Where does “mahasewa” come from?

mahasewa (Indonesian) comes from Indonesian mahasiswa, from Malay mahasiswa, from Sanskrit महाशिष्य.

mahasewa (Indonesian): a (group of) university student(s), especially those allegedly paid by political actors to organise demonstrations

Definitions

  1. a (group of) university student(s), especially those allegedly paid by political actors to organise demonstrations

Ancestry of “mahasewa”, step by step

mahasewa traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Indonesian mahasiswa

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Indonesianmahasiswauniversity student
2Malaymahasiswauniversity student
3Sanskritमहाशिष्य—

via Indonesian sewa

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Indonesiansewarent
2Malaysewasomething that is rented
3Arabicسَاوَىto equal; to cost
Every word from Sanskrit महाशिष्य →Every word from Malay mahasiswa →Every word from Indonesian mahasiswa →