The Indonesian language has absorbed many loanwords from other languages, Sanskrit, Tamil, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, Portuguese, Dutch, English, French, Greek, Latin and other Austronesian languages.
Indonesian differs from the form of Malay used in Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore in a number of aspects, primarily due to the different influences both languages experienced and also due to the fact that the majority of Indonesians speak another language as their mother tongue. Indonesian functions as the lingua franca for speakers of 700 various languages across the archipelago.
Conversely, many words of Malay-Indonesian origin have also been borrowed into English. Words borrowed into English (e.g., bamboo, orangutan, dugong, amok, and even "cooties") generally entered through Malay language by way of British colonial presence in Malaysia and Singapore, similar to the way the Dutch have been borrowing words from the various native Indonesian languages. One exception is "bantam", derived from the name of the Indonesian province Banten in Western Java (see Oxford American Dictionary, 2005 edition). Another is "lahar" which is Javanese for a volcanic mudflow. Still other words taken into modern English from Malay/Indonesian probably have other origins (e.g., "satay" from Tamil, or "ketchup" from Chinese).
During development, various native terms from all over the archipelago made their way into the language. The Dutch adaptation of the Malay language during the colonial period resulted in the incorporation of a significant number of Dutch loanwords and vocabulary. This event significantly affected the original Malay language, which gradually developed into modern Indonesian. Most terms are documented in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia.Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan, Jakarta, Balai Pustaka: 1999, halaman 1185 s.d. 1188 berisikan Pendahuluan buku Senarai Kata Serapan dalam Bahasa Indonesia, Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan, Jakarta, 1996.
Chronology The study of Indonesian etymology and loan words reflects its historical and social context. Examples include the early Sanskrit borrowings, probably during the Srivijaya period, the borrowings from Arabic and Persian, especially during the time of the establishment of Islam, and words borrowed from Dutch during the colonial period. Linguistic history and cultural history are clearly linked.
Early Hindu and Buddhist influence from India results in many Sanskrit words in Indonesian (and especially adopted through Javanese influence). Indian traders may have contributed words as well, in Tamil and Sanskrit-related languages. Indonesian has evolved through trade with China since ancient times, including through significant numbers of Chinese immigrants migrating to Indonesia. As a result, some of the Chinese language, especially the Hokkien dialect, has been incorporated into Indonesian. Muslim influence, originally through Arabic and Persian traders over a number of centuries, resulted in an extensive influence from the Arabic and Persian. Portuguese contact, trade and colonization in the 16th century was the first contact between Indonesia and European culture, and had an influence that remains today, in spite of the relatively short time period of that influence. Dutch colonization and administration, lasting from the 17th century to the 20th, extensively affected the vocabulary. As Dutch-trained linguists determined the rules for the official Indonesian language, Dutch thus affected the structure of the language as well. For example, suffixes such as "-asi" (e.g., administrasi = administrative) and "-if" (e.g., fiktif = fictief) were applied with consistency. Some loan words are still intensively used today, although Indonesian equivalents exist. Modern Indonesian regularly adopts new words from other languages, particularly English. In contrast to the large number of mechanical terms borrowed from Dutch (e.g., automotive parts), hi-tech words are typically taken from English (e.g., internet) and some informal greetings such as hai, he (probably from Javanese), yo, etc.
But the processes may also be ‘out of period’; for example, Indonesian words are still being concocted from Sanskrit, and the influence of the Dutch language certainly continued after the Dutch themselves left.
Indonesian has also generalized brand names into common (lower-case) nouns as generic name. For example, "sanyo" refers to any electrical well pump, regardless of manufacturer, "odol" as all of toothpastes, or “aqua” for mineral water. This is similar to the type of generalization that occurs in English words like "xerox" or "tampax" or "polaroid".
