a major theme.
LITERATURE OF BRUNEI DARUSSALAM

31. TERIMA KASIH
(Thank You!!!!)