Malaysian Malays

Malaysian Malays (

The identification of Malay with Islam traces its origin to the 15th century, when vigorous ethos of Malay identity was developed and transmitted during the time of the

The

The Islamic faith arrived on the shores of the Malay Peninsula from around the 12th century.

In Malaysia, the state's constitution empowered

Today, some Malays have recent forebears from other parts of maritime Southeast Asia, termed as anak dagang ("traders") or foreign Malays who have assimilated into the Malay culture. Other significant population of foreign Malays also includes Acehnese in Kedah, Banjarese and Mandailing in Perak, Chams and Patani Malays in Kelantan and Terengganu as well as Cocos Malays in Sabah. Between the 19th century and the early 20th century, a significant number of immigrants from Java and Sumatra came as traders, settlers and indenture labours to Malaya. British census from 1911 to 1931 shows that many of the immigrants concentrated on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula and largely predominated by ethnic Javanese.^[55] The process of adaptation and assimilation carried out by these ethnicities later gave birth to new Malay communities that retain a close relationship with their cultural roots in Java and Sumatra until today.^[56]

In 1971, the government created a "National Culture Policy", defining Malaysian culture. The three principles of the National Culture Policy are; Malaysian culture must be based on the indigenous culture of the region, that is the Malay culture, secondly it may incorporate suitable elements from other cultures, and lastly that Islam must play a part in it.^[57] Much of Malaysian culture shows heavy influences from Malay culture, an example can be seen in the belief system, whereby the practice of Keramat shrine worshipping that prevalent among Malaysian Chinese, originates from the Malay culture. Other Malay cultural influence can also be seen in traditional dress, cuisine, literature, music, arts and architecture. Traditional Malay dress varies between different regions but the most popular dress in modern-day are Baju Kurung and Baju Kebaya (for women) and Baju Melayu (for men), which all recognised as the national dress of Malaysia.^[58]

Many other Malay cultural heritage, are considered as Malaysian national heritage including

Malays are the majority of the ethnic groups in Malaysia. Every state has a population of Malays ranging from around 40% to over 90%, except for Sabah and Sarawak which are the only states where Malays are less than 30%. Figures given below are from the 2023 census, and 2020 numbers. The population figures are also given as percentages of the total state population that includes non-citizens.

Diaspora

There is a community of Malaysian Malays who make up 20% of the total population of the Australian external territory of Christmas Island.^[62]

Anak Jati subgroups

The Anak Jati groups consist of all Malay subgroups native to the Malay Peninsula and coastal areas of Sabah and Sarawak. The following are among the major subgroups

Anak Dagang subgroups

Other than the Anak Jati or indigenous Malays, there are Malay communities in Malaysia with full or partial ancestry of other ethnicities of

From the 17th century, Bugis mercenaries and merchants involved in both commercial and political ventures in the Malay sultanates, later establishing their main settlements along Klang and Selangor estuaries. Another case of in-movements was the migration of Minangkabau peoples to Negeri Sembilan. The resulting intermarriages between the Minangkabau immigrants and the native Proto-Malay Temuan peoples, gave birth to a Malay community in Negeri Sembilan that adopted extensively the indigenous customary law or Adat Benar and traditional political organization.^[65] Apart from being described as bilateral in nature, the earlier movements of peoples involving the Malay Peninsula, can be described as small in extent, with no other evidence of mass migration that caused significant demographic change.^[66]

In the 19th century, the growth in arrivals of Indonesians coincided with the consolidation of British influence in Malaya.^[67] This was a period of extensive economic growth which saw economic centres in the Straits Settlements and their neighbouring West Coast States of central and southern Malaya, became the main destination of immigrants.^[68] In 1824, the Indonesian immigrant population began to be enumerated for the first time by the British administration in the Straits Settlements.^[69] By 1871, the Indonesian population in the Straits Settlements was recorded at 12,143, mostly can be found in Singapore, with Javanese was the most numerous ethnicity.^[70] Despite this, the Indonesian population was considerably small, and their growth was slow compared to their Chinese counterparts.^[68] In 1891, the census area began to be extended to the Federated Malay States and recorded a total of 20,307 Indonesians.^[71] At the same time, the state of Johor under Temenggong Daeng Ibrahim (1841-1855) encouraged the migration of estate labourers from Java to work in the agricultural sector of the state.^[72] Such policy was continued under the rule of his son, Abu Bakar. As a result, in the first Malayan-wide census in 1911, Johor recorded the largest Indonesian population, 37,000^[73] from overall 117,600 Indonesians in Malaya.^[74]

