Where does “orang utan” come from?
orang utan (Indonesian) comes from Indonesian utan, from Indonesian hutan, from Malay hutan, from Proto-Malayic hutan, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian qutan, from Proto-Austronesian quCaN — scrubland; bush.
orang utan (Indonesian): orangutan
Ancestry of “orang utan”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Indonesian | utan | Alternative spelling of hutan; forest |
| 2 | Indonesian | hutan | forest |
| 3 | Malay | hutan | forest |
| 4 | Proto-Malayic | hutan | forest |
| 5 | Proto-Malayo-Polynesian | qutan | scrubland; bush |
| 6 | Proto-Austronesian | quCaN | scrubland; bush |