Kerinci ( or ) is an Austronesian language primarily spoken by the Kerinci people in Sungai Penuh and Kerinci Regency, as well as parts of Merangin and Bungo Regency in western Jambi. It is also spoken in several hamlets of Mukomuko Regency in Bengkulu, and by Kerinci diaspora communities in other regions of Indonesia, such as West Sumatra and Java. Outside Indonesia, it is spoken in parts of Negeri Sembilan and Selangor in Malaysia.

As of 2000, the number of Kerinci speakers was estimated at around 250,000. As a Malayo‑Polynesian Malayic language, Kerinci is closely related to Minangkabau and Jambi Malay.

Kerinci shows substantial internal diversity, with approximately 130 sub‑dialects grouped into seven main dialects: Gunung Raya, Danau Kerinci, Sitinjau Laut, Sungai Penuh, Pembantu Sungai Tutung, Belui Air Hangat, and Gunung Kerinci. Dialectometric comparisons among these seven dialects show lexical differences of roughly 51%–65.5%. By comparison, differences between Kerinci and neighboring Bengkulu and Minangkabau are around 81%–100%.

Classification The Kerinci language is one of the many varieties of the Malayic languages. Linguists believe that the Malay language, one of the varieties of the Malayic languages, originally derived from Proto-Malayic, which was spoken in the area stretching from West Kalimantan to the northern coast of Brunei around 1000 BCE. Its ancestor, Proto-Malayo-Polynesian, is believed to have originated from Proto-Austronesian, which split around 2000 BCE due to the large-scale expansion of the Austronesian people into Maritime Southeast Asia from the island of Taiwan.

The Kerinci language is a member of the Austronesian language family, which encompasses various languages in Southeast Asia, the Pacific Ocean, and Madagascar, as well as some languages in mainland Asia. Uniquely, the Kerinci language also shares some phonemes with Austroasiatic languages.Van Reijn, E.O. (1974). "Some Remarks on the Dialects of North Kerintji: A link with Mon-Khmer Languages." Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, 31, 2: 130–138. Meanwhile, Malagasy, Filipino, the indigenous languages of Taiwan, and Māori are also members of the Austronesian language family. Although each language in this family is not mutually intelligible, their similarities are quite striking. Many basic words have remained almost unchanged from their common ancestor, Proto-Austronesian. There are numerous cognates found in basic words for kinship, health, body parts, and common animals. Even the words for numbers exhibit a remarkable level of similarity.

Geographic distribution and usage The Kerinci language is predominantly spoken by the Kerinci people who inhabit the Kerinci highlands and surrounding areas, particularly around Kerinci Seblat National Park. Administratively, these areas are within the city of Sungai Penuh and Kerinci Regency, as well as parts of Merangin and Bungo regencies in Jambi. In Kerinci Regency, it is spoken in Pengasih Lama Village (Bukitkerman District); the villages of Koto Tuo Ujung Pasir and Seleman (Danau Kerinci District); Hiang Tinggi Village (Sitinjau Laut District); the villages of Koto Lebu and Koto Lolo (Pondong Tinggi District); Sungaiabu Village (Kerinci District); Belui Village (Air Hangat Timur District); and the villages of Mukai Tinggi and Sung Betung Ilir (Gunung Kerinci District). The language is also used in small parts of the neighboring province of Bengkulu, specifically in Mukomuko Regency. Additionally, Kerinci people have migrated to the Malay Peninsula since the 19th century. In Malaysia, the Kerinci language is most widespread on the west coast of the peninsula—including Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Perak, Negeri Sembilan, and Johor—owing to proximity to Sumatra. However, in Malaysia its status is threatened by gradual assimilation and acculturation into local language and culture, especially among the Malay community.

In the Kerinci highlands, Kerinci serves as the predominant means of daily communication across informal and formal settings, though it is used mainly in informal contexts. Indonesian functions as the lingua franca in government, education, and interethnic communication. As Indonesian usage expands with increasing educational opportunities, code‑switching between Kerinci and Indonesian has become commonplace.

The Kerinci language holds significant importance for its speakers in Kerinci Regency and the city of Sungai Penuh in Jambi, and it remains a key element of local culture. Amid growing multilingualism and multiethnic migration from other parts of Indonesia, Kerinci speakers face challenges in preserving language integrity, and increased exposure to other languages has gradually influenced Kerinci usage. Consequently, the government has undertaken efforts to support Kerinci. In Sungai Penuh, Kerinci language courses have been made compulsory in the school curriculum. The Jambi provincial government has also initiated teacher‑training programs to enhance pedagogy and promote Kerinci, including instruction in writing and reading using the Incung script, composing and reciting Kerinci poetry, storytelling, public speaking, short‑story writing, traditional singing, and solo comedic performance—all conducted in Kerinci.

Dialects The number of dialects of the Kerinci language is debatable, as the subvarieties of the language have not been fully defined due to limited research on the geographic boundaries of the Kerinci region. According to Anwar et al. (1984), the Kerinci language is classified into three major dialect groups: the Upper Kerinci dialect (Kerinci Hulu), the Middle Kerinci dialect (Kerinci Tengah), and the Lower Kerinci dialect (Kerinci Hilir). In his research report, Usman (1990) suggests there are two dialects in the Kerinci language—the "i" dialect and the "ai" dialect—each with its own subvarieties. However, Amirruddin et al. (2003) state that there are approximately 177 dialects in the Kerinci language and that the number corresponds to the number of villages (dusun) in Kerinci Regency.

