Hantu (supernatural creature)

Hantu is the Malay and Indonesian word for spirit or ghost.^[1] In modern usage it generally means spirits of the dead but has also come to refer to any legendary invisible being, such as demons.^[2] In its traditional context the term also referred to animistic nature spirits or ancestral souls.^[3] The word is derived from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *qanitu and Proto-Austronesian *qaNiCu. Cognates in other Austronesian languages include the Micronesian aniti, Lio language nitu, Yami anito, Taivoan alid, Seediq and Atayal utux, Bunun hanitu or hanidu, Polynesian aitu or atua, and Tsou hicu among the Formosan languages.^[4]^[5] In terms of concept and place in traditional folklore, it is most similar to the Filipino anito.

^ Linguistik Indonesia (in Indonesian). Yayasan Obor Indonesia. p. 45. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
^ Knappert, Jan (1992). Pacific Mythology: An Encyclopedia of Myth and Legend. Aquarian Press. p. 61. ISBN 9781855381339. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
^ Bane, Theresa (2012). Encyclopedia of Demons in World Religions and Cultures. McFarland. p. 162. ISBN 9780786488940. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
^ Julian Baldick, ed. (2013). Ancient Religions of the Austronesian World: From Australasia to Taiwan. I.B.Tauris. p. 3. ISBN 9780857733573.
^ Leberecht Funk (2014). "Entanglements between Tao People and Anito on Lanyu Island, Taiwan". In Y. Musharbash & G.H. Presterudstuen (ed.). Monster Anthropology in Australasia and Beyond. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 143–159. doi:10.1057/9781137448651_9. ISBN 9781137448651.