Sri Lankan Malay holds more in common to Javanese in its vocabulary and pronunciation. One aspect of Sri Lankan Malay is that it is not standardized, and has adopted many words from other languages. Dilemma facing the Malays today is losing our language. It is because many have diverted from the mother tongue and have adopted other languages. I'm fortunate enough to know the local lingo because my father was particular that we hold on to our identity. There are many in my generation who cannot converse in the mother tongue, but can comprehend what is being said. 'Kapang' means and is related to the term 'when'; the term 'datang' is the same when used in BM. So, the topic asks the question "when did you come or arrive?"
A lot of people have been asking me the above question. It's because most of them know that I'm abroad, and for the most part in the land of our forefathers. I must say that the Malays here have amalgamated into the local culture, thus culturally are a bit different with the rest of the Malay world. This can also be seen in the Arabs, who have merged into the society in M'sia. Rejuvenating a dying language is no easy task, and neither can it be done given a certain time frame. It has taken years since a new approach was taken to revive the local Malay language. By looking at how its going, it may take a few generations.
One aspect common to the Malays is that they are a proud race. Wherever Malays may be, they are proud of their history, culture, cuisine and any aspect that is related to them. I am definitely proud of my lineage in spite of what others may have to say about it. I may be descendant of the Malays who were brought to lanka to fortify the English occupation, and keep order and peace. They were enlisted into regiments by the British who were very impressed with their fighting prowess. I may even be a descendant of the princes or kings exiled to lanka who revolted against British occupation. The real answer I don't know exactly, but that is not important.
I hope the rest of the Malay world would not be so ignorant. One thing I have observed is that Malays share a similar mentality despite geographically distant locations. A change in mentality would do our race some good without being complacent. A look to the future is necessary as an entire race and not just being individualistic. The journey is long and very arduous with many challenges ahead. I hope we make it, Insha Allah.
4 comments:
there is also an influence of malay in south africa. not so sure bout the historical side of it. but i'm pretty sure the documentary i saw a couple of years back, mentioned something similar to that u just mentioned. cool eyh to trace back ur roots. me and my mum used to make a hobby out of drawing up our family tree when i was a kid. it's still pretty vague for me too. i guess we're always trying to find out our roots to give us a sense of belonging. i'm fine with that. it shows how much family ties matter, no?
yeps, i read an article on south african malays. they are mostly clustered in this one residential area and they have colourful houses. they have muslim names with christian surnames lol. i dont know how that works. kapang? thats javanese rite, the indon actors on tv still say that hehe
Hey, you two!! I knew about cape town malays long time ago, and they have lost their language to a great extent or completely. Tracing my roots back to the malay archipelago is somewhat a very difficult task. I think most of the documentation is lost through out the years. The malay here is mostly javanese, but there are common terms.
we should meet up for a chat when semester starts cz this is an interesting topic :D
yes2, lets! i find it interesting that there capetown malays in south africa! and they do look similar to us
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