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The study of Indonesian verbs berkata, bersabda, and
berfirman

Majid Wajdi1
Ikhsanudin2
Md Kamrul Hasan3
Fatema Sharmin4

Politeknik Negeri Bali1
Universitas Tanjungpura Pontianak2
United International University United City,
Madani Avenue, Badda, Dhaka- 12123
Shanto-Mariam University of Creative Technology,
Dhaka, Bangladesh4
email: mawa2id@gmail.com1
email: mkhasan77@gmail.com3
email: fatemashamin@gmail.com4

Abstract - This research aims at to analyse the existence of the Indonesian
verbs “berkata”, “bersabda”, and “berfirman” (to say, to state). The method
of document study was executed to provide the data, namely the translation
of the Holy Quran (2004). Although it is unfair to compare the language of
Indonesia and the language of Java from a speech levels point of view, this
paper is simply meant to trace how the words of the language of Indonesia
show its speech levels in its own way. The Indonesian verbs “berfirman”,
“bersabda”, and “berkata” are used to describe the activity of ‘saying’ or
‘speaking’ of God (berfirman), the Prophet Muhammad (bersabda), and
people in common (berkata). It is concluded here that there are speech levels
in the language of Indonesia, but they are not to compare with the speech
levels like in the language of Java, Bali, Madura, Sunda, and or Sasak of
Lombok.

Keyword: high speech level, honorific word, Indonesian verb, low
speech level



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1. Introduction

Indonesian has become a second language for most native speakers of local languages
in most parts of Indonesia, such as Sundanese, Javanese, Balinese, Sasak, Madurese,
and many speakers of other local languages apart from speakers of the five major
languages mentioned earlier. With regard to Indonesian, Moeliono (in Samuel, 2008)
proposes the idea of "language modernization" which includes equations with other
developed languages with the aim of enabling "reciprocal translation", as well as
"language updating". What is meant by "language modernization" includes three
aspects, namely "intellectualization" or "language rationalization", namely the
development of the ability to form precise, thorough, and abstract statements,
according to the needs of scientific discourse (Moeliono, 1985), "expansion of
vocabulary", which includes the source of the term and its formation and development
of the "barrel of language". What is meant by "language barrel" is a variation of
language or a variation of speech which has high and low meanings, such as the
language barrel or the level of speech in Javanese and Javanese manners.

The majority of Indonesian speakers in Indonesia are native speakers of local
languages, especially Javanese, Sundanese, Balinese, Sasak, Madurese, and others.
These five languages are related languages which are characterized by the existence
of high and low speech levels. Javanese, for example, is widely recognized as one of
the local languages of Indonesia with a low level of speech (called ngoko) and a high
level of speech (called krama or basa) which coexist as a medium of daily
communication for its speakers. These low and high speech levels have different
forms, functions, and meanings when they are used by the speakers. Of course, there
are fundamental differences to be taken into account between Indonesian and
Javanese. As a language that recognizes the principle of equality (egalitarian),
Indonesian does not have a speech level like the speech level of Javanese and the four
related languages. This paper does not intend to compare Indonesian and Javanese
and the four other languages from a speech level perspective, but it tries to explore
Indonesian vocabulary and how Indonesian places low and high vocabulary in its own
way. For example, the Indonesian verbs “berfirman”, “bersabda”, and “berkata” are
used to describe the activity of saying by Allah/God (berfirman), the Prophet
Muhammad (bersabda), and the common or ordinary people (berkata). This initial
research hypothesis reveals that there is a kind of speech level in Indonesian, but not
to be equated with the level of speech in Javanese, Sundanese, Balinese, Sasak, and
Madurese as it is known so far.

