Top 20 Similar Dutch Words Used In Bahasa Indonesia

Selamat datang!

Some now and then when I talk with my Indonesian girlfriend (Maria) we discover some new words that are similar in both languages. Initially, we react surprised but at the same time we enjoy those special moments since they, despite our long-distance-relationship, make us feel even more connected. Let me share our top 20 of words we have discovered so far.

Top 20 loan words (Dutch-Bahasa Indonesia-Meaning)

  1. Bank – Bank – Bank
  2. Bioscoop – Bioskop – Cinema
  3. Politie – Polisi – Police
  4. Pienter/intelligent – Pienter – Intelligent
  5. Boek – Buku – Book
  6. Dokter – dokter – Doctor
  7. Hallo – Halo – Hello
  8. Kost (More a Belgian word) – Kos – Room rental
  9. Lamp – Lampu – Lamp
  10. Gratis – Gratis – Free
  11. Motorfiets – Motor – Motor
  12. Oom – Om – Uncle
  13. Oma – Oma – Grandma
  14. Oranje – Oranye – Orange
  15. Rok – Rok – Skirt
  16. Roken – Rokok – Smoking
  17. Seks – Seks – Sex
  18. Sinterklaas – Sinterklas* – Santa Claus
  19. Thee – Teh – Tea
  20. Visie – Visi – Vision

* I didn’t expect that they have this word in Indonesia, since they don’t really celebrate Sinterklaas in Indonesia (please correct me if I’m wrong).

There are plenty more loanwords, for those who are interested you can find them here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_loanwords_in_Indonesian#From_Dutch.

Please let me know what your favorite loanword is. Just let me know if you think a special word is missing. Also feel free to share more interesting similarities between Indonesia and the Netherlands.

Dadah!

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