What is the Javanese for “say”?
English “say” is one verb for every speaker and every listener: “She said no”, “Say it again”, “They say it will rain”. Javanese has no single verb of this kind, because the verb shows whom the speaker is honouring. The everyday ngoko verb is kandha, and it is the headword of this lesson. Krama has three verbs for the same act, and the choice between them is the main thing to learn.
- Kandha is the ngoko “say, tell”: Dhèwèké kandha, “Aku arep mulih saiki”, “He said, ‘I’m going home now.’” It can be followed by a quotation, by a yèn clause (Lesson 22), or by marang and the hearer: Guru kandha marang aku, “The teacher said to me.” - Ngomong is “speak, talk”. It fits a language or a conversation (ngomong basa Jawa, ngomong karo simbah, as in Lesson 12); kandha fits the thing that is said. - Ngandhani is “tell, inform”, and the hearer is its object: Ibu ngandhani aku yèn sésuk ora ana sekolah. Its passive is dikandhani: Aku dikandhani guru yèn … - Criyos is the plain krama “say, tell”, used when nobody in the sentence is being raised or lowered: Tiyang menika criyos dhateng kula bilih piyambakipun sampun sayah. - Ngendika is the krama inggil “say”, for what an honoured person says: Ibu ngendika bilih Bapak sampun dhateng. Lessons 15, 16, 21 and 22 have already used it. - Matur is the krama andhap, humble “say”, for what you say to a person above you: Kula badhé matur dhateng Bapak. Matur nuwun, “thank you” (Lesson 8), has this verb in it.
The verb does not change for person, number or time. Dhèwèké kandha is “he says” or “he said”; wis, “already”, and arep, “will”, are added only when the time must be clear.
Why kandha? The vocabulary list gives “say” as a verb of reporting speech, and kandha is the Javanese verb that reports: it is the one Lesson 22 placed before yèn. Criyos is its krama partner in the headword line, and ngendika and matur are taught as the two honorific choices.
Etymology: kandha is a native Javanese word. Ngomong is omong, “talk”, with the verb prefix ng- (Lesson 12). Ngandhani is kandha with the prefix ng-, which takes the place of the k, and the ending -i, as nulungi is tulung with -i. Criyos, ngendika and matur belong to the krama vocabulary and are not built on kandha.
Orthography: this course writes é for the close e, è for the open e and plain e for the neutral vowel (schwa). Kandha is written with dh, never with plain d: *kanda. The Javanese Bible prints ngandika, a variant spelling of ngendika; this course writes ngendika.
FAQ: How do I say “say” in Javanese?
Q: What is the ordinary word for “say”? A: Kandha: Dhèwèké kandha yèn lara, “He said that he was ill.” In krama: criyos.
Q: How do I say “say” for an elder, and for myself speaking to an elder? A: For what an elder says, ngendika: Ibu ngendika …. For what you say to an elder, matur: Kula matur ….
Q: How do I say “tell me”? A: Kandha marang aku, or ngandhani aku. The first puts marang before the hearer; the second takes the hearer directly.
Q: How do I say “say that …”? A: Kandha yèn … in ngoko, criyos bilih … in krama. There is no change of tense after yèn.
Q: How do I say “talk” or “speak Javanese”? A: Ngomong: ngomong basa Jawa.
Key Takeaways:
- Kandha is the ngoko “say, tell”; criyos is its plain krama form - Ngendika is for what an honoured person says; matur is for what you say to someone above you - Kandha takes a quotation, a yèn clause, or marang and the hearer; ngandhani takes the hearer as its object - Ngomong is “speak, talk” and goes with a language or a conversation - The verb never changes for person or tense: wis and arep carry the time
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kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ — kan-dha: both a’s are [ɔ]; dh is retroflex, with the tongue tip curled back, and the n before it is made in the same place.
ngandhani /ŋanɖani/ — ngan-dha-ni: ng is one sound [ŋ]; the a’s stay clear because the word ends in -i.
criyos /crijɔs/ — cri-yos: c is like “ch” in “chair”, and the r follows it at once; the o is open, as in “hot”.
ngendika /ŋəndikɔ/ — ngen-di-ka: the first e is the neutral vowel of “about”; the last a is [ɔ].
matur /matʊr/ — ma-tur: the u is short and lax, as in “put”.
ngomong /ŋɔmɔŋ/ — ngo-mong: both o’s are open, as in “hot”.
bilih /bilih/ — bi-lih: clear vowels and a breathed h at the end.
Final k is a glottal stop: anak [anaʔ]. Ng is one sound, [ŋ], as in “singer”.
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25.1a Dhèwèké he/she kandha says
25.1b Dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say
25.2a Kowé you kandha say apa what
25.2b Kowé /kowe/ 2SG kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say apa /ɔpɔ/ what
25.3a Sapa who sing that kandha said
25.3b Sapa /sɔpɔ/ who sing /sɪŋ/ REL kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say
25.4a Kandha say waé just
25.4b Kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say waé /wae/ just
25.5a Aja don’t kandha say sapa-sapa anyone
25.5b Aja /ɔɟɔ/ PROH kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say sapa-sapa /sɔpɔ sɔpɔ/ RED-who
25.6a Kandhamu your-words bener right
25.6b Kandhamu /kanɖamu/ say-POSS.2 bener /bənər/ true
25.7a Dhèwèké he/she ora not kandha said apa-apa anything
25.7b Dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 ora /ɔrɔ/ NEG kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say apa-apa /ɔpɔ ɔpɔ/ RED-what
25.8a Ibu Mother kandha says yèn that Bapak Father wis already mulih come-home
25.8b Ibu /ibu/ mother kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say yèn /jɛn/ COMP Bapak /bapaʔ/ father wis /wɪs/ PERF mulih /mulɪh/ go.home
25.9a Wingi yesterday guru teacher kandha said marang to aku me
25.9b Wingi /wiŋi/ yesterday guru /ɡuru/ teacher kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say marang /maraŋ/ to aku /aku/ 1SG
25.10a Ibu Mother ngandhani told aku me yèn that sésuk tomorrow ora not ana is sekolah school
25.10b Ibu /ibu/ mother ngandhani /ŋanɖani/ AV-say-APPL aku /aku/ 1SG yèn /jɛn/ COMP sésuk /sesʊʔ/ tomorrow ora /ɔrɔ/ NEG ana /anɔ/ exist sekolah /səkolah/ school
25.11a Aku I dikandhani was-told guru by-teacher yèn that buku book iki this apik good banget very
25.11b Aku /aku/ 1SG dikandhani /dikanɖani/ PASS-say-APPL guru /ɡuru/ teacher yèn /jɛn/ COMP buku /buku/ book iki /iki/ this apik /apɪʔ/ good banget /baŋət/ very
25.12a Dhèwèké he/she kandha said Aku I arep will mulih go-home saiki now
25.12b Dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say Aku /aku/ 1SG arep /arəp/ FUT mulih /mulɪh/ go.home saiki /saiki/ now
25.13a Tiyang person menika that criyos said dhateng to kula me bilih that piyambakipun he/she sampun already sayah tired
25.13b Tiyang /tijaŋ/ person.KR menika /mənikɔ/ that.KR criyos /crijɔs/ say.KR dhateng /ɖatəŋ/ to.KR kula /kulɔ/ 1SG.KR bilih /bilih/ COMP.KR piyambakipun /pijambaʔipʊn/ 3.KR sampun /sampʊn/ PERF.KR sayah /sajah/ tired.KR
25.14a Ibu Mother ngendika says bilih that Bapak Father sampun already dhateng come
25.14b Ibu /ibu/ mother ngendika /ŋəndikɔ/ say.KI bilih /bilih/ COMP.KR Bapak /bapaʔ/ father sampun /sampʊn/ PERF.KR dhateng /ɖatəŋ/ come.KR
25.15a Kula I badhé will matur say dhateng to Bapak Father bilih that kula I mboten not ngertos understand
25.15b Kula /kulɔ/ 1SG.KR badhé /baɖe/ FUT.KR matur /matʊr/ say.HUM dhateng /ɖatəŋ/ to.KR Bapak /bapaʔ/ father bilih /bilih/ COMP.KR kula /kulɔ/ 1SG.KR mboten /mbɔtən/ NEG.KR ngertos /ŋərtɔs/ AV-know.KR
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25.1 Dhèwèké kandha. → “He says.” (or “She says.”)
25.2 Kowé kandha apa? → “What are you saying?”
25.3 Sapa sing kandha? → “Who said that?”
25.4 Kandha waé! → “Just say it!”
25.5 Aja kandha sapa-sapa. → “Don’t tell anyone.”
25.6 Kandhamu bener. → “What you said is right.”
25.7 Dhèwèké ora kandha apa-apa. → “He said nothing.”
25.8 Ibu kandha yèn Bapak wis mulih. → “Mother says that Father has come home.”
25.9 Wingi guru kandha marang aku. → “Yesterday the teacher spoke to me.”
25.10 Ibu ngandhani aku yèn sésuk ora ana sekolah. → “Mother told me that there is no school tomorrow.”
25.11 Aku dikandhani guru yèn buku iki apik banget. → “I was told by the teacher that this book is very good.”
25.12 Dhèwèké kandha, “Aku arep mulih saiki.” → He said, “I’m going home now.”
25.13 Tiyang menika criyos dhateng kula bilih piyambakipun sampun sayah. → “That person told me that he was already tired.” (polite)
25.14 Ibu ngendika bilih Bapak sampun dhateng. → “Mother says that Father has arrived.” (polite, honouring Mother)
25.15 Kula badhé matur dhateng Bapak bilih kula mboten ngertos. → “I will tell Father that I do not understand.” (polite, humble)
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25.1 Dhèwèké kandha.
25.2 Kowé kandha apa?
25.3 Sapa sing kandha?
25.4 Kandha waé!
25.5 Aja kandha sapa-sapa.
25.6 Kandhamu bener.
25.7 Dhèwèké ora kandha apa-apa.
25.8 Ibu kandha yèn Bapak wis mulih.
25.9 Wingi guru kandha marang aku.
25.10 Ibu ngandhani aku yèn sésuk ora ana sekolah.
25.11 Aku dikandhani guru yèn buku iki apik banget.
25.12 Dhèwèké kandha, “Aku arep mulih saiki.”
25.13 Tiyang menika criyos dhateng kula bilih piyambakipun sampun sayah.
25.14 Ibu ngendika bilih Bapak sampun dhateng.
25.15 Kula badhé matur dhateng Bapak bilih kula mboten ngertos.
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These are the grammar rules for kandha and criyos, “say”, in Javanese:
1. One verb, no endings. Kandha does not change for person, number or time: Dhèwèké kandha (25.1) is “he says” or “he said”, and Aku kandha is “I say” or “I said”. Where the time must be clear, wis, “already”, or arep, “will”, goes before it: Dhèwèké wis kandha, “He has already said”.
2. What follows kandha. Four things can follow it. A question word, for what is said: Kowé kandha apa? (25.2); Dhèwèké ora kandha apa-apa (25.7). A direct quotation, after a comma and in quotation marks: Dhèwèké kandha, “Aku arep mulih saiki” (25.12). A yèn clause, for reported speech (Lesson 22): Ibu kandha yèn Bapak wis mulih (25.8). And marang with the hearer: Wingi guru kandha marang aku (25.9). These can be joined: kandha marang aku yèn …, “told me that …”.
3. Kandha and ngomong. Kandha is for the thing said: its content, a message, a piece of news. Ngomong is for the act of talking: ngomong basa Jawa, “speak Javanese”, and ngomong karo Ibu, “talk with Mother”. In the genre text Ibu ngomong (25.21) gives advice in the course of a talk. Both can be followed by yèn, but the verb that goes with the name of a language is ngomong.
4. Ngandhani and dikandhani. Ngandhani, “tell, inform”, has the hearer as its object, with no marang: Ibu ngandhani aku yèn sésuk ora ana sekolah (25.10). The passive dikandhani puts the hearer first and the teller after the verb: Aku dikandhani guru yèn buku iki apik banget (25.11). Compare kandha marang aku, where marang stays.
5. The command. Kandha alone is “say it”; waé, “just”, makes it gentler or more urgent (25.4). Aja before it is “don’t”: Aja kandha sapa-sapa, “Don’t tell anyone” (25.5). Sapa-sapa is “anyone” after a negative or aja, as apa-apa is “anything” after ora (25.7).
