Traditional Javanese social organization varied in structure from relatively egalitarian villages to the highly stratified society of the cities, with their complex court life. These differences found linguistic expression in styles of speech that vary according to status differences between the persons speaking: an informal style, a polite style, an extremely polite style, and several others. These styles are more elaborate in Javanese than in other languages of the area and are used habitually.

The growth of large cities in Java has produced an urban proletariat, mostly of rural origin, who live in makeshift huts in enclosed neighbourhoods called kampongs. Javanese villages are compact groups of single-family houses, generally built of bamboo, surrounding a central square. Though rice is the main food crop, a variety of others are produced, including corn (maize), cassava, peanuts (groundnuts), and soybeans.

The Javanese family is typically composed of parents and dependent children, though it may include other close relatives. Most first marriages are arranged by the parents; but divorce is easy, and women are relatively free to leave their husbands.