Rasa Sayange
Encyclopedia
"Rasa Sayang" or "Rasa Sayange" (in Indonesia) is a Malay
folk song popular in Indonesia
, Malaysia and Singapore
. The basis of "Rasa Sayang" is somewhat similar to Dondang Sayang
and many other Malay folk songs, which take their form from the pantun
, a traditional Ethnic Malays poetic form. Some in Indonesia have claimed that the song originally came from the Moluccas, but such claims are disputed, as the standard Malay language
itself and the tradition of pantun
exchange are "alien" to the Moluccas archipelago.
Because this song is in Pantun
form, for each quatrain
, there is no relevance of the first two lines to the message conveyed by the last two except to provide the rhyming scheme.
There are many version of the lyrics of "Rasa Sayang", but it usually starts with this refrain:
The refrain is then followed by a wide variety of popular Malay pantun
.
, Malaysians and Indonesians alike. Malaysian Tourism Minister Adnan Mansor stated, "It is a folk song from the Nusantara
and we are part of the Nusantara."
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
folk song popular in Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Malaysia and Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. The basis of "Rasa Sayang" is somewhat similar to Dondang Sayang
Dondang Sayang
Dondang Sayang literally love ballad, originated in Melaka sometime in the 15th century, influenced by traditional Portuguese folk music. A typical group is made up of 4 musicians who perform on the violin, 2 rebana and a gong or tetawak. The chief musician is usually the violinist who plays a...
and many other Malay folk songs, which take their form from the pantun
Pantun
The pantun is a Malay poetic form. The pantun originated as a traditional oral form of expression. The first examples to be recorded appear in the 15th century in the Malay Annals and the Hikayat Hang Tuah. The most common theme is love....
, a traditional Ethnic Malays poetic form. Some in Indonesia have claimed that the song originally came from the Moluccas, but such claims are disputed, as the standard Malay language
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
itself and the tradition of pantun
Pantun
The pantun is a Malay poetic form. The pantun originated as a traditional oral form of expression. The first examples to be recorded appear in the 15th century in the Malay Annals and the Hikayat Hang Tuah. The most common theme is love....
exchange are "alien" to the Moluccas archipelago.
Lyrics
| Malay Malay language Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore... |
Literal English translation English language English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria... |
|---|---|
Rasa sayang, hey!, Rasa sayang sayang hey, Hey lihat nona jauh, Rasa sayang sayang hey! Buah cempedak di luar pagar, Ambil galah tolong jolokkan, Saya budak baru belajar, Kalau salah tolong tunjukkan, Pulau pandan jauh ke tengah, Gunung daik bercabang tiga, Hancur badan dikandung tanah, Budi yang baik dikenang juga, Dua tiga kucing berlari, Mana sama si kucing belang, Dua tiga boleh ku cari, Mana sama abang seorang, Pisang emas dibawa berlayar, Masak sebiji di atas peti, Hutang emas boleh dibayar, Hutang budi dibawa mati, |
I've got that loving feeling, hey!, I've got that loving feeling, hey!, See that girl in the distance, I've got that loving feeling hey!, The cempedak Cempedak Artocarpus integer, known as Chempedak, chempedek or cempedak , is a species of tree and its fruit in the family Moraceae. It is native to southeast Asia, occurring from Indonesia, Malaya Peninsula to the island of New Guinea/Papua. It has been introduced to Queensland... tree is across the fence, Please take a stick and poke it down for me, I'm just a new guy trying to learn, So if i'm wrong then please tell me. Pandan island far in midst, With the three peaked Daik Daik Daik is the main town on the island of Lingga of Lingga Regency, in the Riau archipelago in Indonesia. It is located at .-History:Daik was the capital of the Lingga sultanate for almost 100 years, from 1819 to 1911.... mountain, While the body decomposes in earth, Good deeds remain to be remembered. Two or three cats are running around, With the striped one which can vie, Two or three men woo I may, Which of them with you can vie. Pisang emas Cavendish banana The Dwarf Cavendish banana is a banana cultivar originally from Vietnam and China. It became the primary replacement for the Gros Michel banana in the 1950s after crops of the latter were devastated by the Panama disease. The name 'Dwarf Cavendish' is in reference to the height of the pseudostem,... brought on a journey, One ripens on a box, If gold is owed, it can be repaid, But if it is gratitude, it is carried to the grave. |
Because this song is in Pantun
Pantun
The pantun is a Malay poetic form. The pantun originated as a traditional oral form of expression. The first examples to be recorded appear in the 15th century in the Malay Annals and the Hikayat Hang Tuah. The most common theme is love....
form, for each quatrain
Quatrain
A quatrain is a stanza, or a complete poem, consisting of four lines of verse. Existing in various forms, the quatrain appears in poems from the poetic traditions of various ancient civilizations including Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, and China; and, continues into the 21st century, where it is...
