What is the Javanese for “do”?
English “do” has three different jobs. It is a main verb (“do your duty”, “do your homework”); it asks about activity (“What are you doing?”); and it is a helper verb with no meaning of its own (“Do you like coffee?”, “I don’t know”, “Don’t!”). Javanese has no single word that does all three. Each job has its own solution.
- Doing a thing, carrying it out, going through it: nglakoni. Aku kudu nglakoni gawèan iki dhéwé, “I have to do this job myself.” In krama it is nglampahi; the krama inggil is nindakaken. In careful and written ngoko, nindakaké, “to carry out”, is common: Pak Lurah nindakaké tugasé kanthi jujur, “The village head does his duty honestly.” - Particular kinds of doing have their own verbs: nggarap, “to work on”, for homework (nggarap PR, “to do homework”); masak, “to cook”, for the cooking; and so on. - Asking what someone is doing: ngapa?, “do what?”. Kowé lagi ngapa?, “What are you doing?” In krama: Panjenengan nembé napa? Not doing anything is ora ngapa-ngapa. - The helper “do” is not translated. A yes-no question begins with apa: Apa kowé seneng ngombé kopi?, “Do you like drinking coffee?” A negative uses ora (krama boten): Adhiku ora seneng mangan sayur, “My little brother doesn’t like eating vegetables.” A prohibition uses aja: Aja ngono!, “Don’t do that!”
Etymology: nglakoni is built on laku, “walking, conduct, way of life”, with the suffix -i and the nasal prefix: laku → lakoni → nglakoni, “to walk through, to live out”. To do a thing in Javanese is, at root, to go through it. Its krama nglampahi is built in the same way on lampah, the krama of laku. Nindakaké and nindakaken come from tindak, the krama inggil of laku, with the causative suffix -aké (krama -aken) of Lesson 14. The line of the Serat Wedhatama quoted in Lesson 2, Ngelmu iku kalakone kanthi laku, “Knowledge is attained through practice”, uses the same root twice: kalakone, “it is done, it comes about”, and laku, “practice”.
Orthography: this course writes é for the close e, è for the open e and plain e for the neutral vowel (schwa). Everyday writing leaves the accents out: nindakake, gawean, ngombe. Ngapa is often spelled ngopo, as it sounds; the standard spelling is ngapa.
FAQ: How do I say “do” in Javanese?
Q: How do I ask “What are you doing?” A: Kowé lagi ngapa? To an elder: Panjenengan nembé napa?
Q: How do I say “I’m not doing anything”? A: Aku ora ngapa-ngapa.
Q: How do I say “Do you like …?” A: With apa at the start and no word for “do”: Apa kowé seneng kopi?
Q: How do I say “Don’t do that!” A: Aja ngono!
Q: How do I say “to do one’s homework”? A: Nggarap PR. Nglakoni is not used for homework.
Key Takeaways:
- “Do, carry out, go through” is nglakoni (krama nglampahi, krama inggil nindakaken); careful ngoko also uses nindakaké - “Do what?” is ngapa (krama napa, short for menapa): Lagi ngapa?, “What are you doing?” - The English helper “do” has no Javanese word: questions take apa, negatives take ora, prohibitions take aja - “Do that, do so” is ngono, “(in) that way”: Aja ngono! - Specific tasks take specific verbs: nggarap PR, “do homework”
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
nglakoni /ŋlakɔni/ — ng-la-ko-ni: the word begins with the ng of “singer” joined straight to the l, with no vowel between them. The o is open, as in British “hot”.
nglampahi /ŋlampahi/ — ng-lam-pa-hi: the h between vowels is clearly heard.
nindakaké /nindakake/ — nin-da-ka-ké, ending in close é, as in French “été”. Krama nindakaken /nindakakən/, ending in the neutral vowel of “about” and an n.
ngapa /ŋɔpɔ/ — nga-pa: both a’s are the open [ɔ] of British “hot”, as in apa [ɔpɔ]. The krama napa /nɔpɔ/ sounds the same without the ng.
nembé /nəmbe/ — nem-bé: neutral e, then close é.
nggarap /ŋɡarap/ — ng-ga-rap: the ng of “finger”, with the g pronounced.
aja /ɔɟɔ/ and ngono /ŋono/ — aja has two open [ɔ]; ngono has two close o’s, as in French “eau”.
lakonana /lakɔnɔnɔ/, the imperative “do it!”: when the last two syllables have a, both are [ɔ], and the o before them opens to [ɔ] as well.
Final k is a glottal stop: koklakoni [kɔʔlakɔni], ésuk [esʊʔ], Pak [paʔ]. The palatal stop j is [ɟ]: aja [ɔɟɔ], jujur [ɟuɟʊr].
