If you’re an English speaker in Singapore wondering how to learn Indonesian, look no further. Our tutors at INDOTUTORS recommend starting with the basics before advancing. If you already know some Malay, the process is generally much easier.
Bahasa Indonesia is one of the easiest languages an English speaker can pick up in a relatively short amount of time. Should you wonder if Bahasa Indonesia is hard to learn, we have a post about that. Without further ado, let us get to the topic.
Why Do You Want to Learn to Speak Indonesian?
Our students have given many reasons for learning Indonesian, but they tend to fall into one of four categories:
- Travel: These students plan to spend time in Indonesia and want to learn everyday phrases useful for their vacation or trip. They focus on ordering food, simple phrases, and shopping words.
- Business: Businesspeople who want to go to Indonesia will learn business terms and phrases, with less focus on street Indonesian. We offer a business Indonesian course.
- Family: Some of our students have Indonesian relatives or are married to an Indonesian spouse. Being able to communicate in Indonesian will help foster closer ties, and these students will learn everyday language and how to follow fast-paced conversations. They also learn family-oriented vocabulary.
- Study: Other students are learning Indonesian for academic reasons. In this case, they will learn all about Indonesian grammar and reading. Their knowledge of the language will be more formal than informal.
Of course, you can also learn Bahasa Indonesia for fun. Many polyglots choose it because it’s easy to pick up.
How Long Does It Take to Learn Indonesian?
If you’re asking how to learn Indonesian, you might also ask how long it takes. According to the US Foreign Service Institute, Indonesian, a Group II language, takes 16 weeks to reach low-to-intermediate fluency. If you want higher proficiency, it could take around 900 hours to reach high-intermediate to advanced proficiency. These numbers are estimates, and factors like whether you already know some Malay can affect them.
Some students set goals, such as being fluent in Bahasa Indonesia within a year, while others take it slow and want to learn at a more leisurely pace. In these cases, our tutors are happy to accommodate reasonable requests.
Which Should I Learn First: Formal or Everyday Bahasa Indonesia?
We won’t go into how to learn Indonesian: language nerd edition here, but the differences between the formal and informal registers of Indonesian are distinct. We highly recommend studying the essentials of everyday speech early on your journey. However, some learners also want to study the formal Bahasa Baku sooner because of their needs. Nevertheless, the basics of everyday Indonesian will serve everyone well even if their primary purpose for picking up the language is for business and academics.
Let’s look at how Bahasa Baku and Bahasa Gaul differ.
| English Word | Bahasa Baku (Formal) | Bahasa Gaul (Informal) |
| No | Tidak | Ngak |
| Already | Sudah | Udah |
| Thank you | Terima kasih | Makasih |
| Fried rice | Nasi goreng | Nasgor |
| Complex | Kompleks | Komplek |
Some of these informal words differ immensely, but others are just shortened words.
The words in the table above are all Malayic in origin, but many Indonesian slang words come from the various languages spoken in the country, like Betawi, Batak, Minangkabau, and Sundanese. For example, ngapain is “what are you doing” in Javanese. In Betawi, bokap and nyokap mean father and mother, respectively. You’ll often learn different informal Indonesian words from tutors from various parts of Indonesia. If you’re thinking, “How can I learn Indonesian language like this?” you’ll still be fine. You don’t have to learn every slang word because native speakers understand this predicament. Everyone can fall back to Bahasa Baku if necessary.
No matter why you’re learning Indonesian, you should still be familiar with basic Bahasa Gaul for simple communication, ordering food, shopping, traveling, and more.
How to Learn Indonesian Step-by-Step
Everyone is different, but here are some recommended first steps for any beginner.
Nail the Pronunciation Quickly
Bahasa Indonesia pronunciation is easier than English. Every vowel has a standard pronunciation, so every word sounds exactly as it’s spelled. With around a week or two of practice, most speakers can start saying words even if they’ve never encountered them previously.
Acquire a Few Hundred Words
Once you learn the basic 300 to 500 words, you can comfortably visit Indonesia for short trips without worrying about not being understood. These essentials pave the way to advanced words, and you can learn them with our help.
Master Common Sentence Patterns
You may know the words, but knowing the common sentence patterns is also important. These include using ada, mau, bisa, sudah, belum, and akan in sentences. By mastering them, you can ask for things, talk about whether you can or cannot do something, say you want something, and add before, after, and will (future tense) to your sentences.
Learn the Affixes
One of the most difficult parts of learning Indonesian is the affixes. Adding a prefix, suffix, or both will change the word’s meaning. Fortunately, the rules are quite consistent. You can even construct new words by using these affixes with foreign loanwords, though the effect varies depending on the words you choose.
Keep Practicing
Once you learn the essential vocabulary and grammar, we recommend listening to Indonesian content when you can, and speaking with a tutor at least once a week. With constant practice, you can become fluent in Indonesian quickly.
Learning Bahasa Indonesia While Knowing Malay
Many Singaporeans have some knowledge of Malay, but usually, only ethnic Malays can speak the language fluently. This is because many of the younger generations don’t use the language in everyday life as often as their parents and grandparents. Moreover, most Singaporeans can go about their daily lives without needing to use a full sentence in Malay. But if you can understand Bahasa Malaysia and want to learn Indonesian, you already have a few advantages.
Indonesian and Malay aren’t the same, but they have much in common. The grammar and sentence structure are the same, and most words have the same meaning. So, Malay fluency can significantly cut down your Indonesian learning time. Our tutors have also noted that many Singaporeans who speak Malay decently tend to pick up Indonesian faster.
Reach Out to Us Today
If you’re in Singapore and aren’t sure where to learn Indonesian, feel free to reach out. Besides in-person classes, you can also learn Indonesian online with our friendly, professional tutors. Our email address is info@indotutors.com. You can also message us on WhatsApp at +65 82887890.