MALAY AS THE LANGUAGE OF ADVANCED KNOWLEDGE: SCIENTIFIC REVIEW IN NATIONAL ACADEMIA SCHOLARSHIP

Noor Rohana Mansor¹⁺ --- Sharipah Nur Mursalina Syed Azmy² --- Siti Zanariah Yusoff³

^1,2Department of Language and Communication Centre for Foundation and Liberal Education Universiti Malaysia Terengganu 21030 Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia

³Centre of Modern Languages and Communication Studies Faculty of Languages and Communication Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin 21300 Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia

Keywords:Academic language Academia scholarship Advanced education language Malay language.

ARTICLE HISTORY: Received:25 May 2018. Revised:22 June 2018. Accepted:3 July 2018. Published:10 July 2018.

1. INTRODUCTION

Malay as the language of advanced education is a continuation of effort towards upholding and empowering the Malay language in line with its position and mandate as set out in Article 152 of the Federal Constitution and strengthened its function and role as the language of knowledge through the National Education Act and Policy. However, the Malay language as the language of advanced learning is still going through the process of achieving the degree of high position in conjunction with the status as an official and national language of knowledge. Malay as a language of advanced learning signifies the capability and role of Malay as a tool for delivering modern knowledge in the diversity of disciplines, especially in today's rapidly-evolving era. The Malay language is scientific and functions as a holistic academic language with variety and precision of language adaptations to discuss the range of discipline covering the realms of Pure Science, Applied Science, Technology and Engineering, Health and Clinical Sciences, Social Science, Literature and Professionals Literature, Science, National Heritage, Information and Communication Technology.

Traditionally, Malay is no longer limited only to express language and literary expressions. This capacity is undeniably based on the three facts that heighten the value of Malay as the language of advanced learning: Firstly, the vast, broad and specific aspects of Malay vocabulary to express complex and abstract concepts and ideas; secondly, Malay has the perfect grammar; and thirdly, Malay has a high level of language proficiency that is its ability to convey accurate and effective thoughts and arguments that can elaborate the continuity and complexity of the mind. 

Its significance has also been expressed by Seong (2013 ) which has concluded that the Malay language has already reached the level of modern languages such as English based on two key dimensions of the corpus and the diversity of languages that have been steady and stable. The Malay language has internal stability, the materials that are constructed to form the Malay language have been completed by Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) which encompasses the spelling, writing system and the growing Malay language vocabulary. In this regard, DBP has created thousands of millions of terms for hundreds of fields of knowledge, while Malay grammar has been established. If the corpus of a language is incomplete, the language cannot be used for high-level educational activities. Additionally, in terms of writing, Malay is the only language in the world that has two systems of writing that are equally functional and efficient which is the roman writing system and jawi. Anything that can be spelled in roman, can be spelled in jawi. There is no other language in the world that has two systems of the same level of competence but Malay. The spelling system currently used was introduced on August 16, 1972, and is now up to date, it has never been modified. In addition, another significant aspect of Malay as the language of advanced knowledge is the standard variety. The Malay language already has standard and standard variants. This standard range that DBP has built is very important to be used uniformly and systematically. Therefore, the importance and position of Malay as the language of advanced knowledge cannot be neglected since it has proven its credibility in the context of the delivery of knowledge. The Malay language also has the ability to discuss academic realms scientifically in conveying and transferring knowledge as well as a tool of mind communication to the community.

Hence, this paper presents a scientific survey of the findings of exploring the capability of Malay as the language of advanced education in the context of academic scholarship in the institutions of higher learning. What is the issue? How far is the achievement in lifting and maintaining Malay as the language of advanced education as a national cultural heritage?

2. MALAY LANGUAGE HISTORY AS THE LANGUAGE OF LITERACY

The nation’s backgrounds have clearly proven Malay language and culture have had a status as a language of knowledge and a great civilization (see Anwar (2016 )). Tracking down the Malay language development scenario, Mansor (2013 ) has summarized the following facts: the Malay language has the strings of the Austronesian family of Malay scattered over nearly half the earth with large ocean; the number of speakers exceeded 300 million; owning the fourth position as the largest language of its speakers in the world; has the status as a national and official language in three sovereign countries namely Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei Darussalam, while in Singapore the Malay language is the national language and one of its official languages; the Malay language spread across the islands in the Malay Archipelagoes as well as several other neighboring areas.

From the perspective of geographic mapping location, Omar (2008 ) illustrates the location of the Malay language stretches from the mountainous regions of Taiwan to the south to New Zealand, and from Madagascar on the east coast of Africa to the Easter Island of the Pacific Ocean. Thus, the mapping distribution has proven that the natives of southern Thailand, on southern Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Madagascar, Cocos Island and Christmas Island in Australia, as well as in some other countries where the Malay communities are among them in Saudi Arabia, Netherlands, England, China, Australia, and even the rest of the world the Malay language and Malay race has its inhabitants.

