Malaysia Population

Malaysia is one of the most developed countries in Southeast Asia. The country is made up of many different ethnicities, religions, languages ​​and cultures.

Key figures and facts

• Capital: Kuala Lumpur
• Ethnic groups: Bumiputera 62% (ethnic Malays and other Indigenous peoples), Chinese 20.6%, Indians 5.7%, other 0.8%, non-nationals 10.3% (2017)
• Language: Bahasa Malay, English, Chinese, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Panjabi, Thai (there are also 112 different origins spoken in Malaysia)
• Religion: Muslims 61.3% (official), Buddhists 19.8%, Christians 9.2%, Hindus 6.3%, Confucianists, Taoists, other traditional Chinese religions 1.3%, other 0.4%, no 0.8 %, unspecified 1% (2010)
• Population: 32 042 458 (2018)
• Control Form: Constitutional monarchy
• Area: 330 800 km2
• Currency: Malaysian ringgit
• GNP per capita: 27 683 PPP $
• National Day: August 31st

Population of Malaysia

Malaysia’s population is estimated at 31,819,660 residents (2018, CIA). The three largest population groups among Malaysian citizens are bumiputera, Chinese and Indians. About 780,000 people are guest workers with foreign nationality. 76 percent of the population lives in cities.

Population of Malaysia by Year (Historical)

Year	Population	Annual Growth Rate	Population Density	Global Rank
2020	32,365,888	1.300%	98.5116	45
2019	31,949,666	1.340%	97.2448	44
2018	31,527,922	1.360%	95.9611	44
2017	31,104,535	1.370%	94.6725	44
2016	30,684,543	1.370%	93.3942	44
2015	30,270,851	1.420%	92.1350	44
2010	28,207,924	1.890%	85.8561	44
2005	25,690,500	2.070%	78.1939	44
2000	23,194,146	2.510%	70.5958	44
1995	20,487,496	2.590%	62.3576	45
1990	18,029,713	2.940%	54.8770	45
1985	15,598,816	2.480%	47.4781	48
1980	13,797,974	2.560%	41.9969	49
1975	12,162,076	2.400%	37.0178	49
1970	10,804,020	2.550%	32.8843	49
1965	9,526,447	3.150%	28.9958	51
1960	8,156,236	2.990%	24.8253	52
1955	7,038,802	2.870%	21.4242	57
1950	6,109,804	0.000%	18.5966	58

