Malaysian

Literature

Panganiban, Erika A.

TRIVIA!

The name "Malaysia" is a combination of

the word "Malay" and the Latin-Greek

suffix "-sia“.

The word "melayu" in Malay derived from

the Tamil words "malai" and "ur" meaning

"mountain" and "city, land", respectively.

"Malayadvipa" was the word used by

ancient Indian traders when referring to

the Malay Peninsula

Brief History of Malaysia

A busy seaport for European and Far East traders for many hundreds of years.

Starts with the history of Melaka, founded in the 13th century by a Sumatran prince

Became the most influential port city in Southeast Asia

1511

A Portuguese fleet led by Alfonso de Albuquerque sailed into Melaka harbor

He captured the city with canon fire

Brief History of Malaysia

1641

The Dutch captured the city from the Portuguese

They controlled the spice trade

1819

British administration replaced the Dutch and established a trading post in Singapore

Penang and Melaka – “Straits Settlements”

The British Administration lasted 138 years.

The British granted independence to Malaya in 1957 in Kuala Lumpur.

Tunku Abdul Rahman – first prime minister of Malaya

Government

A federal constitutional

monarchy

Currency: Ringgit

Yang di-Pertuan Agong

Current king

Head of state and serves in a ceremonialrole

Najib Tun Razak

The head of government is the primeminister, presently.

Government

Malaysia has a bicameral parliament, witha 70-member Senate and a 222-memberHouse of Representatives. Senators areelected by state legislatures or appointedby the king; members of the House aredirectly elected by the people.

General courts, including the FederalCourt, Court of Appeals, high courts,session courts, etc., hear all types ofcases. A separate division of sharia courtshears cases pertaining only to Muslims.

Did you know?

About two thirds of Malaysia is covered in

forest, with some forests believed to be 130

million years old.

Rafflesia genus, the largest flower in the

world, with a maximum of 3 ft.

Malaysia is

the 42nd

most

populated

country.

RELIGION

Religion

Malaysia has three main religions: Islam, Buddhism,

and Hinduism.

practiced in Malaysia is known as Islam Hadhari,

which encourages an open mind, tolerance,

inclusivity, honesty, and hard work.

THE QUR'AN

the complete book of guidance for mankind

“Whosoever performs good deeds, whether male or female,

and is a believer, we shall surely make him live a good life,

and We will certainly reward them for the best of what they

did."(Qur'an, An-Nahl 16:97)

ISLAMIC PRINCIPLES

Five Pillars of Islam

1. Shahadah: declaring there is no god except Allah,

and Muhammad is God's Messenger

2. Salat: ritual prayer five times a day

3. Zakat: giving 2.5% of one’s savings to the poor and needy

4. Sawm: fasting and self-control during the holy month

of Ramadan

5. Hajj: pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in a lifetime if one is

able

History of Literature

Malaysian literature is typically written in any of the

country’s four main languages: Malay, English,

Chinese, and Tamil.

It portrays various aspects of Malaysian life.

Early Malays literature was influenced by Indian

epics, such as the Mahabharata and the Ramayana.

begins with the coming of Islam in the late 15th

century; no literary works dating from the Hindu

period (4th to late 15th centuries)

have survived

History of Literature

The earliest works of Malaysian literature were

transmitted orally in the absence of writing scripts.

By the 19th century, written literature occurred.

Traditional Malay poetry was used for

entertainment and the recording of history and

laws.

Three Forms of Traditional Malay Poetry

Mantera

sacred message of a text; repeated word or phrase in meditation (e.g “Om”, “Om Namo”)

Pantun

a traditional oral form of expression

consists of a quatrain which employs an abab rhyme scheme

Syair

can be a narrative poem, a didactic poem, or a poem used to convey ideas on religion or philosophy, or even one to describe historical event

Other types:

Seloka – a poem, similar to pantum

Madah – rhyming speech; a discourse through

poetry

Gurindam – poetry that sets to music

Fables in Malaysia:

Kancil (mouse deer)

- serves as the main character in a number of

stories

- regards as the humble animal in the highest

esteem

Famous Writers

Abdullah Abdul Kadir

a Malayan writer of Indian origin

most cultured Malay who ever wrote

one of the greatest innovators in Malay letters

the father of modern Malay literature

He wrote Hikayat Abdullah, an autobiography

Famous Writers

Ee Tiang Hong

was a Malayan poet of Chinese ancestry

wrote poetry in English

His first book of poetry appeared in 1960

Some New Perspectives

Race, language, religion, birthplace —the categories do not satisfy;what do they say of you and me,the space, the silences between?

Not always negative, I ammore or less than your images,the truth is always partly,a few hints here and there.

That's how it is — conceptualsmithereens, in spurtsand starts, a world view,the twentieth century's, ours.

Famous WritersUsman Awang

best poet in the Malay language

did not produce a very large corpus ofpoetry, only about 200 of them

poems are simple, clear, often romantic,and beautiful

a master at weaving words into strikingphrases, sentences and verses that areof exceptional classical beauty andsometimes appear to be nostalgic andeven escapist.

Famous Writers

Huzir Sulaiman

a Malaysian actor, director and writer

based in Singapore

One of Malaysia's leading dramatists

His plays, often charged with dark humor,

political satire, and surrealistic twists, have

won numerous awards and international

recognition

Famous Literary Text

Terima kasih!

References

http://asianhistory.about.com/od/malaysia/p/malaysia

prof.htm

http://www.wikiz.info/islam/principles/Principles.htm

http://www.missionislam.com/discover/basic.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Malaysian_writers

http://www.softblow.org/eetianghong.html

http://www.slideshare.net/MariaVeronicaLeeMakaya

n/malaysia-demographics-and-literature