Last night I chatted with an Indonesian cleaning lady from the southern part of Borneo. I asked her why her hometown was known as Pontianak. As far as I know, Pontianak means a female ghost seeking revenge.
She sat down and told me the following story:- She came from another part of Kalimantan. When her husband was courting her, she was very afraid of his home town. She thought that town must be filled with ghosts. Her husband explained that his home town once had another nicer name. But one man seduced a young girl who became pregnant. He lied about taking her back to his family. But he killed her with his friends. The spirits of this poor girl went around seeking to pay back the murderers. As more and more people heard and saw the apparitions, the town was referred to as the haunted town, hence it became known as Pontianak. I asked her if the spirits were still haunting the town. From the many years she spent there as a married woman, she said she did not hear of any present day haunting. She believed that once revenge was exacted, the spirits dissipated.
From the Christian point of view, the spirits were demons which are fallen angels whom left heaven with Lucifer.
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