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The Kristang (otherwise known as "Malacca Portuguese") are a creole ethnic group of people of predominantly mixed Portuguese and Malaccan descent, with substantial Dutch British, Jewish, Malay, Chinese and Indian heritage.

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The Kristang (otherwise known as "Portuguese-Eurasians" or "Malacca Portuguese") or Serani are a creole ethnic group of people of predominantly mixed Portuguese and Malaccan descent, with substantial Dutch British, Jewish, Malay, Chinese and Indian heritage. They are based in Malaysia and to some extent in Singapore.

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Image taken from: @AaronAgoDagang on X (Twitter).

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1. About The Author

Introducing: Unveiling the Academic Maverick!

Author Insider: Fun Facts Unleashed!

2. SAMA-BAJAU

The Bajau people

Where in the world...?

All About The SAMA-BAJAU Language

List of References

3. PAPIA KRISTANG

The Kristang people

Where in the world...?

All About The PAPIA KRISTANG Language

List of References

4. MALAY CHETTI

The Chetti people

Where in the world...?

All About The MALAY CHETTI Language

List of References

5. ENGROK SEMAI

The Semai people

Where in the world...?

All About The ENGROK SEMAI Language

List of References

6. MALAY JAVANESE

The Malaysian Javanese people

Where in the world...?

All About The MALAY JAVANESE Language

List of References

7. Reflection on Cultural Awareness

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Bajau (or Sama-Bajau) refers to several Austronesian ethnic groups of Maritime Southeast Asia who usually live a seaborne lifestyle, and use small wooden sailing vessels. Some Bajau groups native to Sabah (Malaysia) are also known for their traditional horse culture.

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Semai, an Orang Asli society lived in the forested central mountains in Pahang and Perak states of the Malay Peninsula in Malaysia, Southeast Asia. It is thought that the Semai are among the original ancient and widespread population of Southeast Asia.

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The Javanese Malaysians are people of full or partial Javanese descent who were born in or immigrated to Malaysia. They form a significant part of Malaysia's population and Malaysian law considers most of them to be Malays.

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HISTORY: TOLD AS IT IS | Despite Malaysia being home to the largest Javanese population outside Indonesia, very little is known about the role and contributions of this dynamic and industrious ethnic group, particularly in the economic development of our nation.

There are not many writings on the historical background of the Malaysian Javanese community. Hence, this article seeks to fill the gap by narrating the early emigration of Javanese to Malaysia, their distribution and growth as well as their role and contributions to the economic development of our nation.

Historically, Java and Peninsular Malaysia had trading relations since early times. During the time of the Malay sultanate of Malacca, Javanese traders from Tuban, Japara and Gresik supplied Indonesia's foodstuff and spices. The Javanese were also renowned as sailors, shipbuilders and carpenters. In addition, they served as mercenary soldiers and formed a significant part of the Malacca sultanate's army.

Fifteenth-century Malacca had a Javanese settlement, Kampung Jawa, at Bandar Hilir. There was also another large Javanese settlement at Upeh (Tranquerah) with Utimutiraja as its chief. Utimutiraja was the most powerful and richest Javanese merchant who controlled the rice trade, and reportedly had thousands of men working under him. He was subsequently executed in December 1511 for allegedly plotting against the Portuguese authorities. Among the other leading Javanese at Malacca were Patih Adam, Patih Kadir, Patih Yusoff and Patih Yunus.

Beginning from the 1870s, the Javanese started migrating in considerable numbers to Malaysia, reaching a peak in the early decades of the 20th century. Originating mainly from Central and East Java, they were driven to do so primarily due to poverty, population explosion and land...

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HISTORY | The Javanese connection in Malaysia

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It's home to the largest Javanese population outside Indonesia.

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The location of Sama-Bajau of Malaysia and the Philippines highlighted in green.

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The Chetti Melaka (or Chitty Melaka) are descendants of Tamil traders who settled in Melaka during the reign of the Melaka Sultanate (15th- 16th century). The community speaks a unique combination of Malay, Tamil and Chinese, that has been called Chetti Creole by scholars.

