Portal:Malaysia

Portal:Malaysia/Intro

Map of Malaysia

Malaysia (/məˈlziə, -ʒə/ (listen) mə-LAY-zee-ə, -⁠zhə; Malay: [məlejsiə]) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Malaysia. Peninsular Malaysia shares a land and maritime border with Thailand and maritime borders with Singapore, Vietnam, and Indonesia. East Malaysia shares land and maritime borders with Brunei and Indonesia, and a maritime border with the Philippines and Vietnam. Kuala Lumpur is the national capital, the country's largest city, and the seat of the legislative branch of the federal government. Putrajaya is the administrative center, which represents the seat of both the executive branch (the Cabinet, federal ministries, and agencies) and the judicial branch of the federal government. With a population of over 32 million, Malaysia is the world's 45th-most populous country. The southernmost point of continental Eurasia is in Tanjung Piai. Located in the tropics, Malaysia is one of 17 megadiverse countries, home to numerous endemic species.

Malaysia has its origins in the Malay kingdoms, which, from the 18th century on, became subject to the British Empire, along with the British Straits Settlements protectorate. During World War Two, British Malaya, along with other nearby British and American colonies, was occupied by the Empire of Japan. Following three years of occupation, peninsular Malaysia was unified as the Malayan Union in 1946 and then restructured as the Federation of Malaya in 1948. The country achieved independence on 31 August 1957. The independent Malaya united with the then British crown colonies of North Borneo, Sarawak, and Singapore on 16 September 1963 to become Malaysia. In August 1965, Singapore was expelled from the federation and became a separate independent country.

The country is multiethnic and multicultural, which has a significant effect on its politics. About half the population is ethnically Malay, with minorities of Chinese, Indians, and indigenous peoples. The country's official language is Malaysian Malay, a standard form of the Malay language. English remains an active second language. While recognising Islam as the country's established religion, the constitution grants freedom of religion to non-Muslims. The government is modelled on the Westminster parliamentary system, and the legal system is based on common law. The head of state is an elected monarch, chosen from among the nine state sultans every five years. The head of government is the Prime Minister.

After independence, the Malaysian GDP grew at an average rate of 6.5% per annum for almost 50 years. The economy has traditionally been fuelled by its natural resources but is expanding in the sectors of science, tourism, commerce and medical tourism. Malaysia has a newly industrialised market economy, ranked third-largest in Southeast Asia and 36th-largest in the world. It is a founding member of ASEAN, EAS, and OIC and a member of APEC, the Commonwealth, and the Non-Aligned Movement. (Full article...)

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Lukut Museum and Fort
The Lukut Fort and Museum (Malay: Kota dan Muzium Lukut) is a historical site in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. The fort was built by Raja Jumaat in 1847 and later controlled by his son Raja Bot. Located on a hill, it is in ruins and the area has been converted into a historic recreation park above the museum. The museum houses some of the antiquities of the fort, apart from artefacts and pictures related to the history of the past tin extraction done in Lukut area. (Full article...)
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MKUNIMAS26 Abdul Taib Mahmud (cropped).jpg
Taib Mahmud in 2022

Abdul Taib bin Mahmud (Jawi: عبدالطيب بن محمود; born 21 May 1936) is a Malaysian politician who has served as the 7th Yang di-Pertua Negeri of Sarawak since March 2014. He served as the 4th Chief Minister of Sarawak for 33 years, from March 1981 to February 2014, making him the longest-serving head of government of a Malaysian state. He served as President of the Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), which was part of the Barisan Nasional coalition until 2018. He is of ethnic Melanau descent.

Taib is informally known as Pak Uban, which translates into "White-haired Uncle". Among Chinese speaking communities he is known as Pek Moh (Chinese: 白毛; Tâi-lô: Pe̍h-moo; pinyin: Báimáo) which means "white hair". Another informal name for him, in reference to the British Brooke family that ruled Sarawak as White Rajahs in the 19th and early 20th century, is the "last white rajah" or "white-haired rajah". Holding the post of Chief Minister of Sarawak from 1981 to 2014, he is the longest serving Chief Minister in Malaysia. He assumed the Chief Minister post at the age of 45. Being a member of the Malaysian Parliament (MP) for 38 years, Taib is also the second longest-serving parliamentarian in Malaysia after Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah. Taib and his wider family are regularly accused of corruption and personally benefiting from Sarawak's natural and economic resources. (Full article...)
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The following are images from various Malaysia-related articles on Wikipedia.

Wiki Loves Malaysia

  • For more images from Malaysia, see the following categories at Wikimedia Commons:

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  • ... that part of the Malaysian tropical forest reserve Bukit Gasing has been protected from development, while another part has been sold to building contractors?
  • ... that Chinese entrepreneur Frank Tsao co-founded the national shipping lines of both Malaysia and Thailand, and was awarded the nobility title Tan Sri by the king of Malaysia?


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Iskandar Puteri
Credit: Chongkian (7 April 2018)
Iskandar Puteri is a city in Johor. It is the administrative center of the state of Johor, which houses various state government offices. It houses the Legoland Malaysia Resort, the first Legoland theme park in Asia.


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