Etymology

pontianak

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Today it means: A female vampiric ghost in Malaysian and Indonesian mythology, said to be the spirit of a woman who died while pregnant. Full definition →

Malay puntianak
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pontianak · noun1

  1. Malay · borrowed frompuntianak
  2. English todaypontianak

Borrowed from Malay puntianak.

Pontianak · proper noun2

  1. Indonesian · borrowed fromPontianak
  2. English todayPontianak

From Indonesian Pontianak, named for the pontianaks which were popularly thought to have once inhabited the site.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.