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Chetti Melaka of the Straits - Rediscovering Perankan Indian Communities

"To be a Chetti Melaka is something unique. We are of Tamil ancestry; we are of mixed blood, initially with Malay matriarchal lineage principally, but over time with Chinese and others. The land of origin of our people is Melaka. This is embedded in our name, which we retain and should retain wherever we may live now."

Gerald Francis Pillay, October, 2014.

Situated at the crossroads of the Indian Ocean region and the Far East, the Malay Archipelago has always been a region of cultural confluence and diversity. The region saw the influx of migrant communities who brought with them their unique socio-cultural traits ranging from language to religion, fashion to cuisine. Over time, these traits adapted to the multicultural milieu of the local society and resulted in polyglot environments best exemplified by the Chetti Melaka.

The Chetti Melaka (or Chitty Melaka) are descendants of Tamil traders who settled in Melaka during the reign of the Melaka Sultanate (15th- 16th century) and married local women of Malay and Chinese descent. Predominantly Hindu of the Saivite (followers of Shiva) denomination, the community speaks a unique combination of Malay, Tamil and Chinese, that has been called Chetti Creole by scholars. They trace their roots to Kampung Chitty in Gajah Berang, Melaka, and it is estimated that there are 5 000 Chettis in Singapore.

The Indian Heritage Centre (IHC) in collaboration with the Association of Peranakan Indians (Chitty Melaka). Singapore in Singapore proudly presents Chetti Melaka of the Straits - Rediscovering Peranakan Indian Communities, the first of IHC's community co-created exhibitions.

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Indian Heritage Centre - Chetti Melaka Of The Straits - Rediscovering Perankan Indian Communities

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The maps above shows the Portuguese Settlement located in Ujong Pasir, Melaka.

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Image was taken by the author during a visit to the Portuguese Settlement in Ujong Pasir for her Diploma's Community Engagement Project.

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The circles in the map above show the location of the Chetti Village in Melaka.

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The yellow area indicates the location of Semai community in Peninsular Malaysia.

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One of the way for the Kristang community to preserve their creole is by making a dictionary. This is one of the earliest dictionary found which contains a lot of traditional words of Kristang which influenced by a lot other languages in the world.

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The Javanese people in Malaysia are primarily located in the state of Johor, which is situated in the southern part of Peninsular Malaysia. Johor has a significant Javanese community, particularly in areas like Johor Bahru, Batu Pahat, Muar, and Kluang. These communities are descendants of Javanese migrants who settled in Malaysia during different historical periods, particularly during the British colonial era and later during the Dutch colonization of Indonesia.

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Assoc. Prof. Dr Saidatul Nornis Haji Mahali. (2014, February 5)

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The Bajaus speak a Malayo-Polynesian language which they themselves call ‘Sama’. The ‘Sama’ language is spoken in the Philippines and Malaysia. As the language is spoken in Sabah, is divided into a number of divergent, though mutually intelligible dialects.

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This article describes the Malacca Chetties' Historical and linguistics background. The Chetties' draw and adapt from other local cultures, in particular the Baba Nyonya and Malay cultures, in their every day life. The mother tongue of the Chetties includes is a variety of Malay. As with the community itself, the Malay language used by the Chetties is an amalgamation of various cultures.

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Semai (engrok Semai) is a Austroasiatic language of western Malaysia spoken by about 60,438 Semai people. It is one of the few Aslian languages which are not endangered, and even has 2,000 monolingual speakers. The YouTube video above shows how Engrok Semai sounds like.

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The Sound of the Semai language (UDHR, Numbers, Greetings & Sample Text)

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Javanese is the largest of the Austronesian languages in number of native speakers. It has several regional dialects and a number of clearly distinct status styles. This YouTube video above shows how Javanese has their own alphabets.

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With only about two thousand fluent speakers of Kristang remaining worldwide, 66-year-old Philomena Agnes Singho (the picture above) is determined to ensure the language not only survives but flourishes, especially among her community. Singho, who has lived in the Portuguese settlement in Malacca since 1957, has worked on various initiatives with the Malaccan Portuguese-Eurasian association in collaboration with Universiti Malaya (UM) to help promote the language.

