Portal:Malaysia


Portal:Malaysia/Intro

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 on the Indochinese Peninsula and East Malaysia on the island of Borneo. Peninsular Malaysia shares land and maritime borders with Thailand, as well as maritime borders with Singapore, Vietnam, and Indonesia; East Malaysia shares land borders with Brunei and Indonesia, and maritime borders with the Philippines and Vietnam. Kuala Lumpur is the country's national capital, largest city, and the seat of the legislative branch of the federal government, while Putrajaya is the federal administrative capital, representing 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, it is the world's 42nd-most populous country.

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 II, 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.

Malaysia is tropical and is one of 17 megadiverse countries; it is home to numerous endemic species. 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. 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.

Malaysia's economy has traditionally been driven by its natural resources but is expanding into commerce, tourism, and medical tourism. The country ranks highly in peacefulness and passport strength and 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), as well as a member of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), the Commonwealth, and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). (Full article...)

Selected article -

Malaysia

The Perak Museum (Malay: Muzium Perak) is a public museum located at the junction of Jalan Muzium (Museum Road) and Jalan Taming Sari (Main Road) in Taiping, Perak, Malaysia. It is the oldest museum in Malaysia and highlights the history of the state. (Full article...)

Selected biography -

Lee in 2017

Lee Chong Wei (Chinese: 李宗伟; pinyin: Lǐ Zōngwěi; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Lí Chong-úi; born 21 October 1982) is a Malaysian former professional badminton player. As a singles player, Lee was ranked first worldwide for 349 weeks, including a 199-week streak from 21 August 2008 to 14 June 2012. He is the fifth Malaysian player after Foo Kok Keong, Rashid Sidek, Roslin Hashim and Wong Choong Hann to achieve such a ranking (since official rankings were first kept in the 1980s), and is the only Malaysian shuttler who has held the number one ranking for more than a year. On 2 May 2023, Lee was inducted to BWF Badminton Hall of Fame. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest badminton players of all time.

Lee is a triple silver medalist at the Olympic Games, and the sixth Malaysian to win an Olympic medal. He won his first silver medal in 2008, also the first time a Malaysian had reached the finals in the men's singles event. This achievement earned him the title Datuk, and led to then Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak describing him as a national hero. He repeated the achievement twice more in 2012 and 2016, thus making him the most successful Malaysian Olympian in history. (Full article...)

Selected picture -

A view of Mount Kinabalu from Kundasang

General images -

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

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Malaysia
Malaysia-related lists
Buildings and structures in Malaysia
Culture of Malaysia
Economy of Malaysia
Education in Malaysia
Environment of Malaysia
Geography of Malaysia
Government of Malaysia
Health in Malaysia
History of Malaysia
Organisations based in Malaysia
Malaysian people
Politics of Malaysia
Society of Malaysia
Malaysia portal
Malaysia stubs

WikiProjects

WikiProject Malaysia

Malaysia Topics Notice Board • Malaysian Wikipedians • Wikipedians in Malaysia • WikiProject Malaysia Facebook PageMalay Language Wikipedia

Did you know -

  • ... that Miri (pictured) was the first town in Malaysia that was not a state capital to be granted city status?
  • ... that part of capital city Kuala Terengganu's name, according to one theory, is derived from terang ganu, Malay for "bright rainbow"?
  • ... that George Town, the capital city of the Malaysian state of Penang, was the first British settlement in Southeast Asia?


In this month

Things you can do

Here are some things you can help with Malaysia articles:
  • Start one of the requested articles at the WikiProject Malaysia To do page
  • Contribute to the Malaysia articles
  • Assess or add WP:MY template at Malaysia articles talk pages
  • Improve this portal
  • Join WikiProject Malaysia and start collaborating
  • See also: WikiProject Malaysia General Tasks

Selected panorama -

Alor Setar is a city and the capital of Kedah. It is a major transportation hub in northern Peninsular Malaysia. Two of Malaysia's Prime Ministers were born here.


Topics

News


Religions in Malaysia


Southeast Asia


Other countries

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