HISTORY OF THE MALAY TRIBE
By: Hamly Hadi
(History Observer)
Since many people still don’t understand what the Malay tribe is, I’ll explain it so you understand. Yesterday, I posted about the history of the early arrival of the Malay tribe in Indonesia. Many protested, saying that Malays were native to Sumatra.
Okay, let me explain. The Malays were born in the Malacca kingdom after Prameswara and his followers converted to Islam in 1406 AD. The Malays emerged from the Banjar tribe, descendants of Srivijaya, mixed with various ethnic groups in Malacca, giving rise to a new identity with Islamic nuances and a culture that adopted Middle Eastern, Indian, and Chinese cultures. While still in Sumatra, they weren’t Muslim, didn’t have Malay culture, didn’t speak Malay, and so weren’t called Malay. It’s like raw rubber just tapped from a rubber plantation, not yet made into tires. Only after being exported to Malacca did they become tires or Malays.
In 1511 AD the kingdom of Malacca was captured by the Portuguese, so the Malays fled to various regions. This was the first time the Malays entered the islands of Sumatra and West Kalimantan. spread Islam, Malay culture and the Malay language. So in Indonesia there are also many Malay people.***
Banjarmasin, January 5 2026
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