As mentioned earlier that Indonesian has also become a second language for
native speakers of local languages, one that should be mentioned here is Javanese.
The influence of the Javanese or the language of Java on Indonesian extends beyond
purely lexical areas, with the adoption of certain cultural attitudes and the speech
levels of Javanese and other languages belonging to the same historical and cultural
subgroup, namely Sundanese, Madurese, Balinese, and Banjarese, which amounts to
two-thirds of Indonesia's population (Samuel, 2008). The efforts to measure the
contribution of regional or local languages to Indonesian vocabulary and it is proven
that regional or local languages are the largest source of enriching Indonesian
vocabulary. Labarousse (1975, in Samuel, 2008) explains that between 1960 and 1970



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there were 40.1% of Indonesian loanwords originating from regional or local
languages. Loan or adopted words from the language of Java are 69.1% of the total
loan words from regional or local languages and 28.2% of the total loan words and
are in second place after Dutch. This then leads to thoughts and opinions to say that
there is a kind of ‘Javanization’ process in the Indonesian language (Samuel, 2008).

For several decades, it is suspected that in the Indonesian language pairs of
words "rude-rude" appeared, with the form of "respect" which was absorbed from old
Javanese or from the level of speech in modern Javanese krama. This kind of process
is called “kramanisasi” in Indonesian (Samuel, 2008), i.e. the process of being or
becoming speech levels like the language of Java. However, "kramanisasi" is different
from the process of being Java (‘Javanization’). The ‘Javanization’ is mainly by
absorbing the vocabulary of the low (ngoko) speech level, which comes from speakers
who do not realize the absorption of mother tongue words into a second language, in
this case, Indonesian. Based on the background above, the problem or research
question is (a) are there high and low speech levels in Indonesian?, (b) how much do
Indonesian vocabularies reflects high and low forms?

The term speech level refers more to the co-variations of speech in regional or
local languages in Indonesia such as Javanese, Sundanese, Balinese, Sasak, and
Madurese speech levels. Speech levels in Javanese are called "undha-usuk", 'levels of
language' (Harjawiyana & Supriya, 2009), and in English, they are called “speech
levels” (Shinoda, 1973; Poedjosoedarmo, 1968; Wolff & Poedjosoedarmo, 2002),
"levels of speech" (Fasold, 1990) or "speech styles" (Errington, 1998; Robson, 1992).
The term speech levels are widely used to describe the co-existence of high and low
variations in a language, such as Japanese and Korean (Shinoda, 1973; Martin, 1964;
Ng & Obana, 1990), Sundanese (Anderson, 1997), Javanese (Geertz, 1960;
Poedjosoedarmo, 1968; Wolff & Poedjosoedarmo, 2002; Robson, 1992); Madurese
(Davies, 2010), Balinese (Suastra, 2001a/b; Arka, 2005), and Sasak (Austin &
Northofer, 2000; Mahyuni, 2005). However, not all of the researchers explicitly
provided a detailed explanation of the terms of speech level and the definition of
speech level. Shinoda (1973) provides an overview of the speech level called "keigo"
in Japanese. In a narrow sense, speech levels are words that express respect for the
person and actions of the person being spoken to or the person being referred to. In a
broader sense, speech level refers to, both high and low forms, in which a person
describes another person's actions with positive humility. The definition above
emphasizes more on "respect" for others, which is often interpreted as "respect" for
others. Ng & Obana (1990) define speech levels as variations in spoken language, the
choice of which is closely related to the type of speech in discourse due to social
factors. The original citation is listed below for clarity. By the term ‘speech levels’ we
mean language variations in spoken language, the selection of which is closely related
to the types of speech discourse as well as certain social factors. The types of speech
discourse are varied, e.g. a chat with a friend, a discussion on politics with colleagues,
an exchange of greetings with an acquaintance, an interview on television, a public
lecture, etc. (Ng & Obana, 1990).

The limitation on the variety of spoken language at the definition of speech
level above felt too narrow. What about written language? Ng & Obana's (1990)
definition of speech level seems to follow the definition of diglossia (early definition



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by Ferguson, 1959; see also, for example, Holmes, 2001) which refers to low
variation (L) which is used only in a spoken language. Anderson (1997) provides an
overview of the speech levels in Sundanese by quoting Weessing's (1974) opinion as
follows.

