The ancestors of the people that now inhabit the Malaysian peninsula first migrated to the area between 2500 and 1500 B.C. Those living in the coastal regions had early contact with the Chinese and Indians; seafaring traders from India brought with them Hinduism, which was blended with the local animist beliefs. As Muslims conquered India, they spread the religion of Islam to Malaysia. In the 15th century, Islam acquired a firm hold on the region when the Hindu ruler of the powerful city-state of Malacca, Parameswara Dewa Shah, converted to Islam. British and Dutch interest in the region grew in the 1800s, with the British East India Company's establishment of a trading settlement on the island of Singapore. Trade soared, with Singapore's population growing from only 5,000 in 1820 to nearly 100,000 in just 50 years. In the 1880s, Britain formally established protectorates in Malaysia. At about the same time, rubber trees were introduced from Brazil. With the mass production of automobiles, rubber became a valuable export, and laborers were brought in from India to work the rubber plantations.
Malaysia consists of two distinct land mass; Peninsular Malaysia on mainland Asia to the west, and Malaysian Borneo on the Borneo island to the east. Both parts are separated by the South China Sea in the middle. Malaysia has a total coastline of 4,675 kilometres, where 2,068 kilometres is on Peninsular Malaysia, while 2,607 kilometres is on Malaysian Borneo. Out of the total land area of 329,847 km², more than half are covered by tropical rainforests.
As Malaysia is located at the equatorial zone, the climate of the country is hot and humid throughout the year. Malaysia experiences two monsoons annually, the south-west monsoon (May to September) and north-east monsoon (November to March). The latter brings in more rainfall compared to the former.
The highest peak in the country is the famous Mount Kinabalu in Sabah, at an elevation of 4,095 metres. Tanjong Piai in Johore is the southernmost tip of mainland Asia. The longest river is the Rejang River in Sarawak, with a length of 760 kilometres.
Peninsular Malaysia shares borders with Thailand to the north and Singapore to the south linked by a man-made causeway and a bridge on the Johore Straits. The Straits of Malacca, a narrow channel separating the Malay peninsula and Sumatra, is one of the most important shipping lanes in the world, with over 50,000 vessels passing through it each year.
Malaysian Borneo, consisting of Sabah and Sarawak, shares borders with Indonesia's Kalimantan to the south and Brunei in central north. To the north, it is largely surrounded by the South China Sea while to the north-east, it is separated from the Philippines by the Sulu Sea.
As a tropical country on the equator, Malaysia experiences an all-year hot and humid weather. Average daytime temperature for most lowlands range from 30 °C to 34 °C. Nights are fairly cool at between 21 °C and 24 °C.
The mean monthly relative humidity is high at about 70 to 90%. During the driest months of January and February in the peninsula, the mean daily minimum can be as low as 42%. The mean daily maximum, however, is always between 94 and 100%.
Visitors from most countries are given social visit pass valid for 14, 30, 60 or 90 days upon arrival. detailed and up-to-date list, refer to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Visa Requirements for Foreigners. Nationals of Israel, Montenegro and Serbia are prohibited from entering the country without obtaining special approval from the Ministry of Home Affairs. Non-citizens who wish to retire in Malaysia or make Malaysia as their second home can apply under the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) programme. Successful applicants will be issued a multiple-entry social visit pass that is valid for up to 10 years, depending on the validity of the passport. While there is no minimum age limit for this programme, applicants have to conform to some financial requirements plus other terms and conditions. Business, investment and part-time employment is allowed under this programme.
Its primary subunit is the sen, with one ringgit being comprised of 100 sen.
According to the International Organization for Standardization, the alphabetic international code for the ringgit is MYR. Within Malaysia, the currency symbol for the ringgit is RM. Currency amounts are stylized by the use of the RM symbol immediately followed by the amount, such as RM10.25.
The ringgit is issued by the Malaysian central bank, the Bank Negara Malaysia. As per that institution's website, the ringgit circulates in paper denominations of RM1, RM5, RM10, RM20, RM50 and RM100. Prior to 1975, the Malaysian ringgit was known as the Malaysian dollar.
The official language is Malay (Bahasa Malaysia - Malaysian language), which is the base of Indonesian language (Bahasa Indonesia). It incorporates elements of the languages of surrounding regions, including Sanskrit, Hindi, Tamil, Arab, Chinese dialects, Portuguese, Spanish and English (mostly for modern, technical and scientific terms). Being the medium of instruction in national schools, Malay is spoken by all Malaysians, of which just over half are ethnic Malays, a quarter are ethnic Chinese, about eight per cent ethnic Indians, and the rest consist of various indigenous tribes.
As a result of the British colonialism, English is taught as a second language in all schools and is widely spoken on the street in urban areas. Although one can get by speaking only in English, it would be better if you could utter a few Malay phrases when speaking to the locals, especially the ethnic Malays. Try to speak to them in Malay and see their faces change to a happy one. Sometimes, they might even go out of their way to help you if that's what you needed.
