Foreigner Guide

Hello today,

     Now I'm here as an Indonesian to be your little guide (if you are excited of our country, of course) in learning Indonesian language. But before it, let me tell you some things about Indonesia. Indonesia is a very large republic in Southeast Asia. Bordered with Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Timor-Leste, and also Papua New Guinea. Indonesia is the founder of ASEAN and also the third largest country in Asia-Pacific after the People's Republic of China and Australia. Indonesia consists of more than 18.000 islands inside, make it the largest archipelago state in the world defeated Japan, Philippines, Maldives, Denmark, and any other Oceanian states. Indonesia has about 225 millions people, make it number forth in the world by population just after China, India, and the United States. Muslim contributes 88%, make it as the country with highest Muslim population in the world, and the rest are Christian, Catholic, Hindu, and Buddha.

       Learning Indonesian language is quiet simple. Indonesian language is derivated from Malay, so it's nearly same with official neighbouring state's language such as Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei. Indonesian language also used with the Indonesian immigrants in Taiwan, Hongkong, and Saudi Arabia, make it one of the most used language in the world. So, let's check it all :)

Lesson 1 : Spelling

      Indonesian literature is using Latin fonetic as official language. Every provinces have their own traditional writing, but not state officials. In Indonesia, just like in English, have 26 alphabets with a little different pronunciation. The alphabets are :

a = pronunced as 'a'. Just open your mouth and said 'a' like you say 'aha!'. So delete 'ha' and just say it 'a'

b = pronunced as 'be'. In Indonesia, 'b' isn't pronunced like in English 'be' or 'bee'. 'Be' in Indonesia is like when you say 'BElgium' or 'BEnefit'. So pronunce it like 'Be' from word 'Belgium'.

c = pronunced as 'ce'. 'Ce' isn't pronunced like 'si' in English. In our country, 'ce' is pronunced as 'ce' from word 'Czech'. You just need to delete 'ch' behind and just said 'Cze'. Difficult? Just like you say 'che' from word 'cherry'.

d = pronunced as 'de'. 'De' is pronunced like 'de' from word 'DEvelopment', or 'DEploy', or 'DEmon'. DON'T pronunce it like 'de' from 'DEvil' or 'DEgree'. It's NOT 'di'.

e = pronunced as 'e' from word 'Enlightment', 'Entertainment', or 'Emergency'. DON'T pronunce it like 'e' from word 'E-mail' or 'Except'.

f = pronunced as 'ef' just like you say 'EFflata' or 'EFficient'. DON'T say it like 'ef' from 'EFfort'.

g = pronunced as 'ge' and NOT 'ji' like English. Like when you say 'ge' from 'Gap' or 'Guest' or 'Guess'.

h = pronunced as 'ha' and NOT 'aitch' in English. Simple like 'ha' from 'aHA!'

i = pronunced just like word "E" in English. Just like 'i' from word 'Implication' or 'Infected'.

j = pronunced as 'je' like word 'JEremy' or 'JErusalem'.

k = pronunced as 'ka' and NOT 'kei' in English. Maybe in English, it's pronunced just like 'ca' from word 'SabreniCA' or 'CAlcium'.

l = pronunced as 'el'. Like 'ELiminated'.

m = pronunced as 'em' like 'EMpire' or 'EMployee'.

n = pronunced as 'en' from 'ENtire'. Or if you confused, just remember word 'and'.

o = pronunced just as 'o' and not 'ou'. Like 'Ostrich' or 'Old'.

p = pronunced as 'pe' and NOT 'phi'. Do you like football? Yeah, it's pronunced like 'pe' from 'PEnalty'.

q = pronunced as 'khi' OR 'kyu'. Q is including to the letter which is used sparingly in Indonesia.

r = pronunced as 'er' and NOT 'are' in English. Just say it as 'er' from word 'ERror'. DON'T say it as 'er' from word 'ERaser'. And also DON'T say it like 'Air', because it's just 'er' and NOT 'eir'.

s = pronunced as 'es'. Just like 'es' from 'ESper'.

t = pronunced as 'te' and NOT 'tee' in English pronunciation. In Indonesia, the pronunciation of letter 't' is without 'h'. So DON'T say it like 'Thee' because it'll be heard too over. Just like 'te' from 'TEquila'.