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
15.1a Kowé you lagi are ngapa doing-what
15.1b Kowé /kowe/ 2SG lagi /laɡi/ PROG ngapa /ŋɔpɔ/ AV-what
15.2a Aku I lagi am nggarap doing PR homework
15.2b Aku /aku/ 1SG lagi /laɡi/ PROG nggarap /ŋɡarap/ AV-work.on PR /pe ɛr/ homework
15.3a Aja don’t ngono like-that
15.3b Aja /ɔɟɔ/ PROH ngono /ŋono/ like.that.MED
15.4a Aku I ora not ngapa-ngapa doing-anything
15.4b Aku /aku/ 1SG ora /ɔrɔ/ NEG ngapa-ngapa /ŋɔpɔ ŋɔpɔ/ RED-AV-what
15.5a Panjenengan you nembé are napa doing-what
15.5b Panjenengan /panɟənəŋan/ 2SG.KI nembé /nəmbe/ PROG.KR napa /nɔpɔ/ what.KR
15.6a Apa do kowé you seneng like ngombé drinking kopi coffee ésuk-ésuk in-the-morning
15.6b Apa /ɔpɔ/ Q kowé /kowe/ 2SG seneng /sənəŋ/ like ngombé /ŋombe/ AV-drink kopi /kopi/ coffee ésuk-ésuk /esʊʔ esʊʔ/ RED-morning
15.7a Adhiku my-younger-brother ora does-not seneng like mangan eating sayur vegetables
15.7b Adhiku /aɖiku/ younger.sibling-POSS.1SG ora /ɔrɔ/ NEG seneng /sənəŋ/ like mangan /maŋan/ eat sayur /sajʊr/ vegetable.dish
15.8a Bocah-bocah the-children lagi are ngapa doing-what ing in latar the-yard
15.8b Bocah-bocah /bɔcah bɔcah/ child-PL lagi /laɡi/ PROG ngapa /ŋɔpɔ/ AV-what ing /ɪŋ/ in latar /latar/ yard
15.9a Aku I kudu must nglakoni do gawèan job iki this dhéwé myself
15.9b Aku /aku/ 1SG kudu /kudu/ must nglakoni /ŋlakɔni/ AV-walk-APPL gawèan /ɡawɛan/ make-NMLZ iki /iki/ this.PROX dhéwé /ɖewe/ self
15.10a Simbah Grandma nglakoni does pasa fasting saben every Senèn Monday lan and Kemis Thursday
15.10b Simbah /simbah/ grandparent nglakoni /ŋlakɔni/ AV-walk-APPL pasa /pɔsɔ/ fast saben /sabən/ every Senèn /sənɛn/ Monday lan /lan/ and Kemis /kəmɪs/ Thursday
15.11a Kula I boten not ngertos know menapa what ingkang that kedah must kula I lampahi do
15.11b Kula /kulɔ/ 1SG.KR boten /botən/ NEG.KR ngertos /ŋərtɔs/ AV-understand.KR menapa /mənɔpɔ/ what.KR ingkang /ɪŋkaŋ/ REL.KR kedah /kədah/ must.KR kula /kulɔ/ 1SG.KR lampahi /lampahi/ walk.KR-APPL
15.12a Pak Mr Lurah village-head nindakaké carries-out tugasé his-duty kanthi with jujur honesty
15.12b Pak /paʔ/ father.VOC Lurah /lurah/ village.head nindakaké /nindakake/ AV-go.KI-CAUS tugasé /tuɡase/ duty-POSS.3 kanthi /kanʈi/ with jujur /ɟuɟʊr/ honest
15.13a Apa what waé ever sing that koklakoni you-do lakonana do-it kanthi with temen earnestness
15.13b Apa /ɔpɔ/ what waé /wae/ just sing /sɪŋ/ REL koklakoni /kɔʔlakɔni/ 2.PASS-walk-APPL lakonana /lakɔnɔnɔ/ walk-APPL.IMP kanthi /kanʈi/ with temen /təmən/ earnest
15.14a Apa what sing that ditindakaké has-been-done Pak Mr Lurah village-head kanggo for désa village iki this
15.14b Apa /ɔpɔ/ what sing /sɪŋ/ REL ditindakaké /ditindakake/ PASS-go.KI-CAUS Pak /paʔ/ father.VOC Lurah /lurah/ village.head kanggo /kaŋɡo/ for désa /desɔ/ village iki /iki/ this.PROX
15.15a Ngono like-that ya yes ngono like-that ning but aja don’t ngono like-that
15.15b Ngono /ŋono/ like.that.MED ya /jɔ/ yes ngono /ŋono/ like.that.MED ning /nɪŋ/ but aja /ɔɟɔ/ PROH ngono /ŋono/ like.that.MED
