Sub-ethnic groups
There are, in general, three sub-ethnic groups of Chinese
Malaysian with three metropolitan centers. The Penang group is
predominantly Hokkien and the Kuala Lumpur group is predominantly
Cantonese and Hakka-speaking. To the south of Peninsular Malaysia in
Johor, Mandarin is predominantly spoken among the Chinese communities
there, as a result of the Mandarin media influence from Singapore.
Whereas in East Malaysia (Malaysian Borneo), Hakka and Mandarin is
widely spoken. Modern movements to unify and organize Malaysian,
Singaporean and Indonesian Chinese communities introduced standard
Mandarin as the language of diaspora ethnic nationalism.
Education
Traditionally, Chinese Malaysian placed great importance and
value on education because of their view of education being a means to
improve their standard of living and due in part to the traditional
Confucian esteem of education and the educated. Today, Chinese Malaysian
are one of the most academically competitive groups in the country and
in the region (including Australia, a popular destination for many
Chinese Malaysian students pursuing their tertiary education).
A large segment of the Chinese Malaysian population are
predominantly Chinese-speaking. They are commonly known as the
"Chinese-educated". Malaysia is also the only country outside China (the
mainland, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan), to have a completely
Chinese-medium education system. There are roughly 1,300 Chinese public
primary schools (national-type schools) in Malaysia that are all
partialy government funded (the salary of the teachers are paid by the
government while the upkeep of the schoolbuilding are paid by the
communities through donation). The Chinese national-type school received
less than 3% of total funding for all primary schools. Mandarin is the
language of instruction in all subjects except Bahasa Melayu and
English. However, all Chinese national-type secondary schools use Bahasa
Melayu as the language of instruction since the 1970s. However there
are 61 Chinese private secondary schools that are supported financially
by the public and tuition fees. Mandarin is the main language of
instruction in these private schools, but some schools use either Malay
or English in selected subjects. In 2004, according to statistical data,
90% of all Chinese Malaysian attend Chinese primary schools(The figure
was around 70% in 1970). Among the 600,000 Chinese primary school
students, roughly 10% are of non-Chinese descent. On the other hand, 90%
of Chinese primary school graduates continue their secondary studies in
public secondary schools(both national and national-type), while the
remaining 10% go to Chinese private secondary schools. There are also
three private-owned post-secondary institutes in Malaysia where the
language of instruction is Mandarin.
Similar to Chinese Singaporeans (although many Chinese in


Singapore converse in Mandarin and a smattering of dialects), a group of
Malaysian counterpart speaks English as their first language (something
carried over from the British colonial days). They speak English at
home, and make it a point to immerse and educate their children in the
English language. Like their counterparts in Singapore, they are known
as the "English-educated" although the term is something of an
anachronism. Unlike in Singapore, English has not been used as a
language of instruction (other than in certain private institutions and
urban schools that still employ its use informally) since it was
gradually phased out the 1970s and 1980s in favour of Malay during an
Education plan. Although there are English medium schools in Malaysia,
with a British or US-based curriculum, these cater for expatriate
children, as government policy is to discourage Malaysians from
attending.
However, as of 2002, the Malaysian government has reintroduced
English as the language of instruction for Science and Mathematics in
national secondary schools and universities.
An aside: while "proper" English is generally spoken and
understood among the Chinese Malaysia, the main form used is a patois
called Manglish (Malaysian English). Manglish is very similar to Singlish
(Singaporean English). Manglish speakers typically understand 80-90% of
Singlish and vice versa. Unless specifically Manglish or Singlish terms
are used in a conversation, it can be difficult even for native
speakers to differentiate the two as the intonation and most terms
(especially the infamous lah) are common. Singaporean television sitcoms such as Phua Chu Kang and Under One Roof
that make use of Singlish are popular in Malaysia. (Note: The Singapore
government has tried to reduce the use of Singlish in these serials,
with visible success.)
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Regional community
The Chinese Malaysian community is intricately linked to the Chinese Singaporean
community because of a shared history and culture; Singapore was a part
of the Federation of Malaysia before it became independent in 1965.
Many Chinese Singaporeans have relatives in Malaysia and vice-versa.
There are also a significant number of Chinese Malaysians residing and
working in Singapore. Some families in nearby Johor send their children
(around 5000 of them) to school in Singapore, commuting back and forth
between the two countries every day.
On that same note, the Chinese Malaysians are culturally much more distant from the Indonesian Chinese, Filipino Chinese and Thai Chinese. This is attributable to the fact that these countries did not have a shared history with Malaysia like Singapore did.
The entire Southeast Asian
Chinese diaspora is characterized by their considerable economic
fortunes and their susceptibility to discrimination or political
exploitation by politicians. This diaspora is commonly referred to as
the Nanyang Chinese, 'Nanyang' (南洋) being the Mandarin term for Southeast Asia.
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Religion
A majority of the Chinese Malaysia claim to be Buddhist or Taoist
though the lines between them are often blurred and, typically, a
syncretic Chinese religion incorporating elements of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and traditional ancestor-worship
is practised, with the fact that each individual follows it in varying
degrees. About 19% are Christian (Mainstream Protestants, Catholics and
other Protestant denominations) and an extremely small number profess
Islam as their faith. There is quite a significant number of Christians
among the Chinese population in East Malaysia.