The Malay language as the language of knowledge in the context of the country and international realities has begun and transmitted since the 7th century AD again in the pre-Islamic era. This statement can be proven by the oldest Malay texts recorded by the inscriptions of the inscriptions in Kedukan Bukit (683M), Talang Tuwo (684M), Kota Kapor (686M) and Karang Brahi (686M) during the administration Srivijaya kingdom. The Malay language at this time became the language of government, the language of commerce, the language of religion and lingua franca for the Malay Archipelago region under the kingdom of Srivijaya.

Furthermore, around the 13th century in the Melaka Malay Sultanate, the Malay language had reached the peak of glory as a new Malay civilization that serves as a lingua franca language, a language of communication between locals and foreign traders for trade; the language of administration, the language of diplomatic relations, the language of law, the language of science and philosophy, the language of commerce, the language of the state, the high literature language as well as the language of preaching da’wah and religious missions (Sariyan, 2002a;2002b ; Ku, 2013 ). This situation shows that the Malay language empowerment efforts have taken place internationally during the Sultanate of Malacca, such as Seong (2011 ) statement which proved the success of the Malay empowerment effort at this moment through the following two elements: Firstly, from the aspect of Malay Language speakers at that time recording progress from time to time in accordance with the rapid development of trade and Islamic dissemination activities that explain the strength and integrity of the Malay language; Secondly, the aspect of the Nation’s Economic Strengths/Communities of speakers with the widespread use of the Malay language by locals as well as immigrants and with holistic business from all administrative to daily affairs.

Similarly, after the fall of the Malacca Malay Kingdom, in the 16th and 17th centuries that witnesses the occupation of the Portuguese (1511-1640) and the Dutch (1640-1820) the use of Malay language was still significant as in being the language of the peoples, official languages and languages of administration. Although the country was still being colonialized, the Malay language’s ability and credibility persists. In this context, the Portuguese and Dutch colonial languages are also used but limited to government affairs of the rulers amongst themselves (Omar, 2008 ). At the same time, the Malay language was used as a communication tool for correspondence among the Malay Rulers around the Straits of Malacca with the European rulers. Famous linguist, W.G. Shellabear in this case studied and published six important letters including the written letter of King Acheh in Malay at the beginning of the 17th century which was sent to the Dutch-English office coming to Acheh to obtain the King's permission for trading in the area (Zaidi, 2011 ; Ku, 2013 ).

This indicates that the Malay language in the 16th and 17th centuries had reached the rank and position as an international language, especially with its position as diplomatic language, lingua franca, world trade language, used in spreading of religion and literary language (Collins, 1998 ; Sariyan, 2000 ; Ahmad, 2002 ). Additionally, Tatiana (2011 ) mentions given all these appreciation of Malay language, including in the Middle Ages which puts Malay language and Latin of the same level, implied that the Malay language had a very high value for the Europeans. This recognition also explains the beliefs, values and its glory of the Malay language which was undoubted, present at that time.

However, the colonization of British and Japanese have impacted the growth of Malay language development in the 20th century in a negative manner. Ku (2013 ) in her study illustrated the strategy of the psychological approach by the English in the enforcement of British colonial language to avoid the opposition of the people. Their explanation shows that the English language usage has started to take place gradually especially in the matters of administration. Initially, English is used in a limited context like in notices to the people of the Unfederated Malay States of Kedah, Perlis, Kelantan, Terengganu and Johor. For these states, all four main languages - Malay, English, Chinese and Indian - are used in all forms of business. Instead, in the Federated Malay States of Perak, Selangor, Pahang and Negeri Sembilan as well as the Straits Settlements of Penang, Melaka and Singapore witness the full use of English in administrative and daily affairs. This scenario also occurs in Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei (Omar, 2008 ). However, for English officers in charge of government departments at that time, it is compulsory to have mastered in the Malay language for the purposes of position confirmation. This situation clearly shows the English enforcement was done gradually but not abruptly.

The fate of the Malay language continued to dwindle under the colonization of the Japanese that had managed to subdue the British despite only administering the country within the span of three years and six months beginning in 1941. In the context of the Japanese administration, the nation has been squandered in all aspects of life drastically. Japan has forcefully adopted the basis of applying their language, culture and education values as well as bringing Japanese as the medium of national education. Nonetheless, this approach is obviously failed Japan when England returns once again to dominate the country after the end of the Second World War. The status of the Malay language continued deteriorates when the British took a very aggressive policy to uphold the English language (Yusfarina and Abdul, 2011 ; Ku, 2013 ). The Malay language is currently experiencing a very depressing position and is only used as the medium for lowest schooling language level.

