Malay Proverb Semantic Values: A Paremiological Approach to the Communication Process

The interest in semiotic and semantic aspects of the proverbial genre is to obtain a clearer picture of the proverb’s social and cultural functions. Studies of the main 712 Malay proverbs’ usage with particular interest to non-verbal communicative elements as a context is a case of simultaneity-oriented syntactics, studying the combination of heterogeneous signs into a compound sign complex. This kind of interest can be characterized by pragmatic approaches to the proverbs in the field of paremiology. Proverbs are special units and signs of language, necessary elements of human communication, which convey specific information, designate typical life and mental situations or relationships between certain objects. Talking about the values of the Malays proverbs means talking about Eastern values as ethnic groups that occupy the Eastern world. The Malay ethnic group delivers original ideas and becomes a regional medium influencing the three major world civilizations and religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam. Proverbs sum up a situation, pass judgment, recommend a course of action, or serve as secular past precedents for present action. This paper analyzes the interconnectivity of Malay proverbs using the paremiological method. Based on the analysis, it is found that the system of ideas of Malay communication has been arranged in a slick, systematic, and interlocking nature. The composition formed as a kind of onion in layers, and in the middle lies the concept of Budi ( Mind ), which is a core value of the entire Malay system of ideas about Communication. In the second layer appeared the concept of Basa nan sesuai ( Appropriate language ), followed by the third layer, which shows the Five Maxim of communication ( Politeness, Contextualization, Middle Path , Juxtaposition, Appropriateness ) which guides everyday communication activities, and finally, on the outer part of the onion is stated Keseimbangan ( Harmony ).