Izah Azahari
The linguistic world faces a threat from the English language which is in the process of affecting all languages, including Malay-Indonesian and French.
This was discussed in a congress titled ‘Kekayaan Perbendaharaan Kata dalam Bahasa Melayu-Indonesia’ (‘Wealth of Vocabulary in Malay-Indonesian Language) during the International Malay Language, Literature and Culture Congress Series (KABSBM) yesterday.
The discussion revolved around the richness of vocabulary in the Malay-Indonesian language which has a variety of properties, and how proverbs can have different meanings from one language to another. Overall, the presented paper aimed to show the breadth of the Malay-Indonesian vocabulary.
Organised by the Language and Literature Bureau (DBP) via the DBP Facebook page and Zoom application in conjunction with the Language Month, the 14th presentation saw France PrepAsia Company Consultant Dr Laurent Metzger as the speaker, chaired by DBP Brunei Language Officer Raieham bin Mohd Salleh.
Some 128 participants took part in the virtual event including Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports Major General (Rtd) Dato Paduka Seri Haji Aminuddin Ihsan bin Pehin Orang Kaya Saiful Mulok Dato Seri Paduka Haji Abidin.
Also present were Deputy Permanent Secretary (Culture) at the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports Dr Siti Norkhalbi binti Haji Wahsalfelah; DBP Acting Director Suip bin Haji Abdul Wahab; DBP Acting Deputy Director Hajah Sariani binti Haji Ishak, as well as local and international speakers, DBP strategic partners, senior government officials, and literature lovers.
KABSBM was supported by Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Universiti Islam Sultan Sharif Ali, Religious Teachers University College of Seri Begawan, Brunei Youth Council, Asterawani and Putra Seni Group.
The event is a series of talks from March 16 to June 22, featuring working papers on Mondays and Wednesdays. The congress features a total of three keynote papers and 20 accompanying papers being delivered.
