What is the Javanese for “they”?
English “they” stands for several people already mentioned: “They are eating”, “I met them”, “their house”. It changes to “them” and “their”. Javanese has no separate word for “they”. The pronoun for one person, dhèwèké (Lesson 16), does not mark number, just as Kita (Lesson 21) does not; so Javanese adds a word that says “several”, or names the people instead of using a pronoun.
- Dhèwèké kabèh, “they all”, is the everyday ngoko “they”: Dhèwèké kabèh seneng, “They are all happy.” Kabèh, “all”, follows the pronoun (Lesson 21: kita kabèh). - Padha before the verb tells the listener that several people act: Dhèwèké padha mangan, “They are eating.” Padha can also stand with no pronoun at all: Padha mulih, “They went home.” - Wong-wong kuwi, “those people”, and wong-wong mau, “the people just mentioned”, are the plain way to say “they” when it must be clear who is meant: Wong-wong kuwi kanca-kancaku, “They are my friends.” - Para before a noun for people makes it plural: para tamu, “the guests”. - Piyambakipun sedaya is the krama “they all”: Piyambakipun sedaya sampun dhateng, “They have all arrived.” Sedaya is the krama of kabèh, and sami is the krama of padha: Piyambakipun sami dhateng. - A number can follow the pronoun: dhèwèké loro, “the two of them”; dhèwèké telu, “the three of them”.
“Them” is the same word as “they”: Aku ketemu dhèwèké kabèh, “I met them all.” “Their” is the suffix -é (-né after a vowel) on the noun, as “his” is in Lesson 16: omahé, “their house”; anaké, “their child”. The krama suffix is -ipun (-nipun).
Etymology: nothing here is new. Dhèwèké is dhéwé, “self”, with -é (Lesson 16); padha was met in Lesson 15 and kabèh in Lesson 21; wong-wong is wong, “person”, said twice, which is how Javanese makes a plural of a noun; sami and sedaya are the krama of padha and kabèh.
Orthography: this course writes é for the close e, è for the open e and plain e for the neutral vowel (schwa). Everyday writing prints dhèwèké as dheweke and kabèh as kabeh. The dh is never written plain d. Do not confuse dhéwé, “self” (Lesson 15), with dhèwèké, “he, she, they”.
FAQ: How do I say “they” in Javanese?
Q: What is the ordinary word for “they”? A: Dhèwèké kabèh, or dhèwèké padha before a verb. In krama: piyambakipun sedaya.
Q: Is there a word that means only “they”? A: No. Dhèwèké by itself is “he, she”, and is heard as one person unless kabèh, padha or a number is added.
Q: How do I say “them” and “their”? A: “Them” is dhèwèké (kabèh). “Their” is -é or -né on the noun: omahé, “their house”.
Q: How do I say “they” about guests or other groups of people? A: Para tamu, “the guests”; wong-wong kuwi, “those people”.
Q: How do I say “the two of them”? A: Dhèwèké loro (krama piyambakipun kalih).
Key Takeaways:
- Javanese has no separate “they”: dhèwèké (krama piyambakipun) is added to by kabèh (krama sedaya) or padha (krama sami) - Wong-wong kuwi and para + noun name the group instead of using a pronoun - Dhèwèké loro and dhèwèké telu are “the two” and “the three of them” - “Them” is the same word; “their” is -é / -né (krama -ipun / -nipun) on the noun - Kita is “we”, never “they”: kita kabèh is “we all”
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dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ — dhè-wè-ké: retroflex dh, with the tongue tip curled back; two open è’s, as in “bed”, then a close é, as in French “été”.
kabèh /kabɛh/ — ka-bèh: an open è and a breathed h at the end.
padha /paɖɔ/ — pa-dha: both a’s are [ɔ]; dh is retroflex.
piyambakipun /pijambaʔipʊn/ — pi-yam-ba-ki-pun: the k is a glottal catch before the suffix; the last u is short and lax, as in “put”.
sedaya /sədɔjɔ/ — se-da-ya: the first e is the neutral vowel of “about”; both a’s are [ɔ].
sami /sami/ — sa-mi: both vowels clear.
para /pɔrɔ/ — pa-ra: both a’s are [ɔ].
wong-wong /wɔŋ wɔŋ/ — two words in sound: wong, with the open [ɔ] of “hot”, said twice.
Final k is a glottal stop: anak [anaʔ], and before a suffix: anaké [anaʔe]. Ng is one sound, [ŋ], as in “singer”.