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
15.1 Kowé lagi ngapa? → “What are you doing?”
15.2 Aku lagi nggarap PR. → “I’m doing my homework.”
15.3 Aja ngono! → “Don’t do that!”
15.4 Aku ora ngapa-ngapa. → “I’m not doing anything.”
15.5 Panjenengan nembé napa? → “What are you doing?” (polite)
15.6 Apa kowé seneng ngombé kopi ésuk-ésuk? → “Do you like drinking coffee first thing in the morning?”
15.7 Adhiku ora seneng mangan sayur. → “My little brother doesn’t like eating vegetables.”
15.8 Bocah-bocah lagi ngapa ing latar? → “What are the children doing in the yard?”
15.9 Aku kudu nglakoni gawèan iki dhéwé. → “I have to do this job myself.”
15.10 Simbah nglakoni pasa saben Senèn lan Kemis. → “Grandma fasts every Monday and Thursday.”
15.11 Kula boten ngertos menapa ingkang kedah kula lampahi. → “I don’t know what I ought to do.” (polite)
15.12 Pak Lurah nindakaké tugasé kanthi jujur. → “The village head does his duty honestly.”
15.13 Apa waé sing koklakoni, lakonana kanthi temen. → “Whatever you do, do it in earnest.”
15.14 Apa sing ditindakaké Pak Lurah kanggo désa iki? → “What has the village head done for this village?”
15.15 Ngono ya ngono, ning aja ngono. → “Do it that way if you must, but don’t overdo it.” (proverb)
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
15.1 Kowé lagi ngapa?
15.2 Aku lagi nggarap PR.
15.3 Aja ngono!
15.4 Aku ora ngapa-ngapa.
15.5 Panjenengan nembé napa?
15.6 Apa kowé seneng ngombé kopi ésuk-ésuk?
15.7 Adhiku ora seneng mangan sayur.
15.8 Bocah-bocah lagi ngapa ing latar?
15.9 Aku kudu nglakoni gawèan iki dhéwé.
15.10 Simbah nglakoni pasa saben Senèn lan Kemis.
15.11 Kula boten ngertos menapa ingkang kedah kula lampahi.
15.12 Pak Lurah nindakaké tugasé kanthi jujur.
15.13 Apa waé sing koklakoni, lakonana kanthi temen.
15.14 Apa sing ditindakaké Pak Lurah kanggo désa iki?
15.15 Ngono ya ngono, ning aja ngono.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
These are the grammar rules for nglakoni, and for the other ways of saying “do”, in Javanese:
1. Nglakoni, “to do, carry out, go through”. Nglakoni takes a direct object, the thing done: nglakoni gawèan iki, “do this job” (15.9); nglakoni pasa, “keep the fast” (15.10). It is used for tasks, duties, practices and experiences that one goes through from beginning to end. It is not the word for every English “do”: homework is nggarap PR (15.2), cooking is masak, cleaning is ngresiki.
2. The forms of nglakoni. The root is laku; the suffix -i gives the verb stem lakoni:
- nglakoni — active: Aku nglakoni, “I do (it)” - dilakoni — passive: “it is done” - daklakoni — passive with “I” as doer: “(it) is done by me, I do (it)” (Lesson 14, 14.15) - koklakoni — passive with “you” as doer: sing koklakoni, “what you do” (15.13) - lakonana — imperative: “do it!” (15.13). The -i of the stem becomes -ana.
3. The three speech levels:
- nglakoni — ngoko - nglampahi — krama; passive dipun lampahi; with “I” as doer kula lampahi (15.11), the krama of daklakoni - nindakaken — krama inggil; passive dipun tindakaken (Section F)
In careful ngoko, especially in writing and in the news, nindakaké, “to carry out”, is the usual formal verb: nindakaké tugasé, “carry out his duty” (15.12); ditindakaké, “(was) done” (15.14). Speaking of what one does oneself, everyday ngoko prefers nglakoni.
4. Ngapa, “do what?”. Ngapa is apa, “what”, made into a verb with the nasal prefix: “to do what”. It stands where the verb stands: Kowé lagi ngapa?, “You are doing what?” (15.1); Bocah-bocah lagi ngapa ing latar? (15.8). Its krama is napa, the short spoken form of menapa: Panjenengan nembé napa? (15.5). In casual speech ngapa also means “why?”: Ngapa kowé nangis?, “Why are you crying?”
