Bapak ganti nama demi ibu, malah jadi masalah
B1 Indonesian listening practice · Indonesian · Curated for intermediate learners
What does “sontoloyo” mean in Indonesian?
A dad legally changes his name to “Ronan” (after a Hollywood star), and his wife is unimpressed: «Sontoloyo kamu pak» (“you fool, dad”). Sontoloyo is a playful Javanese-Indonesian insult, “fool, silly, ridiculous.”
Originally a word for a careless duck-herder, it shot back into everyday use when President Jokowi scolded “politikus sontoloyo” (“ridiculous politicians”). It lands as exasperated affection more than real venom, here paired with elek (“ugly,” from Javanese). For learners it’s a softer, funnier way to call someone a clown without crossing the line.
Vocabulary frequency
How common is the vocabulary in this B1 Indonesian listening practice listening practice?
General Indonesian frequency
Spoken Indonesian frequency
Words above this video’s level
Quick glosses for vocabulary that goes beyond this video’s B1 level.
Source: wordfreq 3.1.1 (general) · OpenSubtitles 2018 (HermitDave) (spoken). Buckets approximate; exact ranks not stored.
- ▸In Indonesian comedy sketches and family bickering.
- ▸Famously, in Indonesian political jabs since Jokowi used it.
- ▸Alongside Javanese-flavoured words like elek (“ugly”).
- ▸In Indonesian memes mocking a silly idea.