Although Sundanese speech levels have been discussed by any number of
scholars, these studies have not been based on the analysis of actual usage, but of
reported usage. This has yielded a standard model which, in the words of Wessing
(1974), appeals to “features of the social environment in which the speech event is
taking place”, most notably, “a) social status of the speaker, b) social status of the
addressee or referent, c) the difference (if any) between a) and b) [and], d) the degree
of friendship (intimate) between the speaker and the addressee (Anderson, 1997).

Principally, the description of the speech level above is a system of speech that
is interrelated with the social environment in which the speech event takes place,
which in essence considers the social status and level of intimacy of the participants.
In other terms, the speech level is a speech stratification system that is used to express
the status and familiarity relationships of the participants in a speech event.
Poedjosoedarmo (1968) defines speech levels associated with Javanese as follows.
Speech levels in Javanese constitute a system for showing 1) the degree of formality,
and 2) the degree of respect felt by the speaker toward the addressee. The greater the
degree of respect and formality in an utterance, the greater the politeness is shown
(Poedjosoedarmo, 1968).

The definition of speech level above illustrates that what is meant by speech
level is a system of language politeness by using language variations, namely high
and/or low variations, to show the level of formality and the degree of respect for a
speaker to the speech partner. The definition of speech level put forward by
Poedjosoedarmo (1968) above is narrowed by the statement "the degree of formality
and the degree of respect" which often only refers to the high variation (krama) of the
language of Java. Within the scope of this definition, the speech level of the language
of Java "ngoko" does not seem to be taken into account, because according to
Poedjosoedarmo (1968; cf. Purwoko, 2008a), the level of speech in "ngoko" is not
reflected at all. Therefore, this definition can be expanded as seen in the definition of
speech level in this research. Wedhawati et al (2006) stated that what is meant by
speech level is as follows.

Speech level is a variation of language, the difference is determined by the
speaker's attitude to the interlocutor or the third person spoke to. The difference
in age, social level, and distance of familiarity between the speaker and the
partner will determine the variation of the selected language. Mistakes in the
choice of language variations when speaking will create awkwardness and are
considered impolite.
To complete the five speech level definitions above and to examine the

phenomenon of high and low variation in languages that recognize t/v or speech level,
speech level is a variation of speech or language variation that can and is usually used
to indicate the level of familiarity, level of respect, and level of hierarchy with fellow
participants, both in official and informal communication, both written and oral
communication based on the rights and obligations of each participant.



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Speech level can be said to be a communication theory in hierarchical speech
societies such as Javanese, Sundanese, Balinese, Sasak, and Madurese. The pattern of
communication in such a hierarchical society shows three communication patterns,
namely first, an equally close communication pattern in which the participants use
each other's low speech levels. The participants put themselves in an equal and
familiar position which is shown by using each other's low speech levels to be used to
greet each other and express their thoughts aimed at their speech partners. Apart from
the similarly intimate communication patterns mentioned earlier, secondly, the
equivalent communication patterns are not familiar, in which the participants use each
other a high level of speech. Equality without intimacy encourages the participants to
use each other a high level of speech to greet and express all their thoughts for each
participant. The third communication pattern is hierarchical communication, in which
unequal participants use each other of different levels of speech. In unequal
communication, participants have different status, there is a superior participant
(superordinate) and the opponent is a subordinate participant (inferior or sub-ordinate).
Superior participants use a low level of speech to address the person to whom they
speak, while subordinate participants use a high level of speech to respond to a
superior's speaker.

2. Method

The data of this paper were collected using a document review method in the form of
the translation the Al Quran into Indonesian, in the form of the Digital Quran (2004)
Version 2.1.

First, the researchers make a list of word pairs to be searched to decide whether
these word pairs are used in the Indonesian translation of the Digital Quran. For
example, the verbs "mati” (die) and "wafat” (die, passed away). By utilizing the
search facility (search), a column will appear to type the word we want to search.

Second, the researchers type the words the researcher wants to search according
to the list that has been prepared. For example, typing the Indonesian verb “mati” in
the available column in the search facility.

