Mixed Language...

Language…

I find it very very very very very annoying when people mix their language when they talk or write. That includes me, but there are times when you really have to mix your language. Usually when you talk and when you are not really capable in using your language well…

I mean, even I, myself does not have a good grasp of my own language. There are times that you know one word in this language but forget the word in that language. Because you are talking, you will just grab the first word that came into your mind. Thus, it will happen…

Still, I find those who write and mix their language are harder to forgive because they have the time to rectify the mistakes in their writing. In this post, I paste one example I copied from one of my local society newsletter…

Assalamualaikum...

Promosi kepada semua WARGA BARU PPMT dan TXTX, undergrad dan postgrad, UTXTX, QUTXTX dan TXTXU...

jika berminat, sangat2 encourage untuk join tour ASA gabungan universiti-universi ti di TXTX pada hari ahad bersamaan 8 Mac 2009. Rekemen ahad supaya boleh join welcoming BBQ PPMT dan TSCoA pada hari sabtu (7/3/2009)..

InshAllah dedua event boleh join, antara tempat2 menarik yang akan di bawa, area-area Universiti masing-masing, masjid-masjid berdekatan, halal butcher berdekatan, mungkin Mt. TXTX sekali dan sebagainya..

Jika berminat boleh contact:
Brother Death:
Email 1: death@utxtx.edu.txtx
Email 2: death_ridge_ view@yahoo. com
Mobile: 4242 564

atau Saya, Erebus:
Email: erebus@ hotmail.com
Mobile: 4242 4242

Mari meriahkan weekend ni dengan BBQ PPMT dan TSCoA dan Orientation tour ASAUTXTX

Salam

Erebus

When I read that, I felt repulsive and filled with disgust. The whole thing sound so horrible. Forgive me, but to me, even though I do not have 100% Malay blood in my body, if you respect, love and care for languages, you will try not to mix it around much so that it will be presentable.

I know that some people from where I come from said that, the language should evolve. So that the younger generation will accept it better. So that the younger generation will be encourage to read more. So the language will be modern and up to date.

So here is the new version of the same newsletter after I change it back to the main language:

Assalamualaikum...

Promosi kepada semua warga baru PPMT dan TXTX, siswa dan pasca siswa UTXTX, TXTXUT dan TXTXU…

Jika berminat, sangat sangat dialukan untuk menyertai rombongan lawatan ASA gabungan universiti universiti di TXTX pada hari Ahad 8 Mac 2009. Disyorkan Ahad supaya boleh menyertai Welcoming BBQ PPMT dan TSCoA pada hari Sabtu 7 Mac 2009.

Insyaallah kedua dua acara boleh disertai. Antara tempat tempat yang menarik yang akan dibawa, kawasan kawasan universiti masing masing, masjid masjid berdekatan, kedai daging halal berdekatan, mungkin Mt. TXTX dan sebagainya…

Jika berminat boleh menghubungi:

Death di death@utxtx.edu.txtx
death_ridge_view@yahoo.com
atau di tel bimbit: 4242 564

atau

Saya sendiri, Erebus di erebus@hotmail.com
Atau di tel. bimbit: 4242 4242

Mari meriahkan hujung minggu ini dengan BBQ PPMT dan TSCoA serta majlis suai kenal dan lawatan ASA.

Salam

Erebus

Sound better for it is in one language now. Younger generation from my country will find it weird for they are so used to the low standard informal language used widely nowadays even in local medias. You will notice some words still left in English.

In my opinion, name should not be changed. Easiest example will be French. In my language, it will be Perancis. The sound had change because of the spelling has been translated. Change of sound in name mean the meaning will be different. In Arabic, Latin, Japanese, Chinese and lots of other languages, if you pronounce it differently, it will mean different things. So if a word comes from other language, I will try my best to use it original form even when I use it in other language.

There are few words borrowed from other language, so you will are allowed to use it but I will always try to abstain myself from using borrowed language so as not to pollute a language much.

Here is a better and polish version of the same newsletter:

Assalamualaikum...

Makluman buat WARGA BARU Persatuan Pembunuh Muda TXTX dan TXTX, siswa dan pascasiswa UTXTX, QUTXTX dan TXTXU…

Jika berminat, sangat sangat dialukan untuk menyertai rombongan lawatan Assassination Students Association gabungan universiti universiti di TXTX pada hari Ahad 8 Mac 2009. Disyorkan pada hari Ahad supaya boleh turut menyertai Welcoming BBQ Persatuan Pembunuh Muda TXTX dan TXTX Student Council of Assassination pada hari Sabtu 7 Mac 2009.

Insyaallah kedua dua acara dapat disertai. Antara tempat tempat yang menarik akan dilawati adalah seperti, pekarangan universiti masing masing, masjid masjid berdekatan, kedai daging halal berdekatan, mungkin juga Mt. TXTX dan banyak lagi…

Jika berminat boleh menghubungi:

Death di deathl@utxtx.edu.txtx
death_ridge_view@yahoo.com
atau di tel bimbit: 4242 564

atau

Saya sendiri, Erebus di erebus@hotmail.com
Atau di tel. bimbit: 4242 4242

Mari meriahkan hujung minggu ini dengan Welcoming BBQ PPMT dan TSCoA serta rombongan lawatan ASA.

Salam

Erebus

I tweak the sentences a bit, making changes here and there so as to make it sound better. Base on the original text, you can see that the guy is translating English into Malay thus the awkward sentence constructions. I also find it is weird that he uses ‘Ahad bersamaan 7 Mac 2009’ for ‘bersamaan’ in this context usually refer to another date in another calendar. Usually we straightaway tell the date after the day. That sentence will not sound so strange if he also uses it later for another date in the text.

I also replace ‘kawasan kawasan’ with ‘pekarangan’ to shorten the word. It sounds better too. I used ‘banyak lagi’ instead of ‘sebagainya’. Cannot really explain why but ‘sebagainya’ just does not sound right. Tried to check the online Dewan Bahasa Pustaka for that word and nothing came out. So it may not be a proper word even. I will look more into it later. ‘Tempat menarik yang akan dibawa’ sound so strange too and I think ‘Ahli rombongan akan dibawa melawat tempat tempat menarik seperti’ will be better but the sentence I wrote in the text is shorter and have more or less the same meaning.

That is just the rough observation from my limited knowledge of my own language. I might be wrong too with my own sentences but I do not use mix language.

I know of few friends of mine who complained that they cannot write in proper language because they do not want their idea evaporate while writing it down. True, I would not want to block the creative juice but do write it down as first draft, not the final draft. Once your whole idea is written down on the paper, do take time to check spelling and the word usage. Try your best to make it into one language. We have internet to help us so use it to the max.

Take it this way; a product made from one country, made with resources from its local country is special and unique. A product composite of from different materials from other countries may be better but lose its identity. It is not perfect because of its own resources.

The same goes for language; it loses respect and uniqueness with mixing around. Soon it will lose its own identity…