A Malaysian Chinese
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Malaysian Chinese
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Malaysian Chinese
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese: ??????
Simplified Chinese: ??????
[show]Transliterations
Mandarin
- Hanyu Pinyin: Maláixiyà Tángrén
Min
- Peh-oe-ji: ma2-lai5-si1-a3-tng5-lang5
Yue (Cantonese)
- Jyutping: maa5 loi4 sai1 aa3 tong4 yan4
Malaysian name
Malay: Orang Cina Malaysia
A Malaysian Chinese is an overseas Chinese who is a citizen or long-term
resident of Malaysia. Most are descendants of Chinese who arrived between the
fifteenth and the mid-twentieth centuries. Within Malaysia, they are usually
simply referred to as "Chinese" in all languages. The term Chinese Malaysian is
rarely (if ever) used in Malaysia.
Early Chinese settlers (from the fifteenth century in Malacca; eighteenth
century in Penang) form to a sub-group called Peranakan or Straits Chinese, who
adopted many Malay customs and to varying extents (limited in Penang, almost
complete in Malacca) the Malay language, but retained Chinese religious
practices. In contrast, the newer arrivals (nineteenth century and later) who
retained Chinese customs were known as sinkheh (?? - literally "new guests").
The Chinese in Malaysia maintain a distinct communal identity and rarely
intermarry with native Malays for religious and cultural reasons. This is
because most Malays are Muslim. Under Malaysian law, such a marriage requires
the non-Muslim party to convert. Most Malaysian Chinese consider their being
"Chinese" at once an ethnic, cultural and political identity.
The Malaysian Chinese have traditionally dominated the Malaysian economy, but
with the advent of affirmative action policies by the Malaysian government to
protect the interests of ethnic Malays, their share has eroded somewhat. On most
counts, however, they still make up the majority of the middle and upper income
classes of Malaysia. As of 2007, they constitute about a quarter of the
Malaysian population.
Contents [hide]
1 History
2 Dialect groups
2.1 Overview
2.2 Population by dialect group
3 Education
3.1 Chinese educated
3.2 English educated
3.3 New immigrants and old immigrants
4 Regional community
5 Religion
6 Food
7 Culture differences
7.1 1971 National Culture Policy
7.2 Celebration of festivities
8 References
9 Famous Malaysian Chinese
10 See also
11 External links
[edit] History
Main article: Chinese migration
Most Chinese immigrants of Malaya came from southern China, mostly from the
province of Fujian and Guangdong. In the nineteenth century, many came as
indentured labourers, known as coolies (Chinese: ??). Others came freely to
work, and were supported by Clan Associations. By 1911, the Chinese population
in Malaya had reached 269,854, and around a million circa 1949.
[edit] Dialect groups
[edit] Overview
The ethnic Chinese in Malaysia belongs to several Chinese dialect groups. There
are four major dialect groups: Hokkien, Hakka, Cantonese and Teochew. Other
dialects include Hainanese, Hokchiu and Hinghwa. Hokkien, Teochew, Hainanese are
also known as Min Nan language. It is evident that people belonging to certain
dialect groups are populated in different parts of communities in Malaysia.
The Hokkien is the largest group in Malaysia. It forms the largest dialect group
in Penang, Malacca, Kedah, Terengganu, Kelantan, Selangor -- mostly in Klang and
coastal region of Selangor and western Johor. The Hokkien dialect is also
commonly spoken in East Malaysia.
The Hakka form the most populous dialect group in East Malaysia (Sabah and
Sarawak), parts of Johor notably Kulai, Selangor-Kuala Lumpur and Pahang. Hakkas
are also found in large numbers in Johor Bahru and Perak, of which they possibly
constitute the largest dialect group. It is the main dialect in Kuching,
Sarawak.
Cantonese constitutes the most populous Chinese dialect group in the state of
Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Pahang, Negri Sembilan and Perak where the Cantonese
forms a large percentage of the population. The Cantonese also forms the largest
dialect group in eastern Johor and Sandakan, Sabah. Sandakan used to be called
"Little Hong Kong" since it was the second homeland for many settlers from
Guangdong, where the sceneries resembles Hong Kong in the 1970s and the 1980s.
Local Cantonese media is frequently broadcasted by Malaysian television
channels, notably RTM2 (Malaysia), TV3 and 8TV.