6. Kandha as a noun with a possessive. The suffixes -ku, -mu and -é (-né after a vowel) turn kandha into “what I / you / he said”: kandhaku, kandhamu (25.6), kandhané. The same word can mean “words”.
7. Reported and direct speech. A direct quotation keeps the speaker’s own words, and the pronoun stays: Dhèwèké kandha, “Aku arep mulih” (25.12). Reported speech with yèn has no “I”: Dhèwèké kandha yèn arep mulih, “He said that he would go home”. Compare Lesson 22, rule 4: when the subject of the clause is the same as the subject of kandha, it is usually left out, and kept where it would be unclear.
8. Krama: three verbs. Criyos, ngendika and matur all mean “say” in krama, and the choice is not about time or about the verb’s grammar but about people: - criyos is the plain krama verb. It is used when nobody is being raised or lowered: Tiyang menika criyos dhateng kula (25.13). - ngendika honours the one who speaks: it is for what an honoured person says. A child speaking krama says Ibu ngendika (25.14); the narrator of the story says Simbah ngendika (25.27, 25.28). - matur humbles the one who speaks: it is for what you say to a person above you. Kula badhé matur dhateng Bapak (25.15); Ardi matur to Simbah (25.26).
9. The other words follow the level. When the verb is krama, yèn becomes bilih, marang becomes dhateng, and the words around them change too: - kandha → criyos, ngendika, matur, “say” - yèn → bilih, “that” - marang → dhateng, “to” - aku → kula, “I” - dhèwèké → piyambakipun; panjenengané for an honoured person, “he, she” - wis → sampun, “already” - arep → badhé, “will” - ora → mboten, “not” - ana → wonten, “be at, there is” - sésuk → benjing, “tomorrow” - kesel → sayah, “tired” - lara → sakit; gerah for an honoured person, “ill” - wong → tiyang, “person” - iki, kuwi → menika, “this, that”
10. Never raise yourself. Ngendika is for others and matur is for you: Kula ngendika dhateng Bapak is wrong, and so is Ibu matur bilih …. Where nobody is raised or lowered, criyos is safe. Ngandhani has no krama form taught in this lesson: a krama speaker uses one of the three verbs with dhateng.
11. Kandha beside takon and njawab. Kandha belongs to a family of speech verbs that share its frames: takon, “ask”, takes marang and the person asked (25.24), and takon and njawab, “answer”, both introduce a quotation (25.19, 25.20, 25.24, 25.25).
12. “They say” and “he says”. Jaré (Lesson 21) reports what is said with no named speaker: Jaré, sésuk udan, “They say it will rain tomorrow.” Kandha names the speaker: Ibu kandha yèn sésuk udan, “Mother says it will rain tomorrow.”
Common Mistakes:
- Using kandha for a language: *kandha basa Jawa. Say ngomong basa Jawa. - Dropping marang before the hearer: Guru kandha aku. Say Guru kandha marang aku, or Guru ngandhani aku. With ngandhani the hearer is the object and marang is not used: ngandhani marang aku. - Raising yourself: *Kula ngendika. Say Kula matur, or Kula criyos. - Lowering another person: *Ibu matur bilih Bapak sampun dhateng. Say Ibu ngendika bilih …. - Mixing levels: *Ibu ngendika yèn Bapak sampun dhateng. In krama the conjunction moves with the verb: Ibu ngendika bilih …. - Writing kandha with plain d: *kanda. The sound is retroflex, and so is the spelling: dh. - Repeating the pronoun without need: Dhèwèké kandha yèn dhèwèké arep mulih is heavy when one person is meant. Say Dhèwèké kandha yèn arep mulih (Lesson 22, rule 4). The pronoun is kept where it would otherwise be unclear, as in 25.16 and 25.28. - Using sing for “that”: *Dhèwèké kandha sing lara. Say Dhèwèké kandha yèn lara.
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Who is speaking to whom. In English a report of speech names the speaker and the words. In Javanese it also says what the speaker owes the person spoken about. Ibu ngendika and Simbah ngendika give the elder a place above the speaker; Ardi matur puts him below. The same act, “say”, is a sentence about the family. A speaker who is carrying a message between two elders has to choose the verbs with care, and a krama speaker who chooses wrongly is understood but sounds as if the levels have not been learnt.
Matur nuwun. “Thank you” in krama, matur nuwun, holds matur, the humble “say”, as in Lesson 8 (8.27), and it is the same matur as in 25.15 and 25.26.
Naming the source. Kandha yèn …, “said that …”, keeps the speaker with the news: Ibu kandha yèn Bapak wis mulih (25.8). When the source is not named, jaré (Lesson 21), “it is said”, is used (rule 12).
Not telling. Aja kandha sapa-sapa, “Don’t tell anyone” (25.5), is a common request: a plan, a surprise or a family matter is kept inside the house. The story below is invented for the lesson, but its pattern is ordinary: a piece of news comes home from school, is told to the mother in ngoko and to the grandfather in krama.
The Bible and the verb. The Javanese Bible begins creation with a speech. In Genesis 1:3 God speaks with the honorific verb: Gusti Allah banjur ngandika, the verb that is used of an honoured person (rule 8). Section F reads the verse.
Speech levels in the family. In many families children use krama to their parents and grandparents (Lesson 22), and the parents answer in ngoko. The practice differs from family to family; the story below follows the older pattern.
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Genesis 1:3, from the Javanese Bible (version “Jawa”), as published by alkitab.mobi, with the same wording given by a search of the SABDA edition of the Alkitab Bahasa Jawa. An older web edition (alkitabjawa.wordpress.com) words the verse differently, but with the same verb, ngandika. The text below is given as printed by alkitab.mobi, without accents; in this course’s spelling the verb would be ngendika. The verse is the first speech of God in the Bible.
F.1a Gusti Lord Allah God banjur then ngandika said
F.1b Gusti /ɡusti/ lord Allah /alah/ God banjur /banɟʊr/ then ngandika /ŋandikɔ/ AV-say.KI
F.2a Anaa let-there-be pepadhang light
F.2b Anaa /anaa/ exist-OPT pepadhang /pəpaɖaŋ/ light
F.3a Tumuli then ana there-was padhang light
F.3b Tumuli /tumuli/ then ana /anɔ/ exist padhang /paɖaŋ/ bright
Gusti Allah banjur ngandika: “Anaa pepadhang!” Tumuli ana padhang. (Genesis 1:3)
And God then said: “Let there be light!” Then there was light.
Gusti Allah banjur ngandika: “Anaa pepadhang!” Tumuli ana padhang.
Ngandika. This is the krama inggil “say” of rule 8, in the variant spelling that the Bible prints. The subject is Gusti Allah, “the Lord God”, so the verb honours the speaker. The words that follow are in quotation marks and have no yèn: it is a direct quotation (rule 2).
Banjur and tumuli. Both mean “then”, and the Bible uses each: the same speech formula, with ngandika, begins later acts of creation in the chapter too.
Anaa. Ana, “there is”, with the ending -a, which makes a wish or a command: “let there be”. It is the same ana as in 25.10 (ora ana sekolah).
Pepadhang. “Light”, built on padhang, “bright”; the second line says Tumuli ana padhang, “then there was light”, with the plain adjective as a noun. The speech and its result are told in almost the same words, and that is the point of the verse.
Direct, not reported. The pattern of F.1 and F.2 is the direct quotation of rule 2: ngandika, then the words in quotation marks. The reported pattern, with yèn, would give a different sentence, Gusti Allah banjur ngandika yèn ana padhang, “God then said that there was light”, which is no longer a command.
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A boy called Ardi brings news home from school. Ibu and Bapak are his parents and Simbah is his grandfather. Ardi speaks ngoko to his mother and krama to his grandfather, as in the older pattern. The people are invented for the lesson.
25.16a Wingi yesterday sore afternoon Bu Mrs Ani Ani guruné teacher-of Ardi Ardi kandha said marang to bocah-bocah children yèn that dhèwèké she lara ill
25.16b Wingi /wiŋi/ yesterday sore /sore/ afternoon Bu /bu/ mother.HON Ani /ani/ Ani guruné /ɡurune/ teacher-POSS.3 Ardi /ardi/ Ardi kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say marang /maraŋ/ to bocah-bocah /bocah bocah/ RED-child yèn /jɛn/ COMP dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 lara /lɔrɔ/ ill
25.17a Mula so sésuk tomorrow ora not ana is sekolah school
25.17b Mula /mulɔ/ so sésuk /sesʊʔ/ tomorrow ora /ɔrɔ/ NEG ana /anɔ/ exist sekolah /səkolah/ school
25.18a Ardi Ardi mulih went-home lan and kandha said marang to Ibu Mother Sésuk tomorrow ora not ana is sekolah school
25.18b Ardi /ardi/ Ardi mulih /mulɪh/ go.home lan /lan/ and kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say marang /maraŋ/ to Ibu /ibu/ mother Sésuk /sesʊʔ/ tomorrow ora /ɔrɔ/ NEG ana /anɔ/ exist sekolah /səkolah/ school
25.19a Ibu Mother takon asked Sapa who sing that kandha said
25.19b Ibu /ibu/ mother takon /takɔn/ ask Sapa /sɔpɔ/ who sing /sɪŋ/ REL kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say
25.20a Ardi Ardi njawab answered Bu Mrs Ani Ani Dhèwèké she kandha said yèn that lara ill
25.20b Ardi /ardi/ Ardi njawab /ɲɟawab/ AV-answer Bu /bu/ mother.HON Ani /ani/ Ani Dhèwèké /ɖɛwɛke/ 3 kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say yèn /jɛn/ COMP lara /lɔrɔ/ ill
25.21a Ibu Mother ngomong said Iya yes nanging but aja don’t dolanan play waé only Maca read buku book
25.21b Ibu /ibu/ mother ngomong /ŋɔmɔŋ/ AV-talk Iya /ijɔ/ yes nanging /naŋɪŋ/ but aja /ɔɟɔ/ PROH dolanan /dolanan/ play-AN waé /wae/ only Maca /macɔ/ AV-read buku /buku/ book
25.22a Ardi Ardi ngguyu laughed lan and kandha said Iya yes Bu Mum
25.22b Ardi /ardi/ Ardi ngguyu /ŋɡuju/ AV-laugh lan /lan/ and kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say Iya /ijɔ/ yes Bu /bu/ mother.VOC
25.23a Bengi night kuwi that Bapak Father mulih came-home saka from pasar market
25.23b Bengi /bəŋi/ night kuwi /kuwi/ that.MED Bapak /bapaʔ/ father mulih /mulɪh/ go.home saka /sɔkɔ/ from pasar /pasar/ market
25.24a Bapak Father takon asked marang to Ibu Mother Ardi Ardi wis already kandha told marang to Simbah grandparent
25.24b Bapak /bapaʔ/ father takon /takɔn/ ask marang /maraŋ/ to Ibu /ibu/ mother Ardi /ardi/ Ardi wis /wɪs/ PERF kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say marang /maraŋ/ to Simbah /simbah/ grandparent
25.25a Ibu Mother njawab answered Durung not-yet Ardi Ardi kandha tell marang to Simbah grandparent saiki now
25.25b Ibu /ibu/ mother njawab /ɲɟawab/ AV-answer Durung /durʊŋ/ not.yet Ardi /ardi/ Ardi kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say marang /maraŋ/ to Simbah /simbah/ grandparent saiki /saiki/ now
25.26a Ardi Ardi menyang went-to Simbah grandparent lan and matur spoke Simbah grandparent benjing tomorrow mboten not wonten is sekolah school Bu Mrs Ani Ani gerah ill
25.26b Ardi /ardi/ Ardi menyang /məɲaŋ/ to Simbah /simbah/ grandparent lan /lan/ and matur /matʊr/ say.HUM Simbah /simbah/ grandparent benjing /bənɟɪŋ/ tomorrow.KR mboten /mbɔtən/ NEG.KR wonten /wɔntən/ be.at.KR sekolah /səkolah/ school Bu /bu/ mother.HON Ani /ani/ Ani gerah /ɡərah/ ill.KI
25.27a Simbah Grandfather ngendika said Ya yes Le boy Kowé you bocah child apik good
25.27b Simbah /simbah/ grandparent ngendika /ŋəndikɔ/ say.KI Ya /jɔ/ yes Le /le/ boy.VOC Kowé /kowe/ 2SG bocah /bocah/ child apik /apɪʔ/ good
25.28a Simbah Grandfather uga also ngendika said yèn that panjenengané he arep will menyang go-to pasar market karo with Ardi Ardi
25.28b Simbah /simbah/ grandparent uga /uɡɔ/ also ngendika /ŋəndikɔ/ say.KI yèn /jɛn/ COMP panjenengané /panɟənəŋane/ 3.HON arep /arəp/ FUT menyang /məɲaŋ/ to pasar /pasar/ market karo /karo/ with Ardi /ardi/ Ardi
25.29a Bapak Father ngguyu laughed lan and kandha said Simbah grandparent mesthi surely seneng glad ana there-is kanca company
25.29b Bapak /bapaʔ/ father ngguyu /ŋɡuju/ AV-laugh lan /lan/ and kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say Simbah /simbah/ grandparent mesthi /məsʈi/ surely seneng /sənəŋ/ glad ana /anɔ/ exist kanca /kancɔ/ friend
25.30a Ardi Ardi kandha said Aku I uga also seneng glad Pak Dad
25.30b Ardi /ardi/ Ardi kandha /kɔnɖɔ/ say Aku /aku/ 1SG uga /uɡɔ/ also seneng /sənəŋ/ glad Pak /paʔ/ father.VOC
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25.16 Wingi sore Bu Ani, guruné Ardi, kandha marang bocah-bocah yèn dhèwèké lara. → Yesterday afternoon Bu Ani, Ardi’s teacher, told the children that she was ill.
25.17 Mula sésuk ora ana sekolah. → So there is no school tomorrow.
25.18 Ardi mulih lan kandha marang Ibu, “Sésuk ora ana sekolah.” → Ardi went home and said to his mother, “There is no school tomorrow.”
25.19 Ibu takon, “Sapa sing kandha?” → His mother asked, “Who said so?”
25.20 Ardi njawab, “Bu Ani. Dhèwèké kandha yèn lara.” → Ardi answered, “Bu Ani. She said that she was ill.”
25.21 Ibu ngomong, “Iya, nanging aja dolanan waé. Maca buku.” → His mother said, “Yes, but don’t just play. Read a book.”
25.22 Ardi ngguyu lan kandha, “Iya, Bu.” → Ardi laughed and said, “Yes, Mum.”
25.23 Bengi kuwi Bapak mulih saka pasar. → That night Father came home from the market.
25.24 Bapak takon marang Ibu, “Ardi wis kandha marang Simbah?” → Father asked Mother, “Has Ardi told Simbah?”
25.25 Ibu njawab, “Durung. Ardi, kandha marang Simbah saiki!” → Mother answered, “Not yet. Ardi, tell Simbah now!”
25.26 Ardi menyang Simbah lan matur, “Simbah, benjing mboten wonten sekolah. Bu Ani gerah.” → Ardi went to Simbah and said, “Simbah, there is no school tomorrow. Bu Ani is ill.” (polite)
25.27 Simbah ngendika, “Ya, Le. Kowé bocah apik.” → Simbah said, “Yes, boy. You are a good child.”
25.28 Simbah uga ngendika yèn panjenengané arep menyang pasar karo Ardi. → Simbah also said that he would go to the market with Ardi.
25.29 Bapak ngguyu lan kandha, “Simbah mesthi seneng ana kanca.” → Father laughed and said, “Simbah will surely be glad to have company.”
