Brunei Malay

This article is about the language. For Ethnic Malays residing in Brunei, see Bruneian Malays.

The Brunei Malay language, also called Bruneian Malay language (Malay: Bahasa Melayu Brunei; Jawi: بهاس ملايو بروني‎), is the most widely spoken language in Brunei and a lingua franca in some parts of Sarawak and Sabah, such as Labuan, Limbang, Lawas, Sipitang and Papar.^[2][3] Though Standard Malay is promoted as the official national language of Brunei, Brunei Malay is socially dominant and it is currently replacing the minority languages of Brunei,^[4] including the Dusun and Tutong languages,^[5] existing in a diglossic speech, wherein Brunei Malay is commonly used for daily communication, coexisting with the aforementioned regional languages and Malay creoles, and standard Malay used in formal speech; code switching between standard Malay and Brunei Malay is spoken in informal speech as a lingua franca between Malay creoles and regional languages. It is quite similar to Standard Malay to the point of being almost mutually intelligible with it,^[6] being about 84% cognate with standard Malay.^[7] Standard Malay is usually spoken with Brunei pronunciation.

Brunei Malay
Bahasa Melayu Brunei
بهاس ملايو بروني‎
Native to	Brunei, Malaysia
Ethnicity	Bruneian Malay, Kedayan
Native speakers	320,000 (2013–2019)[1]
Language family	Austronesian Malayo-Polynesian Malayic Brunei Malay
Writing system	Latin (Malay alphabet) Arabic (Jawi) Hangul (limited use)
Language codes
ISO 639-3	kxd
Glottolog	brun1242
Area where Brunei Malay is spoken

Phonology

The consonantal inventory of Brunei Malay is shown below:^[3][8]

		Bilabial	Alveolar	Palatal	Velar	Glottal
Nasal		m	n	ɲ	ŋ
Plosive/ Affricate	voiceless	p	t	tʃ	k	(ʔ)
	voiced	b	d	dʒ	ɡ
Fricative	voiceless	(f)	s	ʃ	(x)	h
	voiced	(v)	(z)
Trill			r
Lateral			l
Approximant		w		j

Notes:

1. ^ /t/ is dental in many varieties of Malay, but it is alveolar in Brunei.^[8]
2. ^ /k/ is velar in initial position, but it is realised as uvular [q] in coda.^[8]
3. ^ Parenthesised sounds occur only in loanwords.
4. All consonants can occur in word-initial position, except /h/. Therefore, Standard Malay hutan 'forest' became utan in Brunei Malay, and Standard Malay hitam 'black' became itam.^[3]
5. All consonants can occur in word-final position, except the palatals /tʃ, dʒ, ɲ/ and voiced plosives /b, d, ɡ/. Exceptions can be found in a few borrowed words such as mac 'March' and kabab 'kebab'.^[2]
6. ^ Some analysts exclude /w/ and /j/ from this table because they are 'margin high vowels',^[9] while others include /w/ but exclude /j/.^[2]

Acoustic analysis of the three vowels of Brunei Malay

Brunei Malay has a three-vowel system: /i/, /a/, /u/.^[2][10] Acoustic variation in the realisation of these vowels is shown in the plot on the right, based on the reading of a short text by a single female speaker.^[3]

While /i/ is distinct from the other two vowels, there is substantial overlap between /a/ and /u/. This is partly because of the vowel in the first syllable of words such as maniup ('to blow') which can be realised as [ə]. Indeed, the Brunei Malay dictionary uses an 'e' for the prefix in this word, listing it as meniup,^[11] though other analyses prefer to show prefixes such as this with 'a', on the basis that Brunei Malay just has three vowel phonemes.^[12][9][2]

Language use

Main article: Languages of Brunei

Brunei Malay, Kedayan and Kampong Ayer can be regarded as dialects of Malay. Brunei Malay is used by the numerically and politically dominant Brunei people, who traditionally lived on water, while Kedayan is used by the land-dwelling farmers, and the Kampong Ayer dialect is used by the inhabitants of the river north of the capital.^[13][14] It has been estimated that 94% of the words of Brunei Malay and Kedayan are lexically related.^[15]

Coluzzi studied the street signs in Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital city of Brunei Darussalam. The researcher concluded that except Chinese, "minority languages in Brunei have no visibility and play a very marginal role beyond the family and the small community."^[16]