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24.1a Dhèwèké they kabèh all seneng happy
24.1b Dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 kabèh /kabɛh/ all seneng /sənəŋ/ happy
24.2a Wong-wong people kuwi those kanca-kancaku my-friends
24.2b Wong-wong /wɔŋ wɔŋ/ RED-person kuwi /kuwi/ that.MED kanca-kancaku /kancɔ kancaku/ RED-friend-POSS.1SG
24.3a Dhèwèké they padha all mangan eat
24.3b Dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 padha /paɖɔ/ PL mangan /maŋan/ eat
24.4a Padha they-all mulih go-home
24.4b Padha /paɖɔ/ PL mulih /mulɪh/ go.home
24.5a Piyambakipun they sedaya all sampun already dhateng come
24.5b Piyambakipun /pijambaʔipʊn/ 3.KR sedaya /sədɔjɔ/ all.KR sampun /sampʊn/ PERF.KR dhateng /ɖatəŋ/ come.KR
24.6a Para the tamu guests teka came saka from Semarang Semarang
24.6b Para /pɔrɔ/ PL.HUM tamu /tamu/ guest teka /təkɔ/ come saka /sɔkɔ/ from Semarang /səmaraŋ/ Semarang
24.7a Dhèwèké they kabèh all dolanan are-playing ing in latar the-yard
24.7b Dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 kabèh /kabɛh/ all dolanan /dolanan/ play-AN ing /ɪŋ/ in latar /latar/ yard
24.8a Wingi yesterday aku I ketemu met dhèwèké them kabèh all ing at pasar the-market
24.8b Wingi /wiŋi/ yesterday aku /aku/ 1SG ketemu /kətəmu/ meet dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 kabèh /kabɛh/ all ing /ɪŋ/ at pasar /pasar/ market
24.9a Omahé the-house-of wong-wong people kuwi those cedhak is-near sekolah school
24.9b Omahé /omahe/ house-POSS.3 wong-wong /wɔŋ wɔŋ/ RED-person kuwi /kuwi/ that.MED cedhak /cəɖaʔ/ near sekolah /səkolah/ school
24.10a Dhèwèké they padha all ngenteni are-waiting-for bis the-bus ing in ngarep front omah house
24.10b Dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 padha /paɖɔ/ PL ngenteni /ŋəntəni/ AV-wait.for bis /bɪs/ bus ing /ɪŋ/ at ngarep /ŋarəp/ front omah /omah/ house
24.11a Dhèwèké they padha all lunga left amarga because wis already bengi night
24.11b Dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 padha /paɖɔ/ PL lunga /luŋɔ/ go.away amarga /amarɡɔ/ because wis /wɪs/ PERF bengi /bəŋi/ night
24.12a Aku I ora not kenal know wong-wong people kuwi those nanging but dhèwèké they kabèh all becik good atiné their-heart
24.12b Aku /aku/ 1SG ora /ɔrɔ/ NEG kenal /kənal/ know wong-wong /wɔŋ wɔŋ/ RED-person kuwi /kuwi/ that.MED nanging /naŋɪŋ/ but dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 kabèh /kabɛh/ all becik /bəcɪʔ/ good atiné /atine/ heart-POSS.3
24.13a Piyambakipun they sedaya all remen like griya house punika this namung but reginipun its-price awis is-high
24.13b Piyambakipun /pijambaʔipʊn/ 3.KR sedaya /sədɔjɔ/ all.KR remen /rəmən/ like.KR griya /ɡrijɔ/ house.KR punika /punikɔ/ this.KR namung /namʊŋ/ but.KR reginipun /rəɡinipʊn/ price.KR-DEF.KR awis /awɪs/ expensive.KR
24.14a Dhèwèké they padha all nganggo use basa language krama krama marang to wong people tuwa old
24.14b Dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 padha /paɖɔ/ PL nganggo /ŋaŋɡo/ AV-use basa /bɔsɔ/ language krama /kramɔ/ krama marang /maraŋ/ to wong /wɔŋ/ person tuwa /tuwɔ/ old
24.15a Wong-wong people sing who nulungi helped aku me wingi yesterday yaiku are-namely tangga neighbours anyar new kita our
24.15b Wong-wong /wɔŋ wɔŋ/ RED-person sing /sɪŋ/ REL nulungi /nuluŋi/ AV-help-APPL aku /aku/ 1SG wingi /wiŋi/ yesterday yaiku /jaiku/ COP tangga /taŋɡɔ/ neighbour anyar /aɲar/ new kita /kitɔ/ 1PL.INCL
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24.1 Dhèwèké kabèh seneng. → “They are all happy.”
