Malaysian Indians or Indian Malaysians are
Malaysian citizens of
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
n or
South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...
n ancestry. Today, they form the third-largest group in Malaysia after the
Malays and the
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
. Most are descendants of those who migrated from India during the
British Malaya
The term "British Malaya" (; ms, Tanah Melayu British) loosely describes a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the island of Singapore that were brought under British hegemony or control between the late 18th and the mid-20th century. U ...
era from the early 19th to mid-20th centuries.
The majority of Malaysian Indians are ethnic
Tamils
The Tamil people, also known as Tamilar ( ta, தமிழர், Tamiḻar, translit-std=ISO, in the singular or ta, தமிழர்கள், Tamiḻarkaḷ, translit-std=ISO, label=none, in the plural), or simply Tamils (), are a Drav ...
; smaller groups include the
Malayalees
The Malayali people () (also spelt Malayalee and also known by the demonym Keralite) are a Dravidian ethnolinguistic group originating from the present-day state of Kerala in India, occupying its southwestern Malabar coast. They are predomina ...
,
Telugus
Telugu people ( te, తెలుగువారు, Teluguvāru), or Telugus, or Telugu vaaru, are the largest of the four major Dravidian ethnolinguistic groups in terms of population. Telugus are native to the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh ...
,
Sikhs
Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ...
and others. Malaysian Indians form the fifth largest community of
Overseas Indians in the world. Within Malaysia, they represent the third-largest group (constituting 6.8% of the Malaysian population), after the ethnic
Malay
Malay may refer to:
Languages
* Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore
** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century
** Indonesi ...
and
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
.
They are usually simply referred to as "Indian" in Malaysia, ''Orang India'' in Malay, "''Yin du ren''" in Chinese.
Malaysia's Indian population is notable for its class stratification, with a significant elite as well as a large low income groups within its fold. Malaysian Indians make up a disproportionately large percentage of professionals per capita – constituting 15.5% of Malaysia's professionals in 1999.
As of a census taken in 1984, up to 38% of the nation's medical professional workforce consists of Malaysian Indians.
In 1970, the per capita income of Malaysian Indians was 76% higher than that of the Malay majority,
by 2005, this gap had reduced to 27%.
History
First Wave: Pre-colonial period
Ancient India
According to consensus in modern genetics, anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. Quote: "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by m ...
exerted a profound influence over Southeast Asia through trade, religious missions, wars and other forms of contact. Pre-colonial Malaysia was part of 'Indianised Kingdoms' such as
Srivijaya, Kadaram and the
Majapahit
Majapahit ( jv, ꦩꦗꦥꦲꦶꦠ꧀; ), also known as Wilwatikta ( jv, ꦮꦶꦭ꧀ꦮꦠꦶꦏ꧀ꦠ; ), was a Javanese people, Javanese Hinduism, Hindu-Buddhism, Buddhist thalassocracy, thalassocratic empire in Southeast Asia that was ba ...
, which formed part of a cultural region known as
Greater India. There is a possibility that the first wave of migration from India towards Southeast Asia happened during Asoka's invasion towards Kalinga and
Samudragupta
Samudragupta (Gupta script: ''Sa-mu-dra-gu-pta'', (c. 335–375 CE) was the second emperor of the Gupta Empire of ancient India, and is regarded among the greatest rulers of the dynasty. As a son of the Gupta emperor Chandragupta I and the Li ...
's expedition towards the South.
The Arab and Indian traders had travelled this region including the southern tip of South East Asia the peninsula with maritime trade,
the
Sailendra
The Shailendra dynasty (, derived from Sanskrit combined words ''Śaila'' and ''Indra'', meaning "King of the Mountain", also spelled Sailendra, Syailendra or Selendra) was the name of a notable Indianised dynasty that emerged in 8th-century ...
kings of
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
originating from
Kalinga Kalinga may refer to:
Geography, linguistics and/or ethnology
* Kalinga (historical region), a historical region of India
** Kalinga (Mahabharata), an apocryphal kingdom mentioned in classical Indian literature
** Kalinga script, an ancient writ ...
were able to take control of the
Peninsular
A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on all ...
and part of southern
Siam
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 mi ...
. The kings welcomed Buddhist missionaries from India, accepting their teaching of the
Mahayana
''Mahāyāna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices. Mahāyāna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BCE onwards) and is considered one of the three main existing bra ...
sect, which spread through their territories. However, central and northeastern Thailand continued to adhere to the Hinayana teachings of the Theravada sect, which had been introduced by missionaries sent by the emperor Ashoka in the 3rd century BC.
Another theory of the introduction of Buddhism after Indian arrived in the peninsula is that after Kalinga conquered lower
Burma
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
in the 8th century their influence gradually spread down the peninsula. The ancient Indian Kalinga was located in southeastern India occupying modern day Orissa and northern Andhra Pradesh. In the 7th century an Indonesian kingdom was named Kalingga after the aforementioned Kalinga in India. Chinese sources mention this kingdom (''Holing'') as a center for Buddhist scholars around 604 before it was overshadowed by the Sanjaya or
Mataram Kingdom
The Mataram Kingdom (, jv, ꦩꦠꦫꦩ꧀, ) was a Javanese people, Javanese Hinduism, Hindu–Buddhism, Buddhist kingdom that flourished between the 8th and 11th centuries. It was based in Central Java, and later in East Java. Established b ...
. The most famous Kalingga ruler is Ratu Sima.
There is evidence of the existence of
Indianised kingdom
Greater India, or the Indian cultural sphere, is an area composed of many countries and regions in South and Southeast Asia that were historically influenced by Indian culture, which itself formed from the various distinct indigenous cultures ...
s such as
Gangga Negara
Gangga Negara is believed to be a lost semi-legendary Malay-Hindu kingdom mentioned in the Malay Annals that covered present day Beruas, Dinding and Manjung in the state of Perak, Malaysia with Raja Gangga Shah Johan as one of its kings. Res ...
, Old
Kedah
Kedah (), also known by its honorific Darul Aman and historically as Queda, is a state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of Peninsular Malaysia. The state covers a total area of over 9,000 km2, and it consists of the mainland ...
,
Srivijaya since approximately 1700 years ago.
[European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 7, Number 3 (2009)] Early contact between the kingdoms of
Tamilakkam
Tamiḻakam (Tamil: தமிழகம்; Malayalam: തമിഴകം), refers to the geographical region inhabited by the ancient Tamil people, covering the southernmost region of the Indian subcontinent. Tamilakam covered today's Tamil Nad ...
and the Malay peninsula had been very close during the reigns of the
Pallava dynasty
The Pallava dynasty existed from 275 CE to 897 CE, ruling a significant portion of the Deccan, also known as Tondaimandalam. The dynasty rose to prominence after the downfall of the Satavahana dynasty, with whom they had formerly served as f ...
(from the 4th to the 9th century CE) and
Chola dynasty
The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...
(from the 9th to the 13th century CE). The trade relations the Tamil merchants had with the ports of
Malaya led to the emergence of Indianised kingdoms like Kadaram (
Old Kedah) and
Langkasugam.
Furthermore, Chola king
Rajendra Chola I
Rajendra Chola I (; Middle Tamil: Rājēntira Cōḻaṉ; Classical Sanskrit: Rājēndradēva Cōla; Old Malay: ''Raja Suran''; c. 971 CE – 1044 CE), often referred to as Rajendra the Great, and also known as Gangaikonda Chola (Middle Tamil ...
sent an expedition to Kadaram (
Srivijaya) during the 11th century conquering that country on behalf of one of its rulers who sought his protection and to have established him on the throne. The Cholas had a powerful
merchant
A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...
and
naval fleet
A fleet or naval fleet is a large formation of warships – the largest formation in any navy – controlled by one leader. A fleet at sea is the direct equivalent of an army on land.