Third, the researchers click the list topics button and it will be displayed the title,
location, and rank columns. In the title column, a list of Surahs from the Quran will
appear that contains the word you want to search (for example, an Indonesia verb
“mati”). On the list of topics, one of which appears the Suarh Al Baqarah 243; that is,
the Indonesian verb “mati” the researchers are looking for is in the Surah Al Baqarah
verse 243.

Fourth, the researchers click on the list of existing letters (for example, Surah Al
Baqarah 243), verse 243 of the Al Baqarah will appear with its meaning (the
translation) in Indonesian and researchers can see the Indonesian verb “mati” that is
being sought. By typing the word the researchers want to find in the search facility,
the searched word will appear, if the word the researchers are looking for exists and is
used in the Indonesian translation of the Digital Quran.

Using whatsapp is another way to find the use of Indonesian is by typing and
sending it to whatsapp number (089999------). Although the result is little bit different
but it is really helpful. The result of finding in whatsapp for the Indonesian verb



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“berkata” is 739 times, “berfirman” is 126 times, but “bersabda” is not found in the
whatsapp.

3. Results and Discussion

The following discussion tries to analyse how the speech levels in Indonesian is used
especially in written form, namely the translation of Holy Quran (2004). Since there is
a term especially used when a researcher analyses the speech level in the language of
Java, Sunda, Bali, Sasak, and Madura. Table 1 shows us how speech level of
Indonesian appear in limited verbs, noun, and pronoun or terms of address. Table 2
shows us to whom the Indonesian verbs refer to. It is usual and it becomes a norm of
social life especially in communication field.

Table 1 Indonesian Speech Level

Category Low High
noun kata ‘word’, ‘statement’ firman, sabda ‘word’, ‘statement’

mayat ‘dead body’ janazah ‘dead body’
kuburan ‘graves’ makam ‘graves’
anak ‘child’ putra/i ‘son/daughter’

verb berkata ‘to say’, ‘to state’ berfirman, bersabda ‘to say’, ‘to state’
mati ‘die’, ‘passed away’ meninggal, wafat, gugur, mangkat,

tutup usia, ‘die, passed away’
minta, meminta ‘to ask’, ‘to beg’ mohon, memohon ‘to ask’, ‘to beg’
datang ‘to come’ hadir ‘to come’
menguburkan ‘to bury’ memakamkan ‘to bury’
membolehkan ‘to allow’ mengizinkan, mengabulkan ‘to allow’
memberikan ‘to give’ mengabulkan ‘to give’, ‘to grant’
hamil ‘to have pregnancy’ mengandung ‘to have pregnancy’

pronouns kamu ‘you’ saudara, anda, bapak/ibu ‘you’
ia/dia ‘he’ beliau ‘he’

Table 2 The Indonesian Verbs “berkata”, “bersabda”, and “berfirman”

Table 3 Indonesian Verb & Occurrence

Based on the study in the translation of Holy Al Quran, the Indonesian word and
verb “berfirman” (to say, to state) was 117 (one hundred seventeen) times used in the
translation of the Holy Al Quran (2004). On the one hand, the noun “firman” (word,

Ordinary people King, Prophet God English
berkata bersabda berfirman to say, to state

Indonesian verbs
“berkata” and “meninggal”

English Occurrences

berkata to say, to state 510 times
bersabda to say, to state 25 times
berfirman to say, to state 117 times
mati, meninggal die, passed away 27 times
gugur die, passed away 19 times
wafat die, passed away 12 times



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statement) is 28 times used by the translator in the translation of the Al Quran. The
verb and the noun of “berfirman” and “firman” all refer to Allah, the God of Moslem
believers. It is unusual for Indonesian speakers and writers to use the verb
“berfirman” and the noun “firman” for creatures and human beings. The verb
“berfirman” and the noun “firman” is the only term used to describe God's activity of
saying something or making statements.