24.2 Wong-wong kuwi kanca-kancaku. → “They are my friends.”
24.3 Dhèwèké padha mangan. → “They are eating.”
24.4 Padha mulih. → “They went home.”
24.5 Piyambakipun sedaya sampun dhateng. → “They have all arrived.” (polite)
24.6 Para tamu teka saka Semarang. → “The guests came from Semarang.”
24.7 Dhèwèké kabèh dolanan ing latar. → “They are all playing in the yard.”
24.8 Wingi aku ketemu dhèwèké kabèh ing pasar. → “Yesterday I met them all at the market.”
24.9 Omahé wong-wong kuwi cedhak sekolah. → “Their house is near the school.”
24.10 Dhèwèké padha ngenteni bis ing ngarep omah. → “They are waiting for the bus in front of the house.”
24.11 Dhèwèké padha lunga amarga wis bengi. → “They left because it was already late.”
24.12 Aku ora kenal wong-wong kuwi, nanging dhèwèké kabèh becik atiné. → “I don’t know those people, but they are all kind-hearted.”
24.13 Piyambakipun sedaya remen griya punika, namung reginipun awis. → “They all like this house, but its price is high.” (polite)
24.14 Dhèwèké padha nganggo basa krama marang wong tuwa. → “They all use krama to their elders.”
24.15 Wong-wong sing nulungi aku wingi yaiku tangga anyar kita. → “The people who helped me yesterday are our new neighbours.”
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24.1 Dhèwèké kabèh seneng.
24.2 Wong-wong kuwi kanca-kancaku.
24.3 Dhèwèké padha mangan.
24.4 Padha mulih.
24.5 Piyambakipun sedaya sampun dhateng.
24.6 Para tamu teka saka Semarang.
24.7 Dhèwèké kabèh dolanan ing latar.
24.8 Wingi aku ketemu dhèwèké kabèh ing pasar.
24.9 Omahé wong-wong kuwi cedhak sekolah.
24.10 Dhèwèké padha ngenteni bis ing ngarep omah.
24.11 Dhèwèké padha lunga amarga wis bengi.
24.12 Aku ora kenal wong-wong kuwi, nanging dhèwèké kabèh becik atiné.
24.13 Piyambakipun sedaya remen griya punika, namung reginipun awis.
24.14 Dhèwèké padha nganggo basa krama marang wong tuwa.
24.15 Wong-wong sing nulungi aku wingi yaiku tangga anyar kita.
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These are the grammar rules for dhèwèké kabèh and piyambakipun sedaya, “they”, in Javanese:
1. No separate word. “They”, “them” and “their” have no word of their own. Dhèwèké is “he, she” (Lesson 16), and by itself it is heard as one person. To make it “they”, Javanese adds a word or names the group. The gloss 3 in Section A marks the pronoun, which is the same in the singular and the plural.
2. Kabèh. Dhèwèké kabèh, “they all”, puts kabèh after the pronoun (24.1, 24.7, 24.12). The same words serve as “them”: Wingi aku ketemu dhèwèké kabèh (24.8); Kita nggawa apa kanggo dhèwèké kabèh? (24.24). In krama kabèh becomes sedaya: Piyambakipun sedaya sampun dhateng (24.5).
3. Padha. Padha before the verb says that several people act, each one (24.3, 24.10, 24.11, 24.14). It can be used with no pronoun at all: Padha mulih (24.4). Padha and kabèh may both appear: Dhèwèké kabèh padha lunga, “They all left.” In krama padha becomes sami: Piyambakipun sami dhateng, “They came.”
4. Wong-wong kuwi, wong-wong mau. A group of people named with wong-wong, “people”, and kuwi, “those”, is the plain way to say “they” when it must be clear whom you mean (24.2, 24.9, 24.12, 24.15). Mau, “just mentioned”, points back to people already spoken of: wong-wong mau, “those people we were talking about”.
5. Para. Para before a noun for people makes it plural: para tamu, “the guests” (24.6). Para is for people, not for things or animals, and it already says “several”, so the noun is not said twice: para tamu, not *para tamu-tamu.
6. Pronoun and number. A number can follow the pronoun, as kabèh does: dhèwèké loro, “the two of them”; dhèwèké telu, “the three of them” (24.21). In krama: piyambakipun kalih, piyambakipun tiga.
7. “Them” and the doer of a passive. “Them” is the same dhèwèké: aku ketemu dhèwèké (24.8), kanggo dhèwèké kabèh, “for them all” (24.24), ketemu dhèwèké (24.30). In a passive the doer follows the verb: Aku uga diundang dhèwèké, “I was invited by them too” (24.23).