Between 1911 and 1957 censuses, the Indonesian population in Malaya stood between 8.6% to 14.5% of total number of Malays,^[75] numerically inferior to those native peninsula Malays in the north and eastern states.^[76] In individual States during the 1911—1957 period, the Indonesian population had exceeded 50% of the total Malays only in 1931, in Johor.^[76] After 1957, due to stricter government controls on the movements of Indonesians into Malaya, it is most unlikely to see similar immigration pattern in the past in Malaya.^[77] Because of their relatively small population and their close and strong cultural and ethnic relationships with the indigenous Malays, within decades, most of these Indonesian immigrants were effectively assimilated into the Malay identity.^[63][64][78]

In more recent times, during the Vietnam War, a sizable number of Chams migrated to Peninsular Malaysia, where they were granted sanctuary by the Malaysian government out of sympathy for fellow Muslims; most of them have also assimilated with the Malay cultures.^[79]

Genetics

Studies on the genetics of modern Malays show a complex history of

Within the Malay Peninsula itself, the Malays are differentiated genetically into distinct clusters between the northern part of the Malay Peninsula and the south.[85] SNP analyses of five of their sub-ethnic groups show that Melayu Kelantan and Melayu Kedah (both in the northern Malay Peninsula) are closely related to each other as well as to Melayu Patani, but are distinct from Melayu Minang (western), Melayu Jawa and Melayu Bugis (both southern).^[86] The Melayu Minang, Melayu Jawa and Melayu Bugis people show close relationship with the people of Indonesia, evidence of their shared common ancestry with these people.^[84] However, Melayu Minang are closer genetically to Melayu Kelantan and Melayu Kedah than they are to Melayu Jawa. Among the Melayu Kelantan and Melayu Kedah populations, there are significant Indian components, in particular from the Telugus and Marathis. The Melayu Kedah and Melayu Kelantan also have closer genetic relationship to the two subgroups of the Orang Asli Semang, Jahai and Kensiu, than other Malay groups. Four of the Malay sub-ethnic groups in this study (the exception being Melayu Bugis, who are related to the people of Sulawesi, Indonesia) also show genetic similarity to the Proto-Malay Temuan people with possible admixture to the Jawa populations and the Wa people of Yunnan, China.^[86]

See also

• Bruneian Malays
• Patani Malays
• Malay Singaporean
• Cocos Malays
• Malay Indonesian
• Sama-Bajau
• Tausūg people
• Dayak people