u = pronunced as 'u' and NOT 'you'. You'll wrong if you pronunce letter 'u' with pronunciation like 'Unite' or 'Universal' or 'University'. In Indonesia, letter 'u' is pronunced as 'u' from 'Ultimate' or 'Ultra'.

v = pronunced as 've' and NOT 'vi' OR 'vee' in English pronunciation. Do you have a friend named Veronica? Or have you ever visited Verona in Italy where Juliette was born? Yeah, letter 'v' in Indonesia is pronunced as 've' for 'VEronica' and 'VErona'.

w = pronunced as 'we'. 'We' in here isn't pronunced like plural subject 'we' in English. In Indonesia, letter 'w' is pronunced as 'WEllington', the capital of New Zealand.

x = letter 'x' is the most sparing letter in Indonesia. It's pronunced as 'ex' for 'EXtra' or 'EXit'. DON'T say it as 'ex' like in word 'EXam' or 'EXample'.

y = is pronunced as 'ye' and NOT 'wai'. Just like 'YEllow' or 'YEs'.

z = is the last alphabet in Indonesia. Z is pronunced as 'zet'. 

In Indonesia, we also have two transitional spelling, they are 'ng' and 'ny'.

ng = is oftenly used by the Indonesians. It's pronunced as 'eng'. DON'T say it like 'eng' for 'ENGlish'. Say it like 'ng' in 'SpriNG' or 'MorniNG'. Transitional spelling like 'ng' is very often placed in the beginning of word. Maybe it's used but just for teenager's life.

ny = is also often to be used. It's pronunced as 'ny (read : en with your tongue placed in your palate)'. Just remember about 'KeNYa', a country in Eastern Africa. It's like 'ny' for 'KeNYa'.

EXERCISE (Indonesian : LATIHAN)    :)

      After you know 26 alphabets of Indonesia, now you should take this little exercise just to know how far you understand this language. Don't worry, it's not difficult. It's only to practise your pronunciation. Well, let's start it now. The answer will be given below the problem list. But, please don't cheating :)

Pronunce the words below!

1. Latihan (exercise)                          11. Siang (afternoon)

2. Kamu (you)                                   12. Sore (evening)

3. Aku (me)                                       13. Pagi (morning)

4. Saya (I)                                         14. Halo (hello)

5. Anda (you)                                    15. Apa (what)

6. Kami (we)                                     16. Baik (good/well)

7. Mereka (they)                               17. Iya/Ya (yes/yeah)

8. Dia (he/she)                                   18. Kabar (news)

9. Kalian (you)                                   19. Buruk (bad)

10. Malam (evening/night)                20. Tidak (no/not)

Jawaban (Answer) :

1. Latihan

    La-ti-han (La + tea + han)

    note : tea is pronunced as 'tee'.

2. Kamu

    Ka-mu (Ka + moo)

    note : moo is pronunced as 'mu'.

3. Aku

    A-ku (A + ku)

4. Saya

    Sa-ya (Sa + ya)

5. Anda

    An-da (Un + da)

6. Kamu

    Ka-mi (Ka + me)

7. Mereka

    Me-re-ka (Me + re + ka)

    note : 're' in here is pronunced 're' like 'race', and NOT like 'REpeat' or 'REverse' or 'REbuild'.

8. Dia

    Di + a (the + a)

    note : 'the' above means word 'the' when meet vocal letter. Like 'the umbrella' or 'the ambulance'.

9. Kalian

    Ka-li-an (Ka + lee + un)

    note : lee is pronunced as 'li'.

10. Malam

      Ma-lam (Ma + lum)

      note : lum is pronunced as 'lum'.

11. Siang

      Si-ang (See + ang)

      note : See is pronunced as 'si' or letter 'c' in English.

12. Sore

      So-re (so + re)

      note : so is read 'so' for 'so what', 'so on', etc. And 're' is same like in number 7.

13. Pagi

      Pa-gi (pa + gee)

14. Halo

      Ha-lo (Ha + lo)

15. Apa

      A-pa (A + pa)

16. Baik

      Ba-ik (Ba + ik)

17a. Iya

        I-ya (I + ya)

        note : 'I' isn't pronunced as 'ai', but just simple 'i' or same as you say letter 'e' in English.