8. “Their”. The suffix -é (-né after a vowel) is put on the noun: omahé, “their house” (24.23); anaké, “their child” (24.18); wong tuwané, “their parents” (24.20); atiné, “their heart” (24.12). The suffix does not say how many owners there are; when this must be clear, the owner is named: omahé wong-wong kuwi (24.9). The krama suffix is -ipun (-nipun after a vowel): reginipun, “its price” (24.13). Do not use -ku: it is only “my”.
9. Leaving the pronoun out. Where the people are clear, Javanese says no pronoun: Pira anaké?, “How many children do they have?” (24.18); Anaké telu, “They have three children” (24.19). English must say “they”; Javanese often does not.
10. The levels around it. The pronoun is one word in a sentence; the words around it carry the level:
- dhèwèké kabèh → piyambakipun sedaya, “they all” - padha → sami, “all (of them)” - kabèh → sedaya, “all” - wong-wong kuwi → tiyang-tiyang menika, “those people” - loro → kalih, “two”; telu → tiga, “three” - omah → griya, “house” - mangan → nedha, “eat” - teka → dhateng, “come” - ana → wonten, “be at”
11. Kita is “we”. Kita, awaké dhéwé and kula sedaya (Lesson 21) are “we”. Do not use them for “they”; the difference between kita kabèh, “we all”, and dhèwèké kabèh, “they all”, is only the pronoun.
Common Mistakes:
- Looking for one word for “they”. Dhèwèké mangan alone is “He eats” or “She eats”; say Dhèwèké padha mangan or Dhèwèké kabèh mangan for “They eat”. - Using kita for “they”: *Kita padha lunga is “We all left”, not “They left”. Correct: Dhèwèké padha lunga. - Mixing levels: *Piyambakipun padha dhateng. Correct: Piyambakipun sami dhateng, or Dhèwèké padha teka. - Using para for things: *para kursi. Para is for people: para tamu. - Saying the noun twice after para: *para tamu-tamu. Say para tamu. - Writing dhèwèké with plain d: dèwèké, deweke. Correct: dhèwèké (dheweke in everyday spelling).
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Titles instead of pronouns. Speaking of a third person, Javanese prefers a name, a title or a kinship word (Pak Anto, Bu Rini, Mbah Putri) to any pronoun. “They” is often a whole family: the surname is not used, the head of the family is named, and the rest are understood. A pronoun, especially a krama one, can sound distant; dhèwèké kabèh is used between equals and about people one does not need to honour.
The neighbours. In a village or a city kampung the neighbours (tangga) are the first people one turns to. A new family is visited and invited to eat; guests do not come empty-handed, and a small gift of food, often fruit, is normal. The dialogue below follows two friends who prepare for such a visit. The people in it are invented for the lesson.
Speech levels in the family. In many families children use krama to their parents, grandparents and other elders, and ngoko to each other (24.14). The practice differs from family to family and from place to place; the pronoun that goes with it changes at the same time: dhèwèké among friends, piyambakipun to an elder.
Saying “they say”. When a Javanese speaker reports what people are saying, or a rumour, no “they” is used. Jaré (Lesson 21), “it is said, supposedly”, does the work: Jaré, sésuk udan, “They say it will rain tomorrow.”
Semarang. Semarang is a large port city on the north coast of Java and the capital of the province of Central Java. The dialogue makes the new neighbours come from there.
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Mark 1:18 and 1:20, from the Javanese Bible of the Lembaga Alkitab Indonesia (version “Jawa”), as published by alkitab.mobi and Alkitab SABDA. The text is given exactly as printed, without accents; in this course’s spelling the words would be sakaroné, jalané, bapaké, buruhé, ndherekaké and Panjenengané. Verse 19 is left out. Jesus walks by the Sea of Galilee and calls fishermen: first Simon and Andrew (verses 16 to 18), then James and John, the sons of Zebedee (verses 19 and 20). Each pair is “they” in the passage, and the word that stands for them is sakarone, “the two of them”, with padha before the verb.