Vocabulary words

Bruneian Malay	Peninsular Malaysia Malay (Klang Valley standard)	Meaning/Note
Aku/ku		First person singular
Saya
Peramba	Patik	First person singular when in conversation with a Royal Family Member
Awak		Second person singular
Kau
Ko
Awda	Anda	From (si) awang and (si) dayang. It is used like the Malay word anda.
Kamu		Second person plural
Ia	Dia	Third person singular
Kitani	Kita	First person plural (inclusive)
Kita		To be used either like kitani or biskita
Si awang	Beliau	Male third person singular
Si dayang		Female third person singular
Biskita	Kita	To address a listener of older age. Also first person plural
Cinta	Tercinta	To address a loved one
Ani	Ini	This
Atu	Itu	That
(Di) mana?		Where (at)?
Ke mana?		Where to?
Lelaki		Male (human)
Laki-laki
Perempuan		Female (human)
Bini-bini[lower-alpha 1]
Budiman	Tuan/Encik	A gentleman
Kebawah Duli	Baginda	His Majesty
Awu		Yes
Ya
Inda		No
Tidak
kabat	Tutup	To close (a door, etc.)
Makan		To eat
Suka		To like
Cali	Lawak	Funny (adj.), derived from Charlie Chaplin
Siuk	Syok	cf. Malaysian syok, Singaporean shiok
Lakas	Lekas	To be quick, (in a) hurry(ing) (also an interjection)
Karang	Nanti	At a later time, soon
Tarus	Terus	Straight ahead; immediately
Manada	Mana ada	Used as a term when in a state denial (as in 'No way!' or 'It can't be')
Baiktah	Lebih baik	'Might as well ... '
Orang putih	Orang putih; Mat salleh	Generally refers to a white Westerner.
Kaling		Refers to a Bruneian of Indian descent. (This is generally regarded as pejorative.)[17]

1. In Malay, Bini-bini is exclusively used in Brunei to refer to a woman. In Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, it is an informal way to refer to one's wives or a group of married women.

Studies

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.^[18][19][20]

The language planning of Brunei has been studied by some scholars.^[21][22]

