Knowledge: Last year, we uploaded an article about two famous words excessively abused by Malaysians which are ‘Sakai’ & ‘Jakun’.
Today, we are going to discover 4 more words you may have used in your daily life to address others but little do you know - they can be disrespectful, so you have to correct yourself. And oh, please stop using them <3
Let us start with the first famous word used mistakenly (we cannot stress this enough). Yes, it is the word ‘Batak’. Abused word? Indeed. Many youngsters use this word on a daily basis without considering the real meaning behind it. The same goes to the two words we have covered before - Sakai & Jakun - we are here to enlighten you on why it is wrong to use ‘em! A big no-no!
‘Batak’, the word misused to describe someone who is being desperate or thirsty for attention is in fact, the name of one of the major races in Indonesia. The tribe is found (mostly) in the North Sumatra Island (Gorlinski, 2017). Imagine how humiliating it is to know that others use your tribe’s name to describe desperate people. It boils your blood,doesn’t it? Well, that is just your imagination - the reality hurts better. Hence why, this article is here to educate you to only use this word in the right context - only when you are talking about the actual Batak people, not when describing others!
Moving on to the second most misused word in Malaysia. And before we drop it, the mention of this word is TOTALLY for educational purposes, we wholeheartedly are against the use of this word - KELING. Now, for those of you who do not know what the word means - allow us to educate you. This word comes from the name of the ancient Indian kingdom called Kalinga. People of Kalinga were often referred to as ‘kling’, ‘kaling’ or ‘keling’. Some have also said that these terms originated from the sound of bells (kling kling) on the anklets of Indian women.
So why is the K-word considered derogatory? It is because it is often used as an insult towards the Malaysian Indians. ‘K***ng’ is always used in a negative context. “K***** mabuk minum todi” and “Cakap macam k***ng” are common phrases people use to insult others - the second one is so normalised that it feels ‘okay’ to say it, when it is not. To be more specific, it is often used to offend someone who is making incomprehensible statements. What are you trying to say? What is it about the way the Indians speak? If you make fun of someone’s accent or dialect, you are an insensitive mortal.
Whenever someone says the K-word, it always carries negative connotations. Don’t lie to yourself - deep down you know what we are talking about right now. Although some Indians say that they are not offended by it, undeniably, there are some who might feel insulted just by the mention of that word. Just say Indians, what’s so difficult about that?
Now. “Maid you orang Indon ea?” “Guard apartment I Bangla”. Do these dialogues sound familiar to you? Have the people around you (or maybe you, yourself) said something similar? Did you know that the word ‘Indon’ and ‘Bangla’ can be considered as racial slurs? Why? Because again, you often use these terms with the negative undertone silently entailing the speech. The Indonesians prefer to be called Indo (for short, if you are too lazy to say Indonesian) and the people of Bangladesh prefer to be addressed as Bangladeshi (it is literally just ONE letter longer).
I mean, why not address people from other countries with respect if that is what they are comfortable with, right? Imagine if people called you Layu instead of Melayu because they are ‘too lazy’ to say the full word - we can already imagine the uproar.
We have done our part in informing you WHY you ought to stop using these terms. Now it is your turn to act upon this new knowledge and implement it in your daily life. We assure you, nothing can and will go wrong with respecting others.
“One of the most sincere forms of respect is actually listening to what another has to say.”
Bryant H. McGill
If you would like to read further, here are our references : Gorlinski, V. (2012). Batak. Retrieved on December 5, 2021 from https://www.britannica.com/topic/Batak Karthigesu, D. (2020). ‘Keling’ is A Racial Slur Used Against Malaysian Indians. I’m Now Trying to Reclaim The Word. Retrieved on January 5, 2021 from https://www.vice.com/en/article/xgqddz/keling-is-a-racial-slur-used-against-malaysian-indians-im-now-trying-to-reclaim-the-word Kya. (2020). Stop using the K-slur: A 15-year-old Tamil living in Singapore writes. Retrieved on December 5, 2021 from https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/stop-using-k-slur-15-year-old-tamil-living-singapore-writes-134801 World of Buzz. (2019). 4 Ways the Word ‘Keling’ Was Used Back Then and Why It’s Not Okay to Use it Anymore. Retrieved on December 5, 2021 from https://worldofbuzz.com/4-ways-the-word-keling-was-used-back-then-and-why-its-not-okay-to-use-it-anymore/
Proofread by Ilyana Elisa & Illya-Wardina
Published by Muhammad Hadwan & Aisyah Hanim
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