SPEECH LEVELS OF MADURESE LANGUAGE: A SOCIO-PRAGMATIC STUDY OF BANGKALAN DIALECT

Abstract

Each ethic group in Indonesia has its own vernacular language to communicate each other politely and effectively. Among abundant vernacular languages spoken by various ethnic groups in Indonesia, Madurese language spoken by Madurese inhabitants is worth investigating due to its peculiarity. There are three speech levels of Madurese language namely Énjék Iyéh (Bâsa Andhâp/Low Level), Énggê Éntén (Bâsa Tenga’an/Mid-Level), and Enggi Buntén (Bâsa Tenggi/High Level). These different speech levels determine the use of different lexicons based on the setting of the conversation and the participants’ social role and age. This vernacular has four dialects divided based on their regencies namely Sumenep, Pamekasan, Sampang, and Bangkalan. Among the four dialects, Bangkalan is the most well-known for its frequent use of Énjék Iyéh variety. However, Enggi Buntén is still used when talking to more educated people such as Kyai and teachers, when talking to the respected elders, or when talking to strangers. This study aims at (1) elaborating the speech levels of Madurese language, particularly Bangkalan dialect, used in different settings by speakers of different social statuses and ages and (2) explaining the different lexicons used in each of those settings. The data were collected from the daily conversations of Bangkalan-dialect speakers living in Galis district.