abang

See also: Abang

Languages (21)

Acehnese • Arem • Berawan • Betawi • Blagar • Brunei Malay • Cebuano • Central Bikol • Central Malay • Dupaningan Agta • Hiligaynon • Indonesian • Javanese • Karao • Makasar • Malay • Osing • Sambali • Simalungun Batak • Tagalog • Yogad

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Page categories

Acehnese

Acehnese Spelling
EBAYD	abang
Husaini
Jawoe	ابڠ

Etymology

From Proto-Austronesian *abaŋ (*aba +‎ *-ŋ), *aba (“father”). Compare Malay abang.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /abaŋ/
• Hyphenation: a‧bang

Noun

abang (Jawoe spelling ابڠ)

1. elder brother

   Synonyms: aduen, bang, cut, keukanda, lém, po

   Abang ka geujak u peukan ― Elder brother has gone to the market

References

• “abang”, in Kamus Aceh Indonesia [Acehnese-Indonesian Dictionary] (Seri K; 85), Seri 1. A-L [Volume 1. A-L] (eBook; overall work in Indonesian), Jakarta: Pusat Pembinaan dan Pengembangan Bahasa, Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan, 1985, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 2

Arem

Etymology

From Proto-Vietic *t-ɓaŋ from Proto-Austroasiatic *tɓaŋ (“bamboo shoots”). Cognate with Vietnamese măng, Muong băng, Khmer ទំពាំង (tumpĕəng), Bahnar tơ'băng.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [abaŋ]

Noun

abang

1. bamboo shoots

Further reading

• Michel Ferlus, 2014, Arem, a Vietic Language, Mon-Khmer Studies 43.1-15, page 7

Berawan

Noun

abang

1. window (opening for light and air)

Betawi

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /abaŋ/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aŋ
• Hyphenation: a‧bang

Etymology 1

From Malay abang, of uncertain origin.

Noun

abang (Arab Gundul spelling ابڠ)

1. elder brother

   Synonym: aa'

2. term of address for an older young man

   Synonyms: aa', akang

Alternative forms

• bang (vocative)

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Javanese ꦲꦧꦁ (abang, “red”).

Noun

abang (Arab Gundul spelling ابڠ)

1. red (the colour of the setting sun, blood, and strawberries)

   Synonym: mèra

Adjective

abang (Arab Gundul spelling ابڠ, equative seabang, comparative abangan, excessive keabangan)

1. red (of a red hue)

   Synonym: mèra

Derived terms

• abangan (“syncretic, unorthodox”)

Etymology 3

See abangan (“rain gutter”).

Further reading

• Chaer, A. (2009) [1976], “abang”, in Kamus dialek Jakarta [Dictionary of the Jakarta dialect], revised edition (in Indonesian), Depok: Masup Jakarta, →ISBN, page 1
• Batten, C. J. (1868), “Abang”, in De djoeroe basa Betawi: Eenvoudige Bataviaasch-Maleische woordenverzameling [The Betawi translator: A simple Batavian-Malay word collection] (in Dutch), Batavia: H. M. van Dorp, page 1

Anagrams

• bagan, gaban

Blagar

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /abaŋ/

Noun

abang

1. village

References

• A. Schapper, The Papuan Languages of Timor, Alor and Pantar: Volume 1

Brunei Malay

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /abaŋ/
• Hyphenation: a‧bang

Noun

abang

1. older brother

Cebuano

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: a‧bang

Verb

abang

1. to lease; to rent
2. to hire a prostitute

Noun

abang

1. a lease
2. a rent

Quotations

• For quotations using this term, see Citations:abang.

Anagrams

• baang, banag, banga

Central Bikol

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʔaˈbaŋ/ [ʔaˈbaŋ]
• Hyphenation: a‧bang

Etymology 1

From Proto-Central Philippine *abaŋ, from Proto-Philippine *abaŋ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *abaŋ.