The following data are the example how the Indonesian verbs “berkata”,
“bersabda”, and “berfirman” (to say, to state) are used in the translation of the Holy
Quran (2004).

berkata, bersabda, berfirman “to say”, “to state”
[1] QS 2: 71. Musa berkata: “Sesungguhnya Allah berfirman bahwa sapi
betina itu adalah sapi betina yang belum pernah dipakai untuk membajak tanah
dan tidak pula untuk mengairi tanaman, tidak bercacat, tidak ada belangnya.”
Mereka berkata: “Sekarang barulah kamu menerangkan hakikat sapi betina
yang sebenarnya”. Kemudian mereka menyembelihnya dan hampir saja
mereka tidak melaksanakan perintah itu” (Q.S. Al-Baqaah 2: 71).
Musa said: "Verily Allah says that the female cow is a female cow that has
never been used to plough the land nor to irrigate crops, is blameless, has no
stripes". They say: "Now then you explain the true essence of the cow". Then
they slaughtered it and they almost did not carry out the order [63].

[2] QS 6: 259. …. Dia berkata: "Bagaimana Allah menghidupkan kembali
negeri ini setelah hancur?" Maka Allah mematikan orang itu seratus tahun,
kemudian menghidupkannya kembali. Allah bertanya: "Berapakah lamanya
kamu tinggal di sini?" Ia menjawab: "Saya tinggal di sini sehari atau setengah
hari." Allah berfirman: "Sebenarnya kamu telah tinggal di sini seratus tahun
lamanya;
…. He said: "How can Allah bring this country back to life after it was
destroyed?" So Allah killed him for a hundred years, then brought him back to
life. Allah asked: "How long have you been here?" He replied: "I stay here a day
or half a day." Allah said: "In fact you have lived here a hundred years;….

[3] QS 3: 41. Berkata Zakariya: "Berilah aku suatu tanda (bahwa isteriku telah
mengandung)". Allah berfirman: "Tandanya bagimu, kamu tidak dapat berkata-
kata dengan manusia selama tiga hari, kecuali dengan isyarat. Dan sebutlah
(nama) Tuhanmu sebanyak-banyaknya serta bertasbihlah di waktu petang dan
pagi hari".
Zakariya said: "Give me a sign (that my wife is pregnant)". Allah said: "Sign for
you, you will not be able to speak with humans for three days, except with a
signal. And call (the name) of your Lord as much as possible and pray in the
evening and morning".

[4] QS 3: 47. Maryam berkata: "Ya Tuhanku, betapa mungkin aku mempunyai
anak, padahal aku belum pernah disentuh oleh seorang laki-lakipun."Allah



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berfirman (dengan perantaraan Jibril): "Demikianlah Allah menciptakan apa
yang dikehendaki-Nya. Apabila Allah berkehendak menetapkan sesuatu, maka
Allah hanya cukup berkata kepadanya: "Jadilah", lalu jadilah dia.
Maryam said: "O my Lord, how could I have a child, even though I have never
been touched by a man." Allah said (by means of Jibril): "Thus Allah creates
what He wills. If Allah wants to determine something, then Allah simply says to
him: "Be", then he becomes.
[5] Rasulullah bersabda: “Mana orang yang tadi bertanya tentang umrah itu?”
(Penjelasan QS 2: 196).
Rasulullah said: "Where was the person who asked about the Umrah?"
(Explanation of QS 2: 196).

[6] Nabi SAW bersabda: “Baiklah, akan tetati apabila kamu kufur, gunung ini
akan berakibat seperti hidangan yang diminta bani Israil (Penjelasan QS 2:
108).
The Prophet Muhammad S.A.W. said: "All right, but if you are kufr, this
mountain will result like the dish that the Israelites asked for (Explanation of QS
2: 108).
Based on the example presented above, in data number [1] to [6], it is clear how

