Malays (ethnic group) 279720 225165857 2008-07-12T06:31:12Z CanisRufus 91310 dab: Javanese {{morereferences|date=January 2007}} {{dablink|This article is about the Malay ethnic group. For the Malay race, see [[Malay race]]. For other uses, see [[Malay]].}} {{Infobox Ethnic group |group = Malay</br>''Melayu'' |image = [[Image:Tuanku Abdul Rahman.jpg]] |caption = [[Tuanku Abdul Rahman]], the first Malaysian [[Yang di-Pertuan Agong]] |poptime = [[Circa|c.]] '''22 million''' <!-- sum of numbers from each region below --> |region1 = <span style="font-size:105%;">'''Majority populations'''</span> |region6 = {{flagcountry|Malaysia}} |pop6 = 12.3 million <small>(2006 estimate)</small> |ref6 = {{lower|<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/my.html CIA - The World Factbook - Malaysia<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>}} |region7 = {{flagcountry|Brunei}} |pop7 = 0.25 million <small>(2006 estimate)</small> |ref7 = {{lower|<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/bx.html CIA - The World Factbook - Brunei<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>}} |region8 = <span style="font-size:105%;">'''Minority populations'''</span> |pop8 = |ref8 = |region9 = {{flagcountry|Indonesia}} |pop9 = 6.9 million <small>(2000 census)</small> |ref9 = {{lower|<ref>http://www.pcgn.org.uk/Indonesia-%20Population&AdminDivs-%202003.pdf</ref>}} |region10 = {{flagcountry|Thailand}} |pop10 = 1.9 million <small>(2006 estimate)</small> |ref10 = {{lower|<ref>http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+th0052)</ref>}} |region11 = {{flagcountry|Singapore}} |pop11 = 0.45 million <small>(2000 census)</small> |ref11 = {{lower|<ref>http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/papers/people/c2000-population.pdf</ref>}} |languages = [[Malay language|Malay]], [[Indonesian language|Indonesian]], [[Yawi language|Yawi]], [[Thai language|Thai]] |religions = [[Sunni Islam]] (approx.&nbsp;99%<ref>[http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/papers/people/c2000adr-religion.pdf Statistics Singapore]; [http://kcm.co.kr/bethany_eng/p_code3/1892.html ''The Malay of Malaysia'', Bethany World Prayer Center]; [http://kcm.co.kr/bethany_eng/clusters/8101.html ''The Diaspora Malay'', Bethany World Prayer Center]</ref>) |related-c = [[Malaysian Malays]], [[Malay Singaporean]], [[Overseas Malays]]. }} '''Malays''' ([[Malay language|Malay]]: ''Melayu'') are an [[ethnic group]] of [[Austronesian people]]s predominantly inhabiting the [[Malay Peninsula]] and parts of [[Sumatra]] and [[Borneo]]. The Malay ethnic group is distinct from the concept of a [[Malay race]], which encompasses a wider group of people, including most of [[Indonesia]] and the [[Philippines]]. The [[Malay language]] is a member of the [[Austronesian languages|Austronesian]] family of languages. == History == The Malay people are believed to have originated in Borneo and then expanded outwards into Sumatra and later into the Malay Peninsula.{{Fact|date=January 2008}} These people were descendants of Austronesian-speakers who migrated from the [[Philippines]] and originally from [[Taiwan]]. The main foundation of this school of thought lies in the fact that the oldest Malay settlements have been discovered in Sumatra and not in the Malay Peninsula. This suggests an upward - south to north - migratory route. Malay culture reached its golden age during [[Srivijayan]] times. Malays practiced [[Buddhism]], [[Hinduism]], and their native [[Animism]] before converting to Islam in the 15th century. == Etymology == According to the History of Jambi, the word Melayu originated from a river with name [[Melayu River]] near to [[Batang Hari River]] of today's Muara Jambi, [[Jambi]] province of [[Sumatra]], Indonesia. The founder of [[Malacca]], [[Parameswara]] was a prince of [[Palembang]] which was once owned by a nation called "Malayu" back in the seventh century. [[Yi Jing]] (635-713) clearly recorded in his journal book a nation of name 'Ma-La-Yu' existed. According to archaeological research of Jambi, large numbers of ancient artifacts and ancient architectures of Melayu have been found with photo evidence. The word "Malay" was adopted into [[English language|English]] via the Dutch word "Malayo", itself from [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] "Malaio", which originates from the Malay word "Melayu". According to one popular theory, the