mambang

Javanese

Alternative forms

Javanese writing system
Carakan	ꦩꦩ꧀ꦧꦁ
Roman	mambang (standard), membang (nonstandard)

Etymology

From Old Javanese mambaṅ (“a group of people (of foreign provenance?)”).

Noun

mambang

1. unknown creature; foreign
2. divine being; fairy
3. (colloquial) floating

Malay

Etymology 1

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *baŋbaŋ (“reddish”).

Noun

mambang (Jawi spelling ممبڠ, plural mambang-mambang)

1. ghost; spirit

   Synonym: hantu

2. personification of the sunset-glow

   Synonym: mambang kuning

Etymology 2

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *bambaŋən (“a fish, the snapper”).

Noun

mambang (Jawi spelling ممبڠ)

1. Lutjanus sanguineus, a kind of fish

   Synonyms: bambang, bambangan

Further reading

• “mambang” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.

Sundanese

Noun

mambang

1. kind of divine being, fairy

References

1. Sundanese-english dictionary by R.R Hardjadibrata