References

Bibliography

• Andaya, Leonard Y. (2008), Leaves of the Same Tree: Trade and Ethnicity in the Straits of Melaka, University of Hawaii press,
  ISBN 978-0-8248-3189-9
• Andaya, Barbara Watson; Andaya, Leonard Yuzon (1984), A History of Malaysia, London: Palgrave Macmillan,
  ISBN 978-0-333-27672-3
• Amineh Mehdi Parvizi (2010), State, Society and International Relations in Asia, Amsterdam University Press,
  ISBN 978-90-5356-794-4
• Bahrin, Tengku Shamsul (1967), "The growth and distribution of the Indonesian population in Malaya", Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde, 123 (2): 267–286,
  doi:10.1163/22134379-90002906
• Barrington, Lowell (2006), After Independence: Making and Protecting the Nation in Postcolonial and Postcommunist States, University of Michigan press,
  ISBN 978-0-472-06898-2
• Barnard, Timothy P. (2004), Contesting Malayness: Malay identity across boundaries, Singapore: Singapore University press,
  ISBN 978-9971-69-279-7
• Blackburn, Kevin; Hack, Karl (2012), War, Memory and the Making of Modern Malaysia and Singapore, National University of Singapore,
  ISBN 978-9971-69-599-6
• Chew, Melanie (1999), The Presidential Notes: A biography of President Yusof bin Ishak, Singapore: SNP Publications,
  ISBN 978-981-4032-48-3
• Condra, Jill (2013), Encyclopedia of National Dress: Traditional Clothing around the World, ABC-CLIO,
  ASIN B00ODJN4WA
• Farish A Noor (2011), From Inderapura to Darul Makmur, A Deconstructive History of Pahang, Silverfish Books,
  ISBN 978-983-3221-30-1
• Ganguly, Šumit (1997), Government Policies and Ethnic Relations in Asia and the Pacific, MIT press,
  ISBN 978-0-262-52245-8
• Gulrose Karim (1990). Information Malaysia 1990–91 Yearbook. Kuala Lumpur: Berita Publishing Sdn. Bhd. p. 74.
• Hall, Thomas D. (2017), Comparing Globalizations Historical and World-Systems Approaches, Springer International Publishing,
  ISBN 978-331-9682-18-1
• Harper, Timothy Norman (2001), The End of Empire and the Making of Malaya, London: Cambridge University Press,
  ISBN 978-0-521-00465-7
• Hood Salleh (2011),
  ISBN 978-981-3018-53-2
• Hussin Mutalib (2008), Islam in Southeast Asia, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies,
  ISBN 978-981-230-758-3
• ISBN 978-1-4522-6656-5
  .
• Melayu Online.com's Theoretical Framework, 2005, archived from the original on 21 October 2012, retrieved 4 February 2012
• Matusky, Patricia Ann; Tan, Sooi Beng (2004), The Music of Malaysia: The Classical, Folk and Syncretic Traditions, Routledge,
  ISBN 978-075-4608-31-8
• Linda Sunarti (2017). "Formation of Javanese Malay identities in Malay Peninsula between the 19th and 20th centuries". Cultural Dynamics in a Globalized World: Proceedings of the Asia-Pacific Research in Social Sciences and Humanities. Routledge: 225–230.
  ISBN 978-113-8626-64-5
  .
• Miller, Terry E.; Williams, Sean (2006), Other Malays: Nationalism and Cosmopolitanism in the Modern Malay World, University of Hawaii Press,
  ISBN 978-997-1693-34-3
• Milner, Anthony (2010), The Malays (The Peoples of South-East Asia and the Pacific), Wiley-Blackwell,
  ISBN 978-1-4443-3903-1
• Pearson, Michael (2015), Trade, Circulation, and Flow in the Indian Ocean World, Palgrave Series in Indian Ocean World Studies,
  ISBN 978-113-7564-88-7
• Nerawi Sedu; Nurazzura Mohamad Diah; Fauziah Fathil (2019), Being Human: Responding to Changes, Singapore: Partridge Publishing Singapore,
  ISBN 978-154-3749-13-7
• Peletz, Michæl Gates (1992), A Share of the Harvest: Kinship, Property and Social History Among the Malays of Rembau, University of California Press,
  ISBN 978-0-520-08086-7
• Ragman, Zaki (2003), Gateway to Malay culture, Asiapac Books Pte Ltd,
  ISBN 978-981-229-326-8
• Richmond, Simon (2007), Malaysia, Singapore & Brunei, Lonely Planet publications,
  ISBN 978-1-74059-708-1
• Suad Joseph; Afsaneh Najmabadi (2006). Economics, Education, Mobility And Space (Encyclopedia of women & Islamic cultures). Brill Academic Publishers. p. 436.
  ISBN 978-90-04-12820-0
  .
• Tan, Liok Ee (1988), The Rhetoric of Bangsa and Minzu, Monash Asia Institute,
  ISBN 978-0-86746-909-7
• Tan, Loong Hoe (1982), The state and economic distribution in Peninsular Malaysia: toward an alternative theoretical approach, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies,
  ISBN 978-997-1902-44-5

Further reading

• Cummings, William (1998). "The Melaka Malay Diaspora in Makassar c.1500-1669". Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. 71 (1): 107–121.
• Haji Bagenda Ali (2019), Awal Mula Muslim Di Bali Kampung Loloan Jembrana Sebuah Entitas Kuno, Deepublish,
  ISBN 978-623-7022-61-9
• Reid, Anthony (2006), Verandah of Violence: The Background to the Aceh Problem, NUS Press,
  ISBN 978-9971-693-31-2
• Reid, Anthony (2009), Imperial Alchemy: Nationalism and Political Identity in Southeast Asia, Cambridge University Press,
  ISBN 978-052-1872-37-9

Wikimedia Commons has media related to People of Malaysia of Malay descent.