F.1a Sakarone the-two-of-them nuli then enggal-enggal quickly ninggal left jalane their-nets lan and ndherekake followed Panjenengane Him
F.1b Sakarone /sakarone/ both-DEF nuli /nuli/ then enggal-enggal /əŋɡal əŋɡal/ RED-quick ninggal /niŋɡal/ AV-leave jalane /ɟalane/ net-POSS.3 lan /lan/ and ndherekake /nɖərəʔake/ AV-follow-APPL Panjenengane /panɟənəŋane/ 3.HON
F.2a Sakarone the-two-of-them nuli then enggal at-once padha both ditimbali were-called dening by Gusti the-Lord Yesus Jesus
F.2b Sakarone /sakarone/ both-DEF nuli /nuli/ then enggal /əŋɡal/ quick padha /paɖɔ/ PL ditimbali /ditimbali/ PASS-call.HON dening /dəniŋ/ by Gusti /ɡusti/ lord Yesus /jesʊs/ Jesus
F.3a lan and iya indeed banjur then padha they-both ninggal left Zebedheus Zebedee bapakne their-father ana in ing the prau boat karo with para the buruhe hired-men
F.3b lan /lan/ and iya /ijɔ/ indeed banjur /banɟʊr/ then padha /paɖɔ/ PL ninggal /niŋɡal/ AV-leave Zebedheus /zəbəɖeʊs/ Zebedee bapakne /bapaʔe/ father-POSS.3 ana /anɔ/ be.at ing /ɪŋ/ in prau /prau/ boat karo /karo/ with para /pɔrɔ/ PL.HUM buruhe /buruhe/ labourer-POSS.3
F.4a lan and banjur then ndherekake followed Panjenengane Him
F.4b lan /lan/ and banjur /banɟʊr/ then ndherekake /nɖərəʔake/ AV-follow-APPL Panjenengane /panɟənəŋane/ 3.HON
Sakarone nuli enggal-enggal ninggal jalane lan ndherekake Panjenengane. (Mark 1:18)
And the two of them quickly left their nets and followed him.
Sakarone nuli enggal padha ditimbali dening Gusti Yesus, lan iya banjur padha ninggal Zebedheus, bapakne, ana ing prau karo para buruhe, lan banjur ndherekake Panjenengane. (Mark 1:20)
And the two of them were at once called by the Lord Jesus, and so they left Zebedee, their father, in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.
Sakarone nuli enggal-enggal ninggal jalane lan ndherekake Panjenengane.
Sakarone nuli enggal padha ditimbali dening Gusti Yesus, lan iya banjur padha ninggal Zebedheus, bapakne, ana ing prau karo para buruhe, lan banjur ndherekake Panjenengane.
“They” without a pronoun. Neither verse has dhèwèké. The two men are named once in the verses before, and after that the Javanese uses sakarone, “the two of them”, and the verbs (rule 9). Sakarone is the number-after-pronoun idea of rule 6, built into one word.
Padha. In the second verse padha stands twice before a verb: padha ditimbali, “both were called”, and padha ninggal, “both left” (rule 3). The first verse has no padha, because sakarone already says that there are two.
Para. Para buruhe, “the hired men”, is para before a noun for people (rule 5), with -e, “his, their” (rule 8): the men who worked for Zebedee. Bapakne, “their father”, also has the suffix, now meaning “the father of the two of them”: the owner is clear from the sentence.
Words. Nuli, “then”, and enggal, “quick, at once”, are literary; enggal-enggal is said twice for “very quickly”. Ditimbali is the passive of timbali, “call, summon”, and dening is “by”. Iya banjur is “and so, then”. Ndherekake is “follow, accompany”, and Panjenengane is the honorific “he, him” (Lesson 16), written with a capital P for Jesus. The printed text writes bapakne with -ne after the k; this course would write jalané and bapaké, with the glottal stop of final k before the suffix.
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Dewi and her friend Sari, the two friends of Lesson 23, talk about the new family in their street. Between themselves they speak ngoko and say dhèwèké kabèh; at the end the neighbour Bu Wati, an older woman, speaks krama to them, and Dewi answers her in krama with piyambakipun sedaya. The people are invented for the lesson.