Noun

abáng (Basahan spelling ᜀᜊᜅ᜔)

1. act of watching for, awaiting

Derived terms

• abangan
• mag-abang

Etymology 2

Adverb

abáng (Basahan spelling ᜀᜊᜅ᜔)

1. very, so

   Synonyms: marhay, abaana

   Abang estrikto kan magurang niya

   His/her parents are so strict.

   Abang sakit mong paintindihon

   (please add an English translation of this usage example)

Central Malay

Etymology

Borrowed from Javanese ꦲꦧꦁ (abang).

Adjective

abang

1. red

References

• "Besemah" in Greenhill, S.J., Blust, R., & Gray, R.D. (2008). The Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database: From Bioinformatics to Lexomics. Evolutionary Bioinformatics, 4:271–283.

Dupaningan Agta

Noun

abang

1. boat

Hiligaynon

Noun

abáng

1. avarice, greediness

Verb

ábang

1. to be within range of a fire

Indonesian

Pronunciation

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /ˈabaŋ/ [ˈa.baŋ]
• Rhymes: -abaŋ
• Syllabification: a‧bang

Etymology 1

Inherited from Malay abang, from Classical Malay ابڠ (abang), from Proto-Austronesian *abaŋ (*aba +‎ *-ŋ), *aba (“father”).

Alternative forms

• bang

Noun

abang (plural abang-abang)

1. (literally or figuratively, chiefly Sumatra, West Kalimantan and Jakarta) elder brother

   Umur abang saya lebih besar tiga tahun.

   My elder brother is three years older than me.

   Nanti malam aku akan ke rumah abang.

   Tonight, I will go to my elder brother's house.

2. a form of respect used for older young man
3. (chiefly West Kalimantan, Sumatra) a form of address to the husband in a marriage or marital relationship
4. (Banggai) a form of address to father's brother among the Banggai nobility
5. (Saluan) a form of address to an uncle who is descended from a king or nobleman

Usage notes

Used to address an elder brother or cousin, a male friend (who is older than oneself is), a husband or a boyfriend. Sometimes used before a name (Bang Samsul, etc). This form of address is used in the Malay-influenced regions (Sumatra, West Kalimantan and Jakarta).

Synonyms

• (older brother): see Thesaurus:abang

Derived terms

• abang-abangan
• berabang

• abang kul
• abang lah
• abang ucak

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Javanese ꦲꦧꦁ (abang, “red”).

Adjective

abang (comparative lebih abang, superlative paling abang)

1. (dialectal, chiefly Java) red

   Synonym: merah

Related terms

• abangan

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Totoli [Term?].

Noun

abang (plural abang-abang)

1. (colloquial, nautical) upper steering wheel tie-down point

Etymology 4

Borrowed from Lun Bawang [Term?].

Noun

abang (plural abang-abang)

1. a treetop seat to watch for animals in the forest to be caught

Further reading

• “abang”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016

Javanese

Romanization

abang

1. romanization of ꦲꦧꦁ

Karao

Noun

abang

1. rent money

Makasar

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈabaŋ/, [ˈa.bãŋ]
• Hyphenation: a‧bang

Noun

abang (Lontara spelling ᨕᨅ or 𑻱𑻤, definite abanga, 3rd person possessive abanna)

1. forehead

   Tinggi abanna ― His/her forehead is high (prominent).

   Assobai abanna ― A person experiencing baldness.

2. the outer side of a songkok or peci (excluding the top part, which is called tompoʼ)
3. the narrow, circular edge of a mattress

Further reading

• Cense, A. A. (1979), Makassaars-Nederlands woordenboek [Makasar-Dutch dictionary], 's-Gravenhage: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN

Malay

Alternative forms

• (Etymology 1): bang, bung

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [a.baŋ]

  • Audio (Malaysia):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -baŋ, -aŋ
• Hyphenation: a‧bang

Etymology 1

From Classical Malay ابڠ (abang), from Old Malay habaŋ, from Proto-Austronesian *abaŋ (*aba +‎ *-ŋ), *aba (“father”). Doublet of awang. Sense of older sister in south of the Peninsular and Riau displaced by kakak.