, there is no relevance of the first two lines to the message conveyed by the last two except to provide the rhyming scheme.
There are many version of the lyrics of "Rasa Sayang", but it usually starts with this refrain:
- Rasa sayang, hey!
- Rasa sayang-sayang hey,
- Hey, lihat nona jauh,
- Rasa sayang-sayang, hey
The refrain is then followed by a wide variety of popular Malay pantun
Pantun
The pantun is a Malay poetic form. The pantun originated as a traditional oral form of expression. The first examples to be recorded appear in the 15th century in the Malay Annals and the Hikayat Hang Tuah. The most common theme is love....
.
Controversy
A controversy over the song's provenance came to a head in 2007 when the Malaysian Tourism Board released the Rasa Sayang Commercial, an advertisement used as part of Malaysia's "Truly Asia" tourism campaign. Some Indonesians have accused Malaysia of heritage theft. Malaysia in return claimed that the song belongs to people of the Malay ArchipelagoMalay Archipelago
The Malay Archipelago refers to the archipelago between mainland Southeastern Asia and Australia. The name was derived from the anachronistic concept of a Malay race....
, Malaysians and Indonesians alike. Malaysian Tourism Minister Adnan Mansor stated, "It is a folk song from the Nusantara
Nusantara
Nusantara is an Indonesian word for the Indonesian archipelago. It is originated from Old Javanese and literally means "archipelago".The word Nusantara was taken from an oath by Gajah Mada, as written on an old Javanese manuscript Pararaton and Negarakertagama...
and we are part of the Nusantara."
In popular culture
- The song appeared in a black-and-whiteBlack-and-whiteBlack-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...
Japanese filmCinema of JapanThe has a history that spans more than 100 years. Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world – as of 2009 the fourth largest by number of feature films produced. Movies have been produced in Japan since 1897, when the first foreign cameramen arrived...
produced in 1943, Marai No ToraThe Tiger of Malayais a 1943 black-and-white Japanese film directed by Koga Masato....
("The Tiger of Malaya"). - Rasa Sayang Eh is the name of a Malay film published in 1959.
- The song was sung in a scene of a popular 1960 Malay film Antara Dua DarjatAntara Dua DarjatAntara Dua Darjat is a 1960 Malaysian drama film directed by and starring Malaysian silver-screen legend P. Ramlee....
, directed by P. RamleeP. RamleeTan Sri Datuk Amar Dr. P. Ramlee, was a Malaysian film actor, director, singer, songwriter, composer, and producer. Due to his contributions to the movie and music industry and his literary work, he is often considered the icon of Malay entertainment in Malaysia, Singapore, and Sumatra .-Biography:P...
. - The song "Rasa Sayange" was recorded by PT Lokananta in SoloSurakartaSurakarta, also called Solo or Sala, is a city in Central Java, Indonesia of more than 520,061 people with a population density of 11,811.5 people/km2. The 44 km2 city adjoins Karanganyar Regency and Boyolali Regency to the north, Karanganyar Regency and Sukoharjo Regency to the east and...
, IndonesiaIndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
on August 15, 1962. The master copy of this recording is still kept by PT Lokananta. This is the third known recording of the song. - The song "Rasa Sayang 2.0" was a theme song of the movie "Nasi Lemak 2.0Nasi Lemak 2.0Nasi Lemak 2.0 is a film by Namewee. The film had a low budget, since the government did not provide funding. Wee spent nearly a year applying for loans...
" by NameweeWee Meng CheeWee Meng Chee or Namewee; is a Malaysian Chinese of Hainanese descent. He is fondly and widely known under his alias nickname Namewee, a bilingual pun on his Mandarin name , which sounds like the Mandarin term for name .Wee gained popularity after releasing a controversial song fused with the...
. The song is sang by Namewee and Karen KongKaren Kong-Biography:Karen Kong is from Labuan Island, Malaysia. She was a student of S.M St Anne, Labuan, S.M.K Labuan, Tunku Abdul Rahman College and Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman. She was a participant in Malaysian Idol in 2004, but she was eliminated in the first round.Kong's debut single was launched...
. - Since the 1930s, the "Rasa Sayang" song has been taught to IndonesiaIndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
n kindergarten children, making it one of the most popular folk songs in Indonesia.