Our official language is relatively young, but it is safe to say that it is ‘complete’ to a certain extent

graphic by MZUKRI

THE malay language is over 1,000 years old. It is heavily influenced by the Sanskrit, Javanese, Arabic, Chinese, Portuguese and English languages from merchants who frequented Malaya from all over the world in the 15th century. Our official language is relatively young, but it is safe to say that it is “complete” to a certain extent.

Of course, in this day and age, new things have emerged, especially in technology and trends that require new words to be invented.

After adopting the English terms for some time, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) — the government body responsible for coordinating the use of the Malay language and Malay-language literature in Malaysia — decided that we needed our own words for them.

For example, in 2017, DBP revealed “tunafoto” as the Malay word for “photobomb”. Many thought it was silly because the act of photobombing has nothing to do with a fish, but the word “tuna” actually means “spoilt”. So, a spoiled photo it is.

There is also “meridap” which means “nap”. Although some argued that we could have used the word “siesta” instead because some Malaysians are familiar with the Spanish language, that would just be another adoption from another language.

To translate “pick-up line,” there is now the term “kata pikat” which has a nice ring to it. However, did DBP really need to come up with the term? The English version is not even officially recognised in the dictionary.

In 2018, new words in the Malay language included “tular” for viral and “sohor kini” for trending. When these words surfaced, many mocked DBP. Although Malaysians, specifically the Malays, continue to use photobomb, viral and trending, there is nothing wrong to come up with these words as they would be useful in official matters like court proceedings or news reporting where the national language is being used.

What has gotten our panties in a bunch, however, is when English words are being adopted and modified when there are already existing Malay ones. They are being used officially and so often that it seems these words have replaced the existing words.

A big glaring “informasi” (information) sign can be seen at airports and malls. What happened to “maklumat”? There is apparently the word “terminologi”. An unnecessary translation for “terminology” when Bahasa Melayu already has a nice and simpler word for it — “istilah”.

Ironically, the word “terminologi” was used to discuss the extinction of some Malay words.

One word that got my brain working extra hard a few years ago was “fi”. Almost an hour later, I discovered that it meant “fee”. When did “yuran” run out of style? “Fi”, by the way, is being used in official government websites.

Other words that DBP included in its list of new words in 2018 were “bento” and “rai bayi”. The former is taken from the Japanese language which means food containers, which in Malay we often just say “bekas makanan” or simply “bekas”, while the latter is for “baby shower”, which is not a Malaysian culture to begin with. Many times, the choices made were largely to keep up with time or rather the Western trend.

From the unnecessary adoption of English words into Bahasa Malaysia, we now segue into the inappropriate usage of language in roadside advertisements.

DBP came under fire in December last year when it approved the Sugarbook billboard advertisement.

Sugarbook is a mobile app which connects sugar daddies with sugar babies; basically an online dating app for older men and younger women, which DBP approved thinking it was promoting a book on family values.

This drew a lot of flak including from Women, Family and Community Development Deputy Minister Hannah Yeoh who questioned DBP for not checking the content of the app before approving the text of the advertisement.

Although the Sugarbook advertisement had caused quite a stir, there are much worse ones out there in terms of language as well as content.

A Mamee snack advertisement in Melaka got away with the word “kthxbye” (okay, thanks, goodbye) for a while before the public called them out. Upon authorities’ instructions, they changed it to “Until we meet again, bye bye”!

Netizens remarked that if authorities had taken down the Sugarbook billboard, they should do the same with many other billboard ads with sexual connotations.

Interestingly, such billboards are as common as dirt along the expressway. One herbal gel and ginseng coffee advert promises to make men energetic all night.

Cosmetic advertisements promise instant beauty with a tagline “suck, suck, immediately beautiful”? It is the year 2020 and the world is moving so fast, yet such advertisements continue to spice up our life. Language reflects the values and beliefs of a culture.

Sadly, such values are eroded by cheap billboards on the side of the highway.

Farezza Hanum Rashid is the assistant news editor at The Malaysian Reserve.