24.16a Sari Sari Dewi Dewi kowé you wis already ketemu met tangga neighbours anyar new kita our
24.16b Sari /sari/ Sari Dewi /dewi/ Dewi kowé /kowe/ 2SG wis /wɪs/ PERF ketemu /kətəmu/ meet tangga /taŋɡɔ/ neighbour anyar /aɲar/ new kita /kitɔ/ 1PL.INCL
24.17a Dewi Dewi Wis yes-already dhèwèké they kabèh all saka from Semarang Semarang
24.17b Dewi /dewi/ Dewi Wis /wɪs/ PERF dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 kabèh /kabɛh/ all saka /sɔkɔ/ from Semarang /səmaraŋ/ Semarang
24.18a Sari Sari Pira how-many anaké their-children
24.18b Sari /sari/ Sari Pira /pirɔ/ how.many anaké /anaʔe/ child-POSS.3
24.19a Dewi Dewi Anaké their-children telu three lan and bocah-bocah children kuwi those padha all seneng like dolanan playing bal ball
24.19b Dewi /dewi/ Dewi Anaké /anaʔe/ child-POSS.3 telu /təlu/ three lan /lan/ and bocah-bocah /bocah bocah/ RED-child kuwi /kuwi/ that.MED padha /paɖɔ/ PL seneng /sənəŋ/ like dolanan /dolanan/ play-AN bal /bal/ ball
24.20a Sari Sari Wong person tuwané their-old padha both kerja work ing at ngendi where
24.20b Sari /sari/ Sari Wong /wɔŋ/ person tuwané /tuwane/ old-POSS.3 padha /paɖɔ/ PL kerja /kərɟɔ/ work ing /ɪŋ/ at ngendi /ŋəndi/ where
24.21a Dewi Dewi Pak Mr Anto Anto dadi is sopir driver Bu Mrs Rini Rini dadi is guru teacher lan and dhèwèké they loro two sibuk busy banget very
24.21b Dewi /dewi/ Dewi Pak /paʔ/ father.HON Anto /anto/ Anto dadi /dadi/ become sopir /sopir/ driver Bu /bu/ mother.HON Rini /rini/ Rini dadi /dadi/ become guru /ɡuru/ teacher lan /lan/ and dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 loro /loro/ two sibuk /sibʊʔ/ busy banget /baŋət/ very
24.22a Sari Sari Wingi yesterday dhèwèké they padha all ngundang invited aku me mangan eat bengi night nanging but aku I ora not bisa can teka come
24.22b Sari /sari/ Sari Wingi /wiŋi/ yesterday dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 padha /paɖɔ/ PL ngundang /ŋundaŋ/ AV-invite aku /aku/ 1SG mangan /maŋan/ eat bengi /bəŋi/ night nanging /naŋɪŋ/ but aku /aku/ 1SG ora /ɔrɔ/ NEG bisa /bisɔ/ can teka /təkɔ/ come
24.23a Dewi Dewi Aku I uga also diundang was-invited dhèwèké by-them Sésuk tomorrow kita we arep will menyang go-to omahé their-house bareng together
24.23b Dewi /dewi/ Dewi Aku /aku/ 1SG uga /uɡɔ/ also diundang /diundaŋ/ PASS-invite dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 Sésuk /sesʊʔ/ tomorrow kita /kitɔ/ 1PL.INCL arep /arəp/ FUT menyang /məɲaŋ/ to omahé /omahe/ house-POSS.3 bareng /barəŋ/ together
24.24a Sari Sari Kita we nggawa bring apa what kanggo for dhèwèké them kabèh all
24.24b Sari /sari/ Sari Kita /kitɔ/ 1PL.INCL nggawa /ŋɡawɔ/ AV-bring apa /apɔ/ what kanggo /kaŋɡo/ for dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 kabèh /kabɛh/ all
24.25a Dewi Dewi Dhèwèké they padha all seneng like woh-wohan fruit Ayo let's nggawa bring jeruk oranges
24.25b Dewi /dewi/ Dewi Dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 padha /paɖɔ/ PL seneng /sənəŋ/ like woh-wohan /woh wohan/ RED-fruit-AN Ayo /ajo/ HORT nggawa /ŋɡawɔ/ AV-bring jeruk /ɟərʊʔ/ orange
24.26a Sari Sari Apik good Bocah-bocah children kuwi those padha all seneng like maca reading mula so aku I arep will nggawa bring buku books
24.26b Sari /sari/ Sari Apik /apɪʔ/ good Bocah-bocah /bocah bocah/ RED-child kuwi /kuwi/ that.MED padha /paɖɔ/ PL seneng /sənəŋ/ like maca /macɔ/ AV-read mula /mulɔ/ so aku /aku/ 1SG arep /arəp/ FUT nggawa /ŋɡawɔ/ AV-bring buku /buku/ book
24.27a Dewi Dewi Dhèwèké they mesthi surely seneng happy banget very
24.27b Dewi /dewi/ Dewi Dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 mesthi /məsʈi/ surely seneng /sənəŋ/ happy banget /baŋət/ very
24.28a Bu Mrs Wati Wati Mbak miss Dewi Dewi Mbak miss Sari Sari mangga please Piyambakipun they sedaya all wonten are-at griya house kula my
24.28b Bu /bu/ mother.HON Wati /wati/ Wati Mbak /mbaʔ/ elder.sister.HON Dewi /dewi/ Dewi Mbak /mbaʔ/ elder.sister.HON Sari /sari/ Sari mangga /maŋɡɔ/ please Piyambakipun /pijambaʔipʊn/ 3.KR sedaya /sədɔjɔ/ all.KR wonten /wɔntən/ be.at.KR griya /ɡrijɔ/ house.KR kula /kulɔ/ 1.KR
24.29a Dewi Dewi Matur I-say nuwun thank-you Bu madam Piyambakipun they sedaya all saé good sanget very
24.29b Dewi /dewi/ Dewi Matur /matʊr/ say.HUM nuwun /nuwʊn/ request Bu /bu/ mother.VOC Piyambakipun /pijambaʔipʊn/ 3.KR sedaya /sədɔjɔ/ all.KR saé /sae/ good.KR sanget /saŋət/ very.KR
24.30a Dewi Dewi Sari Sari dhèwèké they kabèh all tangga neighbours sing who becik are-good lan and aku I ora not getun regret ketemu meeting dhèwèké them
24.30b Dewi /dewi/ Dewi Sari /sari/ Sari dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 kabèh /kabɛh/ all tangga /taŋɡɔ/ neighbour sing /sɪŋ/ REL becik /bəcɪʔ/ good lan /lan/ and aku /aku/ 1SG ora /ɔrɔ/ NEG getun /ɡətʊn/ regret ketemu /kətəmu/ meet dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3
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24.16 Sari: “Dewi, kowé wis ketemu tangga anyar kita?” → Sari: “Dewi, have you met our new neighbours?”