Purpose
In the modern sense, fleets are usually, but not ne ...
in the Indian Ocean and the
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean, bounded on the west and northwest by India, on the north by Bangladesh, and on the east by Myanmar and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India. Its southern limit is a line between ...
. Three kinds of craft are distinguished by the author of the ''Periplus'' – light coasting boats for local traffic, larger vessels of a more complicated structure and greater carrying capacity, and lastly the big ocean-going vessels that made the voyages to Malaya,
Sumatra
Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...
, and the
Ganges
The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...
.
In
Malacca Sultanate
The Malacca Sultanate ( ms, Kesultanan Melaka; Jawi script: ) was a Malay sultanate based in the modern-day state of Malacca, Malaysia. Conventional historical thesis marks as the founding year of the sultanate by King of Singapura, Parames ...
, the
Chitty
The Chitty, also known as the Chetty or Chetti Melaka, are a distinctive group of Tamil people found mainly and originally in Melaka, Malaysia, and in Singapore where they migrated to in the 18th and 19th centuries from Melaka, who are also kn ...
people, played a huge role in Malacca's administration of the local ports such as
Raja Mudaliar, Syahbandar (Chief of Port) of Malacca and
Bendahara
Bendahara ( Jawi: بنداهارا) is an administrative position within classical Malay kingdoms comparable to a vizier before the intervention of European powers during the 19th century. A bendahara was appointed by a sultan and was a heredi ...
Tun Mutahir, a famous
Bendahara
Bendahara ( Jawi: بنداهارا) is an administrative position within classical Malay kingdoms comparable to a vizier before the intervention of European powers during the 19th century. A bendahara was appointed by a sultan and was a heredi ...
of the
Malaccan Sultanate
The Malacca Sultanate ( ms, Kesultanan Melaka; Jawi script: ) was a Malay sultanate based in the modern-day state of Malacca, Malaysia. Conventional historical thesis marks as the founding year of the sultanate by King of Singapura, Paramesw ...
.
Second Wave: Colonial period
Following the Portuguese colonisation of
Malacca
Malacca ( ms, Melaka) is a state in Malaysia located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Strait of Malacca. Its capital is Malacca City, dubbed the Historic City, which has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site si ...
(
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
) in 1511, the Portuguese government encouraged their explorers to bring their married Indian women who were converted already to Roman Catholic Christianity, under a policy set by
Afonso de Albuquerque
Afonso de Albuquerque, 1st Duke of Goa (; – 16 December 1515) was a Portuguese general, admiral, and statesman. He served as viceroy of Portuguese India from 1509 to 1515, during which he expanded Portuguese influence across the Indian Ocean ...
, then
Viceroy
A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...
of
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. These people were
Goan Catholics
Goan Catholics ( gom, Goenchem Katholik) are an ethno-religious community of Indian Christians following the Roman Rite of worship from the Goa state, in the southern part of the Konkan region along the west coast of India. They are Konkan ...
(
Konkani Catholics) and
East Indians
The East Indians, also called East Indian Catholics or Bombay East Indians, are an ethno-religious Indian Christian community native to the Seven Islands of Bombay and the neighbouring Mumbai Metropolitan Area of the Konkan Division.
His ...
(Catholics of
Marathi descent).
Kupari
The Kupari (from pt, compadre referring to the godfather of one's godchild; word derived from ''Kumpari'' and feminine being ''Kumari'' or Portuguese; '' comadre'') consist of Kadodi Christians and Samvedi Christians, whixh are a Roman Cathol ...
s who were of mixed Samvedic Brahmin, Goan and Portuguese descent also arrived. Their children already intermarried with Malay population, losing their ethnic identities. British acquisition of
Penang
Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...
,
Melaka
Malacca ( ms, Melaka) is a state in Malaysia located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Strait of Malacca. Its capital is Malacca City, dubbed the Historic City, which has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site si ...
, and
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
- the Straits Settlements from 1786 to 1824 started a steady inflow of Indian labour. This consisted of traders, policemen, plantation labourers and colonial soldiers (see
sepoys). Apart from this there was also substantial migration of Indians to work in the British colonial government, due to their general good command of the English language.
The establishment of the plantations and the need for cheap labour led to an influx of Indian migrants working under the indenture
Kangani system
The kangani system was a form of labour recruitment and organisation in parts of Southeast Asia under British colonial rule, generally in operation from the early 19th century until the early 20th century, specifically the areas now known as Myan ...
in the 19th and early 20th century. Some, after the Kangani system ended in the early 20th century, also paid for their own passage to Malaya. These migrant workers were primarily Tamils (around 80%), with some
Telugus
Telugu people ( te, తెలుగువారు, Teluguvāru), or Telugus, or Telugu vaaru, are the largest of the four major Dravidian ethnolinguistic groups in terms of population. Telugus are native to the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh ...
,
Malayali
The Malayali people () (also spelt Malayalee and also known by the demonym Keralite) are a Dravidian peoples, Dravidian ethnolinguistic group originating from the present-day state of Kerala in India, occupying its southwestern Malabar coast. ...
s as well as other groups from northern India. The Tamils were primarily non-Brahmin middle-ranking or low-caste Hindus, including
Gounder
Gounder is a title used by various communities in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It may refer to communities such as the , Kongu Vellalars , Kurumbas, Tuluva Vellalars, Uralis, Vanniyars, Vettuvars and Vokkaligas.
Etymology
There are number ...
,
Kallar,
Muthuraja
Muthuraja or Mutharaiyar is a Tamil and Telugu speaking community prevalent in southern India.
Etymology
The etymology of the community name is unclear. The names Muthuraja and Muthuraiyar may be derived from two words, the Tamil nam ...
,
Pallar
The Pallar, who prefer to be called Mallar, are an agricultural community from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The Pallars traditionally inhabited the fertile wetland area referred to as ''Marutham'' in the literary devices of the Sangam landsc ...
,
Vanniyar
The Vanniyar, also spelled Vanniya, formerly known as the Palli, are a Dravidian community or '' jāti'' found in the northern part of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. From the 19th century, peasant castes typically classified under Shudra ca ...
and
Paraiyar
Paraiyar, or Parayar or Maraiyar (formerly anglicised as Pariah and Paree), is a caste group found in the Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, and Sri Lanka.
Etymology
Robert Caldwell, a nineteenth-century missionary and grammarian who ...
, the Telugus include
Kamma
Kamma may refer to:
*Kamma (caste), a caste or social group found largely in Southern India
*Kamma, India, village in Punjab, India
*The Pali and Ardhamagadhi term for karma
*Bava Kamma, a traditional Jewish civil law procedure (1st volume of Nezi ...
and
Reddy
Reddy (also transliterated as ''Raddi'', ''Reddi'', ''Reddiar'', ''Reddappa'', ''Reddy'') is a caste that originated in India, predominantly settled in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. They are classified as a forward caste.
The origin of the ...
, while the Malayali were mostly from the
Nayar caste.
These workers were distinct from the commercial and educated group of urban Indians, who were often high caste or high and middle class Tamils, Telugus, Malayali,
Punjabis
The Punjabis ( Punjabi: ; ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ; romanised as Panjābīs), are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group associated with the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of eastern Pakistan and northwestern India. The ...
,
Sindhis
Sindhis ( sd, سنڌي Perso-Arabic: सिन्धी Devanagari; ) are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group who speak the Sindhi language and are native to the province of Sindh in Pakistan. After the partition of British Indian empire in 1947, man ...
,
Gujaratis
The Gujarati people or Gujaratis, are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who reside in or can trace their ancestry or heritage to the present-day western Indian state of Gujarat. They primarily speak Gujarati, an Indo-Aryan language. While G ...
