Bahasa Indonesia Snippets

We (and by "we" I mean all of us) could use a way in English to clarify what is meant when we (and by "we" I again mean all of us) say "we".  What we (this time I mean just our family here in Bali, but not you readers) have found is that the Indonesian language makes that helpful distinction.  "Kami" means "we but excluding the listener" and "Kita" means "all of us, the speaker and the listeners included."

So we now think that we would benefit if we adopted in English the equivalent of "kami" and "kita" so that we can distinguish between the two meanings of "we."

On to bathroom matters:  #1 is "making small water," while #2 is "making big water".

[Update: I often pop into small roadside shops to buy bottles of water.  Usually I ask for water by asking for it by the most common brand name, Aqua.  But it dawned on me after writing this post that at times I had probably said 'I want a small water' or 'I want a big water', with 'bottle of water' implied.  As I confirmed with Dewa, what I was actually saying so emphatically was that I wanted urine, or worse.  I wince in retrospect, especially as at the time I would have been feeling proud of myself for my ability to communicate in Indonesian.]

If one is sick, that is expressed by saying that one is "tidak enak", which literally translates as feeling "not delicious."  Going for a walk is "eating wind."

Plurals are often made by repeating the singular.  "Anak" is a child.  "Anak-anak" means children.  "Buku" is a book.  "Buku-buku" means books.  Often as a shortcut, the plural form is written as "anak2."

Bahasa Indonesia is much simpler than English. 

There is no conjugation of verbs.  Tenses are indicated by adding a helper word to indicate past or future, but the verb stays the same.  The subject is often dropped as being understood.  Articles (the equivalent of "the," "a" or "an") aren't used at all.  The "to be" verbs are often dropped as well as they are understood from the context.

"Mau makanan," which translates literally as "Want food," and means "I would like some food," is a perfectly fine sentence.

As is, "makanan bagus," which means "the food is excellent" but translates literally as "food good."

Because the sentence structure is so simple, one of our friends likens speaking Indonesian to speaking "caveman," meaning it as a compliment not an insult.

I feel for the Indonesians who are trying to learn English, as English is fiendishly difficult and arbitrary, especially when compared to Indonesian.  That the common language throughout much of the world is English is a cruel twist of fate for all the many millions of students who need to learn it as a second language.  Much suffering would have been eliminated if through historical accident Indonesian had become the common tongue instead.

I have been very lackadaisical and not that all that motivated in learning Indonesian.  But I have found the little bit I've picked up comes in handy.  If we were staying longer then I would be putting in the effort now to develop a basic conversational ability.  But instead I pick up a word here and there and I am not making much progress.