Where does “ikan duyung” come from?
ikan duyung (Malay) comes from Malay ikan, from Proto-Malayic ikan, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian hikan, from Proto-Austronesian Sikan — fish.
ikan duyung (Malay): dugong
Ancestry of “ikan duyung”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Malay | ikan | fish |
| 2 | Proto-Malayic | ikan | fish |
| 3 | Proto-Malayo-Polynesian | hikan | fish |
| 4 | Proto-Austronesian | Sikan | fish |