PETALING JAYA: Politicians have questioned why an outdated definition remains on an online dictionary website run by Dewan Bahasa that uses a term that many consider a slur.
The slur word “keling” is shown in a definition for the Tamil word “tambi” from the Kamus Pelajar, second edition. However, an updated definition is contained in the fourth edition of Kamus Dewan, the main dictionary of the language agency.
Klang MP Charles Santiago said it was disappointing to see such language remain in an official reference on a government website. Batu Kawan MP Kasthuri Patto said she read the definition with “utter shock and disgust”.
The outdated definition appears when a search for the word “tambi” is conducted at the Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu, the online dictionary.
The first result is the definition “panggilan utk orang Keling yg lebih muda drpd kita” with a secondary definition of a “peon” or office boy. However, the definition in the Kamus Dewan, fourth edition, is “panggilan utk orang India yg berpangkat adik”.
Santiago said “the people who have left it there have not taken into consideration issues of national unity” and urged national unity minister Halimah Sadique to intervene. - FMT
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