17b. Ya

         Ya (ya)

18. Kabar

      Ka-bar (Ka + bar)

      note : pronounce 'bar' like 'bar' in English.

19. Buruk

      Bu-ruk (Boo + ruk)

      note : you must pronounce 'boo' as 'bu', like when you want to frighten someone. And 'ruk' is pronunced like you wanna say 'destRUCT'. But delete letter 't' behind and just say 'ruc'.

20. Tidak

       Ti-dak (tea + duck)

       note : tea is pronunced like in number 1, and 'duck' is pronunced as simple 'duck' in English.

Okay guys, that's enough for today. Visit newlandembassy.blogspot.com to continue read my article about Indonesia and whole the world. Next time, I'll publish the second lesson of Indonesian language. Keep in spirit, and see ya all !! :D

The Country, The Language, And The Demonym (Grammatical English)

The Country                              The Language                                   The Demonym

1. Indonesia                                     Indonesian                                            Indonesian

2. Malaysia                                           Malay                                                 Malaysian

3. Singapore                            Malay, Mandarin, English                              Singaporean

4. Timor Leste                           Timorese, Portuguese                                 East Timorese

5. Brunei Darussalam                      Malay, English                                          Bruneian

6. Thailand                                             Thai                                                       Thai

7. Laos                                                   Lao                                                      Laotian

8. Philippines                                  Tagalog, English                                          Filipino

9. Cambodia                                         Khmer                                                 Cambodian

10. Myanmar                                       Burmese                                                Burmese

11. Vietnam                                       Vietnamese                                           Vietnamese

12. Australia                                        English                                                  Australian

13. New Zealand                                  English                                               New Zealander

14. Fiji                                                    Fijian                                                       Fijian

15. China, People's Republic               Mandarin                                                 Chinese

16. Taiwan                                          Mandarin                                                Taiwanese

17. Japan                                           Japanese                                                 Japanese

18. North Korea                                   Korean                                                 North Korean

19. South Korea                                   Korean                                                 South Korean

20. India                                           Hindi, English                                                Indian

21. Pakistan                                     Urdu, English                                               Pakistani

22. Bhutan                                         Dzongkha                                                  Bhutanese

23. Sri Lanka                                   Sinhala, Tamil                                               Sri Lankan

24. Nepal                                             Nepali                                                        Nepali

25. Afghanistan                         Pashto, Persian Dari                                           Afghan

26. Uzbekistan                                    Uzbek                                                          Uzbek

27. Tajikistan                             Persian Tajik, Russian                                        Tajikistani

28. Kyrgyzstan                             Kyrgyz, Russian                                                Kyrgyz

29. Turkmenistan                                Turkmen                                                    Turkmen

30. Mongolia                                        Mongol                                                     Mongolian

31. Kazakhstan                            Kazakh, Russian                                            Kazakhstani

32. Iran                                               Persian                                                       Iranian

33. Iraq                                                Arabic                                                          Iraqi

34. Kuwait                                            Arabic                                                        Kuwaiti

35. Saudi Arabia                                  Arabic                                                    Saudi Arabian

36. Qatar                                             Arabic                                                         Qatari

37. Bahrain                                          Arabic                                                         Bahraini

38. United Arab Emirates                    Arabic                                                          Emirati

39. Oman                                            Arabic                                                           Omani

40. Yemen                                           Arabic                                                          Yemeni

41. Syria                                             Arabic                                                           Syrian

42. Lebanon                                        Arabic                                                        Lebanese

43. Jordan                                           Arabic                                                        Jordanian

44. Israel                              Hebrew, Arabic, English                                              Israeli

45. Palestine                                       Arabic                                                         Palestinian

46. Egypt                                            Arabic                                                          Egyptian

47. Libya                                             Arabic                                                            Libyan

48. Tunisia                                          Arabic                                                            Tunisian

49. Algeria                                          Arabic                                                            Algerian

50. Morocco                                  Arabic, Berber                                                    Moroccan

51. Sudan                                     Arabic, English                                                    Sudanese

52. Somalia                                   Somali, Arabic                                                Somali, Somalian