On the contrary, the analysis of this event provides wisdom to the people of the nation to continue fighting for their dignity of the race and nation until the nation achieves independence in 1957. This can be seen in the struggle of fighting for the Malay language and the fight to be independent by the Malay teachers, journalists, literates and politicians (Ku, 2013 ). This effort was successful and now witnessing the struggle of the Malay language to be further strengthened despite the strong challenges from the past towards it to be put on the map of the world.

3. THE SUPREME POSITION OF MALAY LANGUAGE IN THE CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE

Malay as a language of higher learning requires a high commitment and high accountability to be taken towards the cultivation and language knowledge to the world. After the independence of the country, often the position of the Malay language is pronounced having the privilege of being in the country’s legislature, especially in Article 152 of the Federal Constitution. But to what extent is this understood, imbued and appreciated in the context of the Malay language struggle such as the position given in the constitution? Ergo, the position of the Malay language from the angle of the national legislation should be clearly understood, appreciated and clarified as the basis of justification of its position in the struggle to preserve the Malay language as the language of advanced learning.

Abas (1984 ) describes the definition of the constitution as a document or document containing all the supreme laws necessary for the establishment and existence of a country and its political system. The constitution is the cornerstone of the cause of all laws in the country concerned. All other laws cannot be contrary to the laws and constitutional principles and if contradictory, then the constitutional law is superior and adopted as a more important and applicable law. Therefore, the constitutional law may revoke any other law contrary to it. It's strengthening also according to Hashim (1987 ) of the federal constitution also uses the concept of constitutionality which clarifies that no institution overrides the constitutionality of these constitutions, including all three governmental bodies - legislative, judiciary and executive and even His Royal Highness Yang DiPertuan Agong are also subjected to the Federal Constitution. This means that the position and credibility of the Malay language in the context of the provisions of the Federal Constitution of Malaysia are legitimate and irrefutable.

In this regard, Muslim (2011 ) has clarified the meaning of the position of the Malay language from the point of the federal constitution in relation to Article 4 (1) which means that the Federal Constitution is a federal primary law and all laws that come after independence and which are contrary to this constitution shall be void as much as where the contrast applies. By adhering to this principle, the position of Malay as a national language should be recognized and functions as a role in fostering racial unity among Malaysians. It has, directly and indirectly, guaranteed the Malay language sovereignty with such law in the Federal Constitution. The Malay language in the Federal Constitution of Malaysia has clearly become the basic language benchmark in Malaysia. The laws pertaining to the use of language in Malaysia have been included in Part 12 (Matters 152 to 161) General and Miscellaneous. Article 152 of the Malaysian Constitution explicitly stipulates the following: The national language of the country is Malay; and the Malay language is given three main functions as national language, official language and medium of education. In relation to this, the provisions of the Federal Constitution in Article 150 (6A) have clearly stated that matters relating to the Malay language even in an emergency declaration are protected by the constitution. This statement leaves a substantial effect as, during the emergency declaration, it will affect the suspension of most of the constitutional provisions unless language-related matters which are fully protected. Furthermore, through Article 10 (4) of the Federal Constitution, it is stated that the position of the Malay language as sensitive and forbidden to be debated in the public space for the purpose of public safety. This statement reinforces the position of the Malay language as the implication of this provision is that the Malay language cannot be amended by Parliament if it does not receive the support of two-thirds of each hall and the consent of the Council of Rulers through item 159 (5). The position of the Malay language as the official language for the purposes of the government, whether federal or state government and includes any purpose for a public power, the Malay language shall be used except for some matters permitted by law as set out in Section 4, the Language Act Nationality. Among the exceptions are diplomatic and training relations conducted by foreign experts. Other than that, in Article 160B it clarifies that if the constitution is translated into the national language and if there is a contradiction in the translation text with the text in English, then the national language text shall overrule the English text.

In this regard, Sariyan (2009 ) has stressed that the impact of the position of Malay language under the provisions of the Federal Constitution law which now extends almost half a century of national independence has become one of the fundamental principles of nation-building through three main functions of national language, official language and language of knowledge. The Malay language as a national language has succeeded in becoming the basis of the formation of a sovereign state and has been a powerful unifying factor for the formation of national unity. The Malay language's responsibilities as an official language have made it as the official communication medium that drives the government's administrative tasks in developing the country through various sectors. These main sectors of the country are administration, education, law and judiciary, as well as the mass media, have reached a high level of competitiveness. In fact, the Malay language has enabled the democratization of education when a large number of young people have the opportunity to study in the national language, without the resistance of socio-economic factors and ethnic segregation as well as the exclusivity of the medium language of education which formerly was dominated by English language.

