Where does “butuh” come from?
butuh (Indonesian) comes from Malay butuh, from Proto-Malayic butuh, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian butuq, from Proto-Austronesian buCuq — testicles.
butuh (Indonesian): to need
Ancestry of “butuh”, step by step
butuh traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Malay butuh
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Malay | butuh | penis; to need |
| 2 | Proto-Malayic | butuh | penis |
| 3 | Proto-Malayo-Polynesian | butuq | testicles |
| 4 | Proto-Austronesian | buCuq | testicles |
via Javanese ꦧꦸꦠꦸꦃ
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Javanese | ꦧꦸꦠꦸꦃ | to need |
| 2 | Old Javanese | botoh | to bet; to wager; gambler |
| 3 | Old Javanese | toh | pledge, stake: That which is laid down as a wager; that which is staked or hazarded |
| 4 | Proto-Malayo-Polynesian | taʀuq | to store, put away for safekeeping, hide valuables |
Words derived from “butuh”