24.17 Dewi: “Wis. Dhèwèké kabèh saka Semarang.” → Dewi: “Yes. They are all from Semarang.”
24.18 Sari: “Pira anaké?” → Sari: “How many children do they have?”
24.19 Dewi: “Anaké telu, lan bocah-bocah kuwi padha seneng dolanan bal.” → Dewi: “They have three children, and the children all like playing ball.”
24.20 Sari: “Wong tuwané padha kerja ing ngendi?” → Sari: “Where do their parents work?”
24.21 Dewi: “Pak Anto dadi sopir, Bu Rini dadi guru, lan dhèwèké loro sibuk banget.” → Dewi: “Pak Anto is a driver and Bu Rini is a teacher, and the two of them are very busy.”
24.22 Sari: “Wingi dhèwèké padha ngundang aku mangan bengi, nanging aku ora bisa teka.” → Sari: “They invited me to dinner yesterday, but I couldn’t come.”
24.23 Dewi: “Aku uga diundang dhèwèké. Sésuk kita arep menyang omahé bareng.” → Dewi: “I was invited by them too. Tomorrow we’ll go to their house together.”
24.24 Sari: “Kita nggawa apa kanggo dhèwèké kabèh?” → Sari: “What shall we bring for them all?”
24.25 Dewi: “Dhèwèké padha seneng woh-wohan. Ayo nggawa jeruk.” → Dewi: “They all like fruit. Let’s bring oranges.”
24.26 Sari: “Apik. Bocah-bocah kuwi padha seneng maca, mula aku arep nggawa buku.” → Sari: “Good. Those children all like reading, so I’ll bring books.”
24.27 Dewi: “Dhèwèké mesthi seneng banget.” → Dewi: “They will surely be very happy.”
24.28 Bu Wati: “Mbak Dewi, Mbak Sari, mangga. Piyambakipun sedaya wonten griya kula.” → Bu Wati: “Dewi, Sari, please come. They are all at my house.”
24.29 Dewi: “Matur nuwun, Bu. Piyambakipun sedaya saé sanget.” → Dewi: “Thank you, madam. They are all very good people.”
24.30 Dewi: “Sari, dhèwèké kabèh tangga sing becik, lan aku ora getun ketemu dhèwèké.” → Dewi: “Sari, they are all good neighbours, and I don’t regret meeting them.”
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Tangga Anyar
24.16 Sari: “Dewi, kowé wis ketemu tangga anyar kita?”
24.17 Dewi: “Wis. Dhèwèké kabèh saka Semarang.”
24.18 Sari: “Pira anaké?”
24.19 Dewi: “Anaké telu, lan bocah-bocah kuwi padha seneng dolanan bal.”
24.20 Sari: “Wong tuwané padha kerja ing ngendi?”
24.21 Dewi: “Pak Anto dadi sopir, Bu Rini dadi guru, lan dhèwèké loro sibuk banget.”
24.22 Sari: “Wingi dhèwèké padha ngundang aku mangan bengi, nanging aku ora bisa teka.”
24.23 Dewi: “Aku uga diundang dhèwèké. Sésuk kita arep menyang omahé bareng.”
24.24 Sari: “Kita nggawa apa kanggo dhèwèké kabèh?”
24.25 Dewi: “Dhèwèké padha seneng woh-wohan. Ayo nggawa jeruk.”
24.26 Sari: “Apik. Bocah-bocah kuwi padha seneng maca, mula aku arep nggawa buku.”
24.27 Dewi: “Dhèwèké mesthi seneng banget.”
24.28 Bu Wati: “Mbak Dewi, Mbak Sari, mangga. Piyambakipun sedaya wonten griya kula.”
24.29 Dewi: “Matur nuwun, Bu. Piyambakipun sedaya saé sanget.”
24.30 Dewi: “Sari, dhèwèké kabèh tangga sing becik, lan aku ora getun ketemu dhèwèké.”
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Two levels, one idea. The friends say dhèwèké (24.17, 24.21, 24.22, 24.25, 24.27, 24.30) and, with kabèh, “all” (24.17, 24.24, 24.30). Dewi and Bu Wati speak krama to each other and say piyambakipun sedaya (24.28, 24.29). This is rule 2 of Section D at work, with sedaya for kabèh.
