In Reply to: learning some of the language posted by marie_au on Thursday, 10. February 2005 at 05:45 Bali Time:
You have a choice of two main languages spoken by people of Bali. Indonesian or Balinese (two: lowland and highland dialects). Indonesian is recommended as Balinese is more complicated. Balinese language uses symbols that are Thai like. You are better off learning Indonesian as it is more commonly understood and will help you in maintaining a dialect with most locals. It is very difficult to have a conversation of any length in Indonesian unless you are gifted and can pick it up straight away. Often you ask in Indonesian expecting a text book reply, but the reply is quick leaving you dumbfounded as to what the next phrase will be. Try to learn the nouns and some of the adjectives and verbs first. This will often be understood and thus can be the base of filling in the rest later on. Some Balinese phrases taken from this site: http://www.coralreeffish.com/balinese.htm
Yes= say yah!, No= sing, maybe= me-rib
Please= rum-reebok-sung (in BI= coelacanth)
Thank you- m'door-sue-box-summer, (a lot= add pea-sun at the end) (in BI= terry-muck-hussy)
and= budge-buck, with= missy, many= lieu (as in French), more= b'win, almost= dusty
there= D-2, here= D-knee; where?= D-judge; from (a place)= de (as in French)
What?, huh?= upper? (light on the ending "r", like the BBC would say it)
What's that? What did you say? huh?= nuppy?; I don't know= sing nun-swung
What is that (nearby)= nuppy nicky; What is that (over there)= nuppy nick-her
What is that called?= nuppy nicky was-ton-nay; bye-bye= dull-dull
Where are you going? (also a greeting, like "Hello")= le (as in French)-car-key-judge
"I'm going to the USA"= le-car-cur bum-merry-cut (=Amerika)
Welcome! (in BI)= sell-a-mutt dull-tongue
Good morning! (in BI)= sell-a-mutt buggy; Good afternoon= sell-a-mutt see-young
Good late afternoon!= sell-a-mutt saw-ray; Good night= sell-a-mutt mull-bum
Good night (ready to sleep)= sell-a-mutt tea-door (roll your rrrs)
Answer all of these with just the suffix, i.e. buggy! or with "same to you"= summer-summer (BI) or the correct Balinese putt-oogh (like in Dutch, a hard throat-clearing ggghhh)
when leaving you say...= sell-a-mutt tingle-gull; the response from the one staying= sell-a-mutt judge-lunch
"I want to buy it"= le (French) car milly, how much is it (does it cost?)= jesus coo-dirt
"What is your name"= syrup was-ton-nay? or syrup udder-nay? or syrup was-ton eater?
"My name is"= udder-nay
"How old are you?"= above-coo-dirt ooh-moray; "I am six years old"= ooh-moor tea-young nim tea-bun
"You are very pretty..." something of a come-on= ee-lord gym-gecko guttee
The following phrases amuse Balinese people greatly... I recommend liberal usage at all times-
Really! You ain't kidding! Absolutely!= suck-under (said with emphasis), also chuck-dee!
No lie! I ain't kidding! Gimme a break!= sing ooh-loo ooh-look! (literally "no lie")
I promise you! Would I kid you?= tea-young midge cajun-jesus
No problem! Don't worry about it, "no worries, mate" (Australian)= sing-ken-ken or sing-mogrify-reebok
I am just joking= tea-young midge cajun-dull
Crazy people!= just-le-midge lung-uhh! (juhluhmuh lunguh- all the same "uhh" sound, very funny...)