5. Lagi and nembé: “-ing”. Lagi (krama nembé) before a verb marks an action in progress, like English “be doing”: lagi ngapa, “be doing what”; lagi nggarap PR, “be doing homework” (15.2). Without lagi the sentence is still correct; lagi stresses “right now”.
6. Ora ngapa-ngapa, “not doing anything”. The question word doubled after ora makes “nothing at all”: ora ngapa-ngapa, “not doing anything” (15.4), like ora apa-apa, “nothing, it doesn’t matter”, and Lesson 14’s ora tuku apa-apa, “not buying anything”.
7. The English helper “do” is not translated.
- Questions: begin with apa: Apa kowé seneng ngombé kopi? (15.6), “Do you like drinking coffee?” In speech, rising intonation alone is enough: Kowé seneng kopi? - Negatives: put ora (krama boten) before the verb: Adhiku ora seneng mangan sayur (15.7). Never add a word for “do”. - Prohibitions: aja (Lesson 12) before the verb or before ngono: Aja ngono!, “Don’t do that!” (15.3).
8. Ngono, “do that, do so”. Where English repeats an action with “do that” or “do so”, Javanese uses ngono, “(in) that way”, as a verb: Aja ngono! (15.3); Ngono ya ngono, ning aja ngono (15.15). Its partners are ngéné, “(in) this way”, and ngana, “(in) that way, over there”: they follow the pattern of iki, kuwi, kaé (Lesson 13). The krama of ngono is makaten.
9. Apa waé sing …, “whatever …”. Apa waé, “anything at all”, followed by a sing clause makes “whatever”: Apa waé sing koklakoni, “whatever you do” (15.13). The main clause then repeats the verb as an imperative: lakonana, “do it”.
10. Kanthi + noun or adjective: “with, in a … way”. Kanthi jujur, “honestly” (15.12); kanthi temen, “in earnest” (15.13). It makes adverbs of manner from adjectives, as English adds “-ly”.
Common Mistakes:
- Translating the helper “do”: *Apa kowé nglakoni seneng kopi? Correct: Apa kowé seneng kopi? - Translating “don’t” with ora nglakoni: *Aku ora nglakoni ngerti. Correct: Aku ora ngerti, “I don’t know.” - Using nglakoni for homework: *nglakoni PR. Correct: nggarap PR. - Using a krama inggil verb of oneself: with kula as the doer, the plain krama kula lampahi is the safe choice (15.11). - Answering “What are you doing?” with ngapa: the answer names the activity: Lagi ngapa? — Lagi masak, “Cooking.”
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
Lagi ngapa? Kowé lagi ngapa? is one of the commonest questions of casual Javanese, at the door, on the telephone and in text messages, where it is often written lagi ngopo or shortened. It is friendly interest rather than a demand for information; a short answer (Lagi santai, “Just relaxing”) is enough. To an elder the krama form is used: Panjenengan nembé napa?
Laku: doing as a way of life. The root of nglakoni, laku, also means a spiritual discipline: the practices of self-restraint that Javanese tradition values, such as fasting, keeping vigil and simple living. Nglakoni pasa Senèn-Kemis (15.10), keeping the voluntary fast on Mondays and Thursdays, is a practice of many devout Muslims in Java. Serat Wedhatama’s Ngelmu iku kalakone kanthi laku, “Knowledge comes about through practice” (Lesson 2), is the classic statement that wisdom is something done, not only known.
Ngono ya ngono, ning aja ngono. This proverb (15.15) is quoted constantly: “that way is that way, but not that way”. It allows a thing to be done, a joke, a complaint, a competition, a celebration, but warns against doing it to excess or without regard for others. It expresses the Javanese ideal of self-control and keeping social life harmonious.
Kerja bakti and gotong royong. Kerja bakti is the community work day on which the people of a village or neighbourhood clean ditches, repair paths or prepare for a festival together. Gotong royong, mutual help, is the wider ideal. The news report below describes such a day. Pak Lurah is the village head, addressed and spoken of with Pak.
The news register. Javanese-language newspapers, magazines and broadcasts use ngoko for narration, in its careful written form, with formal verbs such as nindakaké. Speeches quoted in the report are given in the level in which they were spoken: an official speaking in public uses krama.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
Luke 23:34, from the Javanese Bible of the Lembaga Alkitab Indonesia (version “Jawa”), as published by alkitab.mobi. The published text omits accents; this verse needs none in this course’s spelling except Yésus. Jesus, on the cross, prays for those who crucify him. The narration is in ngoko; the prayer is in krama, the level in which one addresses God, and it ends on the krama inggil passive of nindakaken.
