The language policy of Indonesia

Abstract

Lecture given before the Association of Professors and Teachers of Filipino in 1972. Reprinted from Indonesia, published by the Indonesian Embassy, Manila.

Indonesia is comprised of so many islands covering a total of about 1,998,762 square miles. There are vast stretches of water between these islands so that communication is rather a big problem. The archipelago is inhabited by about 120 million people. It is understandable therefore that as there are varied ethnic groups so are there varied habits, ways, customs and traditions. Territory-wise, Indonesia is almost seven times bigger than the Philippines. In fact it is considered as the world’s largest archipelago, stretching from east to west for about 3,300 miles and north to south for approximately 1,300 miles.

While Indonesia is proud of its indigenous culture, it has not escaped influences of outside culture. Students of history only well know that my country had been subjected to the inroads of such foreign influences, first the Hinduism-Budhism, next Islam, and then Christianity. All of these brought about tremendous impact on the country’s culture and left behind lasting impressions that are still noticeable even today. I can safely say that even our language has also been influenced. I understand that in the Philippines there are about 90 different dialects. In Indonesia we have as many as 250 different languages and dialects.