Greetings & Courtesy
Basic Greetings:
- Selamat pagi (sö-LA-mat PA-gi) — Good morning (until about 11 AM)
- Selamat siang (sö-LA-mat SI-ang) — Good day (11 AM-3 PM)
- Selamat sore (sö-LA-mat SO-re) — Good afternoon (3-6 PM)
- Selamat malam (sö-LA-mat MA-lam) — Good evening/night
- Apa kabar? (A-pa KA-bar) — How are you?
- Baik, terima kasih (BA-ik, tri-MA KA-si) — Good, thank you
- Terima kasih — Thank you (the most important words!)
- Sama-sama — You're welcome
- Permisi (per-MI-si) — Excuse me (to get attention / to pass by)
- Maaf (MA-af) — Sorry (to apologize)
- Tidak (TI-dak) — No
- Ya — Yes
- Tolong (TO-long) — Please (to ask for help)
Addressing:
- Pak (Mr.) — for men, before the name or alone. “Pak Wayan, terima kasih!"
- Bu / Ibu (Mrs.) — for women. “Ibu, permisi!"
- Mas — young man (informal, friendly)
- Mbak — young woman (informal, friendly)