TIME
minute= minute, hour= jumble, day= Hawaii, week= humming goose, month= boo-lunch, year= tea-bun
Now for the bad news: the numbers used with time are not the same as regular numbers- many are converted to an ing suffix, some are completely different (like one), but some stay the same......
one= above, two= doo-swung, three= rattle-look-king, four= putt-tongue, five= limo-mung, six= nimrod, seven= pee-too-king, eight= coot-puss, nine= bitsy-young, ten= dull-surf
eleven= saw-lusty, twelve= raw-rusty, thirteen= rattle-look-lusty, fourteen= putt-plus, fifteen= maw-lusty, sixteen= nimrod-lusty, seventeen= pee-two-lusty, eighteen= pull-herd coot-puss, nineteen= see-young-awe-lusty
twenty= doo-swung dull-surf, twenty-one= doo-swung dull-surf bill-sick (i.e. the last part of the number is from the regular numbers, not the time numbers....amazing, huh?), etc.; thirty-three is "three (time), ten, three (non-time)"; forty-two is "four (time), ten, two (non-time)"; fifty= sick-coot limo-mung, sixty= "six, ten", seventy= "seven (time), ten", eighty= ooh-look-king dull-surf, ninety= bitsy-young dull-surf, a hundred= sum-obtuse, a thousand= bitsy-you (for money= tully), a million= jew-tummy.
"I am twenty six years old"= ooh-moor tea-young doo-swung dull-surf nimrod tea-bun (or "age I two ten six years")
What time?= jumble coo-dull (or "hour, how much?"); eleven o'clock PM= saw-lusty putt-oong (or "eleven night")
How long?= ping coo-dull (or "time, how much?"); answer in units and then number, i.e. "day, six"
How many times?= same, but the answer is ping nimrod "time, six"
today (immediate, like now)= a (like above) Johnny, later= near-(like saying "near" in a Boston accent) noon, already= surf-dirt
before, or ago= ee, yesterday= ee-bee, day before yesterday=ee-pee-wonderful; the rest are ee-(number, units)
"I was in Bali five days ago"= tea-young cur-bubble-lee ee-limo-mung Hawaii (or "I to Bali ago five days")
after, or in (the future)= bin, tomorrow= money, day after tomorrow= bin-pee-wonderful; the rest are bin-(number, units)
"I am leaving in eight weeks"= tea-young pee-dun chuck-brung-cut bin coot-puss humming-goose (or "I leave in/after eight weeks")
long time= minute-club, "I will stay long in Lombok"= tea-young minute-club cur-shalom-balk (or "I long-time to Lombok")
VERBS
like= demon, want= moody, (and this is the hard one...) speak/talk/say= running-awe-maw-ing (ngomong)
(another hard one) eat= running-ah-jungle (ngajung), drink= minute-tim, work= men-guy-ee, sleep= poo-list
to have (like the Spanish "hay", like "it exists")= udder, "is there fish here" or "do you have fish"= D-knee udder bay (here have fish?)
to have (personal possession)= running-ooh-lah, "do you have a wife/husband?"= running-ooh-lah coor-nun?
remember= inge-ton, forget= running-feng-supper or subpoena
buy= milly, "I want to buy it"= le (French) car-milly
learn= mill-a-judge, understand= running-ear-tee, ask= mitt-a-ken
stay= running-awe-yaw-ng, scuba dive= knee-lump
FOOD
breakfast= some-mung, lunch= tip-running-ah-yee, dinner= bully-tongue, please= rum-reebok-sung
food= muck-a-nun, rice= nun-hussy, chicken= see-yup, fish= bay, banana= beautiful
water= yeah (like a quick "yes"), coffee= caw-pee, milk= sue-sue, ice= the letter "s"
"I would like chicken"= tea-young moody see-yup, "Do you have milk?"= udder sue-sue?
sugar= goo-lump, salt= goo-yummy, pepper= tummy-beautiful, hot sauce= some-bulge, ketchup= cut-chip (a-sin, soya= soy sauce)
to order (in a restaurant)= allay, the bill, check= maya, more= b'win, finished= sue-dull
Indonesian dictionary, pronunciation and language sites:
http://people.freenet.de/indonesian/pronounce.htm
http://www.phrasebase.com/learn/indonesian.php
http://www.angelfire.com/nt/teague/indo_eng.html
http://www.angelfire.com/nt/teague/eng_indo.html