The Mukomuko language (bahaso Mukomuko) is a language in the Minangkabau language family spoken by the Mukomuko people, a subgroup of the Minangkabau people living in Mukomuko Regency in northern Bengkulu that borders West Sumatra. In 1993, there were an estimated 26,000 Mukomuko speakers. Mukomuko is closely related to the Minangkabau language and shares similarities with the Pancung Soal dialect, spoken in the southern part of Pesisir Selatan Regency in West Sumatra. The distribution area of this dialect also extends to the northern part of Mukomuko Regency. Geographically, Mukomuko is situated on the border between Bengkulu and West Sumatra, which fosters interaction between the people of Mukomuko and the Minangkabau. This proximity results in a culturally rich environment, representing the convergence of two or more cultures.
The native inhabitants of northern Mukomuko are the Minangkabau people. Traditionally, culturally, and linguistically, they are closely related to the Pesisir Selatan of West Sumatra. In the past, the Mukomuko region was part of the Pesisir Selatan diaspora of the Minangkabau. In addition to the Minangkabau, the southern part of Mukomuko regency is inhabited by the Pekal people. The Mukomuko region is also a Minangkabau diaspora (rantau) area, often referred to as the Riak nan Berdebur region, along the west coast from Padang to South Bengkulu. However, since the British colonial period, the Mukomuko region has been politically separated from West Sumatra. Since then, the Mukomuko people have been separated from their relatives in West Sumatra, which continued to the Dutch colonial period, the Japanese occupation, and into the independence era. Centuries of separation have resulted in the Mukomuko language gradually diverging from standard Minangkabau, particularly in its vocabulary. However, despite these changes, mutual intelligibility between the two dialects generally persists.
The Minangkabau language has been regarded as the lingua franca in northern Bengkulu, exerting its influence on neighboring languages like Bengkulu Malay, particularly in terms of phonology and vocabulary.
Classification Mukomuko belongs to the Malayic languages branch of the Malayo-Polynesian subgroup of the Austronesian language family, which also includes Malay and standard Indonesian. Linguistically, it shares a strong resemblance with the Minangkabau language, particularly the Pesisir Selatan dialect spoken in the neighboring Pesisir Selatan Regency. Lexically, the Mukomuko language shares approximately 86% to 90% of its vocabulary with the Pesisir Selatan dialect. Due to these linguistic similarities, some research suggests classifying Mukomuko as a dialect of Minangkabau.
Geographical distribution and usage The majority of Mukomuko speakers lives in North Mukomuko District and South Mukomuko District of the Mukomuko Regency in northern Bengkulu. The capital of North Mukomuko District is Mukomuko, while the capital of South Mukomuko District is Ipuh. North Mukomuko District comprises 39 hamlets, and South Mukomuko District comprises 30 hamlets. In addition to Mukomuko, the community in these districts also speaks Javanese and Kerinci. Javanese is primarily spoken by transmigrants from Java, whereas Kerinci is spoken in the hamlets of Sungai Ipuh, Pondok Baru, and Sungai Jarinjing in North Mukomuko District. The geographical range of Mukomuko language speakers extends from Pondok Suguh hamlet in the south to Lubuk Pinang hamlet in the north.
Mukomuko generally only functions as a social language. It is used within family and community environments in daily life in informal settings. During wedding ceremonies, public meetings, mosque sermons, and other ceremonies, the Mukomuko people tend to code-switch between Indonesian and Mukomuko. Meanwhile, in government offices, schools, and formal settings, Indonesian is used. However, in the early grades of elementary school, teachers from the Mukomuko area often use the Mukomuko language to present the material. In markets and among the general public, the Mukomuko language is used among members of the Mukomuko community, while between people from different areas, a mix of Mukomuko and Indonesian or other regional languages is used.
As of 2024, recognizing the importance of preserving local languages, the regional government of Mukomuko has initiated the inclusion of regional languages such as Rejang, Mukomuko, and Serawai in the school curriculum.
Phonology
Vowels Like other Malayic languages, there are five different vowels in Mukomuko, which are /i/, /e/, /a/, /u/, and /o/. The Mukomuko language mostly follows the standard Indonesian orthography. The table below illustrates the vowel chart of the Mukomuko language. +FrontCentralBackCloseMidOpen
Consonants There are twenty consonants in Mukomuko, which are /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/, /k/, /ɡ/, /ʔ/, /t͡ɕ/, /d͡ʑ/, /ɣ/, /r/, /s/, /l/, /m/, /n/, /h/, /ŋ/, /ɲ/, /w/, and /j/. The table below illustrates the consonant chart of the Mukomuko language. +BilabialAlveolarAlveopalatalPalatalVelarGlottalNasalPlosive/AffricatevoicelessvoicedFricative()SemivowelLateralTrill
Orthographic note: The sounds are represented orthographically by their symbols as above, except:
// is written ⟨c⟩ // is written ⟨gh⟩ // is written ⟨j⟩ // is written ⟨ng⟩ // is written ⟨ny⟩ // is written ⟨y⟩
Diphthongs In Mukomuko, two types of diphthongs are found: descending diphthongs and ascending diphthongs. The descending diphthongs include:
/ia̯/: keriang ('dry'), petiang ('important') /ea̯/: loceang ('bell'), obeang ('screwdriver') /ua̯/: jatuang ('heart'), gunuang ('mountain') /oa̯/: panoloang ('helper'), tekoang ('can')
The ascending diphthongs include:
/oj/: ploy ('door cloth'), loyh ('loose') /aw/: suraw ('mosque'), kebaw ('buffalo') /aj/: makay ('use'), ratay ('chain') /uj/: kabuyh ('escape'), kakuyh ('outhouse') In addition, there seem to be sounds similar to diphthongs in some basic vocabulary. These sounds are found within a single syllable and are always followed by a consonant. The most common consonants that follow these sounds are nasal consonants, namely /ŋ/, /n/, and /m/. Examples are:
/ie̯/: anjieng ('dog'), gajien ('salary') /ue̯/: minuen ('drinks'), acuen ('poison')
Stress Stress in Mukomuko can be categorized into word stress, which includes stress in base words, reduplicated words, compound words, and affixed words, and sentence stress, which includes basic sentence stress and stress in coordinated compound sentences.
