Timorese in Malaysia

Last updated
Malaysians of Timorese origin
Total population
Hundreds [1]
Regions with significant populations
Johore, Sabah
Languages
Malay, Indonesian, Tetum and Portuguese
Religion
Roman Catholicism, Protestant, Islam
Related ethnic groups
Demographics of East Timor, other ethnic groups in Indonesia

The Timorese Malaysians or Florenese Malaysians consists of people of full or partial Timorese descent who were born in or immigrated to Malaysia. Timorese in Malaysia consist mainly of Timorese formerly resident in Indonesian West Timor as well as recent migrants from East Timor. Most of the Timorese arrived following the occupation of East Timor by Indonesia. Most of these Timorese reside in the state of Sabah especially on the east coast area of Tawau Division with some of them intermarried with the local peoples. [1] [2]

Contents

Relations between the state of Sabah and East Timor

Since the independence of East Timor from Indonesia, the first President of East Timor Xanana Gusmão has paid a visit to the state of Sabah on a working visit and to see the Timorese communities there. [3] [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sabah</span> State of Malaysia in Borneo

Sabah is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalimantan province to the south. The Federal Territory of Labuan is an island just off Sabah's west coast. Sabah shares maritime borders with Vietnam to the west and the Philippines to the north and east. Kota Kinabalu is the state capital and the economic centre of the state, and the seat of the Sabah State government. Other major towns in Sabah include Sandakan and Tawau. The 2020 census recorded a population of 3,418,785 in the state. It has an equatorial climate with tropical rainforests, abundant with animal and plant species. The state has long mountain ranges on the west side which forms part of the Crocker Range National Park. Kinabatangan River, the second longest river in Malaysia runs through Sabah. The highest point of Sabah, Mount Kinabalu is also the highest point of Malaysia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portuguese Timor</span> 1702–1975/1999 Portuguese colony in Southeast Asia

Portuguese Timor was a colonial possession of Portugal that existed between 1702 and 1975. During most of this period, Portugal shared the island of Timor with the Dutch East Indies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of East Timor</span>

East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. The country comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor and the nearby islands of Atauro and Jaco. The first inhabitants are thought to be descendant of Australoid and Melanesian peoples. The Portuguese began to trade with Timor by the early 16th century and colonised it throughout the mid-century. Skirmishing with the Dutch in the region eventually resulted in an 1859 treaty for which Portugal ceded the western half of the island. Imperial Japan occupied East Timor during World War II, but Portugal resumed colonial authority after the Japanese surrender.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bobonaro Municipality</span> Municipality of East Timor

Bobonaro is a municipality in the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste commonly known as East Timor. It is the second-most western municipality on the east half of the island. It has a population of 92,045 and an area of 1,376 km2.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tawau</span> Town and district capital in Sabah, Malaysia

Tawau, formerly known as Tawao, is the capital of the Tawau District in Sabah, Malaysia. It is the third-largest city in Sabah, after Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan. It is located on the Semporna Peninsula in the southeast coast of the state in the administrative centre of Tawau Division, which is bordered by the Sulu Sea to the east, the Celebes Sea to the south at Cowie Bay and shares a border with North Kalimantan, Indonesia. The town had an estimated population as of 2010, of 113,809, while the whole municipality area had a population of 397,673. The municipal area had a population of 372,615 at the 2020 Census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tawau Division</span> Administrative sub-divisions of Malaysia

Tawau Division is one of the five administrative sub-divisions of Sabah, Malaysia. It occupies a total of 14,905 square kilometres or 20% of Sabah's territory. The main towns include the capital of Tawau, Lahad Datu, Kunak and Semporna. Tawau division has 26% of Sabah's total population, with the main indigenous groups consisting of the Bajau, Suluk, Ida'an, Tidong, Cocos, Murut, Lun Bawang/Lun Dayeh as well as a minority of mixed ethnic groups. Large numbers of both legal and illegal immigrants from Indonesia such as the Buginese and Torajans, from East Timor the Timorese, from the Philippines the Tausūg and Visayans as well South and West Asian immigrants such as Pakistanis, Indians and Arabs can be found in this area. As with the rest of Sabah, the division also has large numbers of ethnic Chinese.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kemak people</span> Ethnic group

The Kemak people are an ethnic group numbering 80,000 in north-central Timor island. They primarily live in the district of Bobonaro, East Timor, while the rest live in the East Nusa Tenggara province of Indonesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Timorese Portuguese</span> Portuguese variety spoken in Timor-Leste

East Timorese Portuguese, or Nusantaran Portuguese, is the variety of the Portuguese language spoken in Timor-Leste. It is one of the official languages of Timor-Leste alongside Tetum. As with other Lusophone countries besides Brazil, the Portuguese language curriculum in East Timor is based on European Portuguese, with some localisations in pronunciation. East Timor is the only sovereign state in Asia with Portuguese as an official language. There is a growing demand for Portuguese-language courses in the country, both at early-learning and tertiary levels of education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pre-colonial Timor</span> History and pre-history of the island Timor, prior to 1600s European colonization

Timor is an island in South East Asia. Geologically considered a continental crustal fragment, it lies alongside the Sunda shelf, and is the largest in a cluster of islands between Java and New Guinea. European colonialism has shaped Timorese history since 1515, a period when it was divided between the Dutch in the west of the island and the Portuguese in the east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Religion in Timor-Leste</span>