Thus, the position of the Malay language in the provision of the law through Article 152 of the Federal Constitution is very clear to guarantee the Malay language to play its role as a means of communication of Malaysian society without any prejudice. As the result, the Malay language is sturdy in terms of the law (Karim, 2013 ). The content and implications of these provisions should be understood and appreciated as it is not a written rhetoric for the sake of national politics but it is a benchmark of any decisions and actions in the language and race of the nation. Its meaning should strengthen the identity of the nation on the position and role of the Malay language currently. Therefore, the struggle to raise Malay as an advanced language for education is the responsibility that must be taken for the sake of the struggle to inherit the rights and interests of the Malay language as the national language of the country.

4. MALAY AS A LANGUAGE OF KNOWLEDGE AND ADVANCED KNOWLEDGE FOR THE NATION

The Malay language as the medium of knowledge is described as having the capability of delivering modern knowledge in diversified disciplines in line with the development of times (Mahmood, 1995 ). In conjunction with this definition, Komoo (2013 ) explains the meaning of the Malay language as the means of advanced knowledge with the emphasis on the language at the higher education level which includes the following: Degree, masters and doctoral degrees; scientific writing language in journals and textbooks; language of knowledge transfer from university to community; and communication language of university students. In this context, he distinguishes them from the understanding of Malay as the language of knowledge that is limited to the perspective of language use for education at the school level to pre-university level. Ergo, it is clear that Malay as a language of discussing academic fields in the delivery and transfer of knowledge or as a means of communication to the community, especially in higher education. This scenario has been a success by the establishment of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) since 1970 which is determined to implement its academic education curriculum using the Malay language as the main medium language as evident in the mission and vision of the UKM itself. UKM has become a landmark and motivator for the implementation of Malay as the language of higher education in the country.

In this case, Seong (2013 ) concluded that the Malay language has already reached the level of modern languages such as English based on the size of the internal stability of the Malay corpus of the complete and well established DBP. It includes spelling and writing systems, cross-sectional vocabulary and grammatical standard. In fact, Malay as a language of knowledge has a wide variety of standard which is crucial to be used uniformly and systematically. This statement is further reinforced by the guarantee of legal position through the provision of Section 17 of the Education Act 1996 (Act 550) which states: i) The national language shall be the primary language of instruction in educational institutions in the National Education System except national type school established under section 28 or any other educational institution exempted by the Minister from this subsection. ii) If the primary language of instruction in an educational institution is other than the national language, then the national language shall be taught as a compulsory subject in the educational institution.

The provisions of this law clearly state the Malay language as a means of delivering knowledge in the national education system. Sariyan (2012 ) emphasized that the philosophy behind the setting up of Malay as the primary language of the national education system closely related to the national solidarity agenda, self-based development and democratization of education. By using the same language, the target is to provide guarantees for the cultivation of understanding and tolerance to create national unity. The progress in the field of education in the country is the basis for the development of thinkers, academician and labor in various fields. As a matter of fact, the democratization of education has been enjoyed by all Malaysians regardless of the people who have been discriminated during the English administration when the English language has the privilege of being used as the medium of education for the elite while the Malay-medium, Chinese and Tamil vernaculars are regarded as second-class education. Furthermore, the function of Malay language as the language of knowledge continued to be given confidence in the national education system with the result of the Razak Statement 1956 and the Rahman Talib Statement 1960 which had been the basis of the Education Act 1961 and the implementation of the National Education Policy in the 1970s. Whereas the introduction to the National Education Policy focusing on enhancing Malay language as the primary language of knowledge at all levels of education has succeeded in taking over the role of English in the education system from the school level to achieving the highest recognition when it was translated into the primary language with the establishment of UKM in 1970. In line with this achievement, the role of DBP cannot be denied as a scholarly institution of academic materials as well as supporters of Malay language conservation efforts as the language of knowledge and language of education in the education sector. The establishment of DBP in 1956 has played its role effectively when successfully elevating the position of Malay language through the construction of terms, publication of academic books, translation of foreign reference materials and language research. Baharom (2006 ) concludes that DBP's function as a nation-based organization or linguistic nationalism that is not just about observing the position of Malay language in Malaysia but it is also responsible for ensuring the Malay language as a language of knowledge at all levels of education.

To date, the advancement of DBP’s information and information technology has also taken steps into the digital world by providing the DBP website through the online advice portal on Language Advisory Services. In addition, DBP also helps in enhancing the language skills of the community and fostering a sense of love in the national language among them by holding a language skills course program, building Munsyi Dewan, monitoring and debating the use of language in the mass media, in public places, disseminating language information through radio broadcasts as well as giving awards and recognition to individuals and institutions that prioritize the use of good and proper national language. Consequently, it seems that DBP as one of the authorities has helped to diversify the functions of Malay language and strengthening Malay as the language of higher education in the country and even to the world.

