Penggunaan Bahasa Dalam Kalangan Etnik Melanau Di Mukah, Sarawak: Satu Analisis Domain

This study looks at language use among the Melanau ethnic group in Mukah, Sarawak, based on language domain analysis. This study aims to analyse the phenomenon of language selection and use among the Melanau ethnic group in Mukah, Sarawak based on the theory of language domain analysis of Fishman (1972). The objective of this study is to identify the selection and use of language by the Melanau Mukah community in the domains of family, neighborhood, religion, and education. Next, to study the trend of language choice in three generations, namely the first generation, second generation, and third generation of the Melanau community in Mukah, Sarawak. This study applies a descriptive method through a quantitative approach. This study uses a questionnaire as a research instrument based on the application of Fishman’s (1972) domain theory. The results show that the Melanau Mukah language is the dominant language choice of the Melanau Mukah community in the family and religious domain. In the neighbourhood domain, they tend to use the Sarawak Malay dialect, and in the education domain, the Malay language is their main choice to interact. Furthermore, the results of the analysis also show that the trend of language selection in the three generations of speakers shows that the Melanau Mukah language is at a safe level and remains spoken by all three generations involved. It is hoped that this study can open new spaces and perspectives in the study of language use and selection for other Melanau variations