F.1a Gusti Lord Yésus Jesus tumuli then munjuk said
F.1b Gusti /ɡusti/ lord Yésus /jesʊs/ Jesus tumuli /tumuli/ then munjuk /mʊnɟʊʔ/ speak.to.superior.KI
F.2a Dhuh O Rama Father tiyang-tiyang people punika these mugi may Paduka you apunten forgive
F.2b Dhuh /ɖʊh/ INTERJ Rama /rɔmɔ/ father tiyang-tiyang /tijaŋ tijaŋ/ person.KR-PL punika /punikɔ/ this.KR mugi /muɡi/ OPT.KR Paduka /padukɔ/ 2SG.HON apunten /apuntən/ forgive.KR
F.3a amargi because sami they boten not mangretos understand punapa what ingkang that dipun is tindakaken done
F.3b amargi /amarɡi/ because.KR sami /sami/ PL.KR boten /botən/ NEG.KR mangretos /maŋrətɔs/ understand.KR punapa /punɔpɔ/ what.KR ingkang /ɪŋkaŋ/ REL.KR dipun /dipʊn/ PASS.KR tindakaken /tindakakən/ go.KI-CAUS.KR
Gusti Yésus tumuli munjuk: “Dhuh Rama, tiyang-tiyang punika mugi Paduka apunten, amargi sami boten mangretos punapa ingkang dipun tindakaken.”
Then the Lord Jesus said: “Father, forgive these people, for they do not know what they are doing.”
Gusti Yésus tumuli munjuk: “Dhuh Rama, tiyang-tiyang punika mugi Paduka apunten, amargi sami boten mangretos punapa ingkang dipun tindakaken.”
The verse ends on this lesson’s word. Punapa ingkang dipun tindakaken, literally “what is done (by them)”, is the krama of ngoko apa sing ditindakaké, the construction of 15.14. Dipun is the krama of the passive prefix di-, written as a separate word; -aken is the krama of -aké. The doers are not named: in Javanese, as here, the passive is the natural way to say “what they are doing” once the people have just been mentioned.
The English has the helper “do” twice: “they do not know what they are doing”. The Javanese has neither: sami boten mangretos, “(they) not understand”, uses only the negative boten (Section D, rule 7). Sami, the krama of padha, marks the plural subject, “they all”. Mangretos is a variant spelling of mangertos, the krama of mangerti, “to understand”; this course otherwise uses ngertos, as in 15.11.
The two speech levels of the verse carry its meaning. The narration’s verb of speaking is munjuk, a humble verb used for speaking upward to someone of higher rank: the Son addresses the Father. The prayer itself is krama, with Paduka, the pronoun reserved for God and kings, and mugi … apunten, “may (you) forgive”. The Bible uses punika and punapa, older spellings of menika and menapa.
Nindakaken here describes what the soldiers are doing, not anyone honoured. Dictionaries list nindakaken as the krama inggil of nglakoni, but in formal language it is also the ordinary word for “carry out”, as nindakaké is in written ngoko (Section D, rule 3).
The same translation uses the ngoko form at John 13:7, where Jesus washes his disciples’ feet: Apa kang Daktindakaké, saiki kowé durung nyandhak tegesé, “What I am doing, you do not yet grasp the meaning of now.” Dak- is the “I” counterpart of the kok- of 15.13, written with a capital D because the doer is Jesus.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
A short news report, as it might appear in a Javanese-language weekly. The village and the people are invented for the lesson. The narration is in formal ngoko; Bu Sumi and Pak Lurah speak krama to the reporter, and Pak Lurah speaks ngoko to a young villager.