Noun

abang (Jawi spelling ابڠ, plural abang-abang)

1. An older brother or male sibling.
2. (obsolete, Johor, Riau) - older sister or female sibling, ellipsis of abang perempuan

   Synonym: kakak

3. form of address to a male a little older than oneself, but sometimes also to an elder son.
4. form of address used by a wife to a husband.

   Synonyms: kanda, sayang

Affixations

• berabang
• berabangkan

Compounds

• abang angkat (“adoptive brother”)
• Abang Bomba (“affectionate name for a friendly firefighter”)
• abang ipar (“brother-in-law”)
• abang kandung (“biological brother”)
• abang tiri (“stepbrother”)

Descendants

• Malay: Bang, abam
• Indonesian: abang
• → Min Nan: 阿班 (a-pan)
• → Thai: บัง (bang)

See also

• kakak
• kakanda - in royal register
• engko
• nana
• uda

Etymology 2

From Javanese abang.

Noun

abang (Jawi spelling ابڠ, plural abang-abang)

1. (rare) The colour red.

   Synonym: merah

References

• Pijnappel, Jan (1875), “ابڠ abang”, in Maleisch-Hollandsch woordenboek, John Enschede en Zonen, Frederik Muller, page 1
• Wilkinson, Richard James (1901), “ابڠ abang”, in A Malay-English dictionary, Hong Kong: Kelly & Walsh limited, page 2
• Wilkinson, Richard James (1932), “abang”, in A Malay-English dictionary (romanised), volume I, Mytilene, Greece: Salavopoulos & Kinderlis, page 1

Bibliography

• "abang" in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu (PRPM) [Malay Literary Reference Centre (PRPM)] (in Malay), Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017
  (also see "abang" at PRPM first version)
• Claudine Salmon (2009), “Malay (and Javanese) Loan-words in Chinese as a Mirror of Cultural Exchanges”, in Archipel‎^[2], volume 78, pages 181-208

Osing

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈa.bʲaŋ/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: abang
• Rhymes: -aŋ

Adjective

abang

1. red

Derived terms

• abang-abang lambé
• ngabang

Further reading

• Ali, Hasan (2002), “abang”, in Kamus Bahasa Daerah Using-Indonesia [Osingese-Indonesian Dictionary]‎^[3], 1st edition (in Indonesian), Banyuwangi: Pemerintah Kabupaten Banyuwangi, page 1

Sambali

Noun

abang

1. rent

Simalungun Batak

Noun

abang

1. elder brother (clarification of this definition is needed)

References

• Zufri Hidayat et al. (2015). Kamus Bahasa Simalungun–Indonesia (2nd ed.). Medan: Balai Bahasa Provinsi Sumatera Utara, p. 1.

Tagalog

Etymology

From Proto-Central Philippine *abaŋ, from Proto-Philippine *abaŋ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *abaŋ. Compare Aklanon abang, Balinese ambang, and Kambera amba.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ʔaˈbaŋ/ [ʔɐˈbaŋ]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aŋ
• Syllabification: a‧bang

Noun

abáng (Baybayin spelling ᜀᜊᜅ᜔)

1. watcher

   Synonyms: bakay, bantay, guwardiya, tanod

2. trap; snare (placed or set up strategically)
3. act of waiting (for a person, an opportunity, etc.)

   Synonyms: abat, pag-abat

4. act of setting up a trap or snare

Derived terms

• abangan
• abangers
• ipag-abang
• mag-abang
• mag-abang-abang
• mang-abang
• mangabang
• pag-aabang
• pag-abang
• pangangabang
• tagaabang

Further reading

• “abang”, in KWF Diksiyonaryo ng Wikang Filipino, Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino, 2025
• “abang”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, 2018
• Blust, Robert; Trussel, Stephen; et al. (2023) “*abaŋ₁”, in the CLDF dataset from The Austronesian Comparative Dictionary (2010–), →DOI

Anagrams

• gaban, banga, baang

Yogad

Noun

abáng

1. boat