Word stress in Mukomuko is not phonemic. Phonetically, three types of stress can be distinguished: primary stress [ˈ], secondary stress [ˌ], and weak stress which is not marked. Primary stress occurs on the final syllable of the word, secondary stress on the initial syllable, and weak stress on other syllables. Primary stress in base words is placed on the final syllable, secondary stress on the initial syllable, while other syllables receive weak stress. Reduplicated words receive primary stress on the final syllable of the second word, secondary stress on the final syllable of the first word, and other syllables receive weak stress. The distribution of stress in compound words is similar to that in reduplicated words, with primary stress on the final syllable of the second word, secondary stress on the final syllable of the first word, and weak stress on the other syllables. Affixed words receive primary stress on the final syllable, secondary stress on the initial syllable, and weak stress on the other syllables. Lastly, sentence stress is the strong emphasis placed on the emphasized words in a sentence.
Grammar Along with Indonesian, Malay, and other related languages, the word order in Mukomuko is typically subject-verb-object (SVO). While there are notable exceptions, the grammar structure of the Mukomuko language shares many similarities with Indonesian and Malay.
Affixes There are three types of affixes in Mukomuko: prefixes, suffixes, and infixes. Similar to Malay, Mukomuko words are composed of a root or a root plus derivational affixes. The root is the primary lexical unit of a word and is usually bisyllabic, of the shape CV(C)CV(C). Affixes are "glued" onto roots (which are either nouns or verbs) to alter or expand the primary meaning associated with a given root, effectively generating new words, for example, baco ('to read') may become mambaco ('reading'), mambacokan ('reading for'), dibaco ('being read'), pembaco ('reader'), bacoan ('reading material'), terbaco ('accidentally read').
Prefixes The prefixes found in Mukomuko are N-, ba-, di-, ta-, paN-, and sa-.
The combination of the prefix N- with base words appears in various forms, such as mang-, ma-, many-, m-, and n-. These variations of the N- form are called allomorphs of the N- prefix, and their occurrence is caused by the influence of the phoneme that begins the base word.
N- + ambiq ('take'): mangambiq ('taking') N- + akeq ('carry'): mangakeq ('carrying')
The attachment of the prefix ba- to base words appears in two forms, namely ba- and bagh. These variations are considered allomorphs of the ba- prefix, and the variation is caused by the influence of the phoneme that begins the base word.
ba- + ghiang ('happy'): baghiang ('be happy') ba- + janjing ('promise'): bajanjing ('to promise')
The attachment of the prefix di- to base words only appears in one form, which is di-.
di- + dendo ('fine'): didendo ('fined') di- + jua ('sell'): dijua ('for sale')
The attachment of the prefix ka- to base words only appears in one form, which is ka-.
ka- + tuo ('old'): katuo ('leader') ka- + duo ('two'): kaduo ('second')
The attachment of the prefix ta- to base words only appears in one form, which is ta-.
ta- + acam ('threat'): taancam ('threatened') ta- + dekeq ('close'): tadekeq ('closest')
The attachment of the prefix paN- appears in several forms, namely pam-, pan-, pany-, pang-, pange-, and pa-. These variations are considered allomorphs of the paN- prefix, and the variation is caused by the influence of the phoneme that begins the base word.
paN- + beling ('buy'): pambeling ('buyer') paN- + dapeq ('obtain'): pandapeq ('opinion')
Lastly, the attachment of the prefix sa- to base words only appears in one form, which is sa-.
sa- + pinggan ('plate'): sapinggan ('a plate') sa- + dikiq ('little'): sadikiq ('a little')
Suffixes The suffixes present in Mukomuko are only -an and -nyo. Imperative meanings in this language are not expressed through suffixation, but rather through other means, such as the use of the particle -lah or the prefix di-. For example:
Sambalah udang ko! ('Add sambal to this prawn!') Hitamlah alis mato ban! ('Blacken your eyebrows!')
The position of the suffixes -an and -nyo is located at the end of the base word. For example:
aghing ('day') + -an: aghian ('daily') paneh ('hot') + -nyo: panehnyo ('it's so hot')
Infixes In the Mukomuko language, there are three infixes, namely -ar-, -al-, and -am-. Word formation through suffixes on base words is very limited and only occurs in certain words. For example:
-ar- + suIieng ('whistle'): sarulieng ('flute') -am- + geta ('shake'): gameta ('shaking')
Reduplication There are four types of reduplication in Mukomuko, which are full reduplication, partial reduplication, reduplication combined with the process of affixation and reduplication with phoneme changes. Examples of full reduplication are:
makan-makan ('eating out') malung-malung ('shy-shy') sesah-sesah ('wash-wash')
Examples of partial reduplication are:
N- + caghing ('look'): macaghing-caghing ('look around') ba- + kupu ('gather'): bakupu-kupu ('gather together') ta- + senyum ('smile'): tasenyum-senyum ('smiling')
Examples of reduplication combined with the process of affixation are:
sa- + cepeq ('fast') + -nyo: sacepeq-cepeqnyo ('as fast as possible')