The Malayic languages are a branch of the Malayo-Polynesian subgroup of the

Austronesian language family The Austronesian languages ( ) are a language family widely spoken throughout Maritime Southeast Asia, parts of Mainland Southeast Asia, Madagascar, the islands of the Pacific Ocean and Taiwan (by Taiwanese indigenous peoples). They are spoken b ...

. The two most prominent members of this branch are Indonesian and Malay. Indonesian is the official language of

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

and has evolved as a standardized form of Malay with distinct influences from local languages and historical factors. Malay, in its various forms, is recognized as a national language in

Brunei Brunei, officially Brunei Darussalam, is a country in Southeast Asia, situated on the northern coast of the island of Borneo. Apart from its coastline on the South China Sea, it is completely surrounded by the Malaysian state of Sarawak, with ...

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

, and

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

. The Malayic branch also includes local languages spoken by

ethnic Malays Malays ( ; , Jawi alphabet, Jawi: ) are an Austronesian peoples, Austronesian ethnoreligious group native to eastern Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula and coastal Borneo, as well as the smaller islands that lie between these locations. These locatio ...

(e.g.

Jambi Malay Jambi Malay (''bahaso Jambi'' or ''baso Jambi'', Jawi: بهاس جمبي), is a Malayic language primarily spoken by the Jambi Malay people in Jambi, Indonesia, but also spoken by migrants who have settled in Jambi. Jambi Malay is considered as ...

Kedah Malay Kedah Malay or Kedahan (; also known as ''Pelat Utara'' or ''Loghat Utara'' 'Northern Dialect') or as it is known in Thailand, Syburi Malay ( ''Phasa Malāyū Saiburī'') is a Malayic language mainly spoken in the northwestern Malaysian state ...

), further several languages spoken by various other ethnic groups of

Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...

, Indonesia (e.g. Minangkabau) and

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

(e.g. Banjarese, Iban) even as far as Urak Lawoi in the southwestern coast of Thailand. The most probable candidate for the

urheimat In historical linguistics, the homeland or ( , from German 'original' and 'home') of a proto-language is the region in which it was spoken before splitting into different daughter languages. A proto-language is the reconstructed or historicall ...

of the Malayic languages is western Borneo prior to spread in Sumatra.

History

The term "Malayic" was first coined by in his lexicostatistical classification of the Austronesian languages. Dyen's "Malayic hesion" had a wider scope than the Malayic subgroup in its currently accepted form, and also included Acehnese,

Lampung Lampung, officially the Province of Lampung (; ), is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the southern tip of the island of Sumatra. It has a short border with the province of Bengkulu to the northwest, and a longer border with the provi ...

and Madurese. narrowed down the range of Malayic, but included the non-Malayic languages Rejang and Embaloh: * Rejang * Embaloh * Salako *Iban-Malayan ** Ibanic **Malayan The present scope of the Malayic subgroup, which is now universally accepted by experts in the field, was first proposed by K.A. Adelaar (

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...

), based on phonological, morphological and lexical evidence.

Languages

Malayic languages are spoken on

, the

Malay Peninsula The Malay Peninsula is located in Mainland Southeast Asia. The landmass runs approximately north–south, and at its terminus, it is the southernmost point of the Asian continental mainland. The area contains Peninsular Malaysia, Southern Tha ...

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

and on several islands located in the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by South China, in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan island, Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luz ...

and the

Strait of Malacca The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, long and from wide, between the Malay Peninsula to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, connecting the Andaman Sea (Indian Ocean) and the South China Sea (Pa ...

. The following list only includes Malayic languages as traditionally spoken by the respective ethnic groups, for non-traditional languages, see

Malay trade and creole languages In addition to its Classical language, classical and modern Literary language, literary form, Malayic languages, Malay had various Nonstandard dialect, regional dialects established after the rise of the Srivijaya, Srivijaya empire in Sumatra, I ...

Borneo

* Banjar,

Brunei Malay The Brunei Malay, also called Bruneian Malay (; Jawi: ), is the most widely spoken language in Brunei Darussalam and a lingua franca in some parts of Sarawak and Sabah, such as Labuan, Limbang, Lawas, Sipitang, and Papar.Clynes, A. (2014). ...

, Berau Malay, Bukit Malay, Ibanic branch ( Iban, Remun, Mualang, Seberuang), Pontianak Malay, Kutai, Kendayan, Keninjal, Kayong/Ketapang Malay, Malayic Dayak, Sambas Malay,

Sarawak Malay Sarawak Malay ( Standard Malay: ''Bahasa Melayu Sarawak'' or ''Bahasa Sarawak'', Jawi: , Sarawak Malay: ''Kelakar Sarawak'') is a Malayic language native to the State of Sarawak. It is a common language used by natives of Sarawak and also as ...

