Indonesian

[in-duh-nee-zhuhn, -shuhn, -zee-uhn, -doh-]

noun

1. a member of the ethnic group consisting of the natives of Indonesia, the Filipinos, and the Malays of Malaysia.

2. a member of a population supposed to have been resident in the Malay Archipelago before the Malays, and believed to constitute one element of the present mixed population of Malaysia and perhaps Polynesia.

3. Official Name Bahasa Indonesia. an Indonesian language that is based on the form of Malay spoken in Java and has the status of official language in the Republic of Indonesia.

4. the westernmost branch of the Austronesian family of languages, including Malay, Indonesian, Tagalog, and Malagasy.

adjective

1. of or relating to the Malay Archipelago.

2. of or relating to Indonesia, the Indonesians, or their languages.

Indonesian

/ ˌɪndəʊˈniːzɪən /

adjective

1. of or relating to Indonesia, its people, or their language

noun

1. a native or inhabitant of Indonesia

2. another name for Bahasa Indonesia

Other Word Forms

• anti-Indonesian adjective
• pro-Indonesian adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Indonesian¹

First recorded in 1840–50; Indonesi(a) + -an

Example Sentences

Landslides and flash floods are not uncommon across the Indonesian archipelago especially during the rainy season and climate change has made the situation worse, officials say.

From BBC

Many ordinary Indonesians criticize the government for primarily serving the interests of the wealthy elite even as youth unemployment soars and wages stagnate.

From Los Angeles Times

The primary trigger for the protests was the Indonesian government's decision to raise the allowance for national parliamentarians.

From BBC

Indonesian political parties have agreed to reverse some state-funded perks their politicians receive in a bid to quell nationwide protests, the country's president has said.

From BBC

In Kwitang, an area of central Jakarta, tensions rose as the protesters marched to the road in front of the Indonesian National Police headquarters in Kwitang, central Jakarta.

From BBC