15.16a Dina day Minggu Sunday ésuk morning warga residents désa village Karangsari Karangsari nindakaké carried-out kerja work bakti service
15.16b Dina /dinɔ/ day Minggu /mɪŋɡu/ Sunday ésuk /esʊʔ/ morning warga /warɡɔ/ resident désa /desɔ/ village Karangsari /karaŋsari/ Karangsari nindakaké /nindakake/ AV-go.KI-CAUS kerja /kərɟɔ/ work bakti /bakti/ devotion
15.17a Kerja work bakti service iki this ditindakaké is-held saben every sasi month sepisan once
15.17b Kerja /kərɟɔ/ work bakti /bakti/ devotion iki /iki/ this.PROX ditindakaké /ditindakake/ PASS-go.KI-CAUS saben /sabən/ every sasi /sasi/ month sepisan /səpisan/ once
15.18a Wong people lanang male padha all ngresiki cleaned kali river lan and dalan road
15.18b Wong /wɔŋ/ person lanang /lanaŋ/ male padha /paɖɔ/ PL ngresiki /ŋrəsiki/ AV-clean-APPL kali /kali/ river lan /lan/ and dalan /dalan/ road
15.19a Wong people wadon female padha all masak cooked ing at omahé the-house-of Pak Mr Lurah village-head
15.19b Wong /wɔŋ/ person wadon /wadɔn/ female padha /paɖɔ/ PL masak /masaʔ/ cook ing /ɪŋ/ at omahé /omahe/ house-POSS.3 Pak /paʔ/ father.VOC Lurah /lurah/ village.head
15.20a Bocah-bocah children uga also mèlu joined-in nglakoni doing gawèan jobs sing that gampang easy
15.20b Bocah-bocah /bɔcah bɔcah/ child-PL uga /uɡɔ/ also mèlu /mɛlu/ join nglakoni /ŋlakɔni/ AV-walk-APPL gawèan /ɡawɛan/ make-NMLZ sing /sɪŋ/ REL gampang /ɡampaŋ/ easy
15.21a Wartawan reporter takon asked marang to Bu Mrs Sumi Sumi Panjenengan you nembé are napa doing-what Bu Ma’am
15.21b Wartawan /wartawan/ journalist takon /takɔn/ ask marang /maraŋ/ to Bu /bu/ mother.VOC Sumi /sumi/ Sumi Panjenengan /panɟənəŋan/ 2SG.KI nembé /nəmbe/ PROG.KR napa /nɔpɔ/ what.KR Bu /bu/ mother.VOC
15.22a Bu Mrs Sumi Sumi Kula I nembé am ndamel making wedang hot-drinks kanggé for warga the-residents
15.22b Bu /bu/ mother.VOC Sumi /sumi/ Sumi Kula /kulɔ/ 1SG.KR nembé /nəmbe/ PROG.KR ndamel /ndaməl/ AV-make.KR wedang /wədaŋ/ hot.drink kanggé /kaŋɡe/ for.KR warga /warɡɔ/ resident
15.23a Pak Mr Lurah village-head ngendika said Kerja work bakti service menika this sampun has dipun been tindakaken done wiwit since jaman times rumiyin of-old
15.23b Pak /paʔ/ father.VOC Lurah /lurah/ village.head ngendika /ŋəndikɔ/ AV-speak.KI Kerja /kərɟɔ/ work bakti /bakti/ devotion menika /mənikɔ/ this.KR sampun /sampʊn/ PERF.KR dipun /dipʊn/ PASS.KR tindakaken /tindakakən/ go.KI-CAUS.KR wiwit /wiwɪt/ since jaman /ɟaman/ time rumiyin /rumijɪn/ formerly.KR
15.24a Menawi if dipun it-is lampahi done sesarengan together padamelan work ingkang that awrat heavy dados becomes gampil easy
15.24b Menawi /mənawi/ if.KR dipun /dipʊn/ PASS.KR lampahi /lampahi/ walk.KR-APPL sesarengan /səsarəŋan/ together.KR padamelan /padaməlan/ work.KR ingkang /ɪŋkaŋ/ REL.KR awrat /awrat/ heavy.KR dados /dadɔs/ become.KR gampil /ɡampɪl/ easy.KR
15.25a Sawisé after rampung finishing warga residents padha all mangan ate bareng together ing at balé hall désa village
15.25b Sawisé /sawise/ after rampung /rampʊŋ/ finished warga /warɡɔ/ resident padha /paɖɔ/ PL mangan /maŋan/ eat bareng /barəŋ/ together ing /ɪŋ/ at balé /bale/ hall désa /desɔ/ village
15.26a Mas brother Bagus Bagus takon asked Sasi month ngarep next awaké we dhéwé ourselves ngapa do-what
15.26b Mas /mas/ elder.brother.VOC Bagus /baɡʊs/ Bagus takon /takɔn/ ask Sasi /sasi/ month ngarep /ŋarəp/ front awaké /awaʔe/ body-DEF dhéwé /ɖewe/ self ngapa /ŋɔpɔ/ AV-what
15.27a Pak Mr Lurah village-head Sasi month ngarep next awaké we dhéwé ourselves nandur plant wit trees ing at pinggir edge dalan road
15.27b Pak /paʔ/ father.VOC Lurah /lurah/ village.head Sasi /sasi/ month ngarep /ŋarəp/ front awaké /awaʔe/ body-DEF dhéwé /ɖewe/ self nandur /nandʊr/ AV-plant wit /wɪt/ tree ing /ɪŋ/ at pinggir /pɪŋɡɪr/ edge dalan /dalan/ road