the Indonesian verbs "berkata", "bersabda" and "berfirman" (to say, to state) are used
in a written utterance in the form of a document translated from the Quran (2004).
The Indonesian verb “berkata” is used to describe the activity of saying certain
utterances for humans in general. The Indonesian verb “berkata” refers to or is used
by human being in general or ordinary people. In general, humans carry out the
activity of saying something by using the Indonesian verb “berkata”. The activity of
uttering utterances for every human being is generally described using an Indonesian
verb or verb “berkata” (to say). Is it only the verb “berkata” that can be used to
describe speaking activities, both in spoken forms and in written ones? In the
language Java (and in other regional languages in Indonesia that recognize speech
levels such as the language of Java), the Indonesian verb ‘berkata” can be expressed
in low speech level “ngomong”, while in Javanese, the high speech level of “to say” is
“ngendika”. It seems that the Indonesian language also recognizes a kind of speech
level, namely stratified speech, from low to high speech level. The level of Indonesian
speech is related to whom (the participant) is depicted in the utterance in question or
who is speaking. If we refer to the sample of the data [1] to [6] above, it is clear that
the Indonesian verb “berkata” has a high variation, namely the Indonesian verbs
“bersabda” and “berfirman”. If they are ranked, the Indonesian verb “berkata” is a
low (neutral, general) verb, while “bersabda” and “berfirman” are high verbs that
have a value meaning of respect and power. Figures without power in the sense of the
figure, in general, will be described using the verb “berkata” that means “to say”, on
the other hand, the figures that have power will be described using the verb
“bersabda” and/or “berfirman” to describe the activity of “saying” of the
superordinate figures and God (berfirman). A king, in past time, was always
described as a superordinate that is why he will use the Indonesian verb “bersabda”.
The Indonesian verb “berfirman” is exclusively used for or refers to God (Allah).



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The data [1] to [6] above clearly demonstrate that the Indonesian verb "berkata"
is used to describe the activity of saying or stating something carried out by people or
humans in general. The Indonesian verb "berkata" is used neutrally to describe the
activity of speaking of people or humans in general. On the other hand, the verb
"berkata" will be increased into "bersabda" to describe the activity of saying or
making statement of the Prophet Muhammad (data number [5] and [6]). Prophet
Muhammad is also often referred to by the nickname 'Messenger of Allah', so that He
is also described by the Indonesian verb "bersabda" in a special (exclusive) manner
for the activity of uttering and making statements. Prophet Muhammad in the
teachings (religion) of Islam is a highly respected figure. Therefore the activity of
uttering and making statements is described using the Indonesian verb "bersabda" not
“berkata” that is used by ordinary people..

The Indonesian verbs "mati", "gugur", and "wafat" (die, passed away) can also
be categorized into Indonesian verbs of the level of speech. The Indonesian verb
"mati" has a low or neutral degree. The Indonesian verb "mati” is used to describe the
inanimate state of living things, whether humans, animals, plants, machines,
television, or others. The state of being “die” of humans are generally described using
the Indonesian verb "mati", animals are "mati", trees are "mati" and so on. On the
other hand, the Indonesian verb "gugur" (die, passed away) is used to describe a hero
who passed away in a war. The Indonesia verb “wafat” (passed away) is used to
describe the death of honourable persons in the society.

Although the Indonesia verb “berkata”, “bersabda”, and “berfirman” are only
expressed in one Arabic verb i.e. “qul” and its derivation “qaala”, “yaquulu”, “qul”
but the Arabic verb can be expressed in Indonesian verbs into “berkata”, “bersabda”,
and “berfirman”. If the Indonesian verb “berkata” is used to describe the activity of
speaking in general, so the Indonesian verb “bersabda” and “berfirman” are
exclusively used to describe the activity of saying of a king and or the Prophet
Muhammad and “berfirman” is only for God (Allah). The activity of saying and
making statements done by the Prophet Muhammad is exclusively expressed by the
Indonesian verb “bersabda”. So as the Indonesian verb “berfirman” is exclusively
used to describe the activity of saying and making a statement of God (Allah).