,
Marwaris
The Marwari or Marwadi (Hindi: मारवाड़ी, Urdu: مارواڑی) are an Indian ethnic group that originate from the Rajasthan region of India. Their language, also called Marwari, comes under the umbrella of Rajasthani languages ...
and others. These urban Indians may be Hindus, Christians, Sikhs or Muslims. The
Sikhs
Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ...
mainly worked in the police force, while other northern Indians were involved in business. The
Malayalees
The Malayali people () (also spelt Malayalee and also known by the demonym Keralite) are a Dravidian ethnolinguistic group originating from the present-day state of Kerala in India, occupying its southwestern Malabar coast. They are predomina ...
, Ceylonese and Christian Tamils may be involved in government and private
white-collar work, the
Chettiar in money-lending or finance, while the
Vellalar
Vellalar is a generic Tamil term used primarily to refer to various castes who traditionally pursued agriculture as a profession in the Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and northeastern parts of Sri Lanka. The Vellalar are members of sev ...
and Muslim Tamils may be in various kind of businesses.
The Indian population in
pre-independence Malaya and Singapore was predominantly adult males who were single or with family back in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
and
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
. Hence the population fluctuated frequently with periods of immigration to Malaya and periods of exodus of people back to India. As early as 1901 the Indian population in the Straits Settlements and the Federated Malay States was approximately 120,000. By 1931 there were 640,000 Indians in Malaya and Singapore and they even outnumbered the native
Malays in the state of
Selangor
Selangor (; ), also known by its Arabic language, Arabic honorific Darul Ehsan, or "Abode of Sincerity", is one of the 13 Malaysian states. It is on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and is bordered by Perak to the north, Pahang to the east ...
that year.
However, during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
many Indian men and women left for
Burma
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
as part of the
Indian National Army with thousands thought to have perished. As a result, the population of Indians in 1957 had only increased to 820,000. While immigration was a major factor for the increase in population until Independence, the population growth began falling after that as the white collar classes in the civil service and plantations left when British institutions and companies left the country. Since then, lower birth rates and emigration to countries like
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
,
UK, etc. in search of better educational and economic opportunities meant that Indians continue to see their share of Malaysia's population decline just as is the case with the
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
. Today, Malaysian Indians account for approximately 7 per cent of the total population of Malaysia (approx. 2 million) and 9 per cent in Singapore (450,000).
Third Wave : Contemporary period
From the 1990s to the present period, there has also been a much smaller wave of Indian nationals into Singapore and Malaysia to work in the construction and engineering industry, restaurants, the IT sector, teaching and finance with many taking up permanent residence in Singapore where they account for nearly a quarter of the Singapore population. The unskilled labour mainly work in Indian restaurants. There are also foreign spouses from the Indian Subcontinent who are married to local Indians.
Demographics
7.0% of the Malaysian population are Indians as of 2016.
There is a close correspondence between the ethnic and occupational divisions of the Indian community, and this is inevitably reflected in the community's geographical distribution in Malaya. The South Indian Tamils were the majority throughout the country, on the rubber estates and railways, though a significant proportion found employment on the docks in
Penang
Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...
and
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
.
Selangor is the state with the most number of Indians in terms of absolute number whereas Negeri Sembilan is the state with the highest proportion of Malaysian Indians making up the population.
*
Non-citizens are excluded in figures and percentage
*
Population estimates are rounded to the nearest hundred.
Education
There are significant differences between Malaysian Indians who are part of the Malaysian
working class
The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...
in plantations and urban middle class or upper middle class professionals.
Many Indians are workers in plantations and attend Tamil language schools. Tamil language
primary schools
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
are funded by the
Federal Government, but Tamil schools on private lands are not eligible for full government grant. Although Tamil is used as the medium of instruction, Malay and English are taught as compulsory subjects. Tamil schools may range from single classroom where students of varying age and ability are taught by a single teacher, to large schools of a few hundreds students. In plantation estates the schools may be poorly staffed and equipped, and few of their students moved on to higher education. Those Indians who do well in schools are primarily from the urban middle classes.
Indians are well represented in Malaysian medical and legal fraternities. Indians also form a large portion of English language teachers in Malaysia. Law and medicine have traditionally been the preferred career choices in Indian families although more young Indian Malaysians are now venturing into other fields such as engineering, finance and entrepreneurship.
Ananda Krishnan
Tatparanandam Ananda Krishnan (Tamil: த. ஆனந்தகிருஷ்ணன்) (born 1 April 1938) is a Malaysian-Tamil businessman, the Chairman of Usaha Tegas Sdn Bhd and founder of Yu Cai Foundation (YCF). Nicknamed A.K., he is es ...
and
Tony Fernandes
Anthony Francis Fernandes (born 30 April 1964) is a Malaysian entrepreneur. He is the founder of Tune Air Sdn. Bhd., which took over the first Malaysian budget airline, AirAsia. Fernandes turned AirAsia, a failing government-linked commer ...
are examples of notable Malaysian
tycoon
A business magnate, also known as a tycoon, is a person who has achieved immense wealth through the ownership of multiple lines of enterprise. The term characteristically refers to a powerful entrepreneur or investor who controls, through perso ...
s of Indian heritage. There are major Indian business districts in
Kuala Lumpur
, anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera''
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia
, pushpin_map_caption =
, coordinates =
, su ...
(
Brickfields A brickfield is an open site where bricks are made. Place names are often formed from the word.
Brickfield, Brickfields or Brickfielder may specifically refer to:
Australia
*Brickfielder, an arid wind
* Brickfield Hill, an area of Sydney
*Brickfie ...
, Jalan Ampang and
Jalan Masjid India
Like all other historical urban centres, the capital city of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, contains a number of current and old roads and streets across the city.
This article contains an alphabetical list of notable roads within ...
); (Lebuh Pasar) in
George Town, Penang; Jalan Tengku Kelana in
Klang, Selangor; and
Ipoh, Perak.
Economy and employment
There are considerable differences socially and economically between different groups of Indians in Malaysia. They form a significant part of the professional classes in Malaysia; in a census taken in 1999, Malaysian Indians were 15.5% of Malaysia's professional workforce.
These include doctors (28.4%), lawyers (26.8%), dentists (21%), veterinary surgeons (28.5%), engineers (6.4%), accountants (5.8%), surveyors (3.0%) and architects (1.5%). However, many Indians are also ranked amongst the most disadvantaged. In 1970, around 39% of Indians in Malaysia were ranked among the poorest of the country.
Incidence of poverty (those in the lowest 40% of the national income distribution) in Malaysia was 27.3% Indians. Official figures suggest that the percentage of Indians living below the official poverty line has decreased from 39.2% in 1970 to 1.9% in 2002, but the figures have been criticised as inaccurate. It has been claimed around 40% of Indians are at the bottom rung of the income ladder in 2015.
Many of the early South Indian immigrants such as the Tamils and Telugus worked in the agriculture sector, in particular as workers in plantations. In 1930, 60% of all Indians were in this sector, and by 1970, 45% of Indians were still involved in agriculture in Malaysia. Sri Lanka Tamils mainly occupied the subordinate administrative and technical positions in estates, positions they still dominate to this day. Also in the estates are the Malayalis who hold assistant and managerial positions. Few of these estates however are Indian-owned. Indians are also prominent in the transport and communication sector, either as labourers or as administrative and technical staff.
Many Indians are also involved in business and trade, the majority of the privately owned businesses belong to the
Chettiars. The Sikhs and other Punjabis were initially recruited by the British to serve in the police and armed forces, and while in modern times these areas are now dominated by Malays, the descendants of Sikhs and other Punjabi are now found in every sphere of the economy, in particular as professionals, and in the mercantile and money-lending business.