Sumatra

* Central Malay, Col,

Haji Hajji (; sometimes spelled Hajjeh, Hadji, Haji, Alhaji, Al-Hadj, Al-Haj or El-Hajj) is an honorific title which is given to a Muslim who has successfully completed the Hajj to Mecca. Etymology ''Hajji'' is derived from the Arabic ' (), which ...

Kaur Kaur ( urmukhi/ hahmukhi ), sometimes spelled as Kour, is a surname or a part of a personal name primarily used by the Sikhism, Sikh and some Hindu women of the Punjab region. It is also sometimes translated as 'lioness', not because ...

, Kerinci, Kubu, Lubu, Minangkabau, Musi,

Palembang Palembang (, Palembang: ''Pelémbang'', Mandarin: 巨港 (Jùgǎng), Hokkien: 舊港 (Kū-káng), Jawi: ) is the capital city of the Indonesian province of South Sumatra. The city proper covers on both banks of the Musi River in the ea ...

, Pekal, Riau Malay

Malay Peninsula

* Jakun,

, Kelantan-Pattani Malay,

Negeri Sembilan Malay Negeri Sembilan Malay ( or ; ; Jawi: بهاس ملايو نڬري سمبيلن) is an Austronesian language spoken mainly in the Malaysian state of Negeri Sembilan, including parts of Hulu Langat District in southeastern Selangor, Alor Gajah ...

Orang Kanaq Orang Kanaq are one of the 18 Orang Asli ethnic groups in Malaysia. They are classified under the Proto-Malay people group, which forms the three major people group of the Orang Asli. The Orang Kanaq are considered as the smallest Orang Asli grou ...

Pahang Malay Pahang Malay (Standard Malay: ; Jawi alphabet, Jawi: ) is a Malayic languages, Malayic language spoken in the Malaysian state of Pahang. It is regarded as the dominant Malay dialect spoken along the vast riverine systems of Pahang, but co-exists ...

Perak Malay Perak Malay (''Bahase Peghok'' or ''Ngelabun Peghok''; Standard Malay: ''bahasa Melayu Perak''; Jawi script: بهاس ملايو ڤيراق) is one of the Malay language, Malay Malayan languages, dialects spoken within the state of Perak, Malays ...

Reman Malay Reman Malay ('; Jawi: ; ), also known by several names such as Patani, Baling, Grik, and Tukugho, is a Malayic language spoken in the states of Kedah and Perak in northern Peninsular Malaysia. In the state of Kedah it is spoken in the districts ...

, Temuan,

Terengganu Malay Terengganu Malay (; Terengganu Malay: ) is a Malayic languages, Malayic language spoken in the Malaysian state of Terengganu all the way southward to coastal Pahang and northeast Johor. It is the native language of Terengganuan Malays, Terengganu ...

Java

* Betawi,

Cocos Malay Cocos Malay is a post-creolized variety of Malay, spoken by the Cocos Malays who predominantly inhabit the Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Island region which is a part/territory of Australia. Apart from Australia, this language is also ...

South China Sea

* Bangka Malay, Duano, Loncong,

Orang Seletar Orang Seletar (also known as Selitar or Slitar) are one of the 18 Orang Asli ethnic groups in Malaysia. They are classified under the Proto-Malay people group, which forms the three major people group of the Orang Asli. The Orang Seletar are als ...

Subgrouping

Internal classification

While there is general consensus about which languages can be classified as Malayic, the internal subgrouping of the Malayic languages is still disputed.

Adelaar (1993)

Adelaar (1993) classifies the Malayic languages as follows. *Malayic ** Iban ** *** Malay *** Minangkabau *** Middle Malay *** Banjarese *** Betawi ***Others

Ross (2004)

Based on grammatical evidence, Ross (2004) divides the Malayic languages into two primary branches: *Malayic **Western Malayic Dayak ( Kendayan, Salako) **Nuclear Malayic (all other lects) This classification was mirrored in the Glottolog (Version 3.4).

Anderbeck (2012)

Following , Anderbeck (2012) makes a distinction between Malay and Malayic in his discussion about the dialects of the Sea Tribes in

Riau Archipelago The Riau Archipelago is a ''geographic'' term (as opposed to administrative region) for the core group of islands within the Riau Islands Province in Indonesia, and located south of Singapore and east of Riau on Sumatra. Before the province of Ri ...