The majority of the population of Timor-Leste is Christian, and the Catholic Church is the dominant religious institution, although it is not formally the state religion. There are also small Protestant and Sunni Muslim communities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timor-Leste</span> Country in Southeast Asia

Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-western half, and the minor islands of Atauro and Jaco. The western half of the island of Timor is administered by Indonesia. Australia is the country's southern neighbour, separated by the Timor Sea. The country's size is 14,950 square kilometres (5,770 sq mi). Dili, on the north coast of Timor, is its capital and largest city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malaysia–Thailand relations</span> Bilateral relations

Malaysia–Thailand relations refer to bilateral foreign relations between the two neighbouring countries, Malaysia and Thailand. Thailand has an embassy in Kuala Lumpur, and consulate-general offices in George Town and Kota Bharu. Malaysia maintains an embassy in Bangkok and a consulate-general in Songkhla. During Mahathir Mohamad's second term as the Prime Minister of Malaysia from 2018 to 2020, he made four visits to Thailand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indonesia–Timor-Leste relations</span> Bilateral relations

East Timor and Indonesia established diplomatic relations in 2002. Both share the island of Timor. Indonesia invaded the former Portuguese colony in 1975 and annexed East Timor in 1976, maintaining East Timor as its 27th province until a United Nations-sponsored referendum in 1999, in which the people of East Timor chose independence. Following a United Nations interim administration, East Timor gained independence in 2002. Indonesia already had a consulate in Dili during the Portuguese colonial period, though Indonesia formalized their relations by establishing an embassy in Dili. Since October 2002, East Timor has an embassy in Jakarta and consulates in Denpasar and Kupang. Relations between the two countries are generally considered highly positive, despite various problems. Numerous agreements regulate cooperation in different areas. East Timorese are visa-free in Indonesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Cruz massacre</span> 1991 massacre in Indonesian-occupied East Timor

The Santa Cruz massacre was the murder of at least 250 East Timorese pro-independence demonstrators in the Santa Cruz cemetery in the capital, Dili, on 12 November 1991, during the Indonesian occupation of East Timor and is part of the East Timor genocide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malaysia–Timor-Leste relations</span> Bilateral relations

East Timor–Malaysia relations or Malaysia–Timor-Leste relations are foreign relations between Malaysia and East Timor. Malaysia has an embassy in Dili, and East Timor has an embassy in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia is supporting East Timor to be one of the members of ASEAN and towards becoming a democratic country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cross border attacks in Sabah</span> 1962–present Moro attacks in Sabah, Malaysia

The cross border attacks in Sabah are a series of cross border terrorist attacks perpetrated by Moro pirates from Mindanao, Philippines, in the state of Sabah, Malaysia, that began even before the British colonial period. Many civilians have died or suffered during these incidents, causing an increase in anti-Filipino sentiment among the native peoples of Sabah, especially after major attacks in 1985, 2000 and 2013. The attacks were more intense during the presidential terms of Diosdado Macapagal and Ferdinand Marcos, who supported irredentist claims to include eastern Sabah as part of the Philippines territory. In addition, recent infiltration and attacks by militants as well as uncontrolled human migration from Mindanao to Sabah has led to more unease sentiments among the local residents of Sabah, with around 78% of prison inmates that were caught in the state due to involvement in criminal activities and lawlessness issues mainly originating from the southern Philippines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Refugees of the Philippines</span> Mostly Moro conflict refugees to Sabah (Malaysia) and Indonesia

Filipino refugees are persons originating from the country of the Philippines. Following the Moro conflict and subsequent major military operation in the islands of Mindanao during the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos in 1970s, thousands of Filipinos mainly from the Moro ancestry have sought refuge in neighbouring countries of Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei, with majority of them mostly heading to the state of Sabah in Malaysia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Demographics of Sabah</span>

Sabah is the third most populous state in Malaysia, with a population of 3,418,785 according to the 2020 Malaysian census. It also has the highest non-citizen population, at 810,443. Although Malaysia is one of the least densely populated countries in Asia, Sabah is particularly sparsely populated. Most of the population is concentrated along coastal areas, with towns and urban centres seeing the most population growth.

Anarchism in East Timor has its roots in the country's history as a penal colony, when many anarchists were deported there. The movement eventually evolved into an anti-colonial struggle against succeeding occupying powers: first the Portuguese Empire, then the Japanese Empire and the Indonesian New Order, before the country finally achieved independence in 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Government Palace, Dili</span> Official workplace of the prime minister and Constitutional Government of East Timor

The Government Palace in Dili, the capital city of East Timor, is the official workplace of the prime minister and Constitutional Government of East Timor. In the final stages of the Portuguese colonial era, it was known as the Official Palace, and was the office of the colonial governor.

References

  1. 1 2 Geoffrey C. Gunn (18 December 2010). Historical Dictionary of East Timor. Scarecrow Press. pp. 71–. ISBN   978-0-8108-7518-0.
  2. Geoffrey C. Gunn, Timor Loro Sae 500 years (Macau: Livros do Oriente, 1999). ISBN   972-9418-69-1
  3. "Timor-Leste PM arrives in Sabah". Bernama . New Straits Times. 2 April 2014. Retrieved 15 August 2015.
  4. "Sabah university, Timor-Leste ink MoU on oil and gas industrial training cooperation". Bernama. The Brunei Times. 3 April 2014. Retrieved 15 August 2015.

Further reading