According to the
Ninth Malaysia Plan
The Ninth Malaysian Plan ( ms, Rancangan Malaysia ke-9), abbreviated as '9MP', is a comprehensive blueprint prepared by the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) of the Prime Minister's Department and the Finance Ministry of Malaysia with approval by the ...
report of 2006, Malaysian Indians also controlled only 1.2 percent of the corporate wealth in Malaysia, down from the previous figure of 1.5 percent.
Politics
The
Malaysian Indian Congress
The Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC; ta, மலேசிய இந்திய காங்கிரஸ், Malēciya Intiya Kāṅkiras; formerly known as Malayan Indian Congress) is a Malaysian political party. It is one of the founding membe ...
(MIC) is the oldest and largest Indian political party in Malaysia. It is a senior member of the
Barisan Nasional
The National Front ( ms, Barisan Nasional; abbrev: BN) is a political coalition of Malaysia that was founded in 1973 as a coalition of centre-right and right-wing political parties. It is also the third largest political coalition with 30 se ...
coalition. The
Indian Progressive Front (IPF), another Indian-based party, is affiliated with Barisan Nasional but is not a formal member. The
People's Progressive Party (PPP) is technically a multiracial party but its membership is overwhelmingly Indian. It is a member of the Barisan Nasional. The
People's Justice Party
The People's Justice Party ( ms, Parti Keadilan Rakyat , often known simply as KEADILAN or PKR) is a reformist political party in Malaysia, formed in 2003 by a merger of the National Justice Party and the older Malaysian People's Party. The ...
(PKR) and
Democratic Action Party
The Democratic Action Party (abbreviation: DAP; ms, Parti Tindakan Demokratik; ; ta, ஜனநாயக செயல் கட்சி) is a Centre-left politics, centre-left social democracy, social democratic political party in Malaysia. ...
(DAP) have a large Indian membership and have many Indian lawmakers. Both parties are members of the ruling
Pakatan Harapan
The Alliance of Hope ( ms, Pakatan Harapan; abbrev: PH; stylized as HARAPAN) is a Malaysian political coalition consisting of centre-left political parties which was formed in 2015 to succeed the Pakatan Rakyat coalition. It has been the ...
coalition. The
Socialist Party of Malaysia
The Socialist Party of Malaysia (PSM, ; ; ta, மலேசிய சோசியலிஸ்ட் கட்சி), is a socialist political party in Malaysia and an offshoot of Parti Rakyat Malaysia, which originally upheld the same ideology. ...
(PSM), a minor opposition party, has a strong Indian presence. The
Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) was formed in 2007 to address alleged racial discrimination against Indian Malaysians. It was banned after it staged a large anti-government rally in
Kuala Lumpur
, anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera''
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia
, pushpin_map_caption =
, coordinates =
, su ...
in 2007. Hindraf's political wing is the
Human Rights Party (HRP). The
Malaysian Indian Muslim Congress
The Malaysian Indian Muslim Congress ( ms, Kongres India Muslim Malaysia; ta, மலேசிய இந்திய முஸ்லிம் காங்கிரஸ்; abbrev: KIMMA) is a political party in Malaysia which seeks to repres ...
(KIMMA) is a party that represents the interests of the
Indian Muslim
Islam is India's second-largest religion, with 14.2% of the country's population, approximately 172.2 million people identifying as adherents of Islam in 2011 Census. India is also the country with the second or third largest number of Muslim ...
community. There is the
Punjabi Party of Malaysia
The Punjabi Party of Malaysia ( ms, Parti Punjabi Malaysia, pa, ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਪਾਰਟੀ ਮਲੇਸ਼ੀਆ, Pañjābī Pārṭī Maleśīā; abbreviated as PPM) is a Malaysian political party formed in 1986 but only successfully re ...
(PPM) which represents Malaysia's Punjabi community. The
Malaysian Ceylonese Congress
The Malaysian Ceylonese Congress (MCC; ms, Kongres Ceylonese Malaysia, ta, மலேசிய சிலோனீஸ் காங்கிரஸ், si,
මැලේසියානු ලංකා කොන්ග්රසය) is a political ...
(MCC) represents Malaysia's
Sri Lankan Tamil community who are technically not Indian but often regarded as such by most Malaysians. Other Indian fringe parties include the pro-Barisan Nasional
Malaysian Indian United Party
Malaysian Indian United Party ( ms, Parti Bersatu India Malaysia, ta, மலேசிய இந்திய ஐக்கிய கட்சி, abbrev: MIUP) is a political party representing the Indian community in Malaysia. MIUP was founded ...
(MIUP),
Malaysia Makkal Sakti Party (MMSP) and the latest
Malaysian Indian Justice Party
Malaysian Indian Justice Party ( ms, Parti Keadilan India Malaysia, ta, மலேசிய இந்திய நீதிக் கட்சி, Malēciya intiya nītik kaṭci; abbreviation, abbrev: MIJP) is a political party representing th ...
(MIJP). There was also the
Democratic Malaysian Indian Party
Democratic Malaysian Indian Party (DMIP) or ms, Parti Demokratik India Malaysia was a splinter party of Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) formed on 19 October 1985 to represent the minority India community by Datuk V. Govindaraj, an ex-Vice Presi ...
(DMIP) which has been dissolved.
In the
Malaysian general election
Elections in Malaysia include elections to public office of the political entities that since 1963 have composed the federation of Malaysia. At present, elections in Malaysia exist at two levels: federal level and state level. Federal level elec ...
held in 2018, sixteen Indians were elected to the
Dewan Rakyat
The Dewan Rakyat (English: 'House of Representatives'; ) is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament, the federal legislature of Malaysia. The chamber and its powers are established by Article 44 of the Constitution of Malaysia. The Dewan Ra ...
. This is the
highest number of Malaysian Indians elected to parliament in Malaysian history.
HINDRAF is a current ally to the present
Pakatan Harapan
The Alliance of Hope ( ms, Pakatan Harapan; abbrev: PH; stylized as HARAPAN) is a Malaysian political coalition consisting of centre-left political parties which was formed in 2015 to succeed the Pakatan Rakyat coalition. It has been the ...
government. This is in addition to
DAP
DAP or Dap may refer to:
Science
* DAP (gene), human gene that encodes death-associated proteins, which mediate programmed cell death
* Diamidophosphate, phosphorylating compound
* Diaminopimelic acid, amino acid derivative of lysine
* Diamin ...
and
PKR which are multiracial parties with Indian representatives.
There are currently
1 minister and 1 deputy minister from the Malaysian Indian community in the
Cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filing ...
.
Media and the performing arts
Satellite television provider
Astro
Astro may refer to:
Entertainment and media
* Astro (South Korean band), a South Korean boy band
* Astro (UB40) (1957–2021), member of the British reggae band UB40
* Astro (Chilean band), a Chilean indie rock band
* Astro (Japanese band), ...
provides several
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
satellite
A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioisotope ...
television channels
A television channel is a terrestrial frequency or virtual number over which a television station or television network is distributed. For example, in North America, "channel 2" refers to the terrestrial or cable band of 54 to 60 MHz, with ...
.
Astro Vaanavil and state-owned
RTM TV2 broadcast locally produced
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
shows. India-based channels available in
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
are
Sun TV,
Jaya TV
Jaya TV HD is a Tamil language satellite television channel based in Chennai, India. Jaya TV HD is also broadcast to the expatriate Tamil community via various media partnerships. Hemant Sahai of HSA had Jaya TV HD as his first client. Jaya TV ...
,
Chutti TV
Chutti TV is a 24-hour Tamil cartoon television channel from the Sun TV Network in India. The target audience are children aged between 3 and 17. It was launched on 29 April 2007, making it Sun TV Network's first ever television channel for k ...
