Malaysians

Malaysian people
Orang Malaysia

Malaysians work and dine in a 24-hour Mamak stall in Kuala Lumpur
Total population
(31,308,000 est (excluding Malaysian diaspora)[1] Malaysian diaspora 700,000–1,000,000)
Regions with significant populations
Christmas Island Minority populations	More than 981[2]
Singapore	385,979[3]
Australia	92,337[4]
Brunei	70,000[5][6]
United Kingdom	63,000
United States	26,179[7]
China	15,000[8]
New Zealand	14,547[9]
Canada	12,165
Taiwan	10,000[10]
Japan	8,115[11]
United Arab Emirates	6,000
Qatar	5,000[12]
India	2,500
Languages
Languages of Malaysia
Religion
Religion in Malaysia

Malaysians are the people who are identified with the country of Malaysia. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Malaysians, several (frequently all) of those types of connections exist and are the source(s) of their being considered Malaysians. Although citizens make up the majority of Malaysians, non-citizen residents and overseas Malaysians may also claim a Malaysian identity.^[13]

The country is home to people of many different kinds of national origins and ethnicities. As a result, Malaysians do not equate their nationality with ethnicity, but with citizenship and allegiance. The majority of the population in Malaysian soil is made up of immigrants and their descendants. Following the initial period of Portuguese, Dutch and then the much larger British colonisation, different waves (or peaks) of immigration and settlement of non-aboriginal peoples took place over the course of nearly five centuries and continue today.

Malayan independence from Great Britain grew gradually over the course of many years since the formation of the Federation of Malaya in 1948 (excluding Crown Colony of Singapore, Crown Colony of North Borneo and Crown Colony of Sarawak). World War II in particular gave rise to a desire amongst Malayans to have their country recognised as a fully-fledged sovereign state with a distinct citizenship.

Population

As of 2010, Malaysians make up 0.4% of the world's total population, having relied upon immigration for population growth and social development. Approximately 30% of current Malaysians are first- or second-generation immigrants, and 20 percent of Malaysian residents in the 2000s were not born in Malaysian soil. It is estimated, by 2031, nearly one-half of Malaysians above the age of 15 will be foreign born or have one foreign born parent. Bumiputera, according to the 2010 Malaysian Census, numbered at 17,523,508 or 61.85% of the country's 28,334,135 population.

Immigration

Citizenship and diaspora

Ethnic ancestry

Ethnic groups and citizenship

Classification of 2010 Census ethnic group is as set by Inter-Agency Technical Committee (IATC) in Appendix 1. IATC is a committee formed to co-ordinate and monitor the implementation and use of standardised codes, classifications and definitions used by the Department of Statistics, Malaysia and other government agencies. For the purpose of tabulation and analysis, as well as taking into account the diverse ethnic group in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, Federal Territory of Labuan and Sarawak, major ethnic groups according to region as follows:

Information collected in the census including ethnic group and citizenship was based on respondent's answer and did not refer to any official document.

Information on citizenship should be used with caution as it is subject to content and coverage errors especially for non-citizens as in censuses in most countries.

Culture

Language

Malaysia contains speakers of 137 living languages,^[14] 41 of which are found in Peninsula Malaysia.^[15] Malaysian, or Standard Malay, is the official language, while English is considered the de facto administrative language. The Bumiputeras speak various Austronesian and Austroasiatic languages as well as smaller language families such as Tai-Kadai and Creoles. Chinese Malaysians predominantly speak varieties of Chinese from the southern provinces of China. The more common varieties in the country are Cantonese, Mandarin, Hokkien, Hakka, Hainanese, and Fuzhou. Tamil is the predominant language among Indian Malaysians, though languages like Telugu, Malayalam and Punjabi are also widely spoken.

Religion

The percentage distribution of Malaysian population by religion based on 2010 census.

