Revitalizing the North Maluku Local Language Ngom Ua Nage Ana Adi

Speakers of regional languages have declined in recent years because of several factors, among which native speakers are reluctant to use their local languages in everyday life. The native speakers are hesitant to speak their local language because of a mindset that using the local language at home daily is ignorance. Mastery of local languages makes children or students “lazy” to use Indonesian as the state language. Of course, this way of thinking is wrong and contrary to efforts to preserve regional languages.

Prioritizing the state language becomes an absolute thing. However, prioritizing the state language must provide space to preserve regional languages as part of the nation’s cultural wealth, then mastering foreign languages to support the nation’s global competitiveness. It is

Development, Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology to prevent the loss of regional languages through a revitalization of regional/ local languages. There are endangered regional languages, one of which is in North Maluku Province. So, the Minister revitalization policies need to be a big concern for local governments. This program is the first step in efforts to increase local language speakers.

Article 42, paragraph (1) of Law Number 24 of 2009 is on the National Flag, Language, Emblem, and Anthem. It specifies that “Local governments shall develop, foster, and protect regional languages and literature so that they continue to be in their position and function in social life according to their time and so they continue to be part of Indonesia’s cultural wealth.” Therefore, the role of local government in safeguarding regional languages is mandatory.

BPPB has carried out regional language mapping (data of 2019). The data shows 19 regional languages spread across nine districts/ cities in North Maluku. The nineteen local languages are Bacan, Bajo, Buli, Galela, Gane, Gorap, Ibu, Kadai, Inner/ Eastern Makean, Outer/Western Makean, Malay, Modole, Patani, Sahu, Sawai, Sula, Taliabu, Ternate, and Tobelo. The data differs from Article 1 paragraph (8) of North Maluku Provincial Regulation Number 9 of 2009 concerning the Maintenance of Regional Language and Literature, which states that 31 regional languages grow and develop in North

Maluku. Looking at the number of regional languages in the two regulations, we can see that there has been a decline in 12 regional languages in ten years. Preventing regional languages from extinction through revitalizing regional languages is a necessity.

Article 23, paragraph (1) of Presidential Regulation Number 63 of 2019 concerning the Use of Indonesian states, “we shall use Indonesian as the language of instruction in national education.” Paragraph (2) sets forth, “Indonesian as the language of instruction in national education as referred to in paragraph (1) shall be used at all levels of education.”

Further in paragraph (3), “Apart from Indonesian as referred to in paragraph (1), regional languages can be used as the language of instruction in elementary schools, madrasah ibtidaiyah (Islamic elementary schools), or other equivalent forms in the first and second year to support learning”. Therefore, the use of regional languages should increase the competence of students in the regions, not the other way around, as an obstacle, so that the existence of regional languages survives and the number of speakers increases.

Revitalization of the Four Languages

The relevant government will revitalize four regional languages in North Maluku in 2022, namely the Ternate language in Ternate City, the Sula language in the Sula Islands Regency, the Tobelo language in North Halmahera Regency, and the East Makean language in South Halmahera Regency. Revitalisasi Bahasa DaerahRBD (Regional language revitalization) activities organized by the Regional Office for Language in North Maluku Province include master teacher training which continues monitoring until after the post-training and implementation of the ‘Festival Tunas Bahasa Ibu-FTBI’ (Mother Language Festival for Young Learners) at the district/city and provincial levels. Previously, stakeholders met to equalize perceptions.

Training of Trainers or Master Teachers’ Training carried out in each district/city is the target of RBD. The training aims to train local language teachers/instructors to teach the local language to other teachers, students, or fellow students. Meanwhile, the monitoring post-master teachers’ training aims to monitor the impact of regional language teaching. The master teachers have applied their language-teaching knowledge in schools and communities. The results are, on average, schools and the public have carried out post-training teaching imitations and prepared students for the Mother Language Festival for Young Learners.

Two local governments of North Halmahera Regency and Sula Islands Regency will implement Regency/city-level FTBI in North Maluku Province in 2022. South Halmahera Regency and Ternate City can join the provincial-level FTBI based on monitoring data by the North Maluku Province Language Office and recommendations from related agencies. They hold the FTBI as an appreciation for teaching regional languages in competitions. There are six categories at the provincial level of FTBI. The competition categories are storytelling, poetry reading, and traditional songs for elementary school students; speech contests, short story writing, and solo or stand-up comedy contests for junior high school students.

The government expects regional language revitalization can increase regional language speakers among the younger generation to preserve regional languages for daily use. The urgency of revitalizing regional languages is in line with the statement that one extinct language equals one extinct civilization, and building a civilization takes thousands of years. Ngom ua nage ana adi, if not us, who else? Come on, save and preserve the local language!

(Nurul Istiqmallah, S.H., M.H, Regional Office for Language in North Maluku Province, MoECRT).