In the past, when the kingdoms in the territory of Indonesia existed, the verb
"bersabda" was used in a special way to describe the activity of speaking and making
statements of kings. The common people "berkata", while the kings "bersabda". Even
though there are other prophets besides the Prophet Muhammad, but the other
prophets except for the Prophet Muhammad are described as using the verb "berkata",
not the verb "bersabda", as the speaking activities carried out by the Prophet
Muhammad. It is not clear why the translator's consideration places the other prophets
except the Prophet Muhammad as the ordinary people in general so that they are
described using the Indonesian verb "berkata", not "bersabda".

The following data are the Indonesian verbs ‘die’ which is expressed in three
Indonesian verbs “mati”, “gugur”, “wafat” as they are found in the translation of Al
Quran (2004). One meaning is expressed in three different forms of Indonesian verbs.
Why it becomes so? This is the way the Indonesian speakers and writers express their
solidarity, respect, and hierarchy using their language of Indonesia.



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Mati ‘die’, ‘passed away’
[7] QS 56: 47. Dan mereka selalu mengatakan: "Apakah bila kami mati dan menjadi
tanah dan tulang belulang, apakah sesungguhnya kami akan benar-benar
dibangkitkan kembali?”
And they always say: "If we die and become dirt and bones, will we really be
resurrected?"

[8] QS 13: 31. …. dan siapakah yang mengeluarkan yang hidup dari yang mati dan
mengeluarkan yang mati dari yang hidup[689] dan siapakah yang mengatur segala
urusan?"
…. and who has raised the living from the dead and brought out the dead from the
living [689] and who is in charge of all affairs?"

[9] QS 2: 56. Setelah itu kami bangkitkan kamu sesudah kamu mati [52], supaya
kamu bersyukur. [52] yang dimaksud dengan mati di sini menurut sebagian
Mufassirin ialah: mati yang sebenarnya, ….
After that we raised you after you died [52], so that you may give thanks. [52] What is
meant by dying here according to some Mufassirin is: real death,….

Gugur ‘die’, ‘passed away’
[10] QS 2: 154. Dan janganlah kamu mengatakan terhadap orang-orang yang gugur
di jalan Allah, (bahwa mereka itu) mati; bahkan (sebenarnya) mereka itu hidup[100],
tetapi kamu tidak menyadarinya.
And say not to those who have fallen in the way of Allah, (that they are) dead; even
(in fact) they are alive [100], but you do not realize it.
[11] QS 3: 140. …. Dan masa (kejayaan dan kehancuran) itu kami pergilirkan
diantara manusia (agar mereka mendapat pelajaran); dan supaya Allah membedakan
orang-orang yang beriman (dengan orang-orang kafir) supaya sebagian kamu
dijadikan-Nya (gugur sebagai) syuhada' [231]. dan Allah tidak menyukai orang-
orang yang zalim, [231] Syuhada' di sini ialah orang-orang Islam yang gugur di
dalam peperangan untuk menegakkan agama Allah.
…. And the time (glory and destruction) that we rotate among humans (so that they
can learn a lesson); and so that Allah will distinguish between those who believe
(with unbelievers) so that some of you will be made him (fall as) martyrs' [231]. and
Allah does not like those who do wrong, [231] Shuhada 'here are Muslims who died
in war to establish the religion of Allah.

Wafat ‘die’, ‘passed away’
[12] QS 3: 144 144. … Apakah jika dia wafat atau dibunuh kamu berbalik ke
belakang (murtad)?
If he dies or is killed, will you turn back (apostasy)?
[13] QS 4: 159. Tidak ada seorangpun dari ahli kitab, kecuali akan beriman
kepadanya (Isa) sebelum kematiannya[380]. Dan di hari kiamat nanti Isa itu akan
menjadi saksi terhadap mereka. [380] tiap-tiap orang Yahudi dan Nasrani akan
beriman kepada Isa sebelum wafatnya, bahwa dia adalah Rasulullah, bukan anak



