Social:Iban language

Iban
	Jaku Iban
Native to	Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia
Region	Borneo
Ethnicity	Iban
Native speakers	2,450,000 (2019); 1,900,000 L2 speakers in Malaysia (2019)
Language family	Austronesian Malayo-Polynesian Malayic Ibanic Iban; ; ; ;
Writing system	Latin, Dunging
Official status
Regulated by	Tun Jugah Foundation; Ministry of Education Malaysia; Dayak Cultural Foundation; Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM);
Language codes
ISO 639-1	iba
ISO 639-3	iba
Glottolog	iban1264

Short description: Austronesian language spoken in Brunei, Kalimantan, Sarawak

File:WIKITONGUES- Sedang speaking Iban.webm The Iban language (jaku Iban) is spoken by the Iban, one of the Dayak ethnic groups, who live in Brunei, the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan and in the Malaysian state of Sarawak. It belongs to the Malayic subgroup, a Malayo-Polynesian branch of the Austronesian language family.

The Iban language is ranked as Level 5 (safe) in term of endangerment on Expanded Graded Intergenerational Disruption Scale (EGIDS).^[2]

Classification

The Malayic language is a Malayo-Polynesian branch of the Austronesian language family.^[5] The Malayic language can be subdivided into various languages, amongst them are Ibanic, Malay language, and Urak Lawoi languages.^[2] The Malayic languages originate from western Borneo,^[2]^[5] and was brought to Sumatra.^[2] The Ibanic language is spoken in Sarawak, West Kalimantan,^[3] and Brunei within the Borneo island.^[2]^[5] The Urak Lawoi' language was brought to West Malaysia.^[2]

Iban language is classified under the Ibanic languages, where the latter is under the Malayic language. The Iban language is closely related to the Malay language, especially the Sarawakian Malay.^[5] Other isolects in the Ibanic group of languages are Sebuyau, Mualang, Kantu, and Seberuang. These groups of languages can be identified by the word-final position in certain lexical forms of /-ai/. These lexical forms are similar to other Malayic languages with lexical forms of /-an/, /-ang/, or, less frequently, /-ar/.^[3] The Iban language is also related to other dialects such as Sebuyau, Kendayan, Balau and Selaku.^[2]

History

According to the oral history of the Iban people, Benedict Sandin, in 1968, plotted the ancestry of the Iban people as descendants from the Upper Kapuas, West Kalimantan, Indonesia. The Iban people arrived in Sarawak in the 16th century, and settled in the regions of Batang Lupar drainage basin and Undop river in southern Sarawak. From there, they migrated north, east, and west, and expanded into Saribas, Batang Sadong, Batang Layar, and Batang Lupar rivers. In the 1800s, they moved into the Rajang basin (middle region of Sarawak) from Batang Lupar river, Katibas river, and Saribas river (Saribas is a tributary of the Rajang River). By 1870s, they had reached Mukah and Oya rivers. In the early 1900s, they reached Balingian, Tatau, and Kemena rivers (near Bintulu). They also reached the Baram area and Limbang rivers around the same time in northern Sarawak and would become the largest ethnic group in Sarawak.^[3]

Brooke administration

Fearing that the Iban tribes outnumbered the pre-existing local tribes with detrimental environmental effects on lands intended for shifting cultivation, the Brooke government restricted the Iban people from further migration to other river systems such as the Baleh river. However, the Brooke government allowed the Ibans to settle in other areas such as Lundu, Balingian, Bintulu, Limbang and Baram to consolidate the government's authority there. As a result of this policy, several minority ethnic groups such as Bukitans living along the Batang Lupar River were assimilated into the Iban people, thus contributing to the growth of Iban tribe and the expansion of the Iban language in the state.^[3] The Iban language was taught in schools in the 1940s during the Brooke era.^[6]

Borneo Literature Bureau (BLB) (1958-1977)