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MALAYSIANSKINI | The close-knit Portuguese settlement situated by the sea in Ujong Pasir, Malacca, is famous among both tourists and locals alike for its food at the Portuguese Square.

During their festivals, song, dance and cheer line the streets of the settlement, and the Portuguese Square is coloured by decorations and string lights while people wander the streets in camaraderie and joy.

But there is one aspect of the Malaccan Portuguese culture which has often been overlooked - its unique creole language known by many names but mostly referred to as the Papia Kristang language.

Now with only about two thousand fluent speakers of Kristang remaining worldwide, 66-year-old Philomena Agnes Singho ( above) is determined to ensure the language not only survives but flourishes, especially among her community.

In pursuit of this, Singho, who has lived in the Portuguese settlement in Malacca since 1957, has worked on various initiatives with the Malaccan Portuguese-Eurasian association in collaboration with Universiti Malaya (UM) to help promote the language.

This included a collaboration to publish a book titled " Beng Prende Portugues Malaka" (Come, Let's Learn Portuguese Malacca) on Kristang as well as an online dictionary of the language "BibePortMal" available as a mobile app.

Singho noticed that they received many messages from people who said they had purchased the book when it was published in 2016, but the feedback generally stopped at that.

Concerned that people were just buying the book and leaving it to collect dust on their bookshelves, the former English teacher decided to find her own way to further push people to learn the language.

She launched the "Linggua de Mai - Bibe Persempre" Facebook page where she posts a short video of herself daily, teaching a word of the day and speaking in the Kristang language.

Today, over 1,000 people follow her daily updates where she teaches phrases like " pasa trabalu" (to undergo hardship), " sumana pasadu" (last week) and " bai pas" (to get along with).

This is Singho's story, in her own words:

WHEN THE PORTUGUESE CAME OVER in the early 1500s, they did not only bring their spices, vegetables and fruits. They also brought their language.

When they stayed behind in Malacca and married local women, they inculcated their language into us. We are the descendants of those people.

It is still very much in use in our lives until today.

I tell you, it is very vibrant here, especially in the Portuguese settlements.

I LOVE THIS KRISTANG LANGUAGE. If a language is not used, it dies. Now the younger generation, many of them do not know how to speak or write this language.

In modern times, parents are very busy and do not have time to teach their children.

Parents converse more in English or other languages, so the children are left to wonder. When we speak to them in Kristang, they are a blur to the youth. If this language is not projected to the younger generation, it will die.

My small part is to follow-up by doing videos every day on the language, so not only Malaysians but people all over the world can learn it.

IT IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE THIS IS STILL A LIVING LANGUAGE, a living culture that is slowly dying. If nothing is done, it will die. In my own way, I want to preserve it, to reach out to people for them to know and to be interested in the language.

The book has given us the anchor, the first step to preserving Kristang. Without this book, the language would fade away. Unfortunately, it is happening because young people are not interested in the language.

But (with this Facebook page) when I get the responses, people are excited. That gets me going. They text me in private to ask me how to say a word or something like that.

WE CALL IT 'SAUDADI', a longing for the settlement,sothey (Kristang people who have moved away) come back (to the Portuguese settlement) but only during festivals.

They are away from home, and they seem to have forgotten their language so when they see my page, they are excited. They said it is something from their younger days.

They say it brings back memories for them because their parents used to speak it in the house when they were younger.

In a way, I am happy it is not dying.

WHENEVER I SEE THE YOUNGER GENERATION here, I will speak to them in Kristang and always encourage them to speak, even if it's wrong.

I tell them, just come to my house, I will help them (learn the language). Sometimes, they need to know more about the language for their school projects, I will help them with it.

Yes, there is now a positive upbeat on this language from the younger generation. It is still hard work, we have to capture their attention.

I do videos because the videos will live on even for future generations.

WE NEED A BODY IN THE VILLAGE itself to promote the language.We need it to go out and do physically promotions for the language and maybe spend some money on advertising, but unfortunately, it is not happening.

(For example) the Festa San Pedro, people come once a year for the dance and food. They, however, only listen to Kristang when people are singing and dancing, but most people don't know what's being spoken.