5. REVIEWING THE ACHIEVEMENT OF MALAY LANGUAGE AS AN ADVANCED KNOWLEDGE LANGUAGE

The Malay language is already in the status of a language of knowledge in the country if it is exemplified by the roles and contributions that have been proven in the context of national historical development. Even the Malay language as a language of advanced knowledge has been widely used starting with the establishment of UKM and until now its use still fought to the level of becoming the knowledge culture throughout the country’s Higher Education Institution. Its glory and constraints can be tracked based on the evidence of the country’s historical experience as follows:

5.1. Malay as the Global Lingua Franca

The efficiency of Malay language in the management and administration of the former major kingdoms began from pre-Islamic times between Srivijayaand Majapahit which had used the Malay language as a major communication medium in the Malay Archipelago. The Malay language at that time became the lingua franca language which was a language of international relations among local and global communities for the purpose of engaging in the diversity of activities. The Malay language today has become the language of government, the language of commerce, the religious and lingua franca language of the Malay Archipelago region, especially under the kingdom of Srivijaya. The success and capability of Malay as the language of the national administration then  continued in the Malay Sultanate of Malacca as a new Malay civilization which continued to function as a lingua franca language for the relations between locals and foreign traders for trade; the language of administration, the language of diplomatic relations, the language of law, the language of science and philosophy, the language of commerce, the national language, the high literature language as well as the language of religious missions. The function and role of Malay in the context of national administration has continued in the 17th century during the Portuguese and Dutch administration. At the same time, the Malay language was used as a communication tool for correspondence among the Malay Rulers around the Straits of Malacca with the European authorities. In fact, the Malay language’s supremacy has been acknowledged in international relations since ancient times from the kingdoms of Srivajaya, Palembang, Majapahit, Melaka, Pasai and throughout Asia and Europe such as Italy, France, Portugal, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom and its post-independent era until today.

5.2. Malay as a Medium of Religious Mission

The Malay language serves as a spreading medium of mission for religious preaching, especially for the religion of Islam as well as Christian and Hindu. As Malacca emerged as the center of spreading Islam in the region, the Malay language was continued to evolve with its role as a da'wah language between preachers and dissidents (Ku, 2013 ). Preachers are comprised of Middle Eastern traders who carry out the task of teaching the locals about the religion. Therefore, in order to facilitate the mission of their Malay language has been studied and made the basis for the da'wah. The use of Malay as a medium of spreading Islam for them will facilitate the efforts to attract local residents to profess and explore Islam. This is because the preaching of da'wah in the local language will facilitate the understanding of the knowledge to be presented and learned. The Malay language has also been used as a sermon in the mission of Islamic propaganda and has been easily accepted by the Muslim population of Cham in Vietnam (Al-Attas, 1972 ).

According to Noresah (in Yusfarina and Abdul (2011 )) Malay language also was once an intermediary language to teach Hinduism in pre-Islamic times even within a limited environment. Similarly, for the spread of Catholic and Protestant Christianity in the archipelago of the archipelago during the Portuguese and Dutch administration, the Malay language played a role as the intermediary language of the Christian sermon. Furthermore, Tatiana (2011 ) added, the possibility that the first European and began to use the Malay language for the purpose of preaching Catholicism was a Christian missionary from Spain, Francis Xavier. During the mission of his preaching mission to Ambon, he stopped by in Malacca, which was then under the Portuguese administration, in 1545 for the purpose of preparing prayers and sermons by translating them from Latin which was the language of the Catholic church into the Malay language as the Malay language was spoken in Ambon.

This situation clearly demonstrates how great the Malay language was at that time until it actually serves as a language of advanced knowledge that has been completed with the writing of letters for religious adjustments globally. The acceptance by foreign nations for the mission of the mission is a tribute to the Malay language that was so great that it was then. In fact, the Malay language has been acknowledged by the greatness of the Latin language in the west and the Malay language in the east (Tatiana, 2011 ).

5.3. The Malay Language Enhances Aesthetic Value in Genre Diversity

Malay is known as the language of knowledge with the aesthetic value of its language in the content of correspondence which has resulted from the evidence of historical traces of past history. Malay at that time has already fulfilled the characteristics of intellectuality and the perfection of the language that determines its position as the language of knowledge. These aesthetic values are clearly seen through the results of the literature in literary, religious and historical works; diplomatic and business correspondence between them involves contracts and agreements (Tatiana, 2011 ). The current Malay language also has a version of oral and written language like dialect and its standard language. Written discourse has been successfully delivered with accurate, steady and efficient vocabulary and grammar. Various literary genres have been produced that use the style of epic(hikayat) as delivered through folklore amongst mythical stories, legends, stories of storytellers, animal stories and jokes. Amongst the works are The Tale of Hang Tuah(Hikayat Hang Tuah) which is a local epic story, literary works such as The Tale of Gul Bakawali (Hikayat Gul Bakawali), as well as the creation of Javanese-Hindu works like The Tale of Seri Rama (Hikayat Seri Rama),The Tale of Gul Bakawali and historical literature such as Malay History and The Tale of King Pasai (Hikayat Raja Pasai). The works at that time also shown a big influence of Arabic language with the result of Islamic, philosophical, metaphysical, theological and rational thinking (Tatiana, 2011 ). These works are also significantly influenced by Arabic writing style in terms of vocabulary and grammar. This situation shows that Malay language ability than can absorb elements of flexibility in writing whereby the Malay language can adapt and be adapted to the environment and reforms occur in the language realm. These features actually exhibit the perfection that the Malay language holds as a language of knowledge.