The Indonesian Agency for Language Development and Cultivation identifies approximately 130 dialects of the Kerinci language, comprising seven major dialects: Gunung Raya, Danau Kerinci, Sitinjau Laut, Sungai Penuh, Pembantu Sungai Tutung, Air Hangat, and Gunung Kerinci. The Gunung Raya dialect is spoken in Pengasih Lama Village in Bukitkerman District. The Danau Kerinci dialect is spoken in Koto Tuo Ujung Pasir and Seleman villages in Danau Kerinci District. The Sitinjau Laut dialect is spoken in Hiang Tinggi Village in Sitinjau Laut District. The Sungai Penuh dialect is spoken in Koto Lebu and Koto Lolo villages in Pondong Tinggi District. The Pembantu Sungai Tutung dialect is spoken in Sungaiabu Village in Kerinci District. The Belui Air Hangat dialect is spoken in Belui Village in Air Hangat Timur District. The Gunung Kerinci dialect is spoken in Mukai Tinggi and Sung Betung Ilir villages in Gunung Kerinci District.

Kerinci dialects can differ greatly between villages even when they are very close, such as Tanah Kampung, Kemantan, and Dusun Baru, which are separated only by a river. Administratively, these three villages belong to different districts and regencies. Dusun Baru Lempur and Kemantan are located in Kerinci Regency but in different districts, while Tanah Kampung is part of Sungai Penuh. Although part of Sungai Penuh, the inhabitants of Tanah Kampung use a distinct variety, the Tanah Kampung dialect. Kemantan Raya is in Air Hangat Timur District (Kerinci Regency), where the community uses the Tanah Kemantan dialect. Meanwhile, Dusun Baru Lempur is in Gunung Raya District (Kerinci Regency), and its inhabitants use the Dusun Baru dialect. This variety is not to be confused with another dialect spoken in Dusun Baru near the town centre of Sungai Penuh. Adjacent to the latter Dusun Baru speech area, the Sungai Penuh dialect is spoken, separated by a market from Pondok Tinggi. In turn, the Koto Renah dialect is spoken only a market away from Pondok Tinggi, while Koto Keras is almost contiguous with Koto Renah. Kerinci exhibits both phonological and lexical differences across dialects; however, the dialects are generally mutually intelligible. One example of phonological variation involves the vowel in word‑final position before : in Sungai Penuh, changes to ; in Pondok Tinggi, it becomes ; in Lempur and Semurup, it remains ; and in Dusun Baru, it changes to . An illustration of phonological distinctions across Kerinci dialects can be observed in the pronunciation of the word "girl": in the Sungai Penuh dialect it may be or ; in Tanjung Pauh, or ; and in Koto Keras, or .

+ Dialectal variation in Kerinci StandardMalay PondokTinggi KotoRenah KotoKeras SungaiPenuh DusunBaru Rawang SungaiDeras TanjungPauh Mudik 'glass' 'thorn' 'stone'

In addition, the Kerinci language spoken in Malaysia has diverged from its original form and is no longer spoken as it is by native Kerinci speakers in Indonesia. In Malaysia, Kerinci has been significantly influenced by local languages such as Malay, and thus differs from the variety spoken in the Kerinci region of Jambi.

Phonology

Vowels The table below illustrates the vowel inventories of the Pondok Tinggi dialect of Kerinci:

+ Pondok Tinggi vowels Front Central Back Close Mid Open

Pondok Tinggi and in closed syllables have the allophones and , respectively. The latter two vowels, however, are phonemic in the Sungai Penuh dialect.

+ Sungai Penuh vowels Front Central Back Close Mid Open‑mid Open

Pondok Tinggi Kerinci has a rich inventory of diphthongs. Ernanda lists a total of 12 diphthongs for the Pondok Tinggi dialect, given in the table below according to whether the sequences are opening or closing (i.e., whether they are moving towards open/low vowels or closed/high vowels). Diphthongs and are only found in open syllables.

+ Pondok Tinggi diphthongs Open syllable Closed syllable Opening Closing

Sungai Penuh dialect has a fewer inventory of contrastive diphthongs, with a total of 7.

+ Sungai Penuh diphthongs Open syllable Closed syllable Closing

All diphthongs appear only in final syllables. Other Kerinci dialects may distinguish different sets of vowel phonemes; cf. Tanjung Pauh Mudik with 9 plain vowels and 7 diphthongs, or Semerap with 7–8 plain vowels and 8 diphthongs.

Consonants There are nineteen consonants in Pondok Tinggi Kerinci. The table below illustrates the consonant inventory of Pondok Tinggi:

+ Pondok Tinggi consonants Labial Alveolar Dental / Alveolar Palatal VelarGlottal Plosive voiceless voiced Nasal Fricative Lateral Trill Approximant

Sungai Penuh consonant inventory is identical to that of Pondok Tinggi with the addition of , which is a native phoneme (not borrowed) historically derived from medial cluster, cf. Standard Malay kelongsong vs. Sungai Penuh kaluzɔŋ/kaluzon 'wrapper'.

Morphophonology Within a word, the presence of a voiced obstruent (, , , or ) that is not preceded by a homorganic nasal consonant alters its final rime. Words with a non‑prenasalized voiced obstruent are labeled "G‑words", while those that do not have such an obstruent are called "K‑words". This distinction is apparent in words that historically share the same final rimes, as shown in the table below (Pondok Tinggi examples).

+ K‑words and G‑words Historicalrimes K‑words G‑words *‑i *‑u *‑ah