Nobody is giving classes to the children where it is open to the community. Even if you want to have classes, you have to pay for it.

I am the only one volunteering my time for free (to post videos teaching the language).

THE PEOPLE OF PORTUGAL APPRECIATE IT because it is old Portuguese.

It was brought to us in 1511 by the Portuguese who came here (to Malacca), it has been preserved and is still in use by us (the Kristang community).

Many Portuguese are amazed when they watch (my videos), they said they do not understand. The younger ones have questioned me, and I tell them your modern Portuguese has been modernised with English.

This is what we call Portuguese antigu (old Portuguese), and it is still used, especially in Portuguese settlements in Malacca. If you walk down the road here, you can still hear people conversing in this language.

So before this disappears, with the efforts of UM and our own, we are returning it to the people.

MALAYSIANSKINI is a series on Malaysians you should know.
From humble beginnings to USM's first Orang Asli faculty dean Mariani Ramli's life mission to help gibbons sing again Music of the streets Overcoming stigma so she can 'speak' for the deaf Fighting for respect in the shadows of the frontlines

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MALAYSIANSKINI | Philomena Edna Singho is determined to ensure her language thrives in an ever-changing world.

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As with every creole, Kristang is also the result of more than one substratum language. In this case, it has Malay and Portuguese as its two main fonts. During the Malacca Sultanate, trade in South-east Asia was carried out in Malay as a lingua franca among the immense Babylon of languages spoken by traders who came from as far as the Middle East. But soon this new Portuguese-based creole was to become the language of trade not only in the Straits of Malacca but also in the present Indonesian Archipelago and it remained so right through most of the Dutch rule which took over from the Portuguese in l64l.

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Nowadays, the modern Javanese language which includes a mix of many other languages is widely used as it is following the rapidly evolving advance world. In order to preserve the tradition, a book on the old Javanese language and literature has been made for the younger generations to get more familiar with their mother tongue. In this book, it shows that the spelling system used in the old Javanese adheres to the Kawi writing system, which includes representations of Sanskrit phonology which were not relevant to Kawi. It is not known how many distinctions were made in ancient pronunciation.

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Malay language, which serves as Malaysia national and official language has influenced the Javanese society to enable more use of the Malay language in everyday lives. Most of the third-generation of Javanese community in Malaysia does not use Javanese language in their verbal interactions anymore.

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An insightful introduction about the Chitty Community and their language.

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The Chitty - Malacca's forgotten descendants

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This study was conducted to assess the proficiency of Java language among its young adult and it was revealed that most Javanese youth were not able to speak in their native language. This research was deemed important to explore whether the language is preserved by its own ethnic.

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This report documents the various Semai dialects and explores the relationships between them, with regard to choice of words as well as the phonological changes that affect the pronunciation of each.

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This paper presents the Semai indigenous Orang Asli language teaching programme as an effort in maintaining the indigenous Orang Asli language in Malaysia. The Semai language teaching programme was implemented in 1998 in Semai schools in Peninsular Malaysia as a part of preserving the minority indigenous language from endangerment.

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Adi Yasran Abdul Aziz, & Noor Aina Dani. (2020, December 31)

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The Sama Bajau, Kota Belud community, changes from using one primary language to another wide variety of languages in a language shift process. This article’s language shift concept is when the Kota Belud Bajau Sama bilingual gradually stops using their mother tongue for other languages. Bajau Sama in Kota Belud has undergone a social outreach process that changes their lifestyle from marine-oriented to the farming community.

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Fazlinda, Mohd Azlan, & Chong Shin. (2022)

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This study shows how a language shift and maintenance of Chetti creole language occurs among Chetti community, specifically regarding the choice of language to use in their daily lives. The findings show both young and old generations of Chetti community exhibit different inclination in terms of usage of Chetti language in the family and social domains.

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A short YouTube video above introduces Kristang Language to audience and it shows how Kristang is different from Portuguese Language with a mix from many other languages.

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Kristang — A Language Saved from Extinction

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Image was taken by the author during a visit to Mrs. Sara Santa Maria's house at the Portuguese Settlement in Ujong Pasir for her Diploma's Community Engagement Project.

