basantara
Indonesian
Etymology
Blend of bahasa (language) + perantara (intermediary).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ba.san.ˈta.ra/
Noun
basantara (first-person possessive basantaraku, second-person possessive basantaramu, third-person possessive basantaranya)
- lingua franca
- Synonyms: bahasa dagang, bahasa pasar
Further reading
- “basantara” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Language Development and Fostering Agency — Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic Indonesia, 2016.
Javanese
Alternative forms
- ꦧꦱꦤ꧀ꦠꦫ (basantara)
Etymology
Inherited from portmanteau in Old Javanese basantara (“lingua franca”); ꦧꦱ (basa, “language”) + ꦲꦤ꧀ꦠꦫ (antara, “intermediary”).
Noun
basantara
- (linguistics) lingua franca, a common language used by people of diverse backgrounds to communicate with one another, often a basic form of speech with simplified grammar, particularly, one not the first language of any of its speakers.