References

1. Brunei Malay at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022)
2. Clynes, A. (2014). Brunei Malay: An Overview. In P. Sercombe, M. Boutin, & A. Clynes (Eds.), Advances in Research on Linguistic and Cultural Practices in Borneo (pp. 153–200). Phillips, ME: Borneo Research Council. Pre-publication draft available at http://fass.ubd.edu.bn/staff/docs/AC/Clynes-Brunei-Malay.pdf
3. Deterding, David & Athirah, Ishamina. (2017). Brunei Malay. Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 47(1), 99–108. doi:10.1017/S0025100316000189
4. McLellan, J., Noor Azam Haji-Othman, & Deterding, D. (2016). The language situation in Brunei Darussalam. In Noor Azam Haji-Othman, J. McLellan, & D. Deterding (Eds.), The use and status of language in Brunei Darussalam: A kingdom of unexpected linguistic diversity (pp. 9–16). Singapore: Springer.
5. Noor Azam Haji-Othman & Siti Ajeerah Najib (2016). The state of indigenous languages in Brunei. In Noor Azam Haji-Othman, J. McLellan, & D. Deterding (Eds.), The use and status of language in Brunei Darussalam: A kingdom of unexpected linguistic diversity (pp. 17–28). Singapore: Springer.
6. A. Clynes and D. Deterding (2011). "Standard Malay (Brunei)". Journal of the International Phonetic Association. 41 (2): 259–68. doi:10.1017/S002510031100017X.
7. P.W. Martin and G. Poedjosoedarmo (1996). An overview of the language situation in Brunei Darussalam. In P.W. Martin, C. Ozog & G. Poedjosoedarmo (Eds.), Language use & language change in Brunei Darussalam (pp. 1–23). Athens, Ohio: Ohio University Center for International Studies. p. 7.
8. Clynes, Adrian & Deterding, David. (2011). Standard Malay (Brunei). Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 41(2), 259–268. doi:10.1017/S002510031100017X
9. Mataim Bakar. (2007). The phonotactics of Brunei Malay: An Optimality Theoretic account. Bandar Seri Begawan: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka Brunei.
10. Poedjosoedarmo, G. (1996). Variation and change in the sound systems of Brunei dialects of Malay. In P. Martin, C. Ozog, & Gloria Poedjosoedarmo (Eds.), Language use and language change in Brunei Darussalam (pp. 37–42). Athens, OH: Ohio University Center for International Studies.
11. Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka Brunei. (2007). Kamus Bahasa Melayu Brunei (Edisi Kedua) [Brunei Malay dictionary, 2nd edition]. Bandar Seri Begawan: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka Brunei.
12. Jaludin Chuchu. (2000). Morphology of Brunei Malay. Bangi: Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.
13. Gallop, 2006. "Brunei Darussalam: Language Situation". In Keith Brown, ed. (2005). Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics (2 ed.). Elsevier. ISBN 0-08-044299-4.
14. Wurm, Mühlhäusler, & Tryon, Atlas of languages of intercultural communication in the Pacific, Asia and the Americas, 1996:677
15. Nothofer, B. (1991). The languages of Brunei Darussalam. In H. Steinhauer (Ed.), Papers in Austronesian Linguistics (pp. 151–172). Canberra: Australian National University.
16. Coluzzi, Paolo. (2012). The Linguistic Landscape of Brunei Darussalam: Minority Languages and the Threshold of Literacy. South East Asia: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 12, 1-16. Retrieved 14 April 2019 from http://fass.ubd.edu.bn/SEA/volume12.html
17. Najib Noorashid (2016). The 'K' word referring to Indians in Brunei. Paper presented at the Brunei-Malaysia 2016 Forum, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, 16–17 November 2016.
18. Martin, P. W. (1994). Lexicography in Brunei Darussalam: An overview. In B. Sibayan & L. E. Newell (Eds.), Papers from the First Asia International Lexicography Conference, Manila, Philippines, 1992. LSP Special Monograph Issue, 35 (pp. 59–68). Manila: Linguistic Society of the Philippines. Archived 2015-05-11 at the Wayback Machine
19. Anton Abraham Cense; E.M. Uhlenbeck (2013). Critical Survey of Studies on the Languages of Borneo. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 8. ISBN 978-94-011-8925-5.
20. Jatswan S. Sidhu (2009). Historical Dictionary of Brunei Darussalam. Scarecrow Press. p. 283. ISBN 978-0-8108-7078-9.
21. Coluzzi, Paolo. (2011). Majority and minority language planning in Brunei Darussalam. Language Problems and Language Planning, 35(3), 222-240. doi:10.1075/lplp.35.3.02col
22. Clynes, Adrian. (2012). Dominant language transfer in minority language documentation projects: Some examples from Brunei. Language Documentation & Conservation, 6, 253-267.

Further reading

• Royal Geographical Society (Great Britain) (1872). On Northern Borneo. Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society XVI. Edward Stanford. pp. 171–187. Archived 2018-10-01 at the Wayback Machine
  • "Brunei Low Dialect"
• Haynes, A. S. “A List of Brunei-Malay words.” JSBRAS 34 ( July 1900): 39—48.
• Hose, Charles. No. 3. "A Journey up the Baram River to Mount Dulit and the Highlands of Borneo". The Geographical Journal. No. 3. VOL. I. (March, 1893)
• MacBryan, G.T. 1922. Additions to a vocabulary of Brunei-Malay. JSBRAS. 86:376–377.
• Marshall, H.B. and Moulton, J.C. 1921, "A vocabulary of Brunei Malay", in Journal of the Straits Branch, Royal Asiatic Society.
• Marshall, H.B. 1921. A vocabulary of Brunei Malay. JSBRAS. 83:45–74.
• Ray, Sidney H. 1913. The Languages of Borneo. The Sarawak Museum Journal. 1,4:1–196.
• Roth, Henry Ling. 1896. The Natives of Sarawak and British North Borneo. 2 vols. London: Truslove and Hanson. Rep. 1980. Malaysia: University of Malaya Press. VOL I. VOL II. VOL II.
• Marshall, H. B. (1921), "A Vocabulary of Brunei Malay", Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society (83): 45–74, JSTOR 41561363
• Soderberg, Craig D. (2014). "Kedayan". Illustrations of the IPA. Journal of the International Phonetic Association. 44 (2): 201–205. doi:10.1017/S0025100314000061, with supplementary sound recordings.

• Deterding, David and Athirah, Ishamina (2017). "Brunei Malay". Illustrations of the IPA. Journal of the International Phonetic Association. 47 (1): 108–99. doi:10.1017/S0025100316000189{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link), with supplementary sound recordings.

External links

• The Pronunciation of Brunei Malay