Malaysian Australian
Encyclopedia
A Malaysian Australian is an Australia
n person who is from or has ancestral ties to Malaysia. This may include Malays as well as overseas Chinese
, Indian and other groups. There are also ethnic Malays in Australia who came to Australia prior to the establishment of Malaysia, or who have come from other regional countries including Indonesia
, Singapore
and Brunei
.
Malaysian Australians are well established in Australia. Slightly more than half (46,445) had Australian citizenship, and 47,521 had arrived in Australia in 1989 or earlier. 32,325 spoke English at home, 24,347 spoke Cantonese
, 18,676 spoke Mandarin and 5,329 spoke Bahasa Melayu
. Malaysian Australians were resident in Melbourne
(29,174), Sydney
(21,211) and Perth
(18,993).
Although Malaysia has a 60% Muslim population, only 5% of Malaysian-born Australians cited Islam as their religion in the 2006 Census, the largest religions were Christianity (43%) and Buddhism (26%).
, sugarcane
, pearl diving and trepang industries. In the case of Cocos Islands, the Malays were first brought as slaves under Alexander Hare
in 1826, but were then employed as coconut harvesters for copra. However, there were no historical facts that prove that the Malays settled in mainland Australia and the east coast until the late 19th century, where they not only worked in the trepang or pearl diving industry, but also in sugarcane plantations.
In Western Australia
and the Northern Territory
, Malay pearl divers
were recruited through an agreement with the Dutch. By 1875, there were 1800 Malay pearl divers working in Western Australia itself. Most of them returned home when their contract expired. The Immigration Restriction Act 1901
severely curtailed the growth of this community.
From the 1950s onwards Malaysians came to Australia to study under the Colombo Plan
, with many choosing to stay in Australia after graduation. Their numbers increased following the end of the Immigration Restriction Act in 1973. As Malaysia's affluence increased, more students came to study as self-financed students.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n person who is from or has ancestral ties to Malaysia. This may include Malays as well as overseas Chinese
Malaysian Chinese
Malaysian Chinese is a Malaysian of Chinese origin. Most are descendants of Chinese who arrived between the fifteenth and the mid-twentieth centuries. Within Malaysia, they are usually simply referred to as "Chinese" in all languages. The term Chinese Malaysian is also sometimes used to refer to...
, Indian and other groups. There are also ethnic Malays in Australia who came to Australia prior to the establishment of Malaysia, or who have come from other regional countries including Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
and Brunei
Brunei
Brunei , officially the State of Brunei Darussalam or the Nation of Brunei, the Abode of Peace , is a sovereign state located on the north coast of the island of Borneo, in Southeast Asia...
.
Demography
At the 2006 Census 92,335 Australian residents stated that they were born in Malaysia. 64,855 Malaysian born Australian residents declared having Chinese ancestry (either alone or with another ancestry), 12,057 declared a Malay ancestry and 5,848 declared an Indian ancestry.Malaysian Australians are well established in Australia. Slightly more than half (46,445) had Australian citizenship, and 47,521 had arrived in Australia in 1989 or earlier. 32,325 spoke English at home, 24,347 spoke Cantonese
Standard Cantonese
Cantonese, or Standard Cantonese, is a language that originated in the vicinity of Canton in southern China, and is often regarded as the prestige dialect of Yue Chinese....
, 18,676 spoke Mandarin and 5,329 spoke Bahasa Melayu
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
. Malaysian Australians were resident in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
(29,174), Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
(21,211) and Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
(18,993).
Although Malaysia has a 60% Muslim population, only 5% of Malaysian-born Australians cited Islam as their religion in the 2006 Census, the largest religions were Christianity (43%) and Buddhism (26%).
History
Malay labourers were brought over to Australia to work mainly in the copraCopra
Copra is the dried meat, or kernel, of the coconut. Coconut oil extracted from it has made copra an important agricultural commodity for many coconut-producing countries. It also yields coconut cake which is mainly used as feed for livestock.-Production:...
, sugarcane
Sugarcane
Sugarcane refers to any of six to 37 species of tall perennial grasses of the genus Saccharum . Native to the warm temperate to tropical regions of South Asia, they have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sugar, and measure two to six metres tall...