25.30 Ardi kandha, “Aku uga seneng, Pak.” → Ardi said, “I’m glad too, Dad.”
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Kabar saka Sekolah
25.16 Wingi sore Bu Ani, guruné Ardi, kandha marang bocah-bocah yèn dhèwèké lara.
25.17 Mula sésuk ora ana sekolah.
25.18 Ardi mulih lan kandha marang Ibu, “Sésuk ora ana sekolah.”
25.19 Ibu takon, “Sapa sing kandha?”
25.20 Ardi njawab, “Bu Ani. Dhèwèké kandha yèn lara.”
25.21 Ibu ngomong, “Iya, nanging aja dolanan waé. Maca buku.”
25.22 Ardi ngguyu lan kandha, “Iya, Bu.”
25.23 Bengi kuwi Bapak mulih saka pasar.
25.24 Bapak takon marang Ibu, “Ardi wis kandha marang Simbah?”
25.25 Ibu njawab, “Durung. Ardi, kandha marang Simbah saiki!”
25.26 Ardi menyang Simbah lan matur, “Simbah, benjing mboten wonten sekolah. Bu Ani gerah.”
25.27 Simbah ngendika, “Ya, Le. Kowé bocah apik.”
25.28 Simbah uga ngendika yèn panjenengané arep menyang pasar karo Ardi.
25.29 Bapak ngguyu lan kandha, “Simbah mesthi seneng ana kanca.”
25.30 Ardi kandha, “Aku uga seneng, Pak.”
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One verb, many speakers. In this short text kandha reports what Bu Ani said (25.16, 25.20), what Ardi said (25.18, 25.22, 25.30) and what Bapak said (25.29), and it asks who spoke (25.19) and whether Ardi has spoken (25.24, 25.25). It never changes. The reports with yèn are 25.16 and 25.20; direct quotations are 25.18, 25.22, 25.29 and 25.30 (rule 2). In 25.20 the subject of the yèn clause is left out; in 25.16 it is kept, because Bu Ani is named in a longer sentence (rule 7).
Kandha marang. Marang before the hearer in 25.16, 25.18, 25.24 and 25.25 (rule 2). Bapak’s question, kandha marang Simbah, and Ibu’s order, Ardi, kandha marang Simbah saiki!, are the same frame as a statement and as a command (rule 5).
Ngomong. Ibu ngomong in 25.21 is a speech with several sentences, and ngomong fits better than kandha: she talks and advises (rule 3).
Takon and njawab. Takon, “ask”, and njawab, “answer”, are used as kandha is, with marang or a quotation (rule 11). 25.19, 25.20, 25.24 and 25.25 are a question and answer in two pairs.
Two levels in one family. With Ibu and Bapak Ardi speaks ngoko: Sésuk ora ana sekolah (25.18). With Simbah he changes: Simbah, benjing mboten wonten sekolah (25.26). The whole sentence is krama, not just the verb: matur, benjing, mboten, wonten, gerah. Bu Ani gerah is the polite way to say that a respected person is ill; in 25.16 and 25.20, to the mother, the ngoko lara is used.
Ngendika, twice. In 25.27 Simbah ngendika is the narrator honouring the grandfather, and so is 25.28, where panjenengané, “he, the honoured one”, is the pronoun that matches (Lesson 16). What Simbah says to Ardi is ngoko: Ya, Le. Kowé bocah apik. Le is a way of addressing a boy.
Other words: sore, “afternoon”; guruné, “his or her teacher”, with -né after the vowel; mula, “so, therefore”; ngguyu, “laugh”; dolanan, “play”; maca, “read”; bengi kuwi, “that night”; saka, “from”; pasar, “market”; durung, “not yet”; saiki, “now”; menyang, “go to”; mesthi, “surely”; seneng, “glad”; kanca, “friend, company”.
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Kandha and ngandhani. [kɔnɖɔ] and [ŋanɖani]. The a’s are open [ɔ] when the word ends in an open a, and clear [a] when it ends in -i or has a suffix: kandha [kɔnɖɔ] but kandhamu [kanɖamu]; guru [ɡuru] but guruné [ɡurune]. The dh is always retroflex, and the n before it is made in the same place.
Criyos. [crijɔs], with a very short vowel after the c. The word has the y of a glide between the i and the o.
Ngendika and ngandika. [ŋəndikɔ] and [ŋandikɔ]: the first vowel is the neutral e in the spelling this course uses, and a clear a in the Bible’s.
The three e’s. é /e/ is close (dhèwèké, guruné, kowé, sésuk, Le), è /ɛ/ is open (dhèwèké, yèn), and plain e is the neutral vowel /ə/ (ngendika, benjing, mboten, wonten, seneng, mesthi, menyang). Everyday writing prints them all as e.
Retroflex dh and th. Dhèwèké [ɖɛwɛke], kandha [kɔnɖɔ], dhateng [ɖatəŋ], badhé [baɖe], padhang [paɖaŋ], mesthi [məsʈi].
Ng and mb. Ng is a single sound [ŋ] wherever it stands: ngandhani, ngomong, ngguyu. Mb in mboten is a single prenasalised [mb].
Final k is a glottal stop: Bapak [bapaʔ], apik [apɪʔ], sésuk [sesʊʔ].
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 25 Javanese complete — kandha, criyos (say)
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