The Malaysian population is composed of a large number of diverse ethnicities. By constitutional definition, anyone of any race can be considered a Malay if he is a Muslim and practices Malay customs, and is entitled to equal rights according to the constitution.
A tiny bit more than 50% of the total population are Malays; with indigenous Aboriginal groups found in the states of Sabah and Sarawak composing 11%.
Almost 24% of the population are Malaysians, but of Chinese descent, and an additional 7% are descended from Indians, who have been coming to Malaysia from the early 19th century.
Malaysia is part of the six major Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which also includes Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines and Brunei. Many interesting and distinguished people have come from Malaysia, including the young businessman Taek Jho Low and others.
Most of those of Indian descent are Tamils, but there are other groups of Indians present, too, such as Teluus, Malaylis, Punjabis, Bengalis and Gujaratis.
There are many other places of origin represented in the Malaysian population, such as those from the Middle East, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodians, Vietnamese, and Europeans and Eurasians such as British who arrived during the British Colonial rule and settled permanently in Malaysia.