, pearl diving and trepang industries. In the case of Cocos Islands, the Malays were first brought as slaves under Alexander Hare
Alexander Hare
Alexander Hare was a Scottish seafarer. He was known for establishing a harem and trading slaves in British Borneo in the early nineteenth century. He and his harem subsequently settled the Cocos Islands....
in 1826, but were then employed as coconut harvesters for copra. However, there were no historical facts that prove that the Malays settled in mainland Australia and the east coast until the late 19th century, where they not only worked in the trepang or pearl diving industry, but also in sugarcane plantations.
In Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
and the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
, Malay pearl divers
Pearl hunting
Pearl hunting or pearl diving refers to a largely obsolete method of retrieving pearls from pearl oysters, freshwater pearl mussels and, on rare occasions, other nacre-producing molluscs, such as abalone.-History:...
were recruited through an agreement with the Dutch. By 1875, there were 1800 Malay pearl divers working in Western Australia itself. Most of them returned home when their contract expired. The Immigration Restriction Act 1901
Immigration Restriction Act 1901
The Immigration Restriction Act 1901 was an Act of the Parliament of Australia which limited immigration to Australia and formed the basis of the White Australia policy. It also provided for illegal immigrants to be deported. It granted immigration officers a wide degree of discretion to prevent...
severely curtailed the growth of this community.
From the 1950s onwards Malaysians came to Australia to study under the Colombo Plan
Colombo Plan
The Colombo Plan is a regional organization that embodies the concept of collective inter-governmental effort to strengthen economic and social development of member countries in the Asia-Pacific Region...
, with many choosing to stay in Australia after graduation. Their numbers increased following the end of the Immigration Restriction Act in 1973. As Malaysia's affluence increased, more students came to study as self-financed students.
Notable Malaysian Australians
| name | Born - Died | Notable for | Connection with Australia | Connection with Malaysia |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Che'Nelle Che'Nelle Cheryline Lim known by her stage name Che'Nelle, is an Australian recording artist. in 2005 she was signed to Virgin Records America, an imprint of EMI.-1983-2005: Early life:... |
1983- | singer | lives in Australia | born Kota Kinabalu Kota Kinabalu Kota Kinabalu , formerly known as Jesselton, is the capital of Sabah state in East Malaysia. It is also the capital of the West Coast Division of Sabah. The city is located on the northwest coast of Borneo facing the South China Sea. The Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park lies on one side and Mount... |
| Brendan Gan Brendan Gan Brendan Gan is an Australian footballer who currently plays for Sabah FA in the Malaysian Super League.-Club career:Gan began playing football for his local club, the Marton Hammers before he signed for the Sutherland Sharks in 2000 when he was twelve years old and came up through their youth... |
1988- | football (soccer) player | lives in Australia | of Malaysian descent |
| Kamahl Kamahl Kamahl is the stage name of Kandiah Kamalesvaran , an Australian singer and recording artist, perhaps best known for "The Elephant Song", and his repertoire of popular music.-Early life:... |
1934- | singer | lives in Australia; immigrated 1953 | born Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur is the capital and the second largest city in Malaysia by population. The city proper, making up an area of , has a population of 1.4 million as of 2010. Greater Kuala Lumpur, also known as the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 7.2 million... |
| Cheong Liew Cheong Liew Cheong Liew is one of South Australia's best known chefs. He first moved from Malaysia to Melbourne in 1969 to study electrical engineering, but instead became a chef.... |
chef | lives in Australia; immigrated 1969 | born Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur is the capital and the second largest city in Malaysia by population. The city proper, making up an area of , has a population of 1.4 million as of 2010. Greater Kuala Lumpur, also known as the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 7.2 million... |
|