Major Cities in Malaysia by Population

Rank	City	Population
1	Kota Bharu	1,459,883
2	Kuala Lumpur	1,453,864
3	Klang	879,756
4	Kampung Baru Subang	833,460
5	Johor Bahru	802,378
6	Subang Jaya	708,185
7	Ipoh	673,207
8	Kuching	570,296
9	Petaling Jaya	520,587
10	Shah Alam	481,543
11	Kota Kinabalu	457,215
12	Sandakan	392,177
13	Seremban	372,806
14	Kuantan	366,118
15	Tawau	306,351
16	George Town	299,889
17	Kuala Terengganu	284,954
18	Sungai Petani	228,732
19	Miri	228,101
20	Taiping	217,536
21	Alor Setar	217,257
22	Bukit Mertajam	212,218
23	Sepang	211,939
24	Sibu	198,128
25	Malacca	180,560
26	Kulim	170,778
27	Kluang	169,717
28	Skudai	159,622
29	Batu Pahat	156,125
30	Bintulu	151,506
31	Kampung Pasir Gudang Baru	145,528
32	Kampung Sungai Ara	140,738
33	Tasek Glugor	135,675
34	Muar	127,786
35	Rawang	120,336
36	Butterworth	107,480
37	Lahad Datu	105,511
38	Semenyih	92,380
39	Port Dickson	89,087
40	Cukai	82,314
41	Putatan	78,229
42	Keningau	77,539
43	Ulu Tiram	75,239
44	Victoria	73,542
45	Taman Senai	73,065
46	Donggongon	71,474
47	Segamat	69,705
48	Kampong Baharu Balakong	69,191
49	Perai	65,190
50	Kangar	63,758
51	Kulai	63,651
52	Jitra	63,378
53	Teluk Intan	63,242
54	Semporna	62,530
55	Putra Heights	59,889
56	Temerluh	59,805
57	Kampong Dungun	58,563
58	Simpang Empat	57,893
59	Kuala Selangor	55,776
60	Kampung Bukit Baharu	55,545
61	Bandar Labuan	54,641
62	Kota Tinggi	52,632
63	Pontian Kechil	50,725
64	Putrajaya	49,889
65	Bentong Town	49,102
66	Banting	48,129
67	Bedong	47,474
68	Batu Gajah	46,072
69	Mentekab	42,060
70	Nibong Tebal	39,961
71	Raub	39,913
72	Kampong Pangkal Kalong	39,793
73	Lumut	39,484
74	Kuala Kangsar	39,220
75	Klebang Besar	38,532
76	Kampung Ayer Keroh	37,605
77	Kampung Baharu Nilai	36,609
78	Tangkak	34,998
79	Jerantut	33,495
80	Kudat	32,282
81	Pekan	31,715
82	Bahau	31,162
83	Bakri	30,169
84	Kuah	30,101
85	Bidur	29,905
86	Sarikei	29,170
87	Kampong Masjid Tanah	29,074
88	Tanah Merah	29,005
89	Serendah	28,373
90	Tampin	28,127
91	Tapah Road	27,752
92	Parit Buntar	27,202
93	Simanggang	27,096
94	Permatang Kuching	27,080
95	Yong Peng	27,027
96	Sungai Besar	26,828
97	Limbang	26,088
98	Sungai Udang	25,933
99	Batu Berendam	24,917
100	Jenjarum	24,746
101	Kertih	24,290
102	Tanjung Tokong	23,960
103	Ladang Seri Kundang	23,196
104	Pekan Nenas	23,181
105	Peringat	23,177
106	Batu Arang	22,468
107	Tanjung Sepat	22,229
108	Mersing	21,896
109	Labis	21,795
110	Marang	21,299
111	Kuang	21,074
112	Paka	20,933
113	Bagan Serai	20,365
114	Alor Gajah	20,052
115	Batang Berjuntai	19,890
116	Batu Feringgi	19,889
117	Pelabuhan Klang	19,889
118	Gua Musang	19,620
119	Kuala Pilah	19,399
120	Ranau	19,183
121	Papar	19,167
122	Kampong Kadok	19,122
123	Kuala Kedah	19,120
124	Kampar	18,945
125	Pasir Mas	18,906
126	Kampung Simpang Renggam	17,417
127	Parit Raja	17,330
128	Bukit Rambai	17,280
129	Sabak Bernam	17,140
130	Kepala Batas	17,020
131	Kampung Tanjung Karang	16,282
132	Pantai Remis	16,206
133	Gurun	15,853
134	Beaufort	15,744
135	Kapit	15,660
136	Kinarut	15,605
137	Kampung Ayer Molek	15,386
138	Kuala Lipis	15,337
139	Pantai Cenang	14,889
140	Bemban	14,218
141	Kuala Perlis	13,806
142	Sungai Pelek New Village	13,718
143	Jertih	13,415
144	Kelapa Sawit	13,128
145	Buloh Kasap	12,977
146	Kota Belud	12,714
147	Kampung Bukit Tinggi, Bentong	12,235
148	Tumpat	12,169
149	Kuala Sungai Baru	12,158
150	Juru	12,154
151	Pulau Sebang	11,768
152	Chaah	11,733
153	Taman Rajawali	9,889
154	Telaga Batu	9,889
155	Ayer Hangat	9,889
156	Padang Mat Sirat	9,889
157	Tanah Rata	6,889

Population growth and composition

In 2018, the population increased by 1.34 percent. The birth and death rates per 1000 residents are 18.8 and 5.2 respectively. Both birth and death rates have dropped significantly since the 1950s. The birth profile was in 1955 at 44 and the death profile at 18.0. The birth rate per woman is 2.48. Net immigration is minus 0.3 per milliliter. The average life expectancy at birth is 78.4 years for women and 72.6 years for men (2018).