During the period of Crown Colony of Sarawak, the Iban language was used in government official letters, courts, announcements, and notices. Radio Sarawak, started by the British, offered Iban language programmes. The Iban language, known under the name of "Asian language", was offered as an examination subject in the Sarawak Junior Certificate. The "Asian language" was renamed to "Iban language" in 1963. Borneo Literature Bureau (BLB) was founded by the British in 1958 to collect and document oral Iban literature. BLB published more than 60 Iban language books during its lifetime until 1973 when it was replaced by a Malaysian federal government agency Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) in 1977. After that, the publication of books in Bornean languages came to a halt.^[7] The publication of the Nendak magazine, which was started by BLB in 1967 also came to a halt.^[8] Jimbun Tawai, the former vice chairman of Sarawak Dayak Iban Association, called this period under Crown Colony as "golden era" of the Iban language.^[9]

After of closure of BLB (1977-2000s)

After the closure of BLB, other smaller publishers continue in this niche such as the Kuching-based publishing company named Klasik. Examples of works include ensera (Iban epic story) and cherita kelulu (morality novellas). Christian churches such as the Catholic church publish prayer books that adopt certain aspects of Iban adat (culture). Thus, Christian texts bear greater significance as cultural repositories of the Iban language when to compared to other genres after the demise of BLB.^[8]

State-sponsored media such as Berita Rakyat was founded in 1974 and ended in the 1990s. The magazine was started by Rajang Security Command (RASCOM) in Sibu to defeat the communists' activities in the Rajang basin. The magazine stopped publication after the cessation of Communist insurgency in Sarawak in 1990. Another magazine named Pembrita was published by the Infomation Department of the state government and was aimed at providing developmental news to the rural Iban populace such as exemplary longhouses, lucrative cash crops, and animal husbandry. The magazine also called on the rural Ibans to modernise their ways of farming. There were no Iban newspapers in the 1990s and early 2000s. The high cost of imported paper materials and low advertising revenues contributed to the difficulties of Iban newspaper publishing.^[8]

Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) expanded their Iban radio broadcasts to 10 hours on Sundays and 9 hours on rest of the week by the 1980s as WaiFM^[8]^[2] Cats FM is the first commercial radio station to broadcast in Iban opening in 1997.^[8] RTM later opened their first Borneo-oriented channel TVi in 2011 which later became TV Okey which includes a 30-minute Iban news slot.^[10]

The Iban language was included in the primary school curriculum in 1968 and a few secondary schools in 1988. In 1968-1969, teachers' training colleges offered Iban as an elective subject. It was only in 1988, that Iban was formalised as part of the Malaysian national curriculum.^[6] There are no Iban-medium schools in Sarawak.^[6] In 2008, Iban was taught as an elective language subject in Malaysian Form 5 secondary schools for Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) certificate examination.^[2] A survey done in Sarawak in 2008 showed that a total of 367 primary schools and 55 secondary schools have taught the Iban subjects since 1968. The number of primary schools offering the Iban language subject increased to 1,264 in 2015 while the number of secondary schools reduced to 52 in 2015. Most of the schools are located in Kapit, Sibu, Sri Aman, and Sarikei Divisions where there are significant Iban population. The Iban language subject is also offered in undergraduate programmes in two teachers' institutions in Sarawak. In Sultan Idris Education University, Perak, the Iban language is offered as a minor subject for Iban students majoring in Malay studies.^[2]

In 2003, Malaysian federal authorities banned the Iban Bible (known as Bup Kudus in Iban) as the use of the word Allah in the Iban bible is the same as the Islamic name of God Allah (Taala) which may confuse the Muslim populace in the state. The ban was lifted by the then deputy prime minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi after persistent protests.^[8]^[11]

2010-present

The The Borneo Post and Utusan Borneo newspapers started Iban language sections in 2010^[12] and 2014 respectively.^[2]^[13] The Pegari Iban language magazine is also published regularly.^[2]

Plans for an independent regional Sarawakian broadcaster were discussed since 2017 under the state government of then-Chief Minister (later State Premier) Abang Johari Tun Openg who had complained of indifference in coverage of state affairs from mainstream Kuala Lumpur-based broadcasters.^[14] This would later lead to the launch of TVS under Sarawak Media Group in 2020 first as a streaming-only channel before transitioning to free-to-air television; TVS provides Iban language news and programming alongside official state languages Malay and English as well as Chinese.^[15]^[16]

Extent of use

The Iban language is allowed in the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly with the special permission from the Speaker and simultaneous interpretations will be provided during the assembly sitting and when written into the Hansard.^[2]