53. Ethiopia                                      Amharic                                                            Ethiopian

54. Djibouti                                  French, Arabic                                                      Djiboutian

55. Sahrawi Arab Republic                Arabic                                                              Sahrawi

56. Gabon                                         French                                                   Gabonese, Gabonaise

57. Equatorial Guinea          Spanih, French, Portuguese                       Equatoguinean, Equatorial Guinean

58. Senegal                                      French                                                              Senegalese

59. Ghana                                        English                                                                Ghanaian

60. Cote d'Ivoire                              French                                                           Ivorian, Ivoirian

61. Gambia                                       English                                                                Gambian

62. Congo, Democratic Republic      French                                                               Congolese

63. Namibia                                      English                                                                Namibian

64. Mozambique                           Portuguese                                                          Mozambican

65. Madagascar                            Malagasy                                                               Malagasy

66. Rwanda                    Kinyarwanda, French, English                                    Rwandan, Rwandese

67. South Africa                      Afrikaans, English                                                    South African

68. Lesotho                              English, Sesotho                                       Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)

69. Swaziland                            English, Swati                                                                 Swazi

70. Togo                                         French                                                                    Togolese

71. Zambia                                      English                                                                    Zambian

72. Liberia                                       English                                                                     Liberian

73. Sierra Leone                             English                                                                Sierra Leonean

74. Cape Verde Islands                Portuguese                                                            Cape Verdean

75. Mauritania                                  Arabic                                                                   Mauritanian

76. The Comoros                Comorian, Arabic, French                                                    Comoran

77. Seychelles               French, English, Seychellois, Creole                              Seychellois, Seychelloise

78. Mauritius           Mauritian Creole, French, English, Rodriguan Creole                      Mauritian

79. Kenya                                     Swahili, English                                                            Kenyan

80. Nigeria                                          English                                                                   Nigerian

81. Mali                                               French                                                                    Malian

82. Cameroon                               French, English                                                        Cameroonian

83. Armenia                                       Armenian                                                                Armenian

84. Azerbaijan                                  Azerbaijani                                                        Azeri, Azerbaijani

85. Georgia                                        Georgian                                                                 Georgian

86. Latvia                                            Latvian                                                                    Latvian

87. Lithuania                                      Lithuanian                                                               Lithuanian

88. Estonia (Estland)                          Estonian                                                                  Estonian

89. Belarus                                  Belarusian, Russian                                                       Belarusian

90. Ukraine                                        Ukrainian                                                                  Ukrainian

91. Russia                                           Russian                                                                    Russian

92. Moldova                               Moldovan, Romanian                                              Moldovan, Moldavian

93. Romania                                      Romanian                                                                  Romanian

94. Bulgaria                                        Bulgarian                                                                   Bulgarian

95. FYR Macedonia                          Macedonian                                                               Macedonian

96. Montenegro                              Montenegrin                                                               Montenegrin

97. Albania                                         Albanian                                                                    Albanian

98. Croatia                                         Croatian                                                                Croat, Croatian

99. Slovenia                                        Slovene                                                              Slovenian, Slovene

100. Serbia                                         Serbian                                                                      Serbian

101. Greece                                         Greek                                                                         Greek

102. Turkey                                        Turkish                                                                         Turk

103. Cyprus                                    Greek, Turkish                                                               Cypriot

104. Malta                                     Maltese, English                                                              Maltese

105. Italy                                             Italian                                                                        Italian

106. Holy See (Vatican City)           Italian, Latin                                                                  Vatican

107. San Marino                                  Italian                                                                     Sammarinese

108. Andorra                                      Catalan                                                                      Andorran

109. Spain                                          Spanish                                                                       Spaniard

110. Portugal                                   Portuguese                                                                  Portuguese

111. Monaco                                       French                                                                     Monegasque

112. Hungary                                    Hungarian                                                                   Hungarian

113. Poland                                         Polish                                                                       Pole, Polish

114. Austria                                       German                                                                        Austrian

115. Czech Republic                           Czech                                                                            Czech

116. Slovakia                                      Slovak                                                                           Slovak

117. Denmark                                     Danish                                                                      Dane, Danish

118. Norway                                     Norwegian                                                                   Norwegian

119. Sweden                                      Swedish                                                                         Swede