The Teochews are concentrated in parts of Penang, many islands of Sabah and
Southern Johor, principally Johor Bahru and Pontian.
There are, in general, three sub-linguistic groups of Malaysian Chinese with
three metropolitan centers. The Penang, Klang and Malacca groups are
predominantly Hokkien-speaking and the Kuala Lumpur, Seremban & Ipoh group is
predominantly Cantonese and Hakka-speaking. To the south of Peninsular Malaysia,
in Johor, Mandarin is predominantly spoken among the Chinese communities there,
which is a result of the Mandarin media influence from Singapore, and the use of
Mandarin in formal education. This has resulted in many people, especially the
younger generation, to discard and neglect the usage of Chinese dialects,
especially Teochew and Cantonese. Whereas in East Malaysia (Malaysian Borneo),
Hakka and Mandarin is widely spoken, except in Sibu, Foochow and in Sandakan,
Cantonese.
Modern movements to unify and organize Malaysian, Singaporean and Indonesian
Chinese communities introduced Standard Mandarin as the language of diaspora
ethnic nationalism.
[edit] Population by dialect group
The number of Chinese speakers has increased from 2,667,452 in 1957 to 5,365,846
in year 2000 [1], comprising 26% of total population in Malaysia. The Chinese
community in Malaysia can be divided into the following dialect groups [2]:
Dialect Population[3]
Hokkien speakers 2,020,868
Hakka speakers 1,092,754
Cantonese speakers 1,067,994
Teochew speakers 497,280
Hokchiu speakers 251,554
Hainanese speakers 141,045
Kwongsai speakers 51,674
Others (including Hunanese and Hinghwa speakers) 243,046
[edit] Education
While public education remains free and accessible to all citizens of Malaysia,
there are several types of schools available for Malaysians to choose from to be
educated from primary levels up to tertiary levels. There are known to be three
types of schools with their language of instructions where education is
delivered: Malay, Mandarin (Chinese), and Tamil. Each of these medium of
instructions signifies the three major races that exists in Malaysia and
peculiar to the Western Malaysian communities. It is common for a Malaysian
Chinese to be either Chinese, English or Malay educated.
The Malaysian Chinese communities, therefore, usually have a choice to send
their children to either Chinese schools or Malay schools. Whichever schools
they went to, the Malay language must be taught as a compulsory subject, if the
language of instruction is not already in Malay.
[edit] Chinese educated
A large segment of the Chinese population living in Malaysia is predominantly
Chinese-speaking, they are commonly known as the "Chinese-educated". Malaysia is
also the only country outside mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, to have
a completely Chinese-medium education system. Canada is the other country, but
such schools are usually private schools. There are roughly 1,300 Chinese public
primary schools (national-type schools) in Malaysia that are all partially
government funded (where the wages of teachers are paid by the government while
the up-keeping of school buildings is funded by local communities in forms of
donations). The Chinese national-type school received less than 3% of total
fundings for all primary schools. Mandarin is the language of instruction for
all subjects except in Malay and English language classes. In the 1960s, all but
16 of the Chinese secondary schools had received government funding and had been
converted into National Secondary Schools (Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan)[citation
needed], but the term "National-type Secondary Schools" is used internally until
today to show that they were once Chinese Schools. They first used English but
later on used Bahasa Malaysia as the language of instruction. Today, there are
60 Chinese secondary schools that are supported financially mostly by the
public. These are called Chinese Independent High School. Mandarin is the main
language of instruction in these private schools except Bahasa Malaysia and
English, but some schools use either Malay or English in selected subjects. In
2004, according to statistical data, 90% of all Malaysian Chinese attend Chinese
primary schools (The figure was around 70% in 1970). Among the 600,000 Chinese
primary school students, roughly 10% are of non-Chinese descent. On the other
hand, 90% of Chinese primary school graduates continue their secondary studies
in public secondary schools (both national and national-type), while the
remaining 10% go to Chinese private secondary schools. There are also three
privately owned post-secondary institutes in Malaysia where the language of
instruction is Mandarin.
[edit] English educated
A sizeable group of Malaysian Chinese speak English as a first language
(something carried over from the British colonial days). They speak English at
home, and make it a point to immerse and educate their children in the English
language. Like their counterparts in Singapore, they are known as the
"English-educated" although the term is something of an anachronism. Most of
these "English-educated" Chinese are unable to read and write in Chinese.
