Thursday, 07 September 2006 @ 4:35pm.

Even though I have been studying Indonesian for some time now, I still get tripped up by words that sound similar. For instance, I still take an extra second or so to process:

kering (dry)
keringat (sweat)
keriting (curly)
keringanan (lightness or relief)

There’s actually even more words that sound like the ones above!

And then there are the words that have a slight variation in spelling, but mean very different things. For example, tahan means “to endure, put up with, last, or hold out,” but tahanan means “resistance, opposition, obstruction, arrest, or detention.”

Sometimes I run into problems when there are English words that have taken on different spellings in Indonesian. Examples include:

dobel (double)
stepler (stapler)
supsidi (subsidy)

The initial encounter, particularly if in written form, tends to throw me off because I’m thinking in “Indonesian spelling,” but I find that the words make sense after I say them outloud.

I recommend the article “Halo Bos! English borrowings in Indonesian” if you are interested in learning more about the relationship between English and Indonesian. I liked the mention of “false friends,” which are words that sound English or are English, but have a different meaning in Indonesian. For example, “Kentucky” (in a variety of spellings) means “deep fried chicken,” “melon” is really “cantaloupe” here, and “piss” is just a different spelling for “peace.” I was so confused the first time I saw “Piss Salon,” but am now at ease. :)

My most recent language challenge was in the taxi on the way to the airport last week in Jakarta. The dialogue went like this:

Jenny: Saya mau ke bandara. (I want to go to the airport.)

Taxi Driver: Apa? (What?)

Jenny: Bandara. Bandara Soekarno-Hatta. (Airport. The Soekarno-Hatta Airport. *Note: I also pointed to the sign on his windshield, which stated that his taxi was an express service to said airport.)

Taxi Driver: Uh… [very confused look on his face]

Jenny: Airport?

Taxi Driver: Oooohhhh, bandara.

Jenny: Ya, saya sudah bilang itu. (Yes, I already said that.)

Taxi Driver: [no response, just laughs]

Why the taxi driver understood “airport” when I said it, but not “bandara,” but then responded with the word “bandara” confuses me.

All in all, though, I usually get a good laugh out of my mistakes and I tend to have a good sense of humor when Indonesians make mistakes with English. Better to laugh and learn than get frustrated and slowed down, right? :)