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Allah. Sebagian Mufassirin berpendapat bahwa mereka mengimani hal itu sebelum
wafat.
There is no one from the people of the book, except will believe in him (Isa) before
his death [380]. And on the Day of Resurrection Jesus will be a witness against them.
[380] every Jew and Christian will believe in Isa before his death, that he is the
Messenger of Allah, not the son of Allah. Some Mufassirin think that they believed
in this before they died.
[14] QS 16: 32. (yaitu) orang-orang yang diwafatkan dalam keadaan baik [822] oleh
para malaikat dengan mengatakan (kepada mereka): "Salaamun'alaikum [823],
masuklah kamu ke dalam syurga itu disebabkan apa yang telah kamu kerjakan". [822]
Maksudnya: wafat dalam keadaan suci dari kekafiran dan kemaksiatan atau dapat
juga berarti mereka mati dalam ….
(that is) those who are kept in good condition [822] by the angels by saying (to them):
"Salaamun'alaikum [823], you will enter into heaven because of what you have done".
[822] It means: died in a holy state from disbelief and disobedience or it could also
mean they died in….

The Indonesian verbs "mati", "gugur", and "wafat" (die, passed away) can also
be categorized into Indonesian verbs of the level of speech. The Indonesian verb
"mati" has a low or neutral degree. The Indonesian verb "mati” is used to describe the
inanimate state of living things, whether humans, animals, plants, machines,
television, or others. The state of being “die” of humans are generally described using
the Indonesian verb "mati", animals are "mati", trees are "mati" and so on. On the
other hand, the Indonesian verb "gugur" (die, literally "fall") is used to describe the
lifeless of a hero, one who deserves respect for defending the truth and the public
services. Because of his patriotism, because of their dedication to the interests of the
people, a hero should be respected. The respectful expression is stated by the
Indonesian verb "gugur" instead of the word or verb "mati" which is suitable only for
general usage. Especially for heroes and heroines, they will receive honourable
respect by describing their death as an event of "gugur". Especially for heroes and
heroines who have given their blood and lives, the state respects them, and one way of
calling the events of their death is an event which is expressed by the Indonesian verb
"gugur", which has the meaning of respect (and more respectful and more polite than
the verb "mati" in Indonesian).

The verb "wafat" is also an Indonesian verb that has a meaning of respect to
describing the lifelessness of a person. Prophet Muhammad, kings, presidents, and
people who are considered honourable will be described as their lifeless as "wafat".
Likewise, the figure of a lifeless person will receive a description using the noun
"mayat” (corpse, dead body) for the general person. An honourable person will be
described as being a "janazah” (corpse). The dead or the lifeless bodies are called
"mayat," and the lifeless bodies called the "mayat" will eventually be placed in the
final resting place which is called the "kuburan” (grave). Ordinary people will "mati”
(die), their bodies will be buried in "kuburan” (graves). On the other hand, the person
who is honoured when his soul has left him is called "wafat", the state of his/her body
that is no longer alive is called "janazah", and his lifeless body which is called using
the honorific noun "janazah" will be placed in the final resting place which is called
"makam” (tomb). Honourable people and heroes will "wafat" or "gugur", their dead



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bodies will be buried in the "makam”, not in the “kuburan” or a very honourable place
for the heroes and heroines of Indonesia called "taman makam pahlawan" (cemetery)
or literally "hero grave garden". That is the way the Indonesian people respect and
thank their heroes and heroin using the expressions and or words of Indonesian that
reflect the power and the social status of the referents.

4. Conclusion

The initial study on the level of Indonesian speech is an initial study that needs to be
followed up by further studies to obtain deeper and sharper results. The initial
conclusions of this study are the level of speech in Indonesian is only limited to a few
categories such as limited verbs, meaning that not all verbs have low and high verb
pairs. For example the verbs "mati" (low), "gugur", "wafat" (high). Not all Indonesian
nouns have low and high pairs, for example, "mayat" (low form), "janazah" (high
form). The low pronouns or the terms of address in Indonesian, for example, "kamu”
(you) in low form, "Anda", "saudara", "Bapak /Ibu" in high forms are used to show
the power and social status of the referents).

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