word Melayu means "migrating" or "fleeing", which might refer to the high mobility of these people across the region (cf. [[Javanese language|Javanese]] verb 'mlayu' means "to run", cognate with Malay verb 'melaju', means "to accelerate") or perhaps the original meaning is "distant, far away" (cf. Tagalog 'malayo') with the root word 'layo', which means 'distance' or 'far' in Tagalog and some [[Malayo-Polynesian languages]]. Another theory holds that the name refers to the Tamil word ''Malai Yur'' which means "Land of Mountains" (''malai'' means mountain and ''yur'' means land), a reference to the hilly nature of the [[Malay Archipelago]]. ===Alternate uses of the term=== The name ''Malay'' is sometimes used to describe the concept of a [[Malay race]], which includes all the ethnic groups inhabiting the [[Malay Archipelago]] and which are not of older aboriginal stock. The term ''Melayu'' (Malay person in the Malay Language), in the Federal Constitution of Malaysia, refers to a person who professes [[Islam]], habitually speaks the [[Malay language]], conforms to Malay custom and who has at least one ancestor from the Malay Peninsula or Singapore.<ref>Federal Constitution, Malaysia (Article 160)</ref> {{further|[[Malaysian Malay]]}} == Ethnic group vs. cultural sphere == The term "Malay" can refer to the ethnic group who live in the Malay peninsula (which include the southernmost part of Thailand called [[Patani]] and Satun) and east [[Sumatra]] as well as the cultural sphere that encompass a large part of the archipelago. The Malay ethnic group is the majority in [[Malaysia]] and [[Brunei]] and a sizable minority in [[Singapore]] and [[Indonesia]]. This people speak various dialects of [[Malay language]]. The peninsular dialect is the standard speech among Malays in Malaysia and Singapore. Meanwhile, the [[Riau]] dialect of eastern Sumatra has been adopted as a national tongue, [[Indonesian language|Indonesian]] (''Bahasa Indonesia''), for the whole Indonesian population.The ethnic Malay have had a [[Muslim]] culture since the 15th century.<ref>[http://www.aseanfocus.com/publications/history_malaysia.html aseanfocus.com]</ref> In Malaysia, the majority of the population is made up of ethnic Malays while the minorities consist of southern Chinese (e.g. [[Hoklo (ethnic group)|Hokkien]] and [[Cantonese people|Cantonese]]), southern Indians (mainly [[Tamils]]), non-ethnic Malay indigenous peoples (e.g. [[Iban]] and [[Kadazan]]), as well as [[Eurasians]]. Malay cultural influences filtered out throughout the archipelago, such as the monarchical state, religion ([[Hinduism]]/[[Buddhism]] in the first millennium AD, [[Islam]] in the second millennium), and the Malay language. The influential [[Srivijaya]] kingdom had unified the various ethnic groups in southeast Asia into a convergent cultural sphere for almost a millennium. It was during that time that vast borrowing of Sanskrit words and concepts facilitated the advanced linguistic development of Malay as a language. Malay was the regional [[lingua franca]], and Malay-based [[Malay-based creole languages|creole languages]] existed in most trading ports in Indonesia. == See also == * [[Malay World]] * [[Ketuanan Melayu]] * [[Anti-Malay racism]], racial prejudice against ethnic Malays. * [[Malay wedding]], a wedding ceremony in accordance with Malay customs. == External links == * [http://www.sharpblades.net/index.php?page=articles&catid=3&id=6 Dayak Parang] - Find out more about one of the Malay's most used swords * [http://www.rockmekong.org/media-cov/News2002/queens.htm Queens of Pattani] == References == {{reflist}} {{Ethnic groups in Thailand|state=collapsed}} <!--Categories--> [[Category:Malay people| ]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Brunei]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Indonesia]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Malaysia]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Sarawak]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Southeast Asia]] [[Category:Muslim communities]] <!--Other languages--> [[de:Malaien]] [[es:Etnia malaya]] [[fr:Malais (peuple)]] [[gl:Malaios]] [[id:Melayu]] [[lt:Malajai]] [[ms:Melayu]] [[nl:Maleiers]] [[ja:マレー人]] [[nn:Malayar]] [[pl:Malajowie]] [[pt:Malaios]] [[ru:Малайцы]] [[simple:Malay]] [[sh:Malajci]] [[fi:Malaijit]] [[sv:Malajer]] [[tl:Mga Malay]] [[ta:மலே மக்கள்]] [[zh-yue:馬來人]] [[zh:马来族]]