Model of Diversification of The Sasak Language Dialects:Understanding the Way Sasak Ancestors Migrated

Abstract

The Sasak language is originally spoken by Sasak people in Lombok island. It has been identified to have five dialects. They are Kuto-kute dialect called Bayan Dialect (BD), Ngeto-ngete Dialect called Sembalun Dialect (SD), Ngeno-ngene dialect called Selaparang Dialect (SlD), Meno-mene dialect called Pejanggik Dialect (PD), and Meriak-meriku dialect called Pujut Dialect (PjD). This research is aimed at identifying and establishing how the Sasak language dialects are diversified from the mother language. The answer may be used to understand the way Sasak language speakers migrated around the island. The method used is comparative synchronic method.  Data are about 450 words including 200 basic words from Swadesh. They are collected through interview and library research. The collected data are analyzed comparatively under the Tree Model Theory proposed by August Schleicher to see the relation among the dialects.  Result of the analysis shows that Sasak language dialects are diversified through internal subgrouping model, the second model of Tree Model Theory. There are three internal subgroups generating the five Sasak language dialects. The first is protoBayan-Sembalun (PBS) that diversifies Bayan Dialect (BD) and Sembalun Dialect (SD) and second protoSelaparang-Pejanggik-Pujut (PSPP) that diversifies Selaparang Dialect (SlD) and protoPejanggik-Pujut (PPP). ProtoPejanggik-Pujut (PPP) then deversifies Pejanggik Dialect (PD) and Pujut Dialect (PjD). Model of the diversification of the Sasak language dialects reflects the way Sasak language speakers migrated from their first settlement around Bayan-Sembalun dialects area to other places around Sembalun and then moved to protoSelaparang-Pejanggik-Pujut dialect area and finally spread up into Selaparang dialect,  Pejanggik dialect, and Pujut dialect area.Vertical analysis between the Sasak language dialects and protoAustronesian language, in  case of lexical-phonological features,  is in the line with the result of this research.