Unlike in Singapore, English has not been used as a language of instruction in
Malaysia (except in private institutions and urban schools) since it was phased
out the 1970s and 1980s in favor of Malay. Although there are English medium
schools in Malaysia that provide an education based on a British or US-based
curriculum, these cater to expatriate children. However, as of 2002, the
Malaysian government has reintroduced English as the language of instruction for
Science and Mathematics in national secondary schools and universities.
While "proper" English is generally spoken and understood among Malaysian
Chinese, a common form used is a patois called Manglish (Malaysian English).
Manglish is very similar to Singlish (Singaporean English). Manglish speakers
typically understand 80-90% of Singlish and vice versa. See British and
Malaysian English differences. Unless specifically Manglish or Singlish terms
are used in a conversation, it can be difficult even for native speakers to
differentiate the two as the intonation and most terms (especially the infamous
lah) are common. Singaporean television sitcoms such as Phua Chu Kang and Under
One Roof that make use of Singlish are popular in Malaysia. The Singapore
government has tried to reduce the use of Singlish in these serials, with
visible success.
[edit] New immigrants and old immigrants
The new immigrants who have not learned the colonial trading language of English
are often jealous of the older immigrants who have integrated into an
English-speaking colonial system. As such, the majority of Chinese-speaking
immigrants often attack the older immigrants in British Civil Service using
derogatory cultural remarks, a typical intra-racial infighting that explained
the weak national identifications and identities that gave foreign colonization
under British power an upper-hand. The essentially ironical but racist term
banana [4] (Pinyin: Xiang jiao rén; Chinese: ???), "white on the inside, yellow
on the outside" was invented. The ungrammatical construction of the term
reflects its linguistic origin and basis - from various dialects. However, with
development of Greater China's economy, this intra-racial infighting is reducing
because many of the English-educated families sent their children to learn
Chinese language.
[edit] Regional community
The Malaysian Chinese community was intricately linked to the Singaporean
Chinese community because of a shared history and culture. Singapore was a part
of the Federation of Malaysia before it became independent in 1965. Many
Singaporean Chinese have relatives in Malaysia and vice-versa. There are also a
significant number of Malaysian Chinese residing and working in Singapore. Some
families in nearby Johor send their children (around 5,000 of them) to school in
Singapore, commuting back and forth between the two countries every day.
On that same note, the Malaysian Chinese are culturally much more distant from
the Indonesian Chinese, Filipino Chinese and Thai Chinese. This is attributable
to the fact that these countries did not have a shared history with Malaysia
like Singapore did.
The entire Southeast Asian Chinese diaspora is characterized by their
considerable economic fortunes and their susceptibility to discrimination or
political exploitation by politicians. This diaspora is commonly referred to as
the Nanyang Chinese, 'Nanyang' (??) being the Mandarin term for Southeast Asia.
[edit] Religion
Main article: Malaysian Chinese religion
A majority of the Chinese in Malaysia claim to be Buddhist or Taoist, though the
lines between them are often blurred and, typically, a syncretic Chinese
religion incorporating elements of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and
traditional ancestor-worship is practised, with the fact that each individual
follows it in varying degrees. About 9.6% are Christian (Mainstream Protestants,
Catholics and other denominations including a fast-growing number of
Evangelicals and Charismatics) and a small number (0.7%) profess Islam as their
faith. There is quite a significant number of Christians among the Chinese
population in East Malaysia [5].
[edit] Food
Main article: Cuisine of Malaysia
Since there are three main ethnic groups in Malaysia, there are also inherently
three distinct cuisines unique to only these ethnic groups. Most, if not all, of
Malaysian Chinese enjoy all types of food not limiting to their own, which is
commonly known as Malaysian Chinese food. There are, however, some limitations
to what certain Malaysian Chinese can eat owing to their beliefs and/or
religion.
[edit] Culture differences
There exist some degrees of differences in the Malaysian Chinese culture
compared to that of China. Some traditional festivals celebrated by the Chinese
community in Malaysia are no longer celebrated in China after the Chinese
Cultural Revolution. This is especially true of regional rites and rituals that
are still celebrated by the Malaysian descendants of the peasant migrants from
China. Some have attributed the traditional practices of Malaysian Chinese to "a
little backwater of Chinese culture as it was in China 80 years ago" [6].
