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Portal:Malaysia

Portal:Malaysia/Intro

Map of Malaysia

Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. A federal constitutional monarchy, it consists of 13 states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Malaysia. Peninsular Malaysia shares a land and maritime border with Thailand and maritime borders with Singapore, Vietnam, and Indonesia. East Malaysia shares land borders with Brunei and Indonesia, as well as a maritime border with the Philippines and Vietnam. Kuala Lumpur is the national capital, the country's largest city, and the seat of the legislative branch of the federal government.

Putrajaya is the administrative centre, which represents the seat of both the executive branch (the Cabinet, federal ministries, and federal agencies) and the judicial branch of the federal government. With a population of over 34 million, the country is the world's 42nd-most populous country. Malaysia is tropical and is one of 17 megadiverse countries; it is home to numerous endemic species. Tanjung Piai in the Malaysian state of Johor is the southernmost point of continental Eurasia.

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

The country is multiethnic and multicultural, which has a significant effect on its politics. About half the population is ethnically Malay, with minorities of Chinese, Indians, and indigenous peoples. The official language is Malaysian Malay, a standard form of the Malay language. English remains an active second language. It is also home to 111 living indigenous languages. Malaysia was also home to 2 indigenous languages that are now extinct. While recognising Islam as the official religion, the constitution grants freedom of religion to non-Muslims. The government is modelled on the Westminster parliamentary system, and the legal system is based on common law. The head of state is an elected monarch, chosen from among the nine state sultans every five years. The head of government is the prime minister.

The country's economy has traditionally been driven by its natural resources but is expanding into commerce, tourism, and medical tourism. The country has a newly industrialised market economy, which is relatively open and state-oriented. The country is a founding member of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the East Asia Summit (EAS), and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and a member of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), the Commonwealth, and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). (Full article...)

The Malaysian United Indigenous Party (Malay: Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia; abbrev: BERSATU or PPBM) is a nationalist political party in Malaysia. The party was preceded by the United Indigenous Association of Malaysia (Malay: Persatuan Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia) and founded by members of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) rebel group Gabungan Ketua Cawangan Malaysia. It is a major component of the Perikatan Nasional coalition.

Full membership in the party is limited to only Bumiputeras (indigenous communities of Malaysia). Non-Bumiputeras can join the party as associate members, who are not eligible to vote and contest party elections. (Full article...)

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Maimunah in 2018

Dato' Seri Maimunah binti Mohd Sharif (born 26 August 1961) is a Malaysian civil servant and urban planner who has been serving as the 15th Mayor of Kuala Lumpur since August 2024. She also served as the Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) since January 2018 until January 2024, becoming the first Asian woman to serve as Executive Director of UN-Habitat. On 20 January 2022, she was re-elected by the UN General Assembly for a two-year term that ends on 19 January 2024.

From January 2019 to January 2020 she also concurrently served as the acting Director-General of the United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON). She holds the rank of Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations in the UN System and sits on the United Nations Chief Executives Board for Coordination and the Secretary-General's Senior Management Group. (Full article...)

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Dataran Helang (Eagle Square)
Dataran Helang (Eagle Square)
A picture of the Eagle Square (Dataran Helang) in Langkawi, Malaysia. According to one interpretation, Langkawi means island of the reddish-brown eagle in colloquial Malay. The Malay word for eagle is helang - which is shortened to "lang", while kawi is the name of a red stone used as a chalk to mark goods. This interpretation was used to create the landmark sculpture of an eagle as the symbol of Langkawi at Dataran Helang (Eagle Square) in Kuah.


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The following are images from various Malaysia-related articles on Wikipedia.

Wiki Loves Malaysia

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

Categories

Category puzzle
Category puzzle
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WikiProjects

Battle of Labuan
Battle of Labuan
  • ... that the aircraft disaster Double Six Crash killed a total of five cabinet ministers in the Malaysian state of Sabah in 1976?


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Jementah
Jementah
Jementah is a mukim in Johor. It was the site of Jementah Civil War in 1879. The mukim is the largest pomelo producer in the state and famous for its durian produce.


Topics

News


Religions in Malaysia


Southeast Asia


Other countries

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