No pronoun at all. Sari’s Pira anaké? (24.18) and Dewi’s Anaké telu (24.19) say nothing about “they”: the suffix -é on anak carries it (rule 9). Wong tuwané (24.20) is the same: wong tuwa, literally “old person”, is “parent”, and with -é it is “their parents”.
Padha and the group. Padha in 24.19, 24.20, 24.22, 24.25 and 24.26 says that each of several people acts or likes: the children, the parents, the neighbours (rule 3). Bocah-bocah is bocah, “child”, said twice for “children” (rule 4). Dhèwèké loro in 24.21 is “the two of them” (rule 6).
Dhèwèké as the doer. In 24.23 diundang dhèwèké is “invited by them” (rule 7); in 24.22 the same event is told in the active: dhèwèké padha ngundang aku.
Kita and dhèwèké. Sari’s Kita nggawa apa kanggo dhèwèké kabèh? (24.24) has both words in one sentence: kita, “we”, and dhèwèké kabèh, “them all” (rule 11).
Mbak and Bu. Bu Wati calls the two young women Mbak; Dewi calls her Bu, as she called the batik seller in Lesson 23. Mangga, said by an older person to guests, is “please, go ahead”.
Other words: tangga, “neighbour”; anyar, “new”; pira, “how many”; anak, “child”; bal, “ball”; kerja, “work”; ing ngendi, “where”; dadi, “be, become” (before a job); sopir, “driver”; guru, “teacher”; sibuk, “busy”; ngundang, “invite”, with the passive diundang; bisa, “can”; uga, “also”; sésuk, “tomorrow”; arep, “will”; menyang, “to”; bareng, “together”; nggawa, “bring”; kanggo, “for”; woh-wohan, “fruit”; jeruk, “orange”; maca, “read”; buku, “book”; mula, “so”; mesthi, “surely”; becik, “good”; getun, “regret”; wonten, “be at” (krama of ana); griya, “house” (krama of omah); saé and sanget, “good” and “very” (krama).
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Dhèwèké and kabèh. [ɖɛwɛke] and [kabɛh]: open è in both, close é at the end of dhèwèké. Dhéwé, “self”, has two close é’s [ɖewe]; adding -é opens them to è.
Padha, para, sedaya. The a’s of padha [paɖɔ], para [pɔrɔ] and sedaya [sədɔjɔ] are open [ɔ] wherever the last syllable is open. Before a suffix the a is clear again: anak [anaʔ] but anaké [anaʔe]; tuwa [tuwɔ] but tuwané [tuwane]; kanca [kancɔ] but kancaku [kancaku].
The three e’s. é /e/ is close (dhèwèké, omahé, atiné, anaké, saé, sésuk, kowé), è /ɛ/ is open (dhèwèké, kabèh), and plain e is the neutral vowel /ə/ (seneng, ketemu, ngenteni, kenal, becik, bengi, kerja, ngendi, mesthi, menyang, sedaya, reginipun, Semarang). Everyday writing prints them all as e.
Retroflex dh and th. Dhèwèké [ɖɛwɛke], padha [paɖɔ], cedhak [cəɖaʔ], dhateng [ɖatəŋ], Zebedheus [zəbəɖeʊs]; mesthi [məsʈi]: curl the tongue tip back.
Ng and ngg. Ng is a single sound [ŋ], wherever it stands: at the start of a word (ngundang [ŋundaŋ]), between vowels (wingi [wiŋi]) and at the end (banget [baŋət]). Where a g is heard after it, it is written: nggawa [ŋɡawɔ], mangga [maŋɡɔ], kanggo [kaŋɡo], nganggo [ŋaŋɡo].
Final k is a glottal stop: apik [apɪʔ], sibuk [sibʊʔ], jeruk [ɟərʊʔ], anak, and before a suffix: anaké [anaʔe], bapakne [bapaʔe].
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].
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✓ Lesson 24 Javanese complete — dhèwèké kabèh, piyambakipun sedaya (they)
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Course Index: [latinum.substack.com/p/index](https://latinum.substack.com/p/index)