Since the beginning of the world trade the Strait of Malacca, lying between Sumatra and Malaysia peninsula is the most important shipping lane in the world. Malaysians living in the coastal regions had developed strong contacts with Chinese and Indians seafaring traders. The impact of Hinduism soon mixed up with the local beliefs. When the Muslims conquered India they spread Islam to Malaysia, which soon dominated the Malaysian ethos and daily life. In the beginning of 18th century the Dutch and British developed trading relationship with Malaysia and in the second half British colonialised Malaysia. After the World War II growing sense of nationalism forced British to establish the semiautonomous Federation of Malaya in 1948 and Malaysia became an independent state in 1963. Malaysia Profile: Overview of Facts and Figures ? National Name: Federation of Malaysia ? Capital: Kuala Lumpur ? Total area: 329,847 sq km (127,355 sq miles) ? Population: 27 million (UN, 2008) ? Currency: Ringgit ? Languages: Bahasa Malaysia (official), English, Chinese (Cantonese, Mandarin, Hokkien, Hakka, Hainan, Foochow), Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Panjabi, Thai ? Ethnicity/ Races: Malay 50.4%, Chinese 23.7%, indigenous 11%, Indian 7.1%, others 7.8% (2004 est.) ? Religion: Muslim 60.4%, Buddhist 19.2%, Christian 9.1%, Hindu 6.3%, Confucianism, Taoism, other traditional Chinese religions 2.6%, other or unknown 1.5%, none 0.8% (2000 census) ? GDP (Per Capita): $15,700 (2008 est.) ? Life Expectancy: Male: 70.32 years, Female: 75.94 years (2008 est.) ? Literacy Rate: Male: 92%, Female: 85.4% (2000 census) Geographical Information on Malaysia: Malaysia is situated on the Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is divided into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Malaysian Borneo separated by the South China Sea. Malaysia is bordered by the Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei and the Philippines. The climate of Malaysia is equatorial in nature. Malaysia receives annual southwest monsoon during April to October and annual northeast monsoon during October to February. Culture and Cuisine of Malaysia: Malaysia is the multi-cultural and multi-racial land. The fine blend of traditional cultural ethos along with cosmopolitan lifestyle is a showcase of this Islamic country. There are three main races in the country. The Malays who are Muslims and form the majority while the other two main ethnic groups are the Chinese who are mostly Buddhists and the Indians who are mainly Tamils. The cuisine of Malaysia is a fusion of Chinese, Thai, Arabic and Indian cuisines. The spices like chilly, pepper, cloves, and turmeric etc. holds prominent place in the Malaysian cuisine preparations. The staple diet of the Malayans consists of rice, noodles and seafood like prawns, shrimps, squids and fishes.

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