. Thanga Thirai and
Velli Thirai
''Velli Thirai'' () is a 2008 Indian Tamil-language satirical drama film directed by debutant Viji, the dialogue writer for Radha Mohan's films, and produced by Prakash Raj. It is a remake of the 2005 Malayalam film ''Udayananu Tharam''. The f ...
are
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
movie channels while
Astro B4U is a
Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
movie channel. The Malaysian Indian community is an important market for the
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
film industry
Kollywood
Tamil cinema, also known as Kollywood is a part of Indian Cinema; primarily engaged in production of motion pictures in the Tamil language. Based out of the Kodambakkam neighbourhood in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, it is popularly called ''Kollywood' ...
. There are 2-
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
radio stations of the state-owned
Minnal FM and the privately owned
THR Raaga
THR or Thr may refer to:
Entertainment
* ''The Hollywood Reporter'', an American digital and print magazine
* Yamaha THR, a series of guitar amps
* THR.fm, a defunct radio channel in Malaysia
Biochemistry, biology, and medicine
* Target heart r ...
.
It is also customary for major Malaysian corporations to produce television commercials in conjunction with
Deepavali
Diwali (), Dewali, Divali, or Deepavali (IAST: ''dīpāvalī''), also known as the Festival of Lights, related to Jain Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Tihar, Swanti, Sohrai, and Bandna, is a religious celebration in Indian religions. It is on ...
. They generally pay tribute to the contributions of the Indian community to the nation and are well received by Indians of all faiths. The heart-warming Deepavali commercials by the state petroleum company
Petronas
Petroliam Nasional Berhad (National Petroleum Limited), commonly known as Petronas, is a Malaysian oil and gas company. Established in 1974 and wholly owned by the Government of Malaysia, the corporation is vested with all oil and gas reso ...
are especially popular. Indian Malaysians have also contributed to the mainstream Malaysian entertainment industry. The Jayhawkers from Seremban led by one Joe Chelliah was the first non-Malay pop band with only Indian musicians that recorded popular commercial albums in Malay in the mid 1960s itself. More recent notable Indian Malaysian artists with multiracial appeal are
Reshmonu,
Jaclyn Victor
Jaclyn Joshua Thanaraj Victor (born 4 December 1978) is a Malaysian singer, songwriter, actress & businesswoman who won the inaugural ''Malaysian Idol'', ''Ikon Malaysia'' & ''Gegar Vaganza Season 9''. As the winner of ''Malaysian Idol'', she wo ...
, and
Alleycats. Indian Malaysians have also made significant contributions to the Malaysian English theatre scene. Tamil
hip hop was started in Malaysia by pioneers like rappers
Chakra Sonic
Viveck Ji Of (Chakra Sonic), born April 8, 1976, is a Malaysian hip hop artist. He is a Malaysian Indian, Tamil by ethnicity.
Viveck Ji owns the record label (DISS THA STUDIO) and music publishing company, releasing his own recordings as well ...
, Yogi B and several others, which had since then made its way to Kollywood.
Bharata Natyam
Bharatanatyam () is a major form of Indian classical dance that originated in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the eight widely recognized Indian classical dance forms, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas, particularly of ...
, the Tamil classical dance of India, is an important feature of Tamil culture and is hence popular in Malaysia. Ramli Ibrahim and
Mavin Khoo
Mavin Khoo (Mavin Khoo Bu-Aun) is Malaysian dancer of the Indian classical dance form, Bharata Natyam.
Early life and education
Born on 30 April 1976 born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, a youngest son to Tan Sri and Puan Sri Khoo Kay Kim. His fa ...
are two non-Indian Malaysians who are
Indian classical dance performers. The Temple of Fine Arts in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur is an academy that provides training in traditional Indian dance and music. The
urumee drums are often played at religious and cultural events. The
nadaswaram
The Nagaswaram (nādḥasvaram) is a double reed wind instrument from South India. It is used as a traditional classical instrument in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Kerala.
This instrument is "among the world's loudes ...
is a traditional Indian wind instrument often played at Indian weddings in Malaysia.
Cuisine
The contribution of the Indian community to
Malaysian cuisine
Malaysian cuisine consists of cooking traditions and practices found in Malaysia, and reflects the multi-ethnic makeup of its population. The vast majority of Malaysia's population can roughly be divided among three major ethnic groups: Mala ...
is enormous. Indian cuisine has had a strong influence on traditional
Malay cuisine
Malay cuisine is the traditional food of the ethnic Malays of Southeast Asia, residing in modern-day Malaysia, Indonesia (parts of Sumatra and Kalimantan), Singapore, Brunei, Southern Thailand and the Philippines (mostly southern) as well as ...
resulting in the popularity of curries in Malaysia. Indian restaurants are well received by Malaysians from all ethnic and religious backgrounds. They have become an important fixture in everyday Malaysian life and are the venue of choice for watching live televised football matches.
Mamak restaurants and stalls refer to eateries owned and staffed by
Indian Muslims
Islam is India's second-largest religion, with 14.2% of the country's population, approximately 172.2 million people identifying as adherents of Islam in 2011 Census. India is also the country with the second or third largest number of Muslim ...
. The word 'Mamak' is sometimes erroneously used to describe any Indian restaurant.
Roti canai
Roti canai (pronunciation: /tʃanaɪ/) or roti prata, also known as roti chenai and roti cane (/tʃane/), is an Indian flatbread dish found in several countries in Southeast Asia, especially in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thai ...
,
nasi kandar
Nasi kandar is a popular northern Malaysian dish from Penang, originally introduced by Tamil Muslim traders from India. The meal consists of steamed rice combined with an array of distinct curries, sides dishes, and gravies. The selection of curr ...
,
maggi goreng and
pasembur
Pasembur (locally ''Pasemboq'' or ''Pasembot'') is a Malaysian salad consisting of cucumber (shredded), potatoes, beancurd, turnip, bean sprouts, prawn fritters, spicy fried crab, fried squid or other seafoods and served with a sweet and spicy nu ...
(Mamak rojak) are Indian dishes unique to Malaysia. Nasi kandar is sold exclusively in
Indian Muslim
Islam is India's second-largest religion, with 14.2% of the country's population, approximately 172.2 million people identifying as adherents of Islam in 2011 Census. India is also the country with the second or third largest number of Muslim ...
restaurants and the recipes are closely guarded secrets. Unlike Indian cuisine in the United Kingdom and other Western countries which tend to focus on
North Indian cuisine
North Indian cuisine is collectively the cuisine of Northern India, which includes the cuisines of Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and adjoining western Bihar.
Sub-types of No ...
, Indian cuisine in Malaysia is largely based on
South Indian cuisine
South Indian cuisine includes the cuisines of the five southern states of India—Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana—and the union territories of Lakshadweep, Pondicherry, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.Th ...
as the Malaysian Indian diaspora is overwhelmingly Tamil, although some northern dishes such as
tandoori chicken
Tandoori chicken is a Cuisine of the Indian subcontinent, South Asian dish of chicken (food), chicken marinated in yogurt and spices and roasting, roasted in a ''tandoor'', a cylindrical clay oven. The dish is now popular world-wide. The moder ...
and
naan
Naan ( fa, نان, nān, ur, , ps, نان, ug, نان, hi, नान, bn, নান) is a leavened, oven-baked or tawa-fried flatbread which is found in the cuisines mainly of Western Asia, Central Asia, Indian subcontinent, Indonesia, ...
bread are common. Southern breakfast delicacies such as
idli
Idli or idly () is a type of savoury rice cake, originating from the South India,popular as breakfast foods in Southern India and in Sri Lanka. The cakes are made by steaming a batter consisting of fermented black lentils (de-husked) and ric ...