There are also significant differences in the way the Chinese language is spoken
among the Chinese community in Malaysia. One notable example is how the Minnan
or Hokkien dialect is spoken in Penang and even in parts of Indonesia like
Medan. The variant spoken is influenced by Malay and English vocabulary and
forms and is commonly referred to as Penang Hokkien.
[edit] 1971 National Culture Policy
Malaysian Chinese Culture is intimately linked to the "1971 National Culture
Policy" of Malaysia. [7] It defines 3 principles as guidelines for 'national
culture':
The National Culture must be based on the indigenous [Malay] culture
Suitable elements from the other cultures may be accepted as part of the
national culture
Islam is an important component in the moulding of the National Culture.
[edit] Celebration of festivities
See Festivals of Malaysia.
[edit] References
^ Prof. Dato' Dr Asmah Haji Omar, edt: "Encyclopedia of Malaysia - Languages and
Literature", pp 52-53, Kuala Lumpur: Editions Didier Millet, 2004, ISBN
981-3018-52-6
^ Dept. of Statistics: "Population and Housing Census of Malaysia 2000", Kuala
Lumpur: Department of Statistics Malaysia, 2001
^ Joshua Project: Data Map of Malaysia (URL last accessed on May 17, 2007)
^ Denied chance to study Mandarin
^ Dept. of Statistics: "Population and Housing Census of Malaysia 2000", Table
4.1; p. 70, Kuala Lumpur: Department of Statistics Malaysia, 2001
^ BBC News: Chinese diaspora: Malaysia (URL last accessed on May 17, 2007)
^ 1971 National Culture Policy
[edit] Famous Malaysian Chinese
For more details on this topic, see List of Malaysian Chinese.
Tun Dato Sir Tan Cheng Lock, Founder of MCA
Dato Michelle Yeoh, international actress
Angie Cheung, Hong Kong based actress from Ipoh
Angelica Lee Sin Je, Taiwan based actress
Lim Goh Tong, founder of Genting Highlands
Chin Peng (Ong Boon Hua), Secretary General of the Communist Party of Malaya
Jimmy Choo - London-based shoe designer
Zang Toi, New York fashion designer
Sau Chi Keung a soccer player
[edit] See also
Peranakan
Malaysian Chinese religion
Overseas Chinese
Chinese migration
Demographics of Malaysia
Indonesian Chinese
Chinese Filipino
British Chinese
Islam in China
May 13 Incident
Zheng He#In Malacca
New Village
[edit] External links
v ? d ? eEthnic groups in Malaysia[show]
Nationwide
Banjarese ? Malay ? Chinese ? Indian ? Bugis ? Eurasian ? Javanese
Peninsular Malaysia
Baba Nyonya ? Malaccan Portuguese ? Chitty ? Malaysian Siam ? Minangkabau ?
Orang Asli
Sarawak
Bidayuh ? Bisaya ? Bukitan ? Iban ? Lun Bawang ? Kayan ? Kedayan ? Kelabit ?
Kenyah ? Melanau ? Penan ? Punan ? Selako ? Ukit
Sabah
Bajau ? Brunei ? Dusun ? Ida'an ? Kadazan ? Lotud ? Murut? Orang Sungai ? Rungus
? Suluk
[show]v ? d ? eOverseas Chinese
Africa Mauritius · Seychelles · South Africa · Réunion
Asia Brunei · Cambodia · India · Indonesia · Israel · Japan · Korea · Malaysia
(Peranakan) · Mongolia · Myanmar (Panthay) · Philippines · Singapore · Thailand
· Vietnam (Ngái · San Diu)
Europe France · Russia (Dungan) · Romania · Italy · Spain · United Kingdom
Americas Argentina · Brazil · Canada · Cuba · Jamaica · Nicaragua · Panama ·
Peru · United States (Hawaii · Puerto Rico · ABCs · Taiwanese American)
Oceania Australia · Fiji · New Zealand
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysian_Chinese";
Categories: All articles with unsourced statements | Articles with unsourced
statements since February 2007 | Ethnic groups in Malaysia | Overseas Chinese
groups
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