120. Finland                                        Finnish                                                                      Finn, Finnish

121. Iceland                                       Icelandic                                                                      Icelander

122. Switzerland                  German, Italian, French, Romansh                                              Swiss

123. Germany                                     German                                                                         German

124. France                                        French                                                                           French

125. Netherlands                                 Dutch                                                                   Dutch, Netherlander

126. Belgium                              Dutch, French, German                                                         Belgian

127. Luxembourg                Luxembourgish,  French, German                                           Luxembourger

128. Liechtenstein                               German                           Liechtensteiner (male), Liechtensteinerin (female)

129. Republic of Ireland                  Irish, English                                                                      Irish

130. England                                        English                                                                          English

131. Wales                                            Wales                                                                          Welsh

132. Scotland                                 Scottish, English                                                                Scottish

133. Ulster (Northern Ireland)         Irish, English                                                                Northern Irish

134. United Kingdom                            British                                                                       British, Briton

135. Faroe Islands                         Faroese, Danish                                                                Faroese

136. Hong Kong                           Cantonese, English                                                           Hong Konger

137. Macau                                Mandarin, Portuguese                                                           Macanese

My Own Life

     Hello all, I'm in High School now. After this I'll continue my school to university so, maybe it's time for me to think more about my life and my future. Well, guys here's my life plan.

     In Indonesian High School, we don't take lesson we like. In the first year, we learn all of the subjects. And in the next year, we can take which one we want to learn, social or science. The basic lessons (which learnt in both in science and social) are math, civics, arts, and ICT (Information and Communication Technology), electronics, history, and counselling. The difference is, in science we learn biology, chemistry, and physics while in social not. In social we learn sociology, geography, economy, and accounting while in science not. Is it strange? According to my own, yeah. But this is our poor education.

    After I thought it again, again, and again, my choice is in the social. Why? Because I think it's more useful, further ensure the life. Well, if the education in Indonesia is like in the United States or Singapore I'll take chemist too, but forget it. It's just dreaming. And after I told it to my parents, firstly they were disagree. They forced me to choose science, but that's not my world. So my Mom said, 'If you really want to choose social, it's okay. But study hard, and keep your mark good'. And my Dad soon let me choose whatever I like.

    I'll take social and strengthen my skill in economy (especially accounting) and geography. I'll keep my mark balance so I can get Invitation Path (Indonesia : Jalur Undangan). What's that? It's the way for us simply to enter to the good university. The election is so hard, and the easier way is to pass this way. But the requirement is, I must keep my mark stable, never down (example from 88 to 85), and still including to the big ten in my class. Difficult, right? But this is Indonesia. If I use Special Path (Indonesia : Jalur Khusus), my parents can't pay my school next. It so expensive !!

   My dream is to be a scholar in my own country, in my fatherland. I'll take accounting or international relation as I like. After I get First Degree here, I'll look for job. Maybe in private companies or Foreign Ministry. After that I want to continue my education. Not in Indonesia, that's enough. I'll fly to the Netherlands, or Denmark, or Israel. Three countries I've mentioned have the best education system in the world. I won't choose US, or England, or France, or Singapore, or Australia. Boring. I need something new !

   But maybe I better choose Netherlands. Cause I've a promise with my friend. She want to continue her school to Germany. So one day, if she really live in Berlin while I'm in Amsterdam, we'll fulfill our promise. We'll meet in Bremen, and talking so long about our life together. It'll be so nice ! I vow I'll make it comes true! I'll continue my way to the Netherlands, the land of my country's ex-company!

  And marriage. I hope my wife is kind-hearted, beautiful, and accept whatever I am. I want to get a Caucasian girl, or Middle Eastern. For Caucasian, I like Danish girl. They're pretty. But because I'm a muslim while the Dane usually christian so it's just hope. Not hope, but dream. In reality, maybe Turkish girl, or Lebanese, or Jordanian, or North African is okay. Like Egyptian, Libyan, Tunisian, Algerian, and Moroccan. I love Lebanese! They're really really perfect in face ! Urgh! I love !

     And life, maybe I'll build my home in southern United States. Like a cowboy, live in a dry land, with horse, hay house, wooden house with large terrace, and singing country song.....