Language contestation at Batukau Temple, Bali (a linguistic landscape study)

Abstract

Batukau temple, a remote Hindu temple on the slope of Mount Batukau, unavoidably undergoes the extending function of the Hindu temple from purely a spiritual site to a spiritual and tourist destination. This additional status as a tourist destination consequently changes the face of the outdoor sign’s language in the temple. This study investigates the current language contestation of the outdoor signs in the temple compared to its original status as a spiritual sanctuary. The data were documented through the direct observation method with photographic techniques. At the same time, the comparative data of the previous condition were collected from various public online sources. The result shows that Balinese script presentation is less salient than the roman script. It is treated as a symbolic function to emphasise Bali’s identity in the area. The presence of the Indonesian and English languages is highly dependent on their message and location. They play their roles in non-spiritual related outdoor signs, such as informational signs on environmental, education, sanitation issues and prohibition signs related to the temple’s status as a sacred place. Furthermore, all languages are used in Covid-19 prevention signs.

Keywords

• linguistic landscape
• Balinese language
• Batukau temple
• outdoor signs