afternoon (soré = late afternoon, 3 pm to nightfall)Apa kabar is another common greeting which literally means “What news?” (apa = what, kabar = news), or in other words “How are you?” The standard answer is “Kabar baik,” meaning “I’m fine” (baik = well, fine).
You will also find yourself greeted with the following questions, even by complete strangers:
| Mau ke mana? (lit: Want-to-where?) | Where are you going? |
| Dari mana? (lit: From-where?) | Where are you [coming] from? |
This is said out of curiosity, and the person is usually not all that interested where you are actually going or coming from. This is just another way of saying “Hello!”
You may answer:
| Dari [+ place] | From [+ place] |
| Saya mau ke [+ place] | I am going to [+ place] |
| Jalan-jalan saja. (lit: Walk-walk-only.) | Just going for a walk. |
| Tidak ke mana-mana. (lit: Not-to-where-where.) | Not anywhere in particular. |
When taking leave of someone, it is polite to excuse oneself by saying:
| Mari. Saya pergi dulu. (lit: Let’s. I-go-first.) | I am going now.(= Goodbye for now!) |
| Sampai jumpa lagi. (lit: Until-meet-again.) | See you again. |
More informally, you can also say:
| Da! or Bye! | Goodbye (so long!) |
Note: Da! comes from the Dutch dag meaning “day” (also used as a farewell). Bye is from English.
If you are the one staying behind, you respond by saying:
| Selamat jalan. (lit: Safe-journey.) | “Bon voyage” |
1.03
Forms of Address
As in any language, there are many ways of addressing someone in Indonesian. Because Indonesians have a strong sense of social hierarchy, these forms of address often carry with them certain class and other distinctions. It is important therefore to use the appropriate term. Some forms of address are quite “safe” or “neutral” in this regard, and may be used in a wide variety of situations; these are the ones that should be learned first and used most often.
Bapak or pak (literally: “father”) is the most common way of addressing an adult male in Indonesian. It is used very much like “Mr.” or “sir” in English. Bapak is always used when addressing older men, and may also be used to address a contemporary or a younger man (although other forms may be used in this case as well, see below).
Ibu or bu (literally: “mother”) is similarly used to address all women, particularly older, married women.
Note: Bapak and ibu are often used followed by the person’s first name, meaning Mr. or Mrs. So-and-so. This is quite universal throughout Indonesia, and you can almost never go wrong addressing someone in this way (except when you are much older than the person you are addressing).
Anda is a term of fairly recent coinage, intended to mean “you” in a neutral way. It is also considered to be rather formal and is likewise used among educated adults who meet for the first time (also in television commercials, etc.).
Kamu and engkau are pronouns that both mean “you” in a familiar sense (equivalent to Du in German or tu in French). They are used in informal situations to address close friends, children or social inferiors, but should not generally be used as a substitute for English “you.” Once you get to know someone well, you can use their name or the form kamu (“you”). Generally speaking, personal pronouns such as “you” equivalents can be left out in colloquial Indonesian.
Tuan (“sir”), nyonya (“madam”), and nona (“miss”) are forms that Indonesians may use to address you. Tuan means “master” and was used to address aristocrats and Europeans during colonial times. Nyonya and nona are borrowed from the Portuguese. As a foreign visitor, you may only ever hear these used for you—you will not need to use them yourself.
Om (“Uncle”) and Tante (“Aunt”) are borrowed from Dutch and are used to address older men or women, especially if they are not blood relations.
Mas literally means “older brother” in Javanese, and is a polite form of address for a contemporary or a younger person. It is commonly used in Java to address a waiter, porter or pedicab (bécak) driver, and hence can have the connotation of addressing a social inferior. When in doubt it is better to stick with Pak. Bang can be used in Jakarta or Sumatra.
Mbak (Kak in Sumatra) is similarly used in Java to summon a waitress or a shopgirl.
Summary
To be on the safe side, always use bapak and ibu when addressing adults whom you are meeting for the first time (anda may also be used by younger people to address their peers). Once you get to know someone better, use bapak or ibu followed by the person’s first name, or (if you are roughly the same age) simply the first name alone.
The following is a brief dialogue between a foreigner (F) and an Indonesian (I) who works in a hotel.
| I: Selamat pagi! | Good morning. |
| F: Selamat pagi! | Good morning, pak. |
| I: Mau ke mana? | Where are you going? |
| F: Saya mau ke restoran. | I’m going to the restaurant. |
1.04
Pronouns
On the whole, Indonesians do not use the word “you” as we do in English. First names (often preceded by kinship terms like Pak) may be used, or the context may make it obvious.
| singular | plural | |
| 1st person | I saya, aku | we kita, kami |
| 2nd person | you anda, kamu, engkau bapak, ibu | you all kalian, sekalian, anda sekalian |
| 3rd person | he, she, it dia | they meréka |
Note:
