This book "This grammar is a description of formal Indonesian in that it is based on published texts rather than on colloquial material. Some of the texts were delivered as political speeches ; some are legal documents such as the Constitution and the Agrarian Laws ; some are textbooks intended for use in schools ; some are translations of books from other languages, generally through the medium of English ; and a few are novelettes and stories." - foreword. "Intended for the general student of the Indonesian language and the professional linguist, this short descriptive grammar is a useful guide as a well as a point of departure for more intensive study." - product description.

An essential source of reference for this linguistic community, as well as for linguists working on typology and syntax.