Tidore Administration Pushes for Language Revitalization Through Teacher Train

RRI.CO.ID, Tidore - The Maluku Utara Provincial Language Center (Balai Bahasa), in collaboration with the Tidore Islands City Administration, held a technical guidance (bimtek) session for primary language teachers on Wednesday, April 8, 2026, at the Tidore Education Office Hall, brought together elementary and middle school teachers to strengthen the preservation of the Tidore language.

Asistant Secretary for Economy and Development, Taher Husain, emphasized that the Tidore language is a vital part of the community's identity and cultural wealth. He warned that without active intervention, future generations risk losing their ancestral tongue to the forces of globalization.

A significant objective of this revitalization effort is to secure official recognition of Tidore as an independent regional language, rather than it being classified merely as a dialect of Ternate.

“This is certainly a breath of fresh air for the local administration and community in efforts to push for the status of the Tidore language to be recognized as an independent regional language,” Taher said, as quoted by Infopublik.id.

The program involves a strategic partnership between educators, linguists, and literary figures to ensure the language remains relevant for future generations. As part of this educational outreach, training sessions specifically focus on teachers who will be responsible for implementing regional language curricula within schools.

To support these academic efforts, the administration is promoting increased daily usage, encouraging citizens to use the Tidore language in their everyday lives while still maintaining Indonesian as the unifying national language.

The initiative also benefits from significant expert input, featuring insights from speakers such as Acting Head of the Education Agency Jamil Hadi, language educators Yurna Idrus and Ervan Widyas Saputra, and noted writer Rian Kamary.

The city administration views this training as a strategic step toward ensuring that Tidore’s cultural heritage remains intact. By empowering teachers and fostering a sense of pride in local linguistics, the regency aims to protect its regional identity against the rapid pace of modern linguistic shifts.

The recognition of regional languages is considered highly important because it relates to the identity of the Tidore community and the cultural richness contained within it. Amidst globalization, the administration fears that if the local language is no longer used, the region's successors will lose touch with their linguistic heritage.

This technical guidance serves as a strategic step in pushing for the Tidore language to be recognized as a standalone language rather than just a dialect. Furthermore, the initiative encourages the public to use Tidore in their daily lives to ensure it is not eroded by the development of other languages. ***