Wiktionary

pontianak

See also: Pontianak

English

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Malay pontianak.

Noun

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pontianak (countable and uncountable, plural pontianaks)

  1. (countable) A female vampiric ghost in Malaysian and Indonesian mythology, said to be the spirit of a woman who died while pregnant.
    • 2009, Andrew Hock-Soon Ng, “"Death and the Maide": The Pontianak as Excess in Malay Popular Culture”, in John Edgar Browning, Caroline Joan Picart, editors, Draculas, Vampires, and Other Undead Forms: Essays on Gender, Race and Culture:
      One of the most fearsome creatures of Malay folklore is the pontianak.
  2. Alternative form of pontianac (“fossil resin”)
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Kristang

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Etymology

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From Malay pontianak.

Noun

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pontianak

  1. A female vampiric ghost, said to be the spirit of a woman who died while pregnant.

Malay

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Etymology

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From portmanteau in Sanggau pontianak, ponti (“carry”) +‎ anak (“child”).

Noun

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pontianak

  1. A female vampiric ghost, said to be the spirit of a woman who died while pregnant.

Derived terms

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(toponyms):

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