Glossary of Foreign Words and Phrases
This glossary defines all foreign words used in the novel. Present-day Malay spellings are indicated and follow the
Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia
(Jakarta: Ministry of Education, 1988; 2nd edition, 1989).
absit omen:
(Latin) May the omens be favourable
ach:
(German) oh
ach so:
(German) I see
ah ça! par exemple:
(French) What a thing, indeed!
allez:
(French) come on
bien entendu:
(French) of course
bleibt ganz ruhig:
(German) keep quite still
campong:
(Malay, now
kampong
) hamlet or small village comprising clusters of houses and gardens
cassis à l'eau:
(French) water mixed with slightly fermented blackcurrant juice taken as a cordial
c'est bien ça:
(French) yes, quite right
Dieu merci:
(French) thank God
Donnerwetter:
(German) by thunder; literally, âthunder weather'
eh bien:
(French) oh, well
enfin:
(French) well
es ist ein' Idee:
(German) that's a thought
ewig:
(German) forever
Ewigkeit:
(German) âeternity' or âthe everlasting'
gelungen:
(German) successfully achieved; finished
gewiss:
(German) of course
gharry:
(Hindi; later Anglo-Indian) small box-like horse- or pony-drawn carriage for hire
gharry-wallah:
(Hindi; later Anglo-Indian) a
wallah
is someone performing a task (here driving a gharry)
Gott im Himmel:
(German) good heavens (literally, âGod in heaven')
in articulo mortis:
(Latin) at the point of death
Inchi:
(Malay, now
encik
) roughly equivalent to âMr'
ja! ja!:
(German) well, well
kris:
(Malay:
keris
) dagger, sometimes of serpentine shape and ornamented
marins de l'Ãtat:
(French) naval personnel
mein Gott:
(German) my God
mon Dieu:
(French) good God
na:
(German) and so
nakhoda:
(Malay from Persian) âmaster' or âcaptain'; a shipowner or his representative in a ship and, by extension, a merchant
naturellement:
(French) of course
nicht wahr:
(German) isn't that so
pangeran:
(Malay) prince
panglima:
(Malay) general or commander
parbleu:
(French) by Jove
que diable:
(French) what the devil
rajahs:
(Malay from Hindi) local rulers or âkings'
sarong:
(Malay) piece of clothing made of a single piece of cloth tied at the waist and covering to above the ankle
schön:
(German) fine
schwein:
(German) âpig' or âswine'
sehen Sie:
(German) you see
serangs:
(Malay) boatswains
serviteur:
(French) your servant
solah topi:
(Hindi, later colonial English) pith helmet
soutane:
(French) cassock: the full-length black garment formerly worn by Roman Catholic priests as daily apparel
table d'hôte:
(French) fixed bill of fare or a public dining-room in a hotel
tunku:
(Malay) title of respect indicating noble rank; roughly equivalent to âlord'
usque ad finem:
(Latin) until the very last
verdomde:
(Dutch) âcursed' or âdamned'
verfluchte:
Damned, or similar, from German
verfluchen
, to curse
was:
(German) what?
wie:
(German) how?