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The picture above shows some phrases used by the Kristang community in their daily life by Mrs. Sara Santa Maria, a Kristang activist who has lived in the Portuguese Settlement her entire life.

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The YouTube video above shows how Mrs. Sara took an initiative to teach the young generation of Kristang community in Melaka the Papia Kristang in order to preserve the endangered language.

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Sara’s helping keep the Melaka Portuguese language alive

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This YouTube video showcases how Sama-Bajau Language sounds like when the Bajau community communicate in their daily life. It also shows their daily life as a tribe that live at the sea and have the ability to dive underwater for so long.

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The tribe that evolved to stay underwater longer – BBC REEL

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An introduction of Sama-Bajau Language. The YouTube video above contains some words of Sama-Bajau that frequently used by the community. We can learn how to pronounce the words as well as their meanings.

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The Sound of the Bajau / Sinama language (Numbers, Greetings & The Parable)

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mStar Online Malaysia. (2018, November 6)

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The YouTube video above shows how the Chetti Community talks in Malay in their daily life with a mix of some Tamil and Baba Peranakan. It sounds different from the Indian's Malay.

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Anggun berkebaya, keunikan masyarakat Chetti sambut pesta cahaya

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This website highlights the uniqueness of the spoken Chetti Language. The community spoken language is Malay, but the accent is not the Malay accent as spoken by the Malays.

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View all posts by Museum Volunteers, JMM

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by V. Jegatheesan He looked Malay, he spoke Malay, but he is not Malay. He looked Malay, he spoke an Indian dialect, but he is not Malay. She looked Indian, she spoke an Indian dialect, but she is not Indian. They look Indian, they look Malay, they look Chinese, they speak Malay, they speak Indian dialects...

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Language preservation is very important especially among the Kristang community as it is under threat of not just erosion, but of extinction. In this article, it was explained the history of creole Kristang and how to preserve it.

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Saving Kristang from the threat of extinction

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Language is both the glue and the bridge between communities and people lose a part of themselves when they lose a language.

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Azwinawati Alwi, Mazlina Mehat, & Noreen Izza Arshad. (2016)

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This study discusses about one of the attempts to avoid the Semai Language from extinction which is by providing an academic tools for teachers who are teaching Semai in schools. The E-Semai Teaching Portal is very important for teachers in Semai schools as it provides easy access to information about the language. It also can be very helpful not only for teachers, but for the students as well.

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This YouTube channel called Semai Literacy has uploaded various videos about Engrok Semai which people can watch and learn the language with ease.

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Mari Belajar Bahasa Semai (Orang Asli Semai Semenanjung). Di saluran ini akan memaparkan tentang pengajaran Bahasa Semai dari pelbagai segi dan juga cerita dan lagu.

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Image was taken by the author during a visit to Mr. Martin Theseira's house at the Portuguese Settlement in Ujong Pasir for her Diploma's Community Engagement Project.

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These are some of the books of Kristang gathered by Mr. Martin Theseira, a Kristang fisherman residing in Ujong Pasir, Melaka. He said that by documented their culture in a form of book, it can be one of the way for the younger generation of Kristang community in Melaka to learn and treasure their heritage and also to avoid their culture and language from extinction.

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Introducing: Unveiling the Academic Maverick!

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Introducing: Unveiling the Academic Maverick!

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Being the shy and curious girl as she is, exploring the world to experience and understand different things has been her dream since child. Reading different kinds of materials is like her natural habit that she enjoys so much. Growing up in different cultural backgrounds from her mother and father's side, she discovered how beautiful it is to live in a diverse country like Malaysia. As she grows older, being able to understand why people behave certain ways has been her goal in life.

Name: NUR DANISHA BINTI MOHD SYUHAIRI

B.O.D: 9th of June, 2003

Hobbies: Reading books, watching vlogs on YouTube, fangirling over a K-Pop boyband

MBTI: INFJ-A (Advocate)

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Just a little interesting trait. She can easily remember people's faces and names, what people said to her, people's expressions, what happened in front of her eyes, and where she met certain people. It is not an easy task for her to forget something! ;)

That is why she likes to observe everything that happened around her because it what makes her remember things vividly.