Javanese Language - Introduction

Introduction

Javanese is a Nuclear Malayo-Polynesian language. It is otherwise not particularly close to other languages and is difficult to classify, though not too dissimilar from neighboring languages such as Malay, Sundanese, Madurese, and Balinese.

The language is spoken in Central and East Java, as well as on the north coast of West Java. In Madura, Bali, Lombok, and the Sunda region of West Java, it is also used as a literary language. It was the court language in Palembang in South Sumatra, until the palace was sacked by the Dutch in the late 18th century.

Javanese can be regarded as one of the classical languages of the world, with a vast literature spanning more than twelve centuries. The language developed in four stages:

• Old Javanese, from the 9th century
• Middle Javanese, from the 13th century
• New Javanese, from the 16th century
• Modern Javanese, from the 20th century (but this stage is not universally distinguished)

Javanese is written with the Javanese script, Arabo-Javanese script, Arabic script (modified for Javanese), and Latin script.

Although not currently an official language anywhere, Javanese is the Austronesian language with the largest number of native speakers. It is spoken or understood by approximately 80 million people. At least 45% of the total population of Indonesia are of Javanese descent or live in an area where Javanese is the dominant language. Five out of the six Indonesian presidents since 1945 have been of Javanese descent. It is therefore not surprising that Javanese has a deep impact on the development of Indonesian, the national language of Indonesia, which is itself a modern development from Malay.

There are three main dialects in the modern language: Central Javanese, Eastern Javanese, and Western Javanese. There is a dialect continuum from Banten in the extreme west of Java to Banyuwangi in the eastern corner of the island. All Javanese dialects are more or less mutually intelligible.