Basa Cerbon: Sundanese or Javanese??

Words by Susiyanti Rusyan

Basa Cerbon or Cirebon language or Cirebonese is often being questioned by people who are not the residents of that city. They often feel confused whether basa Cerbon is belonging to Sundanese or Javanese. Well, before we are talking more about basa Cerbon, here are some information about Cirebon that you’d better to know.

Cirebon is located in the province of West Java, Indonesia. Cirebon is derived from the Sundanese word of “Ci” which means water and “Rebon” which means shrimps. In other words Cirebon means the place where the main fishery’s production is shrimps.

Cirebon has so many cultures and arts. Two of the most famous arts in Cirebon are Batik (the matterial for dresses with some traditional pattern) and Tari Topeng Cirebon or Cirebon mask dance. The most popular Batik in Cirebon is Batik Mega Mendung which has the unique pattern that shows the life of the coastal society in Cirebon while Tari Topeng Cirebon is the traditional dance from Cirebon where the dancers use masks when dancing. There is a lot of variety of Cirebon masks dance with the different stories in every masks. The name of dancing depends to the dance style and the stories behind the mask that is going to be shown by the dancer. If you are going to know more about Cirebon, just come to this place and see the wonderful of the city.

Well, let’s back to the topic. Many people think that the society of Cirebon use Sundanese as their regional language because Cirebon is located in the province of West Java, Indonesia. In the other side, some people think that the society of Cirebon speaks in Javanese because the location of Cirebon is near the provincial border with Central Java. The fact says that the society of Cirebon use basa Cerbon as their regional language to communicate between each others in their daily conversation. Basa Cerbon is not including to Sundanese although it is located in West Java. It is also not a part of Javanese although the location of Cirebon is near the provincial border with Central Java. How come?

Based on the history that was written by Untung Rahardjo in his book ”Kesusastraan Cirebon dalam Periodisasi Kuna, Tengahan, Baru dan Modern” (The Development of The Literature of Cirebon), Cirebon used to be the trade centre of Javanese north coastal region. It was a territory of kingdom Galuh Sunda Pakuan, but it didn’t make Cirebon has the same culture and art just like the territory where Cirebon was located in. Cirebon was the open region which easily received some new values from other regions, so that there created a community which was heterogeneity in every social elements. Such as culture and art, including the language that are used by the society until present. It is because the characteristic of the residents who always open to something new which was brought by the transients. It has been bequeathed to the generation of Cirebon continually. The authority of that time could tolerate it because they knew that it was one of the cultural socio effect in the development of a port city.

Raharjo wrote that basa Cerbon was devided into two parts; basa Cerbon that was used by the society and  keraton (the kingdom) society.

Basa Cerbon that was used by the society was an intercourse language. It was an interference between the original language of Cirebon with the language that was used by the transients who travelled to Cirebon. It is because Cirebon used to be the destination of the travellers from many regions whether they wanted to deal something or crossed only. Raharjo added that the original language of Cirebon is Sunda Kuno ( Old Sundanese) that was used by the society of keraton.

Not much different from Raharjo, through the interview, Dedi Supriyadi -- Cirebon regency’s Deputy of Culture Field at Department of Culture, Tourism, Sports, and Youth, says that basa Cerbon is a new product of language that Indonesias has. It is not belonging to Sundanese or Javanese, but it is an independent language.

Cerbon was descended from the word “Caruban” which means “mixed”. As what Raharjo has written, Supriyadi added that Basa Cerbon is a language that was produced from the interference more than one language.

However, Supriyadi has the different ideas about the history of Basa Cerbon. He says that in the days of yore the original residents of “Sunda” lived in Gunung Ciremai or mount Ciremai. Of course they speak in old Sundanese or more precisely called by Bahasa Sunda Buhun. Cirebon is a port city, then many people from other regions were coming to do their business. The meeting of the two language created the new language called Basa Cerbon.

Basa Cerbon nowdays (Modern Basa Cerbon) is devided into two parts. The first is Basa Bebasan which is a language that is used by people to speak with the older ones or to the important people or the people who have the important position in Cirebon. Bebasan is also used by the society in Keraton that still exist today. The second is Basa Bagongan which is used by people to speak with the people who have the same age with the speakers. However, today Basa Bagongan is commonly used by most Cirebon’s residents, not only for the same age speakers but also for all Cirebon’s society.

Dialects are the evidence of the language mixed. Here are the main dialects of Basa Cerbon:

a.        The dialect of Cirebon. It is the original dialect of Basa Cerbon ( Basa Bagongan). In this dialect, people always use the word “Jeh” in every the last of the sentences when they speak.

b.        The dialect of Indramayu. People of Indramayu usually use the word “mah” in their sentences when they speak.

c.       Brebes. This place is near the border of central Java, so that the dialect that is used by the people who live here has the similiarity with the language of the regional of Central Java. People in here usually add the word “kue” in their sentences.

d.      Kuningan. In this place people speak in Sundanese but it is not the same with Sundanese in the West Java because it has mixed with Basa Cirebon.

    Well, that’s all about Basa Cerbon. Now you should not be confused again with the status of that language. You can share about this to your friends when you are talking about Cirebon.

Sources:

1.      Untung Raharjo’s “Kesusastraan Cirebon dalam Periodisasi Kuna, Baru dan Modern”.

2.    Through the Interview process at June 14, 2012, the information of Basa Cerbon’s History and Details by Dedi Supriyadi -- Cirebon regency’s Deputy of Culture Field at Department of Culture, Tourism, Sports, and Youth.