Indonesian Body Language and Gestures It s not only when we speak that we say things. Body language and gestures speak volumes, but only if you know how to listen. And just like understanding Indonesian spoken language, understanding the non verbal can sometimes be very frustrating! But, interestingly enough, Indonesian gestures are often much less vague than the spoken language. The following guide will help you sound more Indonesian in manner and recognise some of the mostused gestures. It was highly inspired by Tofugu s Japanese Body Language and Gestures check it out! This Indonesian version was compiled by Ibu Pipit, Ibu Lydia, Pak Wilfred, Pak Ady, Ibu Francesca, Pak Adi, Ibu Kiki, and Ibu Penny in 2012. Greetings When you meet an Indonesian person for the first time, you need to make some quick decisions! Do you refer to them formally as Bapak or Ibu or more informally as Kakak/kak, Adik/dik, Mbak or Mas? Do you shake their hand or offer both of your hands with palms together? The following guides may help but it s often best just to let them take the lead! Greeting an elder To greet an elder (a respected person in the community, a teacher, your parents, grandmother, and so on), move their offered hand to slightly touch your forehead. Bersalaman dengan orang yang lebih tua dari Anda. Angkat telapak tangan orang tersebut hingga menyentuh kening Anda.
Shaking hands Shake hands softly and then slightly touch your chest afterwards. Men usually give a stronger grip than women when they are shaking hands. Jabat tangan/bersalaman lalu telapak tangan menyentuh dada (sentuh dada Anda sendiri. Bukan lawan bicara!) sebagai tanda ketulusan. Touching your chest after shaking hands demonstrates respect to other person (you re taking their greeting into your heart). Jabat tangan sesama laki laki biasanya lebih kuat dibandingkan dengan perempuan. It s often OK to shake hands with someone of the opposite sex. Just use a soft grip Jabat tangan/bersalaman dengan lawan jenis juga bisa tapi genggamannya jangan terlalu kuat ya! and then slightly touch your own chest as well. Lalu sentuh dada Anda sendiri.
Greeting another female friend When female friends meet, they often greet each other by kissing cheek to cheek. This is known as cipika cipiki in Indonesian. Cium pipi kanan (cipika) dan cium pipi kiri (cipiki) ketika bertemu dengan teman. Biasanya untuk perempuan. An alternative greeting Sometimes you may meet a Muslim Indonesian who will not touch someone (who they don t know) of the opposite sex. Greet them with your hands together instead and bow a little bit. Kadang kadang ada Muslim Indonesia yang tidak bisa bersalaman dengan lawan jenis. Salam mereka dengan kedua telapak tangan tanpa menyentuh tangan mereka. Tundukkan badan Anda sedikit. Welcoming a guest When welcoming people through a door or entryway ( silakan masuk ), gesture using your palm or thumb (never use your index finger to point or gesture!). Gunakan ibu jari ketika mempersilahkan tamu. Jangan menunjuk dengan jari telunjuk karena itu tidak sopan.
Interactions There are many hidden messages in dealing with other people. Always defer to people older than yourself, and more respect is better than less! Giving and receiving things Always use your right hand when passing and receiving things. Ingat untuk selalu menggunakan tangan kanan ketika memberi atau menerima sesuatu. Using the left hand is considered very impolite. Jangan menggunakan tangan kiri karena itu sangat tidak sopan. Slightly bow your head as you say thank you. Lalu tundukkan kepala Anda sedikit saat mengucapkan terima kasih. Calling someone over Instead of waving your fingers upwards as you would in Australia, wave your fingers downwards. Memanggil orang lain dengan melambaikan jari tangan Anda ke arah bawah. (For)get the point Similarly, when you point at something or someone, never use your index finger. In Java, it s common to use your thumb instead. Jangan pernah menunjuk ke seseorang atau sesuatu dengan jari telunjuk. Kurang sopan!
Walking past people Slightly bow your body and put your right hand in front of your body as you walk in front of someone. And don t forget to say permisi. Tundukkan badan dan tangan Anda sedikit saat lewat di depan orang lain dan ucapkan permisi. Telling it like it is Indonesians aren t shy when it comes to giving advice and making remarks about your/others physical appearance and manner(s). It takes some getting used to! #firstworldproblems Kassseeehaaaan deh loe was made famous by a sinetron in the early naughties. Together with the index finger swipe gesture, it s the Indonesian equivalent of bring out the violins or poor, pitiful you. Kasihan deh loe! The gesture lends the phrase a certain sarcasm. Kasihan deh loe adalah bahasa tubuh yang populer dari sinetron di Indonesia, biasanya menggunakan gerakan jari telunjuk yang diliuk liukkan dari atas ke bawah. Memiliki makna yang sarkastis. So over it! Capek deh! Had enough? Over it already? Gesture like this and exclaim, capek deh! Oh no, not again! Jika Anda bertemu orang yang membuatmu merasa capek karena tingkah lakunya (mungkin karena dia sangat menyebalkan) Anda bisa menggunakan bahasa tubuh ini. You re nuts, man! Gile, lu! Calling someone gila is a pretty severe insult but this gesture lessens the impact: You need a frontal lobotomy! Gerakan menggaris dahi menandakan kalau orang yang Anda masuk otaknya cuma setengah, jadi menandakan dia tidak bisa berpikir maksimal, alias gila.
Use your brain, not your knee! Pakai otak, bukan pakai dengkul is commonly said to people who do stupid things without thinking their common sense comes up to the height of their knee, rather than the height of their brain! Di Indonesia, jika Anda melakukan sesuatu yang bodoh, Anda akan dianggap tidak mampu menggunakan otak Anda namun pakai dengkul, jadi bahasa tubuh ini menunjukkan bahwa Anda itu sangat bodohnya sampai kecerdasanmu tidak sampai di otak, tapi cuma sampai dengkul/lutut. Piece of cake! When a concern/issue is keciiiiiiil. Touch the tip of your thumb with your index finger and then flick your index finger away. This gesture accompanies the phrase, Masalah itu kecil sekali sampai bisa disentil or That problem is so easy to handle it s like flicking away a speck of dust. Breaking up isn t hard to do How to break up with your pacar or even just a friend. Doing my head in! Pusing! What to say when you re dizzy (pusing) with ideas, confusion everything! It s giving you a headache! Pusing banget, sih! But be careful saying pusing in Malaysia: There it means to drive. Ketika Anda sangat bingung dan akhirnya tidak bisa berpikir, jadinya pusing. Hati hati: dalam bahasa Melayu, pusing artinya mengemudi mobil.
Everyday life And then there s the body language of everyday life. These gestures/poses are a few things Indonesian people do almost unconsciously. Sitting Males: Sit with your feet crossed at the ankles. In Indonesian, this pose is called bersila. Laki laki duduk dengan menyilangkan kedua kakinya (bersila). Females: Sit with your feet tucked under you, turned down on the floor. Perempuan duduk dengan melipat kakinya hingga betis menyentuh lantai. Eating Food tastes better when you eat with your hands! Indonesians call this the eleven finger fork Orang Indonesia suka makan dengan tangan karena makanan akan terasa lebih enak. Mereka menyebutnya garpu sebelas jari. To eat Indonesian style, pinch your thumb and fingers together around the food, making it into a ball and eat! This is usually done with rice. Perhaps avoid this technique if you are left handed, though, and ask for a spoon and fork! Gunakan jari tangan untuk menyuap makanan ke mulut. Tapi, jangan pakai tangan kiri! Get in line! Stand closely to the others in line when you queue in Indonesia. Expect VIPs to push in! Orang Indonesia berdiri berdekatan saat mengantri.