Where does “bawang merah” come from?

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

bawang merah (Malay): shallot

Definitions

  1. shallot

Ancestry of “bawang merah”, step by step

bawang merah traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Malay merah

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

via Malay bawang

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Malaybawanga generic name for onion, include garlic, leek etc
Every word from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian (ma-)iʀaq →Every word from Proto-Malayic (mA-)irah →Every word from Malay mirah →