mamak

See also: mamák

English

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Malay mamak.

Noun

mamak (plural mamaks)

1. (Malaysia, Singapore) A roadside stall selling Muslim Tamil or Malay cuisine; by extension, a restaurant that sells similar foods.
   • 2022 December 29, Jocelyn Tan, “A guide to the best Indian rojak stalls in Singapore”, in Lifestyle Asia‎^[1]:

     To the untrained eye, any dish that’s labelled ‘rojak’ looks like a hot mess. However, you can’t make your way to Singapore without having a taste of authentic Mamak Rojak [...]

2. (Malaysia, Singapore) A person who owns or works in such an establishment
3. (Malaysia, Singapore) A Tamil Muslim

Derived terms

• mamak stall

Malay

Etymology

Several etymologies have been proposed:

• Borrowed from Tamil மாமா (māmā). Compare Telugu మామ (māma).
• Borrowed from Sanskrit मामा (māmā). Compare Hindi मामा (māmā), Marathi मामा (māmā).
• Inherited from Proto-Malayic *mama(ʔ), from Proto-Austronesian *amax. Compare Temuan mamak, Kerinci mamak, Kubu mamok, Tagalog mama.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmamaʔ/
• Rhymes: -amak, -mak, -ak

Noun

mamak (Jawi spelling مامق, plural mamak-mamak, informal 1st possessive mamakku, 2nd possessive mamakmu, 3rd possessive mamaknya)

1. a maternal uncle or elder brother; the male head of a household
2. (slang) a Tamil Muslim
3. a roadside stall or restaurant that sells Muslim Tamil or Malay cuisine

Synonyms

• (maternal uncle): pakcik

Descendants

• → Chinese:
  • Cantonese: 嘛嘛 (maa3 maa3)
  • Mandarin: 嘛嘛 (mama)
• → English: mamak
• Indonesian: mamak

References

• “mamak”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• "mamak" in Kamus Dewan, Fourth Edition, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, →ISBN, 2005.
• “mamak” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.

Tagalog

Noun

mamák (Baybayin spelling ᜋᜋᜃ᜔)

1. rice straw

   Synonyms: dayami, ginikan, yaot