,
vadai
Vada is a category of savoury fried snacks native to South India. Vadas can be described variously as fritters, cutlets, or dumplings. Alternative names for this food include vadai, vade, and bada. Vadas are sometimes stuffed with vegetables and ...
and
dosa
Dosa may refer to:
People
* Bogoljub Mitić Đoša, Serbian actor
* Csaba Dosa (born 1951), Romanian athlete
* Dosa ben Harkinas
* Dosa ben Saadia (935 - 1018), Talmudic scholar and philosopher
* Dosa or Dossa Júnior
* Edward Dosa-Wea Neufville ...
(spelled in Malaysia as 'thosai') are common. The
appam
Appam is a type of thin pancake originating from South India. It is made with fermented rice batter and coconut milk, traditionally cooked in an ''appachatti'', a deep pan similar in shape to a wok. It is common in the cusine of Kerala and Tam ...
is a favourite breakfast dish in Tamil homes. ''Idiyappam'' is known as
putu mayam in Malay and usually sold by mobile motorcycle vendors.
Murukku
Murukku (Malayalam – മുറുക്ക്, Tamil – முறுக்கு) is a savoury, crunchy snack originating from the Indian subcontinent. The name ''murukku'' derives from the Tamil word for "twisted", which refers to its shape. ...
is made to mark
Deepavali
Diwali (), Dewali, Divali, or Deepavali (IAST: ''dīpāvalī''), also known as the Festival of Lights, related to Jain Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Tihar, Swanti, Sohrai, and Bandna, is a religious celebration in Indian religions. It is on ...
. Meals of rice with various vegetable and meat dishes along with other condiments are served on banana leaves in restaurants for lunch and dinner, and also in Indian households during special occasions. Mutton (
goat meat
Goat meat or goat's meat is the meat of the domestic goat ''(Capra aegagrus hircus)''. The common name for goat meat is simply "goat", while that from young goats can be called ''capretto'' (It.), ''cabrito'' (Sp. and Por.) or ''kid''. In South ...
) is highly favoured and served as either ''varuval'' (dry curry) or ''peratal'' (curry with a thick gravy). Fried bitter gourd, banana chips,
papadam
A papad is an Indian deep fried dough of black gram bean flour, either fried or cooked with dry heat (flipped over an open flame) until crunchy. Other flours made from lentils, chickpeas, rice, tapioca, millet or potato are also used. ''Papad ...
,
rasam, yoghurt and pickles are the usual condiments. Desserts and sweets include
payasam
Kheer, also known as payasam, is a sweet dish and a type of wet pudding popular in the Indian subcontinent, usually made by boiling milk, sugar or jaggery, and rice, although rice may be substituted with one of the following: daals, bulgur w ...
,
halva,
mysore pak, palgoa and ghee balls.
Some Indian foods have been widely adopted and localised. This includes but not limited to
Murukku
Murukku (Malayalam – മുറുക്ക്, Tamil – முறுக்கு) is a savoury, crunchy snack originating from the Indian subcontinent. The name ''murukku'' derives from the Tamil word for "twisted", which refers to its shape. ...
,
Adhirasam
Adhirasam ( ta, அதிரசம்), in Kannada, in Telugu, in Marathi, in Chhattisgarhi or in Odia) is a type of Indian sweet from Tamil cuisine, Karnataka cuisine, Telugu cuisine, Chhattisgarhi cuisine, Marathi cuisine and Odia cui ...
and
Puttu
Puttu ( ml, പുട്ട്; ta, புட்டு; si, පිට්ටු) (pronounced ), alternatively spelled pittu ( ta, பிட்டு), is a dish native to the South Indian states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and parts of Karnataka, ...
.
Religion
The Indian community which mostly consist of
Tamils
The Tamil people, also known as Tamilar ( ta, தமிழர், Tamiḻar, translit-std=ISO, in the singular or ta, தமிழர்கள், Tamiḻarkaḷ, translit-std=ISO, label=none, in the plural), or simply Tamils (), are a Drav ...
follow Hinduism as the main faith. Hinduism and Buddhism were brought to the Malay Peninsula from India around the 2nd century AD . The Indian-influenced kingdoms of Kadaram (
Old Kedah), and Ilangosagam (
Langkasuka
Langkasuka was an ancient Hindu-Buddhist kingdom located in the Malay Peninsula. The name is Sanskrit in origin; it is thought to be a combination of ''langkha'' for "resplendent land" -'' sukkha'' for "bliss". The kingdom, along with Old Ke ...
) practised Hinduism and Buddhism during the rule of the Malay-
Srivijaya and Tamil-
Chola
The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...
kingdoms.
The early few Indians arrived and assimilated quickly into the local population through intermarriage.
The Chola King had also launched an attack via a naval expedition on several Malay Kingdoms. Subsequent to invasion, both Chola kingdom and south east Asian Hindu Buddhist kingdoms went into decline and many would later totally disappear, and kingdoms in Malaysia Indonesia were gradually Islamised. Hinduism is the most practiced religion amongst the Tamils, including both the major Hindu and Tamil pantheon of deities. Tamils of both Indian and Sri Lankan backgrounds practice Hinduism. The majority of the
Malayalees
The Malayali people () (also spelt Malayalee and also known by the demonym Keralite) are a Dravidian ethnolinguistic group originating from the present-day state of Kerala in India, occupying its southwestern Malabar coast. They are predomina ...
and Telugus in Malaysia also practice Hinduism.
Sikhism
Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
is practiced mainly by
Punjabis
The Punjabis ( Punjabi: ; ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ; romanised as Panjābīs), are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group associated with the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of eastern Pakistan and northwestern India. The ...
. Many Sindhis also worship in Sikh Gurdwaras in Malaysia. Christianity is practiced by a minority of Tamil people. In Malaysia, most of the Indian Christians are either
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
,
Pentecostal
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement ,
Anglican
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
,
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...
, or
Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...
. The majority of the
Malayalee
The Malayali people () (also spelt Malayalee and also known by the demonym Keralite) are a Dravidian ethnolinguistic group originating from the present-day state of Kerala in India, occupying its southwestern Malabar coast. They are predomina ...
Christians are either
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
or
Syrian Christians Syrian or Syriac Christians may refer to
* Adherents of Christianity in Syria
* Adherents of Syriac Christianity, various Christian bodies of Syriac traditions, especially:
** Syriac/Assyrian/Aramean people, Christian neo-Aramaic speakers through ...
. Trade contact with the Tamils predate the Islamic period (c. 570-632 AD), or the birth of Islam. Indonesians and Malays learned of Islam initially through Gujarati merchants and further developed on by the Arab traders. Most of the Indian Muslim community has been absorbed into the larger Malay community due to their common religious background, with a substantially high level of assimilation and intermarriage between the communities. In Malaysia,
Tamil Muslim
Tamil Muslims are Tamils who practise Islam. The community is 5.7 million in India, primarily in the state of Tamil Nadu where 70% of the Muslim community identified themselves as Tamils. The Tamil-speaking Muslims are descendants of marria ...
s are often referred to as 'Mamaks' while
Malayalee Muslims are known as 'Kakas' or 'Malabaris'.
File:Batu caves.jpg, Batu Caves
File:Sri Mahamariamman Temple 2, central Kuala Lumpur.jpg, Sri Mahamariamman Temple in Kuala Lumpur
File:Bmcity.jpg, St. Anne's Church in Bukit Mertajam
Bukit Mertajam ( Jawi:بوكيت مرتاجم) is the administrative centre of the city of Seberang Perai in Penang, Malaysia. It also serves as the seat of the Central Seberang Perai District. , Bukit Mertajam (core) contains a total of 13, ...
