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Genetik/Peoples/Malays

Malays

Малайцы

language area per Glottologcensus counts
16,912,998
Malaysia, census 2020 (national and/or ethnic group, UN)
17,799,642
sum of censuses in 4 countries, 2012-2021
Austronesian
language family (Glottolog)

In brief

The largest documented number lives in Malaysia: 16,912,998 people in the 2020 census.

Official figures exist for 4 countries; together they add up to 17,799,642. This is not an estimate of the world total: the censuses were held in different years (2012-2021) and define belonging differently, and countries without such data are not counted.

Main language: Standard Malay. Glottolog classifies it in the Austronesian family.

Where they live: census figures

Each figure comes from the country's official census. Censuses define belonging differently (self-identification, citizenship, mother tongue, ancestry); the type is given on each row.

Malaysia2020 · national and/or ethnic group, UN · «Malay» · [1]
16,912,998
Singapore2020 · national and/or ethnic group, UN · «Malay» · resident population (Singapore citizens and permanent residents) · [2]
545,498
Brunei Darussalam2021 · national and/or ethnic group, UN · «Malay» · [3]
297,016
Sri Lanka2012 · national and/or ethnic group, UN · «Malay» · [4]
44,130
Sum across 4 countries17,799,642

Languages and their lineage

Standard Malay

  1. Austronesianaust1307
  2. Malayo-Polynesianmala1545
  3. Malayo-Chamicmala1554
  4. Malayicmala1538
  5. Nuclear Malayicnucl1806
  6. Standard Malay-Indonesianstan1327
  7. Standard Malaystan1306

Minangkabau

  1. Austronesianaust1307
  2. Malayo-Polynesianmala1545
  3. Malayo-Chamicmala1554
  4. Malayicmala1538
  5. Nuclear Malayicnucl1806
  6. Northern Sumatra Malaynort3388
  7. Kerinci-Minangkabaukeri1253
  8. Minangkabauicmina1280
  9. Minangkabaumina1268

People-to-language links: Wikidata (properties P103 and P2936), checked against ISO 639-3 codes. Language classification: Glottolog 5.3.

Peoples of the same language family

JavaneseSundaneseTagalog (Filipinos)BanjarBetawi peopleMinangkabauChamsChamorro peopleSamoansCarolinian people

Sources

  1. United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD). Demographic Yearbook, table 26: Population by national and/or ethnic group. Malaysia, Census - de jure - complete tabulation, Final figure, complete. https://data.un.org/Data.aspx?d=POP&f=tableCode%3a26%3bsexCode%3a0%3bareaCode%3a0%3bcountr…
  2. United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD). Demographic Yearbook, table 26: Population by national and/or ethnic group. Singapore, Census - de jure - complete tabulation, Final figure, complete. https://data.un.org/Data.aspx?d=POP&f=tableCode%3a26%3bsexCode%3a0%3bareaCode%3a0%3bcountr…
  3. United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD). Demographic Yearbook, table 26: Population by national and/or ethnic group. Brunei Darussalam, Census - de jure - complete tabulation, Final figