Herman Neubronner van der Tuuk (23 February 1824 – 17 August 1894) was a
Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts ...
translator and linguist specialising in the languages of the
Dutch East Indies.
Early years and studies
Van der Tuuk was born in
Malacca (part of the Dutch East Indies at that time), where his father, a Dutch lawyer, had settled and had married a half German and half Dutch Eurasian wife named Louisa. Her surname being Neubronner, it was added as a middle name to “Herman”. In 1825, the
Treaty of London (1824) took effect, and Malacca became British in exchange for
Bengkulu
Bengkulu is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the southwest coast of Sumatra. It was formed on 18 November 1968 by separating out the former Bencoolen Residency area from the province of South Sumatra under Law No. 9 of 1967 and was fi ...
(a region in
Sumatra). As a consequence, the Van der Tuuk family moved to
Surabaya on the Isle of
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...
.
At the age of about twelve, Van der Tuuk was sent to
the Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, where he attended grammar school and in 1840, aged sixteen, took the entrance exam to
Groningen University
The University of Groningen (abbreviated as UG; nl, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, abbreviated as RUG) is a public research university of more than 30,000 students in the city of Groningen in the Netherlands. Founded in 1614, the university is the ...
. He
read law, but his interests were in the field of linguistics, and in 1845 he moved to
Leiden University to read
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
and
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
with
Th.W. Juynboll, a famous scholar in Arabic studies. Van der Tuuk also read
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
and acquired a thorough grounding in
Malay.
Linguistics and linguistic politics in the East Indies
Linguistic activities in the Dutch East Indies were motivated by missionary activities until well into the nineteenth century. Linguistic studies were taken up with a view to translating the Bible into Indonesian languages, and Malay and
Javanese served as starting points. By the middle of the nineteenth century, religious linguists were ready to turn to research into other indigenous languages and to translate the Bible into them.
One of the first languages (or rather, language ''groups'') chosen for this purpose was
Batak. The choice was motivated by political motives as well as religious ones. Roman Catholic missionaries, who had been banned from carrying out their activities, were re-admitted to the colony from 1807, and throughout the nineteenth century were in tough competition with their Protestant opposite numbers. Another motive was the desire to keep
Islam in check. The Malay population of East-
Sumatra and of the coastal regions had become predominantly Muslim by this time, but the ethnic groups in the interior had not been converted, and were, as contemporary terminology had it, still “pagans”. It was assumed they would be more receptive to conversion than those already Islamised. Among these interior tribes were the Batak. Protestant mission from the Netherlands was in the hands of ''Nederlands Bijbel Genootschap'' (“Society for the Translation of the Bible”, ''NBG'').
Linguist
In all but name, Van der Tuuk was still reading law, but he had become noted for his phenomenal aptitude at studying languages, and on the basis of that reputation, ''NBG'' resolved to send him to the Batak regions to study their languages. These interior regions of Sumatra were still largely unknown to westerners at that time, so it was left to Van der Tuuk to decide which Batak language to research with a view to translating the Bible into it. In the end, he opted for
Toba Toba may refer to:
Languages
* Toba Sur language, spoken in South America
* Batak Toba, spoken in Indonesia
People
* Toba people, indigenous peoples of the Gran Chaco in South America
* Toba Batak people, a sub-ethnic group of Batak people from N ...
Batak.
Van der Tuuk reached Java in 1849. He at once fell seriously ill, and indeed was to be haunted by various diseases and by depressions for the rest of his life. The remedy chosen in his case was a sulphur treatment, which appears only to have worsened his condition, and in letters which testify to his confusion, Van der Tuuk requested that ''NBG'' relieve him of his duties. They declined, the reason probably being that they had learnt about his condition.
In 1851, he had recovered sufficiently to be able to depart for the Batak regions. By way of
Padang
Padang () is the capital and largest city of the Indonesian province of West Sumatra. With a Census population of 1,015,000 as of 2022, it is the 16th most populous city in Indonesia and the most populous city on the west coast of Sumatra. Th ...
, he reached the coastal village of Siboga (alternatively known as
Sibolga
Sibolga (formerly sometimes Siboga) is a city and a port located in the natural harbor of Sibolga Bay on the west coast of North Sumatra province, in Indonesia.
It is located on the western side of North Sumatra, facing the Indian Ocean and is ...
), where, however, conditions were not conducive to success. Many inhabitants were coastal Malays, and for closer contact with Batak, he had to travel into the interior. He did not succeed before 1852, when he traveled inland some sixty miles. Later, he was to make another trip inland, becoming the first European to set eyes on
Lake Toba
Lake Toba ( id, Danau Toba) ( Toba Batak: ᯖᯀᯬ ᯖᯬᯅ; romanized: ''Tao Toba'') is a large natural lake in North Sumatra, Indonesia, occupying the caldera of a supervolcano. The lake is located in the middle of the northern part of the i ...
. By that time he had settled in the more northern coastal town of Baroes (alternatively known as Barus), where Batak influence was still strong.
His assignment had a linguistic component (writing a dictionary and a grammar of the language studied) as well as a practical one (translating the Bible into that language). In 1854, however, he fell ill again, and apparently suffered from a liver complaint and renewed depressions. As a result, he had to return to the Netherlands for convalescence in 1856. He remained in Europe until 1868, translating books of the Bible into Batak (1859), publishing his Dictionary of Batak (1861), formulating his
linguistic laws, and receiving an honorary doctor's degree from
Utrecht University
Utrecht University (UU; nl, Universiteit Utrecht, formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2018, it had an enrollme ...
in 1861.
In 1862, ''NBG'' judged that Van der Tuuk was able to depart for the Dutch East Indies once more. The need was now felt for a Bible translation into Balinese, and Van der Tuuk was to be stationed on the Isle of
Bali. Van der Tuuk did not allow himself to be affected by these considerations. He remained in the Netherlands, working on his two-volume Batak grammar, which was published in 1864 and 1867. He did, however, take up the study of other languages, among them Balinese and
Old Javanese
Old Javanese or Kawi is the oldest attested phase of the Javanese language. It was spoken in the eastern part of what is now Central Java and the whole of East Java, Indonesia. As a literary language, Kawi was used across Java and on the island ...
or
Kawi, and published extensively on the Malay language.
In 1868 he became a correspondent of the
Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences and returned to the Dutch East-Indies, first travelling to the
Lampung
Lampung ( Lampung: ), officially the Province of Lampung ( id, Provinsi Lampung) is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the southern tip of the island of Sumatra. It has a short border with the province of Bengkulu to the northwest, and ...
region of South Sumatra to write a dictionary of its language. Once more he was struck by illness, and returned to Java in 1869, in passing making a study of the
Sundanese (West Javanese) language, and in 1870 left for Bali.
On that island, he set to work on a dictionary of Balinese, only to find that this necessitated a study of Kawi (Old Javanese). This led him to the conclusion that he had better write a ''trilingual'' dictionary: of Kawi, Balinese and Dutch. However, ''NBG'' was primarily interested in Bible translation, and rather jibed at Van der Tuuk's plans. He therefore decided to resign and became a civil servant in 1873.
In that capacity, he worked on his trilingual dictionary for the rest of his life, and this ''magnum opus'' was not to appear before his death. Meanwhile, he was also active in other linguistic activities, such as reworking a dictionary of Malay and a dictionary of Kawi and Modern Javanese. He died, aged 70, in
Surabaya.
Van der Tuuk bequeathed his entire collection of manuscripts, scholarly notes, drawings, photographs and books to
Leiden University Library
Leiden University Libraries is a library founded in 1575 in Leiden, Netherlands. It is regarded as a significant place in the development of European culture: it is a part of a small number of cultural centres that gave direction to the developme ...
.
Language command
Beside studying a variety of Indonesian languages, he also had extensive command of other tongues, such as
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
,
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
,
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
and languages from other parts of
South-East Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...
. It was rumoured that he was able to learn a dictionary by heart in a matter of days, and to learn a language in a few months.
Methods and insights
Van der Tuuk's method was twofold. On the one hand, he sought the company of native speakers, and for that reason he had avoided Siboga with its strong Malay influences when he had wished to study the Batak languages instead. For a similar reason, when in Bali, he settled in a village among native inhabitants. In both cases, then, he wished to be among the authentic population. He often availed himself of the services of a native informer, keeping his company, sharing meals, thus garnering any linguistic information he could. He took copious notes, writing them out in the evenings.
On the other hand, he stressed the great importance of written texts as sources of information. This was in line with his view that there was such a thing as “pure language use”. He also held that each and every language was a system in decline, whose pure form could only be discovered through reconstruction.
He more and more inclined to the study of general linguistics. When applying himself to Balinese, he concluded, not unreasonably, that this was only possible in combination with a study of Old Javanese.
Van der Tuuk's Laws
In his many polemics, Van der Tuuk stated two laws which were named after him.
Van der Tuuk's first Law states that among a number of Indonesian languages, the
phonemes
In phonology and linguistics, a phoneme () is a unit of sound that can distinguish one word from another in a particular language.
For example, in most dialects of English, with the notable exception of the West Midlands and the north-west ...
/r/, /g/, and /h/ alternate. Thus, ''pari'' in one language is equivalent to ''page'' in another and to ''pahe'' in yet another. ''urat'' alternates with ''ogat'' and ''ohat''.
Van der Tuuk's second Law states that the phonemes /r/, /d/, and /l/ are likewise interchangeable: ''pari'' beside ''padi'' and ''palai'', and ''ron'' beside ''daun'' beside ''laun''.
Character and views
Christianity
Van der Tuuk has often been alleged to view Christianity unfavourably while at the same time earning his living with missionary activities, and this has led people to believe that his position was less than straightforward. It may be objected to this that he never dissembled his views. Indeed, when Van der Tuuk was considered for the post of ''NBG'' missionary translator, Professor Taco Roorda in a letter of recommendation stressed the fact that this candidate was “not a theologian”.
He did, however, view mission as a civilising force, and in addition held the opinion that it would be able to check the advance of Islam. An advisory document to that effect by ''NBG'' to the Dutch government was based on a report by Van der Tuuk.
When in the end Van der Tuuk became alienated from missionary activities, this was due to his impossible dilemma. On the one hand, he held a linguistically faithful translation would lead to conflict with missionaries — on the other, shaping the language in accordance with Biblical traditions would raise objections by linguists.
[Groeneboer 2002, p. 27] Charged with making translations, he was convinced that only thorough previous study of the source language would make this possible. In his day, this was not received wisdom. Many missionaries have published in inadequate Malay, incurring Van der Tuuk's scorn.
Conflict
Van der Tuuk was caught up in a great many conflicts with his fellow-linguists. He was outspoken and at times even coarsely straightforward. His lifelong rancour against Professor Roorda has become notorious. The latter was a reclusive scholar with linguistic principles diametrically opposed to Van der Tuuk's, and held the incorrect view that Javanese was a kind of basic (Ur-)language which, he claimed, lay at the root of other Indonesian languages.
Van der Tuuk was no less vehement in criticising the faulty Malay often used by those who set themselves up as authorities — a faulty model of the language which, misguidedly, was even presented as a linguistic standard or grammatical model. Controversies such as these were common at a time when new linguistic insights saw the light and when scholars often heaped scorn and invective on their colleagues.
Anecdotes
At the end of his life, in Bali, Van der Tuuk became an object of curiosity to Europeans. He lived in seclusion from western influences, and it was rumoured that his house was dusty, grimy and disordered. One official wishing to visit him was able to observe him from a distance, sitting on his veranda, holding a piece of
Edam cheese. As soon as Van der Tuuk discerned his would-be visitor, he gestured as if to fend the visitor off, exclaiming, “I'm not at home!”
Another version of the same story relates that any visitor was presented with refreshments from a tin containing all kinds of cheese parings, and that declining the offer would incur Van der Tuuk's everlasting enmity. This, however, is held to be an apocryphal story which may have been inspired by the above anecdote.
At the same time, the Balinese respected him greatly. He had made such a thorough study of their customs and habits that one of their elders noted that “if we are faced with a problem, we consult with Tuan Dertik
r Van der Tuuk��.
Select bibliography
Primary
*1861 — ''Bataksch-Nederduitsch woordenboek''; Amsterdam, Muller (“A Batak-Dutch Dictionary”).
*1864 — ''Tobasche spraakkunst, eerste stuk''; Amsterdam, Muller (“A Toba-Batak Grammar, Part 1”).
*1866 — ''Hikajat Pandja-tandaran; Tamilsche omwerking van het Indische fabelboek: de
Pantja-Tantra, vermaleischt door Abdullah ben Abdilquadir bijgenaamd 'de Munsji' (de Tolk). Uitgegeven en met aanteekeningen voorzien door H.N. van der Tuuk''; Leiden, Brill (an edition of the Malay version Sanskrit
Panchatantra stories translated into Tamil).
*1864 — ''Tobasche spraakkunst, tweede stuk''; Amsterdam, Nederlandsch Bijbelgenootschap (“A Toba-Batak Grammar, Part 2”).
*1897-1912 — ''Kawi-Balineesch-Nederlandsch woordenboek''; Batavia, Landsdrukkerij, 4 dln (in 1971 uitgebracht in Engelse vertaling, red.
A. Teeuw
Andries Teeuw (12 August 1921 – 18 May 2012), better known as A. Teeuw in scholarly circles and Hans Teeuw to his friends, was a Dutch critic of Indonesian literature.
Biography
Teeuw was born in Gorinchem, Netherlands, on 12 August 192 ...
en R. Roolvink) (“A Kawi-Balinese-Dutch Dictionary”; English reprint in 1971).
Secondary
*Grijns, C.D. “Van der Tuuk and the Study of Malay”. In ''BKI'' 152
9963:353-381.
*Groeneboer, Kees. ''Een vorst onder de taalgeleerden. Herman Neubronner van der Tuuk. Afgevaardigde voor Indië van het Nederlandsch Bijbelgenootschap 1847-1873''. Leiden, KITLV, 2002 (on Van der Tuuk's activities as a missionary translator).
*Ngajenan, Drs Mohamad. ''Kamus Etimologi Bahasa Indonesia''. Semarang, Dahara Prize, 1992
3 (“An Indonesian Etymological Dictionary”).
*Nieuwenhuys, Rob. “Van der Tuuk”. In ''Tussen twee vaderlanden''. Amsterdam, Van Oorschot, 1988
3, pag. 85-158 (an essay).
*Saussure, Ferdinand de. ''Course in General Linguistics'' (transl. Wade Baskin), London, Fontana, 1974
959
Year 959 ( CMLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* April - May – The Byzantines refuse to pay the yearly tribute. A Hungari ...
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tuuk, Herman Neubronner van der
1824 births
1894 deaths
People from Malacca
Dutch Indologists
Linguists from the Netherlands
Batak
Translators of the Bible into the languages of Indonesia
Leiden University alumni
University of Groningen alumni
Indo people
People from Surabaya
19th-century translators
Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
Translators of the Bible into Malay
Linguists of Austronesian languages