Essentially, the name Melaka has three potential origins, each with it’s own colourful story. It could be related to it’s trading history, with the name originated from the Arabic word ‘malakat’ which means to gather trade. It could be from a Hindu myth, that the area was akin to ‘amalaka’, a tree associated with wealth and power. It could have been named after a tree, with a prince resting under a pokok melaka (Indian gooseberry tree) when he came up with the name
Whatever led to the moniker of the place, Malacca is considered the English or anglicized version of the name, while Melaka is the Malaysian version