Malay Aksara.

1. Malay Aksara. Done by : Cheow Tian Cong(32), Ang Zhen Xuan(31) and Tan Hao Yang(40) Class:2E

2. 1. History of the Malay Aksara The word ‘Aksara’ is the Malay word for ‘alphabet or ‘system of writing’. Examples of early Malay script are extremely rare, with the earliest example of Malay text being found on the Batu Bersurat Trengganu which was only dated back to the late 1300s, which the oldest Malay manuscript in existence was written in the 1600s. Both were written in Jawi- the Arabic script adapted for the use of Malay. Malay was also believed to have been written in Kawi – a rough combination of Javanese and Arabic alphabets.

3. 2. Examples of the written Malay ie. Kawi, Jawi and current Malay ( roman alphabets ) These are examples of written malay: Sample text in Malay (Jawi alphabets) : .سموا مأنسيا دلاهيرکن بيبس دان سامرات دري سڬي کمولياءن دان حق٢. مريك ممڤوڽاءي ڤميکيرن دان ڤراساءن هاتي دان هندقله برتيندق دانتارا ساتو سام لاءين دڠن سماڠت ڤرساوداراءن Sample text in Malay( Roman alphabets) : Semua manusia dilahirkan bebas dan samarata dari segi kemuliaan dan hak-hak. Mereka mempunyai pemikiran dan perasaan hati dan hendaklah bertindak di antara satu sama lain dengan semangat persaudaraan. Translation All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

4. 2. Examples of the written Malay ie. Kawi, Jawi and current Malay ( roman alphabets ) Examples of Kawi Language could not be found as it is already extinct as a spoken language. However, it is still used as literary language to some extend. The ‘Susila Budhi Dharma’ is a book written by : Muhammad Subuh Sumohadiwidjojo, the founder of the World Subud Association. It was originally written in High-Javanese language and Kawi, and was reputedly received in the form of a poem.

5. 3. Country that influences the Malay Aksara. • The Malay Aksara includes Kawi, Jawi and the present day roman letters. The malay Aksara has a blending of the indigenous, Indic, Islamic and Western influences. • Kawi is a language from the islands of Java, Bali, and Lombok. It is actually a literary language based on Old Javanese, but heavily interlarded with Sanskirt loanwords. Although Kawi is extinct as a spoken language, it is still used in Bali, Lombok and to some extent in Java as a literary language. It is the main language for the Lombok cultural practice of reading and writing literature on the leaves of palms. • Jawi is an adapted Arabic alphabet for writing the Malay language. It is used as one of two official scripts in Brunei for writing Malay, and is employed to a limited extend in Malaysia, Indonesia, southern Philippines, and in Singapore as well, particularly in religious contexts.

6. 3. Country that influences the Malay Aksara. • Roman alphabets. With the arrival of European colonial explorers in the Malay Archipelago in the 15th century, a Latin system of speeling was introduced as colonial officials sought to learn the Malay language for trade and communication. Simple dictionaries were produced that became reference points for Europeans coming to trade.While colonial officials initially learned jawi, they switched to romanised Malay over time. This consists of 26 letters of the alphabet, sufficient to spell all the phonetic sounds in Malay. Roman alphabets especially facilitates the learning of the Malay language for non-Malay groups. • In conclusion, country such as Java, Bali ,Lombok and Arabia contribute to the influence of the Malay Aksara. The European colonial explorers also contributed to the Malay Aksara

7. 4. Time period Malays started using Kawi during this period. • Old Malay (682 – 1500 C.E.) • The Indians brought along vatteluttu or Pallava, an ancient script from South India to the Malay Archipelago. • Pallava was accepted as the Malay writing system had gradually evolved into an ancient royal Javanese script called Kawi. Malays started using Jawi during this period. (around 7th century) • Although Arabic script was most probably introduced to the Malay world as early as the 7th century by Islam, but Old Malay was very much under the Indian influence with its extensive use of Sanskrit vocabulary. • The Malays experimented and created Jawi script based on Arabic, but found both Pallava and Kawi to be unsuitable to pronounce the verses of the Quran and Hadis, to express their new Islamic faith. • The Jawi script has been uesd for more than 600 years by now, is synonymous with the Malay language itself.

8. 4. Time period • Early Modern Malay (1500 – c1850) • In 1511, Portuguese conquest of Malacca and subsequent persecution of Moslems caused them to disperse throughout the Malay Archipelago, establishing new regional centers. • Malays are able to record their experiences, religious laws and oral literature into a collection of Malay classical literature after adapting Arabic into Jawi script. • Late Modern Malay (c1850 – 1957) Malays started using Roman Alphabets during this period. • Standardized dictionaries and grammars appeared together with a study of regional Malay dialects and codification of literature were done by Portuguese, Dutch and European colonial explorers. • Contemporary Malay (after 1957) • Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei unify their different versions of Malay.

9. Sources of information 1 • http://library.thinkquest.org/C001252F/language/language/history_of_the_malay_language.htm 2,3 • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malay_language • http://exhibitions.nlb.gov.sg/aksara/ 4. • http://www.bahasa-malaysia-simple-fun.com/history-malay-language.html • http://www.buzzle.com/articles/the-history-of-malay-language.html • http://sea.lib.niu.edu/lang/malay.html