The Malaysian constitution guarantees freedom of religion while making Islam the state religion.^[16] According to the Population and Housing Census 2010 figures, ethnicity and religious beliefs correlate highly. Approximately 61.3% of the population practice Islam, 19.8% practice Buddhism, 9.2% Christianity, 6.3% Hinduism and 1.3% practice Confucianism, Taoism and other traditional Chinese religions. 0.7% declared no religion and the remaining 1.4% practised other religions or did not provide any information.

References

Further reading

• Saw Swee-Hock (6 January 2015), The Population of Malaysia (Second Edition), Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, pp. 220–, ISBN 978-981-4620-36-9 

Ethnic groups in Malaysia by region
Malaysians
Nationwide	Malay (list) Chinese (list) Indian (list) Tamil Native Indonesian Banjarese Buginese Javanese Minangkabau
Peninsular Malaysia	Malays Johorean Malay Kedahan Malay Kelantanese Malay Malaccan Malay Negeri Sembilanese Malay Perakian Malay Pahang Malay Selangorian Malay Terengganuan Malay Orang Asli Proto-Malay Temuan Jakun Orang Kanaq Orang Kuala Orang Seletar Orang Laut Semelai Semang Batek Lanoh Jahai Kensiu Kintaq Mos Senoi Semai Mah Meri Cheq Wong Temiar Jah Hut Semaq Beri Indian Penangite Indian Punjabi Malayali Tamil Chitty Telugu Others Acehnese Cham Jawi Peranakan Javanese Malaysian Kristang Malaysian Siamese Mandailing Pashto Rawa Peranakan Chinese Sri Lankan
Sarawak	Malays Bruneian Malay Kedayan Sarawakian Malay Dayak Bidayuh Bukitan Iban Selako Orang Ulu Kayan Kelabit Kenyah Lun Bawang Penan Punan Ukit Others Bisaya Melanau
Sabah	Malays Bruneian Malay Kedayan Cocos Malays Kadazan-Dusun Dumpas Dusun Ida'an Kadazan Kwijau Lotud Mangka'ak Maragang Minokok Orang Sungai Rumanau Rungus Tambanuo Others Bajau Bisaya Illanun Lun Bawang Murut Suluk Tidong
Foreign ethnicities /expatriates	African Arab (Hadhrami) Bangladeshi Burmese (Rohingya) China/Taiwan Chinese East Timorese Filipino (Zamboangans) India Indian Indonesian Iranian Japanese Jewish (former) Korean Nepali Pakistani Vietnamese

Malaysia articles
History	Timeline Prehistoric Portuguese Malacca Dutch Malacca British Malaya Straits Settlements Federated Malay States Unfederated Malay States British Borneo Kingdom of Sarawak Crown Colony of Labuan North Borneo Japanese occupation of Malaya / Borneo British Military Administration (Malaya / Borneo) Malayan Union Federation of Malaya Independence Malayan Emergency Crown Colony of Singapore Self-government Crown Colony of Sarawak Self-government Crown Colony of North Borneo Self-government Malaysia Agreement 1962 Singapore referendum Cobbold Commission 18-point agreement 20-point agreement Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation Proclamation Malaysia Day PAP–UMNO relations 1964 race riots Singapore in Malaysia 13 May Incident 1988 Malaysian constitutional crisis 1997 Asian financial crisis
Geography	Cities, towns and villages Districts Divisions East Malaysia Environment Fauna Flora World Heritage Sites Islands Lakes Mountains National parks Peninsular Malaysia Rivers States
Politics	Cabinet Constitution Elections Foreign relations Government Human rights Judiciary Law Law enforcement Military Monarchies Parliament Political parties Prime Minister State legislative assemblies Head of state
Economy	Agriculture Banks Central bank Energy Federal budget Ringgit (currency) States by GDP Science and technology Stock exchange Telecommunications Tourism Transport Unions
Society	Crime Demographics Malaysians Education (Universities) Ethnic groups Health Income disparity Languages Poverty Religion Water supply and sanitation Women Culture Architecture Cinema Cuisine Folklore Mythology Literature Malay lordship Media Music Names Public holidays Sport Symbols Animal Anthem Emblem Flag Flower Pledge
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