Within the ethnic Chinese communities, Hokkien (Min Nan), Hakka, Cantonese and Teochew (Min Nan) 'dialects' are main ones spoken by them based on to their origins in southern China from many generations ago. Most ethnic Chinese are capable of speaking at least two of these 'dialects'. Mandarin is also spoken by many, particularly those who attended Chinese vernacular schools. Including the national language (Malay) and English, this makes many of them at least trilingual and quadrulingual.
Tamil is the main Indian language spoken by the Indian community as their ancestors were mostly from southern India. There is also a sizeable group of Punjabi community who speak Punjabi and they are mostly, if not all, Sikhs.
In Sabah and Sarawak, the different indigenous tribes there speak different languages within their own communities. The Kadazan-dusun tribe is the largest in Sabah consisting almost one-fifth of the state population, while the Iban tribe is the biggest group in Sarawak, making up some 30 per cent of the state population.
Malaysia has modern healthcare services in both public and private sectors. Public healthcare, like most countries, is usually full with locals and the wait could be extremely long. For many visitors, private healthcare is the better option. There are no required vaccinations for travelling to Malaysia, except for Yellow Fever, which is mandatory for travellers who come from, or have visited within the past week, any of the Yellow Fever endemic countries in Africa and South America. In these cases, a valid Yellow Fever vaccination certificate is required for entering Malaysia. Vaccination against Yellow Fever must be taken at least 10 days prior to the date of arrival to Malaysia. Recommended vaccines for travellers are Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Polio (booster), Tetanus (booster), and Typhoid Fever. If you're venturing into rural and remote areas, further recommended vaccines are Japanese Encephalitis, Meningitis, Rabies, and Tuberculosis, especially when travelling for longer periods and when you are living or working more closely with humans or animals (rabies). Malaria prophylaxis is strongly recommended for those visiting rural and remote areas of Sabah and Sarawak.
Internet cafés are available in cities and major towns. Wi-Fi hotspots can be found in shopping malls, restaurants, food courts and cafés. Many of these hotspots are provided free-of-charge. Internet cafés can also be found in cities and towns.
Malaysia is on the GSM 900/1800 and UMTS (3G) mobile network. If you have an "unlocked" GSM band mobile phone, you can buy a prepaid SIM card and use it with your phone here for cheaper rates instead of roaming here. Prepaid mobile SIM cards are available cheaply at mobile phone shops and 24-hour convenience stores.
Area code is not required when calling a number of the same area code. However, it is mandatory when calling from a mobile phone.
There is no charge for receiving calls on any Malaysian phones. Only the caller is charged for the call made. However, if you're on mobile phone roaming service, you will also be charged for any calls received, by your operator.
To dial out of Malaysia, use the international access code 00 (zero zero), followed by the country code, followed by the area code (remove the preceding 0, if any), and finally the telephone number.
e.g. To call London, United Kingdom, dial 00-44-20-xxxx xxxx; or to call Dallas, Texas, United States, dial 00-1-214-xxx xxxx.
For mobile phones, the plus sign "+" can be used as the international access code.
e.g. Using the previous scenario, type +44-20-xxxx xxxx or +1-214-xxx xxxx and press the call button.
The country code for Malaysia is 60. To receive calls from overseas, that person will have to dial the country's international access code, followed by 60 for Malaysia, followed by the area code (remove the preceding 0), followed by the phone number.
e.g. If your prepaid mobile number is 012-1234567, and someone in the United Kingdom were to call you, the number to dial is 00-60-12-1234567. Those calling you from the United States and Canada will have to dial 011-60-12-1234567.
The emergency number is 999 and can be dialled from any phone, free of charge. The worldwide standard emergency number for GSM mobile phones, 112, can also be used on a mobile phone, even without a SIM card. Calls to 112 will be routed to 999 centres.
Pos Malaysia is the national postal service of Malaysia. Rates for sending a standard letter locally is 30 sen (20 gram) to 40 sen (up to 50 gram). International airmail has minimum rates ranging from RM1.00 to RM2.00, depending on destination. It costs 20 sen to send a postcard or aerogramme locally, or 50 sen to send a postcard or aerogramme to anywhere in the world. Expedited Mail Service (EMS), branded locally as Poslaju, is available for both domestic and international destinations. Domestic EMS has a next day delivery guarantee. International EMS guarantees mails and parcels to be delivered out of the country by the following day. The time required to arrive at its destination will depend on clearance by authorities and the postal service of the destination country. For most countries, delivery of documents can be done in 3 to 5 days. If you need to receive mails or packages from home, there is Poste Restante service available at all General Post Offices (GPO) in the country. There is one GPO in almost every capital city of every state, and in all federal territories. Mails sent from Singapore and Brunei will be retained for one month while mails from all other places will be kept for two months, after which if unclaimed, will be sent to the Dead Letter Office. Generally, post offices are open from 8:30am to 5:00pm Monday to Saturday, except the first Saturday of the month. They are closed on Sundays and Public Holidays.
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