LANGUAGE, POWER AND IDENTITY; SECRET LANGUAGE OF INDONESIAN ARAB WOMEN IN SOLO, INDONESIA

Abstract

This reseacrh aims to explain the emergence of the language of a community that can be said to be unique and creative, i.e. the secret language that has been used by Arab women in Solo City, Central Java, Indonesia, since three decades ago and is still used today. This secret language does not give priority to the meaning process, but only to the speech inserted by the letter ‘F’ so that if spoken it is difficult to be understood by people who do not understand the use of this language. Bourdieu's linguistic habitus theory is used as a conceptual framework. The research method is qualitative with sociolinguistic approach. The data was collected based on participant observation, interviews and documentation. The results showed that the intention of Arab women in the Solo in using secret language between the old generation and the current generation is different. The older generation used the secret language primarily as a form of resistance and self-expression of the strong secular tradition of their era. The current generation uses secret the language as a form of group existence, for the strengthening of identity and business interests. However, the purpose of using this secret language by all generations has the same goal, that is, for certain conversations that they do not want understood by others around them.