nir-

Indonesian

Etymology

Inherited from Malay nir-, from Sanskrit निर् (nir), the alternative form of निस् (nis, “out, forth, away”, adverb). Either learned or exctracted from earlier loans such as nirwana, nirmala, etc.

Pronunciation

(Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /nir/ [nɪr]
Syllabification: nir-

Prefix

nir-

a-, an-, non-, -less
Coordinate terms: awa-, tak, tan-

nirguna ― useless

nirkabel ― wireless

nirtunai ― cashless

nirlaba ― nonprofit

nirkala ― timeless

nirmala ― flawless

nirempati ― heartless (literally, “devoid of empathy”)

Derived terms

References

“nir-”, 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

Malay

Etymology

Initially from Sanskrit निर् (nir) alternative form of निस् (nis, “out, forth, away”, adverb) in loanwords such as nirmala and nirwana^[1] but ceased to be productive at an unknown period (whether after advent of Islam since the 16th century or divergence after colonial partition of Malayophone areas in 1824). Revived in the Malaysian variety by reanalysis of said existing Sanskrit loans as well as influence of Indonesian nir- above; popularised by Malaysian technology website Amanz since the late 2010s. Doublet of nis-.

Pronunciation

(schwa-variety) IPA^(key): /ˈnir/ [ˈnir], /ˈne(r)/ [ˈne(r)]
(Literary Standard) IPA^(key): /nir/ [nir]
Hyphenation: nir-

Prefix

nir- (Jawi spelling نير-)

a-, an-, non-, -less
Synonyms: tanpa, nis-

nirwayar ― wireless

nirmala ― pure, free from uncleanness

nirwana ― nirvana

Derived terms

Malay terms prefixed with nir-

nirmala

nirwayar

References

^ 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 128

[1] 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 128

[1]