The Senate Hall of Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) was packed with an enthusiastic and boisterous energy as Prof. Dr. Hendrokumoro, M.Hum was inaugurated as the professor of Linguistics in the Faculty of Cultural Science, UGM. The event started at 09.00, followed by Prof Hendrokumoro’s moving speech as the main spotlight of the event.
In the speech “Eksistensi Bahasa Jawa Saat Ini: Peran, Tantangan, dan Peluangnya,” Prof Hendrokumoro highlights the current issues regarding the Javanese language, especially the number of speakers who are gradually decreasing to limited contexts, such as in family environments and traditional communication.
The decreasing trend alarmingly indicates the endangerment of the Javanese. In addition to that, several local languages, Tandia (Papua), Mawes (Papua), Palumata (Papua), Tugun (Papua), Saponi (Papua), Piru (Maluku), Kajeli/Kayeli (Maluku), Moksela (Maluku), Palumata (Maluku), Naka’ela (Maluku), Ternateno (Maluku Utara), Hukumina (Maluku), Hoti (Maluku), Serua (Maluku), Nila (Maluku), are bound to go extinct. Thus, Prof Hendrokumoro earnestly emphasized the importance of conserving the linguistic legacy of local languages, particularly his expertise in Javanese.
Given its rich variety, Javanese is heavily grounded in four fundamentals: the relationship between human beings and God, human beings and their kind, human beings and themselves, and human beings and the universe. This enables a more flexible approach to Javanese learning. Prof Hendrokumoro suggested integrating contemporary cultural elements, such as Javanese pop music and movies, into the curriculum. “Javanese popular songs such as ‘Rungkad,’ ‘Satru,’ and ‘Kisinan,’ as well as the movies ‘Yowis Ben,’ and ‘Lara Ati’ can be an intriguing tool to encourage the young generation learning Javanese,” Prof Hendrokumoro stated.
The inauguration of Prof Hendrokumoro creates the spirit of academia to embrace and maintain the local language as Indonesia’s identity. It raises awareness of the conservation essence in language education.