Where does “merah jambu” come from?

merah jambu (Indonesian) comes from Indonesian merah, from Malay merah, from Malay mirah, from Proto-Malayic (mA-)irah, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian (ma-)iʀaq — red.

merah jambu (Indonesian): pink

Definitions

  1. pink

Ancestry of “merah jambu”, step by step

merah jambu traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Indonesian merah

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Indonesianmerahred
2Malaymerahred
3MalaymirahObsolete form of merah
4Proto-Malayic(mA-)irah
5Proto-Malayo-Polynesian(ma-)iʀaqred

via Indonesian jambu

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Indonesianjamburose apple
2Malayjamburose apple
3Sanskritजम्बुthe rose apple tree; the shrub नागदमनी; the rose...

via Malay merah jambu

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Malaymerah jambupink
Every word from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian (ma-)iʀaqEvery word from Proto-Malayic (mA-)irahEvery word from Malay mirah