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Malaysian Chinese is a Malaysian citizen of Chinese origin, most of whom are descendants of Chinese immigrants who came as indentured labourers from southern China to Malaya between the 15th and mid-20th centuries. In 1911, the Chinese population in Malaya was 269,854 but by 1949, the population had reached around a million. As of 2008, there are 7.15 million Malaysian Chinese,[1] comprising 26% of the total population, the majority of which live in cities.
| Fast Facts
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| Ethnic Chinese of Malaysia
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| Total population
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| c. 7,150,000 (as of June 2008) [1]
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| Regions with significant populations
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 Malaysia
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| Languages
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| Predominantly Malaysian Mandarin, various Min dialects (including Penang Hokkien), Cantonese, Hakka, Malaysian English/Manglish, Malay, other Chinese languages/dialects and another numerous languages of Malaysia (particularly Kristang).
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| Religion
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| Predominantly Buddhism, Chinese folk religion, Confucianism, and Taoism; significant minorities profess Christianity and Yi Guan Dao; relatively small numbers of Hui.[1]
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2. Early Chinese settlers (from the 15th century in Melaka) form a sub-group, called Peranakan or Straits Chinese, who adopted many Malay customs but retained their Chinese religious practices. In contrast, those who arrived in the 19th century onwards retained their Chinese customs and culture. The ethnic Chinese in Malaysia belong to several Chinese dialect groups, with Hokkien, Hakka, and Cantonese being the three major dialect.
3. About 90% of Malaysian Chinese children enroll into Mandarin-medium primary schools [1] that are partially financed by the government. Less than 5%, however, go on to Mandarin-medium secondary schools which are privately-run and fee-paying. This has resulted in an estimated 25% dropout rate [1] before reaching the age of 18, as students are unable to cope with the switch from Mandarin to Malay as the medium of instruction.[1] A sizeable group of Malaysian Chinese speak English, with many among them being unable to read and write in Chinese.
4. A majority of Malaysian Chinese practised a syncretic Chinese religion, incorporating varying degrees of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, and traditional ancestor-worship, although they may profess to be either Buddhist or Taoist. About 9.6% are Christians and a small number (0.7%) profess Islam as their faith. The Chinese in Malaysia maintain a distinct communal identity and rarely intermarry with native Muslim Malays for religious and cultural reasons. Most, if not all, Malaysian Chinese enjoy all types of food, without limiting themselves to their own Chinese food. A very significant number of Malaysian Chinese do not consume beef because of their worship of the Goddess Of Mercy (Guan Yin).
5. As with many countries in Southeast Asia, the Malaysian Chinese have traditionally dominated the Malaysian economy. However, with the Malaysian government's affirmative action policies under the New Economic Policy (NEP) to safeguard the interest of the ethnic Malays, their share of the economy has somewhat eroded. While the stated goal of the NEP is to "eventually eradicate poverty... irrespective of race" through a rapidly expanding economy which would reduce the non-Malay share of the economy in relative terms, while increasing it in absolute terms, the actual implementation has been something totally different, leaving many Chinese with the feeling that they have been victimised by the policy.[1] As a matter of fact, the entire Chinese diaspora, not only in Malaysia but in the whole of Southeast Asia, is characterized by their susceptibility to discrimination or political exploitation. Even so, Malaysian Chinese still make up the majority of the middle and upper income classes in the country. more... at Wikipedia
Malaysia