. He tentatively classifies all Malayic languages as belonging to a "Malay" subgroup, except Ibanic, Kendayan/Selako, Keninjal, Malayic Dayak (or "Dayak Malayic") and the "fairly divergent varieties" of Urak Lawoi' and Duano. *Malayic **Ibanic **Kendayan/Selako **Keninjal **Malayic Dayak **Urak Lawoi' **Duano ** Malay (including all other Malayic varieties) Anderbeck's classification has been adopted in the 17th edition of the

Ethnologue ''Ethnologue: Languages of the World'' is an annual reference publication in print and online that provides statistics and other information on the living languages of the world. It is the world's most comprehensive catalogue of languages. It w ...

, with the sole exception of Duano, which is listed in the Ethnologue among the "Malay" languages.

Smith (2017)

In his dissertation on the languages of Borneo, Smith (2017) provides evidence for a subgroup comprising Malayic isolects in western Borneo and southern Sumatra, which he labels "West Bornean Malayic". *Malayic **West Bornean Malayic *** Kendayan- Salako (= Ross' "Western Malayic Dayak") *** Besemah *** Ibanic **** Iban **** Seberuang **** Mualang **** Keninjal **''Other Malayic'' (not a genetic subgroup) *** Malay *** Betawi *** Ketapang Malay *** Banjarese *** Kutai ***

''Glottolog''

Glottolog ''Glottolog'' is an open-access online bibliographic database of the world's languages. In addition to listing linguistic materials ( grammars, articles, dictionaries) describing individual languages, the database also contains the most up-to-d ...

'' 5.1 classifies the Malayic languages into several groups, namely: *Malayic ** Duano **

** Malayic Dayak **Nuclear Malayic ***Betawic ***Central Sumatran Malay ***East Borneo Malay ***Greater Riau–Johoric ***Northern Sumatra Malay ***South Sumatra Malay *** Standard Malay– Indonesian ***Vehicular Malay **Old Malay ** Ibanic *** Iban– Mualang– Seberuang *** Keninjal **Western Malayic Dayak *** Kendayan–Belangin *** Menterap

Position within Austronesian

The inclusion of the Malayic languages within the

Malayo-Polynesian The Malayo-Polynesian languages are a subgroup of the Austronesian languages, with approximately 385.5 million speakers. The Malayo-Polynesian languages are spoken by the Austronesian peoples outside of Taiwan, in the island nations of Southeast ...

subgroup is undisputed, and there is general consensus that the

Chamic languages The Chamic languages, also known as Aceh–Chamic and Acehnese–Chamic, are a group of ten languages spoken in Aceh (Sumatra, Indonesia) and in parts of Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam and Hainan, China. The Chamic languages are a subgroup of Malay ...

are closely related to Malayic. The wider affiliations of the Malayic languages are however controversial. There are two major proposals: Adelaar (2005) places Malayic within the Malayo-Sumbawan subgroup, which comprises the following languages: *Malayo-Sumbawan **Malayo-Chamic-BSS ***Malayic languages ***

*** Bali-Sasak-Sumbawa languages ** Sundanese ** Madurese Blust (2010) and Smith (2017) assign Malayic to the Greater North Borneo subgroup: *Greater North Borneo **North Borneo languages ** Central Sarawak languages ** Kayan–Murik languages **

Land Dayak languages The Land Dayak languages are a group of dozen or so languages spoken by the Bidayuh Land Dayaks of northwestern Borneo, and according to some sources, also spoken by the Rejang people of southwestern Sumatra, Indonesia. Languages ''Glottolog'' ...

**Malayo–Chamic ***

***Malayic languages **

Rejang language Rejang (, ) is an Austronesian language predominantly spoken by the Rejang people in southwestern parts of Sumatra ( Bengkulu), Indonesia. There are five dialects, spread from mountainous region to the coastal region of Bengkulu, including the ...

Sundanese language Sundanese ( ; , Sundanese script: , ) is an Austronesian language spoken in Java, primarily by the Sundanese. It has approximately 32 million native speakers in the western third of Java; they represent about 15% of Indonesia's total pop ...

The Malayo-Sumbawan hypothesis is mainly based on phonological evidence with a few shared lexical innovations, while the Greater North Borneo hypothesis is based on a large corpus of lexical evidence.

Notes

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * Nothofer, Bernd. 1975. The reconstruction of Proto-Malayo-Javanic. (Verhandelingen van het KITLV, 73.) The Hague: Nijhoff. * * * * * {{Borneo Languages of Indonesia Languages of Malaysia Malayo-Chamic languages