File:Masjid Kapitan Keling.jpg, Kapitan Keling Mosque
The Kapitan Keling Mosque ( ms, Masjid Kapitan Keling, ta, காப்பித்தான் கெலிங மசூதி, Kāppittāṉ Keliṅa Macūti) is a mosque built in the 19th century by Indian Muslim traders in George Town, Pen ...
in George Town
File:Tawau Sabah ThirumuruganTemple-01.jpg, Thirumurugan Temple in Tawau
Tawau (, Jawi: , ), formerly known as Tawao, is the capital of the Tawau District in Sabah, Malaysia. It is the third-largest city in Sabah, after Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan. It is located on the Semporna Peninsula in the southeast coast of t ...
Festivals
One of the biggest Hindu festivals in Malaysia is
Thaipusam
Thaipusam or Thaipoosam (Tamil: தைப்பூசம், ''taippūcam'' ?), is a festival celebrated by the Hindu Tamil community on the full moon in the Tamil month of ''Thai'' (January/February), usually coinciding with Pushya star, kno ...
. Thaipusam is dedicated to the God
Murugan
Kartikeya ( sa, कार्त्तिकेय, Kārttikeya), also known as Skanda, Subrahmanya, Shanmukha (), and Murugan ( ta, முருகன்), is the Hindu god of war. He is the son of Parvati and Shiva, the brother of Ganesha ...
which occurs on the day in the
Tamil month
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
of ''Thai'' (January–February) when the asterism ''Poosam'' is on the ascendant. It is celebrated in grand style in the temples of,
George Town,
Ipoh and
Kuala Lumpur
, anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera''
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, pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia
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for three days.
In Kuala Lumpur, Thaipusam has become an almost national seat for ''Poosam'' celebrations. The venue of the Kuala Lumpur celebrations is a picturesque shrine right inside a cave that lies many feet above the ground, and can only be approached by a steep climb. This place, known as
Batu Caves, is about eight miles from the city, and a
chariot
A chariot is a type of cart driven by a charioteer, usually using horses to provide rapid motive power. The oldest known chariots have been found in burials of the Sintashta culture in modern-day Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia, dated to c. 2000&nbs ...
procession carrying the image of the deity to and from the place adds to the color and gaiety of the festival. Crowds from all over the country throng to the cave, including people of all classes and groups. It is above all a day of penance, on which many vows are fulfilled. A 42.7m high statue of Lord Murugan was built at Batu Caves and was unveiled in January 2006, having taken three years to construct.
One of the most significant rites performed is the carrying of the
kavadi
Kavadi Aattam (Tamil: காவடி ஆட்டம், Malayalam: കാവടിയാട്ടം) ("Burden Dance") is a ceremonial sacrifice and offering practiced by devotees during the worship of Murugan,Kent, Alexandra. ''Divinity and Di ...
, a large wooden decorated arch, as an act of penance. When deities are taken on procession from one shrine to another, they would be followed by a number of these voluntary kavadi-bearers. In other towns and estates, kavadis would be carried for other festivals like ''Chittirai Paruvam''. Some of the more rigid practitioners would bear spikes, spears, and hooks pierced into their bodies. The ''Chittirai Paruvam'' festival and festivals to the Tamil deity
Mariamman are usually accompanied by a fire-walking ceremony.
[
]Deepavali
Diwali (), Dewali, Divali, or Deepavali (IAST: ''dīpāvalī''), also known as the Festival of Lights, related to Jain Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Tihar, Swanti, Sohrai, and Bandna, is a religious celebration in Indian religions. It is on ...
, popularly known as the 'Festival of Lights', is another major Hindu festival which is celebrated by all Hindu communities. Tamils celebrate Pongal Pongal may refer to:
* Pongal (festival), an annual Tamil festival
* Pongal (dish)
Pongal, also known as pongali or huggi, is an Indian rice dish. In Tamil, "pongal" means "boil" or "bubbling up". The two varieties of pongal are ''chakarai pong ...
which is a harvest festival usually held from 13–16 January. A similar festival known as Makar Sankranti
Makar(a) Sankranti (), also referred to as Uttarayana, Maghi, or simply Sankranti, is a Hindu observance and a festival. Usually falling on the date of January 14 annually, this occasion marks the transition of the Sun from the zodiac of Sag ...
is celebrated by most other Indian communities while the Punjabis call their harvest festival Lohri
''Lohri'' is a popular winter Punjabi folk festival celebrated primarily in Northern India. The significance and legends about the Lohri festival are many and these link the festival to the Punjab region. It is believed by many that the festiva ...
.
The Malayalees
The Malayali people () (also spelt Malayalee and also known by the demonym Keralite) are a Dravidian ethnolinguistic group originating from the present-day state of Kerala in India, occupying its southwestern Malabar coast. They are predomina ...
celebrate Vishu
Vishu (Malayalam: വിഷു), the traditional Malayali New Year, is a Hindu festival celebrated in the Indian state of Kerala, Tulu Nadu region of Karnataka, and Mahe district. The festival marks the first day of Medam, the first month of ...
, the Malayalee New Year which usually falls in the month of April or the month of Medam in the Malayalam calendar
The Malayalam Calendar is a sidereal solar calendar used in Kerala. The origin of the calendar has been dated to 825 CE, the beginning of the Kollam Era.
There are many theories regarding the origin of the era, but according to recent schola ...
. Onam
Onam ( ) is an annual Indian harvest festival celebrated predominantly by the Hindus of Kerala. A major annual event for Keralites, it is the official festival of the state and includes a spectrum of cultural events.
Onam commemorates Vamana ...
is the most popular festival celebrated by the Malayalee community and is usually observed in the month of August or September. They usually prepare ''Sadhya'', a lunch feast consisting 16 to 24 vegetarian dishes (without onions and garlics).
The Telugus celebrate Ugadi
Ugadi or Yugadi, also known as Samvatsarādi (), is New Year's Day according to the Hindu calendar and is celebrated in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka in India. It is festively observed in these regions on the first ...
, the Telugu New Year which is based on the lunar calendar
A lunar calendar is a calendar based on the monthly cycles of the Moon's phases (synodic months, lunations), in contrast to solar calendars, whose annual cycles are based only directly on the solar year. The most commonly used calendar, the Gre ...
; unlike Puthandu
Puthandu (), also known as Puthuvarudam, and the Tamil New Year, is the first day of year on the Tamil calendar, traditionally celebrated as a festival by Tamil Hindus. The festival date is set with the solar cycle of the lunisolar Hindu cal ...
, the Tamil New Year and Vasakhi, the Sikh New Year which are based on the solar calendar. Makar Sankranti
Makar(a) Sankranti (), also referred to as Uttarayana, Maghi, or simply Sankranti, is a Hindu observance and a festival. Usually falling on the date of January 14 annually, this occasion marks the transition of the Sun from the zodiac of Sag ...
is an important festival for Telugu
Telugu may refer to:
* Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India
*Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India
* Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language
** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode
S ...
community also celebrated as Pongal by Tamils.
The festivals celebrated by Malaysian Indians who profess the Christian faith are Easter
Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...
, Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...
and All Souls' Day
All Souls' Day, also called ''The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed'', is a day of prayer and remembrance for the faithful departed, observed by certain Christian denominations on 2 November. Through prayer, intercessions, alms and ...
(mainly celebrated by Catholics). Indian Muslims observe Ramadan
, type = islam
, longtype = Religious
, image = Ramadan montage.jpg
, caption=From top, left to right: A crescent moon over Sarıçam, Turkey, marking the beginning of the Islamic month of Ramadan. Ramadan Quran reading in Bandar Torkaman, Iran. ...
, the Muslim month of fasting; and celebrate Hari Raya Aidilfitri
, nickname = Festival of Breaking the Fast, Lesser Eid, Sweet Eid, Sugar Feast
, observedby = Muslims
, type = Islamic
, longtype = Islamic
, significance = Commemoration to mark the end of fasting in Ramadan
, date ...
and Hari Raya Aidiladha
Eid al-Adha () is the second and the larger of the two main holidays celebrated in Islam (the other being Eid al-Fitr). It honours the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son Ismail (Ishmael) as an act of obedience to Allah's com ...