5.4. Malay with Legal Position Guarantees

Malay as the language of advanced knowledge especially after independence has been given a position in terms of national legislation as well as through the education policy of the country. The present of Article 152 of the Federal Constitution and the existence of the National Education Act means Malay is guaranteed its position as a language of knowledge in the country. This is because this position offers the Malay language of the responsibility for the national language, the official language and the medium of instruction in the country. The supremacy of the Malay language reaches the position of a constitutional that cannot be argued and its position serves as a basis of whatever decisions and actions to be taken in the fight of language and race of the nation.

In fact, the Malay language’s credibility as a special language of education in national education has been acknowledged through the Education and National Education Policy Act. The provisions of this law have clearly secured the Malay language as the primary ones of knowledge at all levels of national education and have succeeded in taking over the role of English in the education system from school level to achieving the highest recognition when it became the main language of instruction with the establishment of UKM in 1970. Enhancement of the position of Malay as a language of higher learning in the Public Institution of Higher Learning (IPTA) was further enforced when all courses such as Literature, Science, Engineering and Medicine were taught in Malay in 1983, while in 1987, the Malay language position continued to be consolidated when all first-degree courses at IPTA have used Malay as the main teaching and learning medium (Ismail, 2009 ).

The greatness of Malay as the language of advanced education in the context of higher education continues to spread to the world with the offering of teaching Malay language courses in most overseas universities. Ku (2013 ) recorded Malay language courses in Russia available at the Institute of Humanitarian Sciences, the Institute of Oriental Studies and the Oriental Institute offered as core courses. In addition, Moscow State University, Amur University and Far East University according to Victor (2011 ) also introduced Malay language courses and Malay Studies. Even the Malay Studies Chair has also been established in several foreign universities such as the Beijing Foreign Studies University (2008-2011) by offering Malay language courses and Malay Studies. For the record, the Malay language program has been in operation for 50 years and has succeeded in producing many diplomats, interpreters and broadcasters who dominate Malay. Yaakub (2011 ) stated that the responsibility of the Malay-Chinese Studies Chair had become the base and successfully expanded the spread of Malay language throughout China as in Peking University, Communications University and Guan Xi University of Nationalities. In addition, the Malay Studies Chair was also established at Leiden University, Netherlands; Ohio University, USA; Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand and Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, South Korea. This establishment has a role to develop the Malay language throughout the world.

5.5. Malay Language and Its Literary Establishment of the Corpus

The establishment of the Malay language system's value so far has strengthened its field of the linguistic corpus which serves as the catalyst for the Malay language as the language of higher learning. Seong (2013 ) emphasized that the Malay corpus of the Malay language had internal stability, the materials constructed to form the Malay language had been completely constructed by DBP which included the spelling system and writing system. If a corpus is insufficient, the language should not be used for advanced studies activities such as education. It is clear that the Malay language with the comprehensive Malay corpus shows the stability that can be used as a language of advanced learning. The corpus planning of the Malay language which includes the construction of language in terms of language codification and language expansion has been enacted. Language codification means the selection of acceptable language code as a norm in language use which is a language standardization that involves the determination of language norms and codes such as writing, spelling, pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary for terminology and syntax. Additionally, language expansion involves efforts to make the language or variation of the chosen language able to meet the needs of the community in all areas of life (Omar, 2008 ). Obviously, all these actions have been fully implemented with the role of DBP in generating all aspects of the Malay language corpus since 1956.  To date, with its strength of the corpus itself, it enabled the Malay language to discuss the diversity of the field of knowledge with the availability of language-based diversity, especially in the language of the scientific language as well as the diversity of forms of construction and verses like the ones in the Malay language. Amongst them are publications in Law, Medicine, Economics, Computers, Engineering, Agriculture, and Science, which have been successfully produced by highlighting the Malay language as the main language of the works. The Malay language as a tool for knowledge in the context of scientific thrusts with vocabulary and terminology has been undoubtedly established. Hence, the Malay language in terms of the integrity and perfection of its linguistic characteristics has been well acknowledged and able to convey the diversity of knowledge across the virtual realm by giving impactful meaning.