15.28a Warga residents rumangsa feel seneng glad nglakoni doing kerja work bakti service bebarengan together
15.28b Warga /warɡɔ/ resident rumangsa /rumaŋsɔ/ feel seneng /sənəŋ/ glad nglakoni /ŋlakɔni/ AV-walk-APPL kerja /kərɟɔ/ work bakti /bakti/ devotion bebarengan /bəbarəŋan/ together
15.29a Miturut according-to Pak Mr Lurah village-head apa what sing that ditindakaké is-done dina day iki this iku that kanggo for anak children putu grandchildren
15.29b Miturut /miturʊt/ according.to Pak /paʔ/ father.VOC Lurah /lurah/ village.head apa /ɔpɔ/ what sing /sɪŋ/ REL ditindakaké /ditindakake/ PASS-go.KI-CAUS dina /dinɔ/ day iki /iki/ this.PROX iku /iku/ that.MED kanggo /kaŋɡo/ for anak /anaʔ/ child putu /putu/ grandchild
15.30a Kerja work bakti service sabanjuré next bakal will ditindakaké be-held patang four minggu weeks manèh from-now
15.30b Kerja /kərɟɔ/ work bakti /bakti/ devotion sabanjuré /sabanɟure/ following-DEF bakal /bakal/ FUT ditindakaké /ditindakake/ PASS-go.KI-CAUS patang /pataŋ/ four.LIG minggu /mɪŋɡu/ week manèh /manɛh/ again
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
15.16 Dina Minggu ésuk, warga désa Karangsari nindakaké kerja bakti. → “On Sunday morning the people of Karangsari village held a community work day.”
15.17 Kerja bakti iki ditindakaké saben sasi sepisan. → “The work day is held once a month.”
15.18 Wong lanang padha ngresiki kali lan dalan. → “The men cleaned the river and the road.”
15.19 Wong wadon padha masak ing omahé Pak Lurah. → “The women cooked at the village head’s house.”
15.20 Bocah-bocah uga mèlu nglakoni gawèan sing gampang. → “The children joined in too, doing the easy jobs.”
15.21 Wartawan takon marang Bu Sumi: “Panjenengan nembé napa, Bu?” → The reporter asked Bu Sumi: “What are you doing, ma’am?”
15.22 Bu Sumi: “Kula nembé ndamel wedang kanggé warga.” → Bu Sumi: “I’m making hot drinks for everyone.”
15.23 Pak Lurah ngendika: “Kerja bakti menika sampun dipun tindakaken wiwit jaman rumiyin.” → The village head said: “This community work has been done since the old days.”
15.24 “Menawi dipun lampahi sesarengan, padamelan ingkang awrat dados gampil.” → “When it is done together, heavy work becomes easy.”
15.25 Sawisé rampung, warga padha mangan bareng ing balé désa. → “When they had finished, the villagers ate together in the village hall.”
15.26 Mas Bagus takon: “Sasi ngarep awaké dhéwé ngapa?” → Bagus asked: “What are we doing next month?”
15.27 Pak Lurah: “Sasi ngarep awaké dhéwé nandur wit ing pinggir dalan.” → The village head: “Next month we’re planting trees along the road.”
15.28 Warga rumangsa seneng nglakoni kerja bakti bebarengan. → “The villagers are glad to do the work together.”
15.29 Miturut Pak Lurah, apa sing ditindakaké dina iki iku kanggo anak putu. → “According to the village head, what was done today is for the generations to come.”
15.30 Kerja bakti sabanjuré bakal ditindakaké patang minggu manèh. → “The next work day will be held in four weeks’ time.”
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
Warga Désa Karangsari Nindakaké Kerja Bakti
15.16 Dina Minggu ésuk, warga désa Karangsari nindakaké kerja bakti.
15.17 Kerja bakti iki ditindakaké saben sasi sepisan.
15.18 Wong lanang padha ngresiki kali lan dalan.
15.19 Wong wadon padha masak ing omahé Pak Lurah.
15.20 Bocah-bocah uga mèlu nglakoni gawèan sing gampang.
15.21 Wartawan takon marang Bu Sumi: “Panjenengan nembé napa, Bu?”
15.22 Bu Sumi: “Kula nembé ndamel wedang kanggé warga.”
15.23 Pak Lurah ngendika: “Kerja bakti menika sampun dipun tindakaken wiwit jaman rumiyin.”
15.24 “Menawi dipun lampahi sesarengan, padamelan ingkang awrat dados gampil.”
