Malaysia is a multi-racial country that lives in peace and harmony. There are three major races in Malaysia such as Malays, Chinese and Indians. Malays are the largest group which form 69.6% of the population in the year of 2020 according to the Department Of Statistics Malaysia. Majority of Malays are Muslims.
Chinese represent 22.6% of the Malaysian population in 2020 which then form the second largest ethnic group. Most Chinese are Buddhist, Taoist or Christian and they can speak multi languages such as Mandarin, Hokkien, Hakka, Cantonese or Teochew. Chinese are more dominant in the economic sector.
However, Indians make up only 6.8% of the population in 2020. Most Indians are Hinduism and they speak languages such as Tamil, Malayalam, and Hindi.
Apart from that, there are also Bumiputera, Sikhs, Serani and Eurasians under our population group. The largest Bumiputera in Sarawak are Iban and they live in longhouses along the Rajang River and the Lupar River. They used to be collectors of forest products, farmers and lived in a nomadic life. Over the years, they are now absorbed into modern Malaysian life. However, they remain as the lowest-income ethnic group compared to other ethnic groups. But, with the government aids in educational support, some of them are now with professional titles such as doctors.
Food
If you are a Malaysian, you will definitely be proud of living in Malaysia, as we have varieties of delicious food and cuisines which will never make you starve, only make you difficult to choose from. In short, Malaysia is a food heaven!
Each race and culture have their own unique signature dishes. For example, Nasi Lemak is the originating dish in Malay cuisine and is also our No. 1 national dish. A simple dish with rice cooked in coconut milk and topped with spicy sambal chili sauce will make you energetic to start the day.
Another local favourite dish is Roti Canai which is brought by Indian Muslims in Malaysia. It is a flatbread dish served with curry dipping sauce. Other local favorite dishes are such as Hokkien Mee (Chinese), Bak Kut Teh (Chinese), Nasi Campur and etc.
Music
Malaysian music includes traditional and contemporary music played by Malaysians. Traditional music is heavily influenced by Chinese, Islamic, Indian and Indonesian cultures. Most musical instruments consist of drums, flutes, gongs, string and etc.
There are a number of Malaysian singers who have brought their reputation to international recognition. One of the iconic Malay singers is Tan Sri Teuku Zakaria Bin Teuku Nyak Puteh, also known as, P. Ramlee. His reputation has hit several countries such as Brunei, Indonesia, Hong Kong and Japan. Another well known singer is Dato’ Sri Siti Nurhaliza Tarudin which has a nickname of The Voice of Asia” and “Celine Dion of Asia. She was also the third Asia artiste to hold a concert at the Royal Albert Hall, London. In the year of 2012, Shila Amzah had made our nation proud by winning the “Asian Wave” at Shanghai, China.
Besides the music industry, Malaysia also has strong traditions in dance such as wayang kulit and silat.
Article Contributed By: Mr. Almer Altus, Front Desk Management Trainee
Picture credit to : Tours Wealth
Link : https://www.tourswealth.com/malaysia-culture.html