.
Influence on Malaysian culture
Indian influences could be seen on modern Malaysia as well as on traditional Malay culture. The diffusion of Indian culture includes the following:
*Malay folklore
Malay folklore refers to a series of knowledge, traditions and taboos that have been passed down through many generations in oral, written and symbolic forms among the indigenous populations of Maritime Southeast Asia ( Nusantara). They include ...
contains a rich number of Indian-influenced mythological characters, such as Bidadari
An apsaras or apsara ( sa, अप्सरा ' lso ' pi, अक्चरा, translit=accharā) is a type of female spirit of the clouds and waters in Hinduism and Buddhist culture. They figure prominently in the sculpture, dance, litera ...
, Jentayu, Garuda
Garuda (Sanskrit: ; Pāli: ; Vedic Sanskrit: गरुळ Garuḷa) is a Hindu demigod and divine creature mentioned in the Hindu, Buddhist and Jain faiths. He is primarily depicted as the mount (''vahana'') of the Hindu god Vishnu. Garuda ...
and Naga
Naga or NAGA may refer to:
Mythology
* Nāga, a serpentine deity or race in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions
* Naga Kingdom, in the epic ''Mahabharata''
* Phaya Naga, mythical creatures believed to live in the Laotian stretch of the Mekong Riv ...
.
* Early Malay literature was highly influenced by Indian epics, such as the ''Mahabharata
The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...
'' and the ''Ramayana
The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...
''.
* Wayang shadow puppets and classical dance-dramas of Malaysia took stories from episodes of ''Ramayana'' and ''Mahabharata''.
Language and names
A good number of Tamil inscriptions as well as Hindu and Buddhist icons emanating from South India have been found in Southeast Asia (and even in parts of south China). On the Malay Peninsula, inscriptions have been found at Takuapa, not far from the Vishnuite statues of Khao Phra Narai in Southern Thailand
Southern Thailand, Southern Siam or Tambralinga is a southernmost cultural region of Thailand, separated from Central Thailand region by the Kra Isthmus.
Geography
Southern Thailand is on the Malay Peninsula, with an area of around , bounde ...
. It is a short inscription indicating that an artificial lake named ''Avani-naranam'' was dug by ''nangur-Udaiyan'' which is the name of an individual who possessed a military fief
A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an Lord, overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a for ...
at Nangur, being famous for his abilities as a warrior, and that the lake was placed under the protection of the members of the Manikkiramam (which according to K.A. Nilakanta Sastri, was a merchant guild) living in the military camp.
An inscription dated 779 AD has been found in Ligor
Nakhon Si Thammarat Municipality ( th, เทศบาลนครนครศรีธรรมราช, ; from Pali ''Nagara Sri Dhammaraja'') is a municipality (''thesaban nakhon'') in Southern Thailand, capital of Nakhon Si Thammarat prov ...
, Malay Peninsula. This refers to the trade relationship between the Tamil country and Malaya. In ancient Kedah there is an inscription found by Dr. Quaritch Wales. It is an inscribed stone bar, rectangular in shape, bears the ye-dharmma formula in South Indian characters of the 4th century AD, thus proclaiming the Buddhist character of the shrine near the find-spot (site I) of which only the basement survives. The inscriptions are on three faces in ''Pallava Grantha script''. The Ruler Raja Ganga fled from his empire into the forests with his queen and an infant heir. Raja Ganga left traces of hideout on a nearby hill in form of artefacts on stones. All these inscriptions, both Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
and Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
ones, relate to the activities of the people and rulers of the Tamil country of South India. The Tamil inscriptions
This is a list of archaeological artefacts and epigraphs which have Tamil inscriptions. Of the approximately 100,000 inscriptions found by the Archaeological Survey of India (2005 report) in India, about 60,000 were in Tamil Nadu
...
are at least four centuries posterior to the Sanskrit inscriptions, from which the early Tamils themselves were patronizers of the Sanskrit language.[ The Cherok Tokun Ancient Inscriptions were first documented by Colonel James Low, a British army officer, in 1845. In his log, Low recorded his disappointment of not finding a more spectacular ruin, expecting to find an ancient temple ruin. He documented what he made out to be "a group of seven inscriptions". The inscriptions were believed to be in pre-Pallava script and written in Sanskrit. They were attributed to the ancient Kingdom of Kadaaram, which flourished in northern Malaysia in the 5th to 6th centuries. However, according to J Laidlay, who translated the text in 1848, the inscription was in fact written in ]Pali
Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or ''Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of ''Theravāda'' Buddhism ...
- another ancient language of the Indian subcontinent.
An element needed to carry out commercial transactions is a common language understood by all parties involved in early trade. Historians such as J.V. Sebastian, K.T. Thirunavukkarasu, and A.W. Hamilton record that Tamil was the common language of commerce in Malaysia and Indonesia during historical times. The maritime Tamil significance in Sumatran and Malay Peninsula trading continued for centuries and borrowings into Malay from Tamil increased between the 15th and 19th centuries due to their commercial activities. In the 17th century, the Dutch East India Company was obliged to use Tamil as part of its correspondence. In Malacca and other seaports up to the 19th century, Malay terminology pertaining to book-keeping and accountancy was still largely Tamil.[
]
Infrastructure
Indians have contributed significantly to the building of Malaysia since the 19th century. The Indian workforce was instrumental in the clearing of land for infrastructure, established rubber plantations, built the roads, set up transmission lines as well as managed early Malayan railways, ports and airports. Indian doctors, chemists and veterinarians formed the bulk of medical personnel in Malaysia - their contributions still persist to present day. Indian civil servants formed the core of the civil service both pre- and post-independence. Indian teachers who were particularly fluent in the English language formed the backbone of Malaysian education, particularly in missionary schools. Indians also pioneered private education in Malaysia.
Diaspora
A number of Malaysian Indian immigrants are found in Australia, and they tended to be highly qualified and speak English fluently and were therefore highly employable. There is also a small community of Indian Australian, Australians of Indian descent on the Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
n States and territories of Australia, external territory of Christmas Island who live alongside other Australians of ethnic Malaysian Chinese, Malay and European descent.
Notable people
Among the notable people of Indian descent in Malaysia are K. Thamboosamy Pillay, a prominent figure of early Kuala Lumpur
, anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera''
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, and Karpal Singh, V. David and Samy Vellu, all prominent List of Malaysian politicians of Indian descent, Malaysian Indian politicians.
Challenges for the future
Despite the fact that the average income of Malaysian Indians exceeds that of their Malay counterparts, there exists substantial portion of the community who are poor, with 40% of Malaysian Indians claimed to be at the bottom rung of the income ladder. Despite the obvious need of the poor, Malaysian Indians are not eligible for any of Malaysia's affirmative-action programmes, which are reserved for Malays and select indigenous people. What has further added to the challenges faced by the community is religious conflict due to increasing Islamisation, and there were communal clashes between Indians and Malays such as the 2001 Kampung Medan riots, as well as protest over racial discrimination and temple demolitions during the 2007 HINDRAF rally. These factors in part have resulted in the migration of many highly skilled Malaysian Indians abroad, where Indian migrants are largely upwardly mobile. A survey in 2017 found that 42% of Malaysian Indians who had completed their secondary or tertiary education wanted to emigrate.
References
Notes
Bibliography
* "Tragic Orphans: Indians in Malaysia" by Carl Vadivella Belle, Publisher: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies,
*
{{Indian diaspora
Malaysian people of Indian descent,
Indian diaspora by country, Malaysia
Indian diaspora in Malaysia,
Ethnic groups in Malaysia, Indian
Immigration to Malaysia
India–Malaysia relations