15.25 Sawisé rampung, warga padha mangan bareng ing balé désa.
15.26 Mas Bagus takon: “Sasi ngarep awaké dhéwé ngapa?”
15.27 Pak Lurah: “Sasi ngarep awaké dhéwé nandur wit ing pinggir dalan.”
15.28 Warga rumangsa seneng nglakoni kerja bakti bebarengan.
15.29 Miturut Pak Lurah, apa sing ditindakaké dina iki iku kanggo anak putu.
15.30 Kerja bakti sabanjuré bakal ditindakaké patang minggu manèh.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
The news verb. The report’s narration uses nindakaké (15.16) and its passive ditindakaké (15.17, 15.29, 15.30), the formal written ngoko for “carry out, hold”. Where the doing is ordinary and personal, the report switches to nglakoni: the children mèlu nglakoni gawèan, “join in doing jobs” (15.20); the villagers are seneng nglakoni kerja bakti, “glad to do the work” (15.28).
All three levels in one report. Ngoko nindakaké in the narration; Pak Lurah’s krama dipun tindakaken (15.23) and dipun lampahi (15.24), the passives of nindakaken and nglampahi. Menawi dipun lampahi sesarengan, “if it is done together”, has no stated subject: the work is understood from the sentence before.
Ngapa in krama and ngoko. The reporter asks Bu Sumi Panjenengan nembé napa? (15.21), a stranger addressing an older woman. Mas Bagus asks the village head’s plan in ngoko: Sasi ngarep awaké dhéwé ngapa? (15.26), and Pak Lurah answers him in ngoko (15.27), as an elder speaking to a young man of the village.
Awaké dhéwé, “we, ourselves” (15.26, 15.27): awak, “body”, with -é and dhéwé, “self”. It is the usual ngoko “we” that includes the listener, as in “we, all of us here”.
Padha before the verb (15.18, 15.19, 15.25) marks a plural subject all doing the same thing: wong lanang padha ngresiki, “the men (all) cleaned”. Its krama is sami (Section F).
Time words. Saben sasi sepisan, “once every month” (15.17); sasi ngarep, “next month”, literally “the front month” (15.26); patang minggu manèh, “four weeks more, in four weeks” (15.30). Patang is the linking form of papat, “four”, before a measure word, as telung is of telu (Lesson 14).
Anak putu, “children and grandchildren” (15.29), is the usual expression for descendants, the generations to come.
Krama words in the report: ndamel (ngoko nggawé) “make”; sampun (wis) “already”; wiwit “since” is the same in both; rumiyin (biyèn) “formerly”; menawi (yèn) “if”; sesarengan (bebarengan) “together”; padamelan (gawèan) “work”; awrat (abot) “heavy”; dados (dadi) “become”; gampil (gampang) “easy”. Ngendika (15.23) is the krama inggil “to speak”, used in the narration out of respect for the village head.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
The three e’s. é /e/ is close (kowé, nembé, ngombé, nindakaké, dhéwé, désa, balé, Yésus), è /ɛ/ is open (gawèan, Senèn, mèlu, manèh), and plain e is the neutral vowel /ə/ (seneng, temen, kedah, wedang, ndamel, bareng, ngarep, nindakaken). Accents are usually left out in everyday writing (nindakake, gawean, mangretos), and the Javanese Bible prints none; this course writes them.
Gawé and gawèan. When a suffix is added, the close é of gawé opens to è: gawèan, “work, job”, as in Lesson 14’s nggawèkaké.
ng before a consonant. Nglakoni, nglampahi, ngresiki begin with ng followed directly by l or r: [ŋl], [ŋr]. Do not insert a vowel: ng-la-ko-ni, not “nga-la-ko-ni”.
ngapa and ngopo. The spelling ngapa follows the rule that a written a in the last two syllables is pronounced [ɔ]: [ŋɔpɔ]. Informal writing often spells it as heard, ngopo, and napa as nopo. The standard spellings are ngapa and napa.
ngono [ŋono] has close o, written o; aja [ɔɟɔ] has open [ɔ], written a. The two vowels sound alike to English ears; listen for the closer, rounder o of ngono.
Retroflex dh and th: dhéwé, adhiku, Dhuh with [ɖ]; kanthi with [ʈ]. Curl the tongue tip back.
Glottal k. Final k is a glottal stop: ésuk, Pak, masak, anak, munjuk. Before another consonant it is also glottal: koklakoni [kɔʔlakɔni], awaké [awaʔe].
PR is read as two letters, as in Indonesian: [pe ɛr], from pekerjaan rumah, “home work”.
IPA in this lesson is broad. It does not mark the slack (breathy) voice of b, d, dh, g, j, nor stress, which in Javanese is weak and not contrastive. The palatal stops c and j are written [c] and [ɟ].
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
✓ Lesson 15 Javanese complete — nglakoni (do)
---
Course Index: [latinum.substack.com/p/index](https://latinum.substack.com/p/index)