List of loanwords
From Austronesian languages
From Minangkabau Most of Indonesian's vocabulary is natively derived from Malay, as Indonesian is after all a standardized form of Malay, but some might ultimately be loanwords from the Minang language. Yet it is unclear, since Malay and Minang are closely related, and some might consider Minang to have been descended from a dialect of Malay due to sheer similarity. Word Meaning Original wordacuh care acuahanjungan pavilion anjuangawak you (regional), crew, member awakbantah denies bantahbaruh lowland baruahbernas spirited bonehbunda mother bundobuyung sonny buyuangcabul lewd cabuacakak fight cakakcampin skilled campincegak vigorous cegakceloteh babble cilotehcemeeh jeer cemeehcengang amazed cangangdara girl, virgin, dove darodadih buttermilk dadiahdendang sing dendanggadang large gadanggadis girl, virgin gadihgaek aged gaekgalau confusion galaugelimang mixed galimanggengsi prestige gengsiheboh commotion, fuss heboh: noisyimbau appeal, please (prohibit/warn) imbaujangat skin jangekjenjang level, grade, ladder janjangjerang boiled jarangjinjing pick-up jinjiangjunjung respectful junjuangkelok meanders keloklamban slow lambanlampau over, past lampaulancang sassy lancangnan which, who (connecting word) nanngarai canyon ngarainian very, really, truly nianpencak art (martial art) pancakpenghulu chief of family panghuluranah realm, domain ranah: landrancak beautiful rancakrantau foreign country rantaurendang rendang randangsanak family sanaksemarak splendor semaraksilat silat (martial art) sileksurau mosque surautandas demolished tandehteroka open up new areas tarukoterompah sandals tarompahtuah good luck tuahtungkai leg tungkaiusang obsolete usang
From Javanese Compared to the Malay language spoken as the native regional language in Sumatra and the Malay peninsula or the standardized version of Malaysian, Indonesian differs profoundly by the large number of Javanese loanwords incorporated into their already rich vocabulary. This is mostly contributed by Java's position as the center of Indonesian politics, education, and culture, since the capital is located in Jakarta on Java island, albeit in the area where the Javanese are not the majority. The disproportionate number of Javanese that dominate Indonesian politics is reflected by the fact that all of eight Indonesian presidents have been ethnic Javanese or half Javanese (Habibi and Prabowo, both are half Gorontalo and Minahasa respectively).
The result is that the Javanese began to shape their own vocabulary into Indonesian to describes terms and words that do not have exact counterparts in the Malay language. It is also important to note that most of Indonesian's Sanskrit loanwords have been transmitted through Old Javanese, a language whose Sanskrit borrowings number almost 50% of the total vocabulary. Javanese loanwords, unlike those from other native languages, have entered the basic vocabulary of Indonesian to such an extent that, for many, they are no longer perceived to be foreign. Indonesian Word Meaning Javanese WordAdemcool temperatureꦄꦝꦼꦩ꧀ (adhem)Adiluhung/adiluhur1. refined, 2. highly sophisticated tasteꦄꦢꦶꦭꦸꦥꦸꦁ (adiluhung)Alun-aluna large field owned by an areaꦄꦭꦸꦤ꧀ꦄꦭꦸꦤ꧀ (alun-alun)Amblasvanishꦄꦩ꧀ꦧ꧀ꦔꦱ꧀ (ambles)Ambrukcollapseꦄꦩ꧀ꦧꦿꦸꦏ꧀ (ambruk)Amongnurture ꦄꦩꦺꦴꦁ (among)Ampuh potent ꦄꦩ꧀ꦥꦸꦃ (ampuh)Anggungracefulꦄꦁꦒꦸꦤ꧀ (anggun)Angkerhauntedꦄꦁꦏꦼꦂ (angker)Anjlokdroppedꦄꦤ꧀ꦗ꧀ꦭꦺꦴꦒ꧀ (anjlog)Antekstoogeꦄꦤ꧀ꦠꦺꦏ꧀ (antek)Anyarnewꦄꦚꦂ (anyar)Apikneat, niceꦄꦥꦶꦏ꧀ (apik)Asribeautiful (scenery/nature), neat, clean, niceꦄꦱꦿꦶ (asri)awetdurableꦄꦮꦺꦠ꧀ (awet)Ayubeautiful (women), pretty, gorgeous, graceful, elegantꦄꦪꦸ (ayu)Ayom1. give shade, 2. foster, 3. protectꦄꦪꦺꦴꦩ꧀꧈ ꦲꦔꦪꦺꦴꦩꦶ (ayom, hangayomi)bablas1. continue, 2. disappearꦧꦧ꧀ꦭꦱ꧀