Rentap's battle cry while fighting against James Brooke in 1860s “Agi Idup, Agi Ngelaban!” (“I will fight as long I will live!”) was adopted by Sarawak Royal Ranger Regiment as their motto. The battle cry is also used in speeches and car stickers to evoke the warrior spirit of the Iban people.^[2] The word "Oo-ha", an Iban call for celebration, was popularised by the former chief minister of Sarawak Adenan Satem as a form of "hello" before giving speeches in order to motivate a crowd.^[2] The Chinese-predominant Sarawak United Peoples' Party used the Iban word "Sa'ati" (United) as their party slogan.^[17]^[18] Another Chinese-predominant Sarawak Democratic Action Party has been using the Iban language to garner support from the Iban population.^[19]^[20] Other words include "Segulai sejalai" (going together} that was selected as the slogan for Malaysian national unity,^[21] and "Ngap Sayot" (literally means "eat vegetables") used by Sarawak FA football team battle cry to signify taking down opponents just like eating vegetables.^[22]^[23]^[24]

Iban churches in Sarawak conduct services in the Iban language.^[2]

Trades in the Sarawak bazaars are also frequently conducted in the Iban language.^[2]

Phonology

Consonants

Iban has the following consonant inventory:^[25]

Iban consonants
		Labial	Alveolar	Palatal	Velar	Glottal
Nasal		m	n	ɲ	ŋ
Plosive/ Affricate	voiceless	p	t	tʃ	k	ʔ
Plosive/ Affricate	voiced	b	d	dʒ	ɡ	ʔ
Fricative			s			h
Lateral			l
Rhotic			r
Approximant		w		j

Vowels

Iban has a six-vowel system, with five cardinal vowels plus schwa:^[26]

Iban vowels
	Front	Central	Back
Close	i		u
Mid	e	ə	o
Open		a

Vowel sounds are nasalized when preceded by a nasal consonant.^[26]

Grammar

Lexical roots can be expanded by many affixes in Iban, as exemplified here with the verb gagai.

gagai 'chase'
begagai 'chasing/playing with each other'
begagaika 'chasing something/someone'
ngagai 'to chase'
digagai 'being chased by'
dipegagaika 'being chased by many'
pengagai 'chaser'
tegagaika 'outrun/outpace'

There are four types of affixes in Iban, namely prefixes, suffixes, circumfixes and infixes.

Type of noun affixes	Affix	Example of root word	Example of derived word
Prefix	pe-	mangah (angry)	pemangah (hot tempered)
	pen-	datai (arrive)	penatai (arrival)
	penge-	rindu (love) (verb)	pengerindu (love) (noun)
	be-	reta (property, possessions)	bereta (rich)
	bepe-	rindang (entertained)	beperindang (being entertained)
	beke- bete	kitang (hang)	bekekitang (hanging in group)
	ke-	rimpak (break)	kerimpak (broken pieces)
	m- n- me- nge- nye	panduk (cooked)	manduk (cooking)
	di-	sium (kiss)	disium (being kissed)
	dipe-	jaku (word, talk)	dipejaku (being talk about, gossiped)
	se-	iku (tail)	seiku, siku (one (person))
	sepe(m)-	panjai (long)	sepemanjai (as long as, measurement of long)
	te-	indik (footstep)	terindik (accidentally stepping on something)
Infix	⟨er⟩	titik (drip)	teritik (dripping)
Suffix	-ka	pasuk (wear)	pasukka (wear) (command)
	-i	garam (salt)	garami, gerami (marinade)
Circumfix	ng-...-kn	ayah (waste)	ngayahka (wasting, playing)
	be-...-ka	kena (hit, for)	bekenaka (wears)

Other examples:

Sayau 'love'
Dikesayauka 'was loved by'
Penyayau 'affection'
Kiruh 'busy'
Ngiruhka 'to make someone busy'
Pengiruh 'preoccupied'
Pengiruh-ngiruh 'really preoccupied'
Enjuk 'give'
Berenjuk 'giving each other' (present)
Dienjuk 'gave' (past)
Deka ngenjuk 'will be given' (future)
Pengenjuk 'giver'
Kangau 'call'
Bekangau 'calling each other' (present)
Ngangau 'calling' (present)
Dikangau 'was called' (past)
Deka dikangau 'will be called' (future)
Pengangau 'caller'

