Tema 2 : Peran Bahasa Dalam Kepariwisataan Indonesia

Bilingual Language of Tourism

By : Dewi Ayu
Tourism is a reflection of a nation with its variety of identities. The identity that become
as a pride of nation that will be shown to tourists who come to visit the country. Indonesia is one
of a country which has the tourism characteristic that will not be obtained by toursts when they
visit other countries, ranging from the geography, culture, ethnic diversity, and our mother
language, Bahasa.

Various countries in the world feel proud of their national language. There is a show of
pride by using the national language when welcoming tourists who visit the country. Based on
the proud attitude of these nations, we should be proud of speaking Indonesian, including when
we are given the opportunity to show our nation's identity in the tourism industry

However, on the other hand world tourism also demands an understanding of

international language. if we look at vacancies in the world of tourism, there is almost no
qualification of employees in the industry who are required to know the Indonesian language and
understand it well and correctly. On the contrary, they are required to understand and be fluent in
foreign languages that seem to mean forgetting the language of their nation

However, the exixtence of Bahasa is forgotten. The effort of showing that identity as a
nation of Indonesia become unstable. For example, when the government launched the program
“Visit Indoensia Year 2008, celebrating 100 years of national awakening” that full of English
without any translation in Bahasa. it is actually a serious problem because when this nation
celebrates 100 years of national awakening by organizing the year of the visit of Indonesia, it is
appropriate to accompany the resurrection on the use of Indonesian language as the identity of
the nation.
The real problem is a gap between two aspects. The first aspect is the effort to show
Indonesian identity in the form of Indonesian language through tourism, while the second aspect
is a reality, namely the condition of Indonesian tourism which always prioritize the use of
foreign languages as the language of tourism introduction.
 The endeavoring of a language of instruction for tourism is not really a new one for some
countries. Countries with non-English speaking advanced tourism have much to implement these
bilingual efforts. This step is often considered trivial in the world of Indonesian tourism, but it
becomes very important because the language of a nation is the identity of the nation. These
countries are Italy, France, Russia, South Korea, Japan and Thailand.

In contrast to these countries, Indonesia does not implement bilingual use in the tourism
industry. The opposite is true in Indonesia. Many terms in hotels, airports, or shopping centers
that use English. Words like the recepsionist in the hotel, airport tax in the airport, plaza and
boutique in the shopping center actually have a word equivalent in the Indonesian language.
However, based on observations of tourism actors prefer to use these foreign words that seem to
describe their lack of pride in the language of their own country

Bilingual Language of Tourism means using two languages of instruction in the tourism
industry. The two languages mentioned here are Bahasa and International Language. The
international language of communication does not have to be in English. If in the future the area
is visited by foreigners who do not understand English, it is better to replace English with the
appropriate language. The most important thing to note is the discipline of prioritizing the use of
Indonesian terms, before followed by the equivalent of the word in the form of a foreign
language.

Encouraging the language of tourism is the fairest alternative to save Bahasa. This step
serves to show the identity of nation, but at the same time without ignoring the swiftness
relationship with foreigners who are familiar with the international language.

By participating Bahasa in tourism through bilingual programs, it will indirectly also

effect the preservation and development of Indonesian language in the world. Indonesian
language, as Bahasa wil exist if this language is not only known by Indonesian people, but also
by the world especially those who have visited Indonesia.