Balinese people speak their indigenious language – Bahasa Bali. Although their national language is Bahasa Indonesia, it is used more widely in areas such as education, legal and administrative purposes.
Bahasa Indonesia and Bahasa Bali are very different as the latter has a different form of vocabulary and grammar. Due to the caste system in Bali, there are many different variations in the vocabulary and grammatical structures used. Traditional Bahasa Bali is used more commonly among members of the same village/family. The caste system differentiates what kind of language is used when talking to people of different caste.
Basa Alus is used among educated people and is derived from the Hindu-Javanese court languages during the 10th century while Basa Sor is used when talking to people from the bottom class of the caste or people who do not belong in the caste system.
English has become extremely common because of interactions between English speaking tourists and the Balinese people. Thus, they have picked up very Basic English in order to communicate with them. It is not necessary for a tourist to learn their language but it is much appreciated and amusing to the locals if a tourists speaks some of their language. In schools, children are taught English from the age of twelve.
Balinese people usually begin their conversations with strangers using the high language – Basa Alus. After enquiring which caste is the person from, then the level of language will be adjusted. However when talking amongst friends and relatives, a suitable and comfortable medium language will be used regardless of the caste system. Also, in Bahasa Bali, there are very little polite words and greetings. Commonly used words will be such as ‘Kenken kebara’ – (low Balinese meaning ‘how are you?’)