| Chong Lim Chong Lim Chong Lim is an Australian keyboardist, producer, and session musician. He played with James Valentine of Models at Melbourne University, then joined Vanetta Field's Gospel Band. He has toured with the Eurogliders, Jermaine Jackson, WJAZ, and John Farnham... |
musician, music director | lives in Australia | born Ipoh Ipoh Ipoh is the capital city of Perak state, Malaysia. It is approximately 200 km north of Kuala Lumpur on the North-South Expressway.... |
|
| Guy Sebastian Guy Sebastian Guy Theodore Sebastian is an Australian pop, R&B, and soul singer-songwriter who was the first winner of Australian Idol in 2003. He is currently a judge on the Australian version of The X Factor. Sebastian has released six top ten platinum/multi platinum albums, including a number-one and... |
1981- | singer | lives in Australia; immigrated as child | born Klang Klang Klang , formerly known as Kelang, is the royal city and former capital of the state of Selangor, Malaysia. It is located within the Klang District in Klang Valley. It is located about 32 km to the west of Kuala Lumpur and 6 km east of Port Klang... |
| Pria Viswalingam Pria Viswalingam Pria Viswalingam is a prominent Australian documentary and filmmaker. He is of Tamil Sri Lankan ancestry and was born in 1962 in Malaysia. He was schooled there, as well as in Britain, Singapore and Australia... |
1962- | documentary and film maker | works in Australia | born Malaysia |
| James Wan James Wan James Wan is a Malaysian-born Australian producer, screenwriter, and film director of Chinese heritage. He is widely known for directing the horror film Saw and creating Billy the puppet. He also directed Dead Silence, Death Sentence and Insidious.-Life and career:Wan was born in Kuching, Sarawak,... |
1977- | producer, screenwriter, and film director | brought up in Australia and studied there | born Kuching Kuching Kuching , officially the City of Kuching, and formerly the City of Sarawak, is the capital and most populous city of the East Malaysian state of Sarawak. It is the largest city on the island of Borneo, and the fourth largest city in Malaysia.... |
| Penny Wong Penny Wong Penelope "Penny" Ying-yen Wong , is an Australian Labor Party senator for South Australia and the Federal Minister for Finance and Deregulation. Wong was the first Australian Minister for Climate Change and Water. Her appointment was amended on 26 February 2010, by the Prime Minister, to the... |
1968- | politician | lives in Australia; immigrated 1977 | born Kota Kinabalu Kota Kinabalu Kota Kinabalu , formerly known as Jesselton, is the capital of Sabah state in East Malaysia. It is also the capital of the West Coast Division of Sabah. The city is located on the northwest coast of Borneo facing the South China Sea. The Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park lies on one side and Mount... |
| Poh Ling Yeow Poh Ling Yeow Poh Ling Yeow is a Malaysian-born Australian artist, actress, celebrity chef and runner-up in MasterChef Australia.- Background :Born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 1973 into a fifth-generation Chinese family, Yeow attended SMK Convent Bukit Nanas. She emigrated to Australia at age 9 with her... |
1973- | artist and television chef | lives in Australia | grew up in Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur is the capital and the second largest city in Malaysia by population. The city proper, making up an area of , has a population of 1.4 million as of 2010. Greater Kuala Lumpur, also known as the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 7.2 million... |
Further reading
- Cleland, Bilal. The Muslims in Australia: A Brief History. Melbourne: Islamic Council of Victoria, 2002.
- JPS Bach, 'The pearlshelling industry and the "White Australia" policy', Historical Studies, Australia and New Zealand, vol. 10, no. 38, May 1962, pp. 203–213
- Bilal Cleland, Muslims in Australia: A Brief History, www.icv.org.au/history.shtml
- Nahid Kabir, Muslims in Australia: Immigration, Race Relations, and Cultural History, Kegan Paul, London, 2004
- Nahid Kabir, 'Muslims in Western Australia, 1870-1970', Journal of the Royal Western Australian Historical Society, vol. 12, part 5, 2005, pp. 550–565
- L Manderson, 'Malays' in James Jupp (ed.), The Australian People, Angus and Robertson, Sydney, 1988, pp. 691–93
- Daniel Oakman, Facing Asia: A History of the Colombo Plan, Pandanus Press, Canberra, 2004
- Gwenda Tavan, The Long, Slow Death of White Australia, Scribe, Melbourne 2005
External links
- History of immigration from Malaysia
- Muslim Journeys - Arrivals - Malays
- HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES - "there was a place called ‘Malay Town’ set up in Cairns ..."
- Malay boy, Broome