Bhāṣā

 ( Indian Words And Phrases ) 

Bhāṣā (or one of its derived forms) is the word for "language" in many South Asia and languages, which derives from the Sanskrit word भाषा ' meaning "speech" or "spoken language". In transliteration from Sanskrit or Pali, bhasa may also be spelled bhasa , basa , or phasa'''.

The word Bahasa in English is sometimes used to refer specifically to the Malay language (including Indonesian and Malaysian standards), this standalone usage however is considered incorrect within the language: "Bahasa Indonesia: The Indonesian Language," George Quinn, Australian National University when referring to other languages, a non-capitalized bahasa ("language") is used preceding a toponym or ethnonym (e.g. bahasa Ingg eris "English", bahasa Italia "Italian"). However, bahasa could also be expanded to refer to any lect from one of a particular region ( bahasa daerah) to one only used personally (idiolect, bahasa ).

• Rules on the use of Languages (bhāṣā), Chapter XVIII of the Nāṭyaśāstra