5.6. Malay Language Cultivates Malay Academic Scholarship

Malay as a language of knowledge is also evident in the evolution of the Malay Academic Scholarship which has grown since independence in the nation specifically discussing the field of Malay studies. The credibility and development of Malay academic studies are demonstrated through four aspects (Hashim, 2011 ) the growth of various institutions related to Malay studies, discourse in various national and international conferences and symposia, research and publication. The fact that Malay academic scholarship has emerged since the production of works of writing such as Hamzah Fansuri, Tun Seri Lanang, Raja Ali Haji, Syed Sheikh Al-Hadi, Sheikh Tahir Jalalluddin and Tok Kenali.  The next growth is seen exponentially happening when the scholarly writing of Malay academic scholarship with the establishment of British institutions of higher learning such as the Sultan Idris Teachers College, Tanjong Malim, in 1921 as well as the setting up of the Office of Writing (Pejabat Karang Mengarang) which had given birth to key figures of activist scholars such as Za'ba producing research and writing on Malay language, culture and socio-economics. From here, the Teacher Magazine published most of his writing from among Malay teachers who voiced their views through papers, articles and literature on History, Language, Education, Society, Politics, Geography, Arts, Culture and Development. Among the characters born from this institution are Buyong Adil, Sharom Husain, Sidek Saniff and Muhammad Ariff Ahmad (Hashim, 2011 ).

Furthermore, with the establishment of the University of Malaya in 1953 in Singapore became the catalyst for the rapid development of the scholarly journals of Malay scholarship in dealing with the broader field of Malay Studies, particularly under the Department of Malay Studies. This was followed by the establishment of DBP, UKM and the emergence of professional associations such as the Malaysian Linguistics Association (PLM), the Association of Translators and Historical Societies where all of these bodies were responsible for producing and publishing scientific journals of Malay studies including the Journal of the Malaysian Historical, Journal of Historical Society, Journal of Malay Studies, Journal of Linguistics and Language Journal that contains literature related to language, culture and society. Until now, the academic achievement of Malay scholarships continues with the substantial publication of academicals journals that serve as a platform for scholars to work and distribute their writing virtually. Writing in these scientific journals also crosses the diversity of fields and reaches the refined journal stage. All public IPTAs are still active and to produce their scientific publications to the global stage even in the various fields and subdivisions of Malay studies. In the field of linguistics, the introduction of the Language Board Journal, Malay Literature, Language Journal and Nature Window Journal; Journal Sari became a forum on the history-Malay civilization debate; Journal of Malay Philology is the stage of debate and documentation of Malay manuscripts; Flavor(Perisa) produces poetry genre works; Journal of Malay and Malay Civilizations: The International Journals of the Malay World provides space for debates, discussions and submissions on various issues of language, literature and culture and Malay civilization (Hashim, 2011 ).

5.7. Malay Language and Benchmarking Commitment

DBP as a special body places the benchmarking of Malay as the language of knowledge and advanced knowledge of the nation. The establishment of DBP in 1956 as the official body of language and cultural expansion of the country has placed assurance on the function and role of Malay as the language of knowledge has a strong standard. The DBP objective is now achieved when the Malay language has reached the highest level of language knowledge with the application of two essential elements (Garvin, 1984 ) which is the integrity and completeness of the language. Malay has achieved internal stability with a complete language corpus and this position has been achieved with the role played by DBP. The Malay language already has a well-defined spelling system, writing, grammar, vocabulary and terminology across fields. DBP has also played an effective role when successfully elevating the position of the Malay language through the construction of terms, publication of scientific books, scientific journals, translation of foreign reference materials and language research. It is all designed, created, produced and published by the DBP in full cooperation with local and regional language agencies such as the National Translation Institute, Indonesian-Malaysia Council (MBIM) and Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia Council (MABBIM) helping volunteer associates in knowledge fields such as the Linguistic Society.

Therefore, DBP as the main body of the nation's literacy is fully committed to continuing to generate Malay as the language of advanced education. Trust, credibility and accountability of DBP on the progress and development of Malay language will continue to be trusted until now. DBP is the reflection of the Malay language function in advanced learning and is the backbone of the nation's national language culture and knowledge to achieve the rank and status of the supremacy of the nation's constitution.

6. CONTRIBUTION

This paper contributes in the existing literature of Malay language and the knowledge should be emphasized in line with the development of the country today. The use of Malay should be at par with the use of English which is emphasized in various disciplines. The emphasis on this will strengthen the appreciation for the Malay language in today’s life. Hence, negative perceptions and uncertainty on the function and position of the Malay language in the era of globalization should be corrected. Therefore, the study also connoted that we need to free our mind from continuing to be colonized subtly with the thought of English language is far more important. However, one cannot deny the importance of English as a global language but at the same time Malay is substantially important as the national, official and the nation’s language knowledge which its position demanded to be appreciated in the country. In addition, the preservation of Malay as a language of knowledge can indirectly spread and can be cultivated as a symbol of national identity. Language is a feature that determines the identity of a person at the national and international level. In fact, the sincerity, confidence and preservation of positive attitude and mind towards the ability of Malay language to function in various fields, especially in the language of higher learning, will help to strengthen the position and ability of Malay language in the country and in the world.

