ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to explain the role of ethnicity in Malaysia, with some focus on the interplay of ethnicity and class in nation-building. Malaysia is a multiethnic country, in which the descendants of Chinese and South Asian immigrants brought in under British colonialism are a significant proportion of the population. In 1997, Malaysia’s total population was 21,665,500.1 Of these, about 60 per cent were Malays, 32 per cent Chinese, 7 per cent Indians, Pakistanis or Tamils, and 1 per cent aboriginal peoples. The overwhelming majority of Malays are Muslims, who numbered about 12.3 million in 2000. Other religions include Buddhism (4.02 million adherents in 2000), Chinese traditional religions (2.7 million), Hinduism (1.63 million) and Christianity (1.49 million).2