Personal pronouns

Iban has separate words for inclusive and exclusive we, and distinguishes singular, dual, and plural.^[27]

	singular	dual	plural
First-person exclusive	aku	kami səduai	kami
First-person inclusive	---	tua	kitai
Second person	deʔ noan	deʔ səduai noan səduai	kitaʔ
Third person	iya	səduai	sidaʔ

Sample

Ke nuan 'for you'
Ke aku 'for me'
Ke kami 'for us'
Bup aku 'my book'
Bakih aku 'my friend'
Apai aku 'my father'
Gamal nuan 'your look'
Sulu nuan 'your beloved'
Sekula kami 'our school'
Ke pangan aku 'for my beloved'
Ke anak aku 'for my child'
Ari indai di 'from your mother'
Ari bakih aku 'from my friend'

Pronouns are primarily put after subjects.

Possessive pronouns

Iban	English
engku	mine
enggi di, ngedi	your
enggi iya, ngi'ya	his/her
enggi tua	ours (both of us)
engkita	belong to all of you
enggi sida	theirs

Sample phases:

baju tu engku 'This shirt is mine.'
Tu enggi nuan 'This is yours.'
Siti nyin enggi tua 'That one belongs to both of us.'

Demonstrative determiners

There are three demonstrative determiners in Iban. Tu 'this, these' is used for a noun which is generally near to the speaker, nya 'that, those' is used for a noun which is generally far from the speaker, and nyin, which is the furthest from the speaker.

Pronoun	Iban	English
tu	bup tu	This book, these books
nya	ukui nya	That dog, those dogs
nyin	bungai nyin	That (furthest) flower(s)

These words can also act as demonstrative pronouns where they can stands on theirs own, replacing rather than modifying a noun.

Example:

Nyamai tu. 'This is good.'
Ok meh nya. 'That's ok.'
Peda di nyin dih. 'Look at that.'

Demonstrative pronouns

In Iban, demonstrative pronouns are words that show which person or thing is being referred in relation to the location of the addressee to the speaker. There are three demonstrative pronouns in Iban depending on location to the speaker. They can only be used to refer to an addressee (human) and cannot be used to refer to inanimate objects.

**Demonstrative pronouns**
Space	Form	Gloss
Proximal	iya tu	this person
Medial	iya nya	that person
Distal	iya nyin	the other person (furthest)

Examples:

Nama gaga iya tu baka nya? 'Why is this person acting in such a way?'
Kini ke iya nya tadi? 'Where is he going?' (Referring to the second closest person to the speaker)
Ni iya nyin tadi dih? 'Where is the other (person) one?' (referring to third person which is the furthest from the speaker)

Adverbs

Demonstrative adverbs

Demonstrative adverbs in Iban are closely related to the demonstrative pronouns in Iban grammar. For example, corresponding to the demonstrative pronouns are the adverbs such as kitu ('going here'), kia ('going there') and kin ('going there (farthest)') equivalent adverbs corresponding to the demonstrative pronoun this are tu, nya and nyin.

**Demonstrative adverbs**
Space	Form	Gloss
Proximal	kitu	going here
Medial	kia	going there
Distal	kin	going there, going yonder

Examples:

Kitu nuan. 'Come here (you).'
Kini di kia? 'Why are you going there?' (within the sight of the speaker)
Aram kin tua. 'Let's go there.' (referring to location far away from speaker)

Locatives

**Locative determiners**
Space	Form	Gloss
Proximal	ditu	here
Medial	dia	there
Distal	din	there, yonder

Examples:

Ditu ku nganti nuan. 'I wait for you here.'
Dia ku nganti nuan. 'I wait for you there.' (not far from the speaker's location)
Din ku nganti nuan. 'I wait for you there.' (referring to a far place)

Manner

Iban also has a set of adverbs referring to manner. They are a combination of baka (ke) ('like/as') and the abbreviated determiner forms tu, nya and nyin.

**Locative determiners**
Space	Form	Gloss
Proximal	baka tu	like this, this way
Medial	baka nya	like that, that way
Distal	baka nyin	like that, that way

Examples:

Aku ka iya baka tu. 'I want it to be like this.'
Nama di ngaga iya baka nya? 'Why did you treat him like this?'
Uji gaga di baka ke nyin. 'Try to do it like that.'