merdeka

From Malay merdeka, from Classical Malay مرديكا (mĕrdeka), from Sanskrit महर्द्धिक (maharddhika, “prosperous”). Cognate of Javanese ꦩꦂꦢꦶꦏ (mardika), Buginese ᨆᨑᨙᨉᨀ (maradeka), Tagalog maharlika. Doublet of mahardika.

• IPA^(key): [mərˈdɛka]
• Rhymes: -ka, -a
• Hyphenation: mêrdèka

mêrdèka

1. free from oppression (e.g. slavery)
2. (politics) free from colonialism, annexation, military occupation, etc.; liberated; independent

   Indonesia sudah dinyatakan merdeka sejak 17 Agustus 1945. ― Indonesia has been declared to be independent since 17 August 1945.

3. (rare) free from an obligation, especially a prison sentence
4. (rare) self-sufficient; independent; not dependent on others

• mandiri (“self-sufficient”)

• “merdeka” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

• merdeheka

Elision of merdeheka from Sanskrit महर्द्धिक (maharddhika, “prosperous”), first attested in the Kota Kapur inscription, 686 CE, as Old Malay [script needed] (maharddhika), Cognate of Buginese ᨆᨑᨙᨉᨀ, Tagalog maharlika.

• IPA^(key): /mərdeka/
  • (Johor-Riau) IPA^(key): [mə(r)dekə]
  • Note: This "Johor-Riau" pronunciation does not occur in the modern Malaysian variety of Johor-Riau Malay probably due to the influence of Tunku Abdul Rahman's historic "merdeka" chant with his Kedah Malay accent which does not have the same final-/a/ allophony as Johor-Riau Malay.
• Rhymes: -ka, -a

merdeka (Jawi spelling مرديک)

1. free; the state of being liberated

   Synonyms: bebas, بيبس

   Antonyms: terkurung, ترکوروڠ

   • 2005, A. Samad Said, A. Samad Said: Sebuah antologi puisi yang menghimpunkan karya-karya selama setengah abad [A. Samad Said: An anthology of poems assembled from works spanning half a century], Utusan Publications, Langsir Merdeka (Poem No. 119), page 394:

     Setiap fajar begitu dihayati ufuk merdeka; kebahagiaan yang wajib kita membinanya.

     Every hue of dawn is much appreciated by the horizon of freedom; happiness that is compulsory for all of us to build.

2. (of a polity) independent (not ruled by others)
   • 1957 August 31, Tunku Abdul Rahman, Pemasyhuran Kemerdekaan Tanah Melayu [Malayan Declaration of Independence]:

     بهاواسڽ كران تله تيباله ماسڽ باڬي اومت ڤرسكوتوان تانه ملايو اين منچاڤأي تارف سواتو بڠسا يڠ مرديك لاڬي بردولت سام ستيمڤل كدودوكنڽ دڠن سڬالا بڠسا سلوروه دنيا

     (Bahawasanya kerana telah tibalah masanya bagi umat Persekutuan Tanah Melayu ini mencapai taraf suatu bangsa yang merdeka lagi berdaulat sama setimpal kedudukannya dengan segala bangsa seluruh dunia.)

     Whereas the time has now arrived when the people of the Persekutuan Tanah Melayu will assume the status of a free independent and sovereign nation among nations of the World.

   • 2018 February 16, Normazlina M.D, “Simbol negara merdeka [Symbol of an independent nation]”, in Media Permata‎, archived from the original on 18 August 2019:

     Bendera negara bukan hanya sekadar sehelai kain yang mempunyai warna atau motif tertentu bahkan ia adalah simbol identiti sesebuah negara yang merdeka lagi berdaulat.

     The national flag is not just a piece of cloth that has a certain color or motif. In fact, it is a symbol of the identity of a nation that is independent and sovereign.

• Indonesian: mêrdèka
• → English: Merdeka

• Edi Sedyawati, Ellya Iswati, Kusparyati Boedhijono, Dyah Widjajanti D. (1994) Kosakata Bahasa Sanskerta dalam Bahasa Melayu Masa Kini, Jakarta, Indonesia: Pusat Pembinaan dan Pengembangan Bahasa. Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Republik Indonesia, →ISBN, page 251
• Wilkinson, Richard James (1932) “mĕrdĕheka”, in A Malay-English dictionary (romanised), volume II, Mytilene, Greece: Salavopoulos & Kinderlis, page 134

• “merdeka” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.
• "merdeka" in Kamus Dewan, Fourth Edition, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, →ISBN, 2005.