tai babal

Betawi

FWOTD – 10 June 2025

tai babal

Etymology

By surface analysis, tai (“excrement”) +‎ babal, likely an eggcorn derived from dialectal Sundanese tibabal (“jackfruit bud”) and influenced by Javanese ꦧꦧꦭ꧀ (babal, “jackfruit bud”). Compare Yakan tibabal (“cooked unripe jackfruit”), Balinese ᬓᬢᬶᬯᬯᬮᬦ᭄ (katiwawalan, “jackfruit bud, unripe jackfruit”), and Malay kebabal (“unripe jackfruit”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tai babal/, [ta.i baˈbal]
• Hyphenation: ta‧i‧ba‧bal

Noun

tai babal

1. A budding male jackfruit inflorescence (which will not ripen into a fruit)

   Synonyms: babal, tongtolang

   • 2021, Bang Ilok, “Pepes Ala Betawi [Pepes a la Batavia]”, in Betawi Punya Cerita [Batavian Anecdotes], Bogor: Guepedia, →ISBN, page 43:

     Dulu kalo abis Jabrug, minyak goreng kaga gableg, entuh ikan cupang, sikmelik, udang, ungkuy-ungkuy ama klipaan enaknya dibungkus ama daon pisang, dibebekin tai babal kasih bumbu cabe, bawang ama asem entuh jadi dah pepes.

     [Dulu kalo abis jabrug, minyak gorèng kaga gableg, entuh ikan cupang, sikmelik, udang, ungkuy-ungkuy ama klipaan ènaknya dibungkus ama daon pisang, dibebekin tai babal, kasih bumbu cabé, bawang ama asem—entuh jadi, dah, pèpès.]

     Back then, whenever net fishing was done and there was no cooking oil, those bettas, whitespots, shrimps, ungkuy-ungkuy, and klipaan had better be wrapped in banana leaves, mixed with pounded jackfruit buds, spiced with chili pepper, shallots, and tamarind—there you go, a leaf-wrapped meal.

   • 2023 February 21, BANGIJAL TV, 0:11 from the start, in bebek tai babal [pounded jackfruit buds]‎^[1] (short), via YouTube:

     Abis itu, tai babalnya gua lelep-lelepin di aèr, sambil gua copot-copotin tangkénya.

     Then, I got the jackfruit buds immersed in water, while I'm removing the stalks.

Usage notes

Should be differentiated from gori (“baby jackfruit”), which does develop into cècèk (“unripe jackfruit”) and later nangka (“ripe jackfruit”).

Further reading

• Chaer, A. (2009) [1976] “babal”, in Kamus dialek Jakarta [Dictionary of the Jakarta dialect], revised edition (in Indonesian), Depok: Masup Jakarta, →ISBN, page 22