7. CONCLUSION

Reviewing for scientific studies in preserving the Malay language agenda as a language of studies at the academic stage of state academia has highlighted a range of issues and ongoing actions that should be taken into consideration and implemented. The appreciation of the knowledge and the identity of the individual, especially among the academics of the Malay language, is the catalyst and motivator of the success of efforts to raise Malay language as the language of knowledge to its peak. Without a conscious awareness and commitment to the struggle of this language, it will jeopardies the goals and efforts of the Malay culture and knowledge as the language of advanced knowledge to achieve the global standard. Therefore, cooperation, agreement, accountability, and even the involvement and support of all parties, all classes of all macro and micro-state levels are urgently required. Consequently, the role of the national leaders in the unity of the nation to further uphold the national language is crucial to ensure the mandate of the Malay language as a language of knowledge is in the forefront of success.

Funding: This study received no specific financial support.

Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Contributors/Acknowledgement: All authors contributed equally to the conception and design of the study.

REFERENCES

Abas, M.S., 1984. History of the Malaysian constitution. Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka.

Ahmad, H., 2002. Language and national development policy in Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka and Linguistic Society of Malaysia.

Al-Attas, S.M.N., 1972. Islam in Malay history and culture. Kuala Lumpur: Publisher of National University of Malaysia.

Anwar, O.M., 2016. Contextualizing nusantara studies. Journal of Nusantara Studies, 1(1): 1-6.View at Google Scholar 

Baharom, N., 2006. DBP five decades, globalization and new wave empowers Bahasa Melayu. Papers in the VII Language and Malay Language Congress in Kuala Lumpur from 6 - 8 November 2006.

Collins, J.T., 1998. Malay world language: A short history. Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka.

Garvin, R.A., 1984. Development of private speech among low-income Appalachian children. Developmental Psychology, 20(2): 271-286.

Hashim, M.S., 1987. Know the Malaysian constitution. Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka.

Hashim, R., 2011. The development of the Malay scientific journal in Watan Malay. Journal of Malay, 6(1): 137-152.

Ismail, A., 2009. Impregnation of the soul languages ​​of the nation. Language Council, 9(10): 23-26.

Karim, N.S., 2013. Bahasa Melayu di Wilayah Timur Pesisir. Colloquium of East Coastal Malay Civilization. November 14, 2013. Kuala Terengganu.

Komoo, I., 2013. Dialog Melayu: Bahasa Melayu as Bahasa Ilmu Tinggi. Kuala Terengganu: Publisher UMT.

Ku, H., 2013. The ability of the Malay language in the international arena. International Journal of the Malay World and Civilization (Faith), 1(1): 55-65.

Mahmood, A.H., 1995. Malay language challenges and expectations as a science language. World Language Congress. 21-25 August 1995. Kuala Lumpur.

Mansor, N.R., 2013. Language, culture and community modules. Kuala Terengganu: Universiti Malaysia Terengganu Publisher.

Muslim, N., 2011. Malay language in the federal constitution: Its position and its role in the context of unity communication. Sari-International Journal of the Malay World and Civilization, 29(1): 103-120.

Omar, A., 2008. Susur Galur Bahasa Melayu. Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka.

Sariyan, A., 2000. Interpretation of language in regional and international Malay cooperation. New Millennium Newspaper International Seminar Work Paper 2000. Organized by Language Center, Universiti Teknologi MARA, 25-27 September.

Sariyan, A., 2002a. Language stories. Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka. Sariyan, A., 2002b. The stories of Malay language planning success stories. Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka and the Malaysian Linguistic Association.

Sariyan, A., 2009. The role of language in human development and community development Hadhari. Journal of Hadhari, 1(1): 1-29. View at Google Scholar 

Sariyan, A., 2012. Malay progress: The second half century. Kuala Lumpur: Language Council. pp: 32-35.

Seong, T.K., 2011. The phenomenon of Malay language empowerment. Dewan Bahasa, 10(08): 6-9.

Seong, T.K., 2013. Dialog Melayu: Bahasa Melayu as Bahasa Ilmu Tinggi. Kuala Terengganu: Universiti Malaysia Terengganu Publisher.

Tatiana, V., 2011. Bahasa Melayu Sama Bahasa Latin di Rantau Nusantara. Malay & Malay Civilization Journal, 2(2): 163-171.

Victor, P., 2011. Malay cross-border. Language Council, 11(3): 52-55.

Yaakub, N., 2011. China appreciates the Malay language. Kuala Lumpu: Daily News.

Yusfarina and R. Abdul, 2011. Malay today. Language Council, 11(4): 10-14.

Zaidi, I., 2011. Tidal english. Pelita Bahasa, 23(6): 8-12.