laksa

See also: Lakså and laksa'

English

Etymology

From Malay laksa.

Noun

laksa (countable and uncountable, plural laksas)

1. A spicy noodle stew from Indonesia or Malaysia.

Derived terms

• Penang laksa

Translations

a spicy stew from Indonesia or Malaysia

• Arabic: لَاكْسَا f (lāksā)
• Bulgarian: лакса f (laksa)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 叻沙 (lak⁶ saa¹)

  Hokkien: 叻沙 (la̍k-sá / lak-sa)

  Mandarin: 喇沙 (zh) (lǎshā), 叻沙 (zh) (lèshā)

• Finnish: laksa
• German: Laksa f
• Indonesian: laksa (id)
• Japanese: ラクサ (rakusa)
• Korean: 락사 (raksa)
• Malay: laksa (ms)
• Polish: laksa f
• Russian: ла́кса (ru) f (láksa)
• Spanish: laksa f
• Thai: ละก์ซา (lá-saa)

Anagrams

• Laska, Skala, salak

Cebuano

Cebuano numbers ^(edit)

[a], [b] ←  1,000	←  9,000	10,000	100,000  → [a], [b], [c]	1,000,000 (106)  → [a], [b]
		1,000[a], [b]
Cardinal: usá ka laksà, laksà, napulò ka libo     Spanish cardinal: diyes mil

Etymology

Borrowed from Malay laksa (“ten thousand”), from Sanskrit लक्ष (lakṣa, “hundred thousand”).

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: lak‧sa
• IPA^(key): /ˈlaksaʔ/ [ˈl̪ak.s̪ɐʔ]

Numeral

laksà

1. ten thousand

   Synonym: napulo ka libo

Indonesian

Pronunciation

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /ˈlaksa/ [ˈlak̚.sa]
• Rhymes: -aksa
• Syllabification: lak‧sa

Etymology 1

From Malay laksa, from Classical Malay لقسا (laksa), from Sanskrit लक्ष (lakṣa, “hundred thousand”).

Numeral

laksa

1. (obsolete) ten thousand

Etymology 2

From Malay laksa, possibly either:

• Classical Persian لاکچه (lākča, “pasta put into broth”)
• Sanskrit लाक्षा (lākṣā, “red dye; lac”)

Compare Old Javanese lāka (“lac; red”).

Noun

laksa (plural laksa-laksa)

1. laksa, a spicy stew from Indonesia or Malaysia

Further reading

• “laksa”, 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

Pronunciation

• (Johor-Selangor) IPA^(key): /laksə/
• (Riau-Lingga) IPA^(key): /laksa/

Etymology 1

From possibly either:

• Classical Persian لاکچه (lākča, “pasta put into broth”)
• Sanskrit लाक्षा (lākṣā, “red dye; lac”)

Noun

laksa (Jawi spelling لقسا, plural laksa-laksa or laksa²)

1. laksa (a spicy stew from Indonesia or Malaysia)

Descendants

• Indonesian: laksa
• → English: laksa
• Macanese: lacassá

Etymology 2

Malay cardinal numbers

<  103	104	105  >
Cardinal : laksa

From Sanskrit लक्ष (lakṣa, “hundred thousand”).

Numeral

laksa (Jawi spelling لقسا)

1. ten thousand

   Synonym: puluh ribu

Descendants

• Indonesian: laksa
• → Cebuano: laksa
• → Tagalog: laksa

Further reading

• "laksa" in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu (PRPM) [Malay Literary Reference Centre (PRPM)] (in Malay), Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017

Polish

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “compare lax, relax, laxative”)

Pronunciation

• (Greater Poland):
  • (Central Greater Poland) IPA^(key): [ˈlak.sa]
• (Masovia):
  • (Łowicz) IPA^(key): [ˈlak.sa]

Noun

laksa f

1. (Poznań) synonym of maź (“slime, grease”)
2. (Poznań) synonym of sperma (“semen”)
3. (Łowicz) synonym of biegunka (“diarrhea”)

Further reading

• Waldemar Wierzba (2013), “laksa”, in Słownik Poznańskie słowa i ausdrucki (in Polish), 1st edition, Mierzyn: Albus, →ISBN, page 128
• Marzena Kozanecka-Zwierz, Magdalena Bartosiewicz, Renata Marciniak-Firadza, editors (2014), “laksa”, in Gwara – Księżaków "język ojczysty" Dziedzictwo regionu łowickiego (in Polish), Łowicz: Muzeum w Łowiczu, →ISBN, page 37

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈlaɡsa/ [ˈlaɣ̞.sa]
• Rhymes: -aɡsa
• Syllabification: lak‧sa

Noun

laksa f (plural laksas)

1. laksa

Tagalog

Tagalog numbers ^(edit)

		10,000	100,000  → [a], [b]	10,000,000 (107)  →
		1,000
Cardinal: sampung libo, sanlaksa     Spanish cardinal: diyes mil     Ordinal: ikasampung libo, pansampung libo, ikalaksa, ikasanlaksa, pansanlaksa     Ordinal abbreviation: ika-10000, pang-10000     Collective: laksa
Tagalog Wikipedia article on 10,000

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Malay laksa (“ten thousand”), from Sanskrit लक्ष (lakṣa, “hundred thousand”). Compare Maranao laksa', Tausug laksa', and English lakh.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /lakˈsaʔ/ [lɐkˈsaʔ]
• Rhymes: -aʔ
• Syllabification: lak‧sa

Numeral

laksâ (Baybayin spelling ᜎᜃ᜔ᜐ) (archaic)

1. (group of) ten thousand; myriad

   Synonym: sampung libo

   • 1985, Sharon Cuneta, “Bituing Walang Ninging”:

     Kahit na ilang laksang bituin, 'di kayang pantayan ating ningning.

     No matter how many ten thousands of stars, our sparkle cannot be matched.

Derived terms

• laksa-laksa
• laksaan
• limanlaksa
• sampung laksa
• sanlaksa

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /lakˈsa/ [lɐkˈsa]
• Rhymes: -a
• Syllabification: lak‧sa

Noun

laksá (Baybayin spelling ᜎᜃ᜔ᜐ)

1. a species of tuber or sweet potato

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Malay laksa, from possibly either Classical Persian لاکچه (lākča, “pasta put into broth”) ot Sanskrit लाक्षा (lākṣā, “red dye; lac”).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog)
  • IPA^(key): /ˈlaksa/ [ˈlak.sɐ]
    • Rhymes: -aksa
  • IPA^(key): /lakˈsaʔ/ [lɐkˈsaʔ] (obsolete)
• Syllabification: lak‧sa

Noun

laksa (Baybayin spelling ᜎᜃ᜔ᜐ)

1. laksa (a spicy stew from Indonesia or Malaysia)

See also

• sotanghon

Further reading

• “laksa”, in KWF Diksiyonaryo ng Wikang Filipino, Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino, 2025
• “laksa”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, 2018

Anagrams

• askal, aklas, sakla, kasal, lasak, sakal, lakas

Yami

Etymology

From Sanskrit लक्ष (lakṣa, “hundred thousand”).

Numeral

laksa

1. ten thousand