pontianak

See also: Pontianak

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Malay pontianak.

Noun

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”)

Related terms

• pontianac

Kristang

Etymology

From Malay pontianak.

Noun

pontianak

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

Malay

Etymology

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

Noun

pontianak

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

Derived terms

(toponyms):

• Pontianak

 

Related terms

• kuntilanak