The proportion of the population under the age of 15 has been declining since 2005, while the proportion of working age 15-64 years and the proportion of people over 65 have been increasing. In 2018, these figures were 24.78 percent, 66.35 percent and 6.35 percent, respectively.

Ethnic conditions

The population is ethnically very composed, and there have been several conflicts between the various groups. The most serious riots occurred in 1969, and the authorities subsequently introduced new guidelines whereby the indigenous peoples were given benefits over the newly arrived Chinese and Indians.

The ethnic distribution among the three largest Malaysian nationals in 2018 is as follows:

• 62 percent bumiputera
• 6 percent of Chinese
• 7 percent Indians

Bumiputera, which means ‘sons of the earth’, is a collective term for the original population. First and foremost, bumiputera includes Muslim Malays. The Malay also includes closely related groups who immigrated in the late 1800s. The remaining peoples of the bumiputera group include indigenous orang asli in the Malayan Peninsula and a variety of peoples in Sarawak and Sabah.

The Chinese began to immigrate in the early 1800s. They were mostly traders, craftsmen or workers in the tin mines, and most of them settled in cities. A small group of Chinese have lived in Melaka since 1405 and are known as Baba-Chinese or Peranakans. The Chinese population has a much lower growth rate than the Malays, so their share of the population is declining.

Almost all of the country’s Indians reside in the Malaysian part of the Malay Peninsula, also known as Western Malaysia. Most are Tamils, who were brought in by the United Kingdom between the 1890s and 1930s to work on the rubber plantations, in the tin mines or at the railroad.

Malaysia has had a shortage of labor in modern times as well. In 2017, there were 1,781,598 registered foreign nationals guest workers in Malaysia. The five countries with the highest number of guest workers in Malaysia were:

• Indonesia(720 870)
• Nepal(405 898)
• Bangladesh (221 089)
• Myanmar(127,705)
• India(114,455)

However, a large number of workers are illegal in Malaysia at all times.

The Malaysian part of the Malay Peninsula

The Malays have the highest population growth rate and make up the majority of the rural population, and they dominate the east coast. The traditional settlement form is in villages (kampong), which are usually located on a river bank or on the coast. Gradually, the Malay became prominent in the cities of the west coast, especially in the public administration.

The indigenous population of orang asli consists of a total of 18 groups. These are often divided into three main groups:

1. Agta is the oldest population and lives in the mountainous regions of the states of Kelantan, Perak, Pahang and Terengganu.
2. Senoi (or sakai) arrived later than eight and lives in the states of the east coast as well as Perak and Selangor.
3. The Proto-Malay lives mainly in the far south.

The Chinese live almost exclusively in the larger cities of the states of the west coast, and they are strongly applicable in trade and industry.

Sarawak and Sabah

In Sarawak and Sabah, the population composition is more complicated. In these states, the term bumiputera includes partly Malay and partly various local people groups. The Malays, for their part, include people who have immigrated and partly local people who have converted to Islam and who have been assimilated. The six largest ethnic groups are:

• iban(formerly called sea jayaker)
• Chinese
• Malays
• bidayuh (formerly called landjaker)
• Melanau
• orang ulu

The population of Sarawak also includes more than 150,000 foreign nationals, mainly Indonesian guest workers (2015).

In Sabah, the population has had a very high growth rate for many years. This is due to both a high natural growth rate and immigration. Statistics from 2018 show that almost one-third of Sabah’s population is foreign nationals, mainly guest workers from Indonesia and the Philippines and illegal immigration from these two countries. The three largest ethnic groups are the kadazan dusun people, bajau and malay.

Settlement

The cities grow very quickly at the expense of the countryside. From 1980 to 2018, the proportion of people living in urban areas increased from 33 percent to 76 percent. All the eight largest cities are located in the western part of Western Malaysia. The four largest cities are:

• Kuala Lumpur (7.2 million people)
• George Town (2,412,616 residents)
• Ipoh (737,861 residents)
• Johor Bahru (497 067 residents)