Penelehbistory.com: Surabaya (9/7/24) – The name of Herman Neubronner Van der Tuuk began to be known again in Surabaya. Especially after the visit of the Dutch Ambassador to Indonesia Lamberts Grijns at the Peneleh European cemetery in Surabaya on Tuesday (30/8/24). In the Cemetery, ambassador Grijns stopped in front of Van der Tuuk’s grave and made video content. He remembered his father’s story about Van der Tuuk when he was still in Bogor. Yes, Ambassador Lambert was born in Bogor in 1962.
Herman Neubronner van der Tuuk, who was born in Malacca 1824 and died in Surabaya in 1894, was a Dutch linguist with a phenomenal linguistic talent. He is known as one of the founders of modern linguistics for several languages, including Malay, Javanese, Sundanese, Toba, Lampung, Kawi (Old Javanese), and Balinese. His work has made a major contribution to the understanding and documentation of Indonesia’s rich linguistic culture.
According to C.D. Grijns, a Dutch scientist from Leiden University, Van der Tuuk was born in Malacca on February 23, 1824. Then at the age of ten, he lived with his parents in Surabaya. That was in 1834. His father was a high-ranking government official in Surabaya. Therefore speaking in Dutch was very important. Namely using good and correct Dutch. Good and correct use of Dutch was a family image.
“But through contacts with servants and playmates, Van der Tuuk certainly familiarized himself with Javanese and local Malay markets,” wrote C.D. Grijns in an article entitled “Van der Tuuk in the Study of Malay”.
Through social and cultural relationships with family servants and playmates, Van der Tuuk began to get used to using Javanese and Pasar Malay. It was in Surabaya that he began to know and learn Javanese and Pasar Malay.
Later, when Van der Tuuk got older and attended grammar school in the Netherlands, he had a choice. After finishing grammar school in the Netherlands, he enrolled law school at the University of Groningen.
However, he instead studied languages in the Netherlands. He studied Portuguese, English, Arabic, Javanese and Malay.
“In the year 1845 he moved to Leiden where his studies of Sanskrit, Arabic and Persian were guided by Th.W.J. Juynboll”, wrote C.D. Grijns.
Incredibly, in 1846, Van der Tuuk published his first publication in the field of language, Indonesian (Malay). When Van der Tuuk was 22 years old or in 1846, Van der Tuuk changed his name to the initials “S.B”, which stands for Surabaya.
The story of the initials S.B. This was also written by C.D. Grijns, a Dutch scientist from Leiden University.
“The 22 year old Van der Tuuk replaced his name with pseudo initials S.B., which stands for Surabaya,” explained C.D. Grijns.
Seeing Grijns’ notes on Van der Tuuk in relation to Surabaya is truly extraordinary. Early in his teens, he lived in Surabaya. He studied Javanese in Surabaya. Next he studied Kawi (Old Javanese) and Javanese, of which there are many artifacts found from the Majapahit era in the Trowulan area, which at that time was part of the Surabaya residency.
Therefore, Van der Tuuk was no stranger to Old Javanese script throughout his life.
On 8 December 1847 the Netherlands Bible Society appointed Van der Tuuk as a Batak language delegate and therefore he was ordered to learn Batak language and translate the Bible into Batak language. For this reason he had to go to London in 1848 to study Batak manuscripts there.
On 2 September 1849 Van der Tuuk arrived back in Batavia, a week later (9/9/1849) he went to Surabaya to visit his relatives. From late 1849 to early 1851 he then lived in Jakarta.
In early 1870 the Netherlands Bible Society sent Van der Tuuk to Bali and finally settled in Buleleng. For 20 years between 1851 and 1870, Van der Tuuk traveled to various places in the archipelago, including the Netherlands, on a Bible mission in which he translated the Bible into local languages.
While in Bali, Van der Tuuk studied Javanese, Balinese and Kawi (Old Javanese), including making a Big Kawi-Bali-Dutch Dictionary until he died on August 17, 1894. Before he died he had to be sent to Surabaya because of his illness. He was treated in a military hospital and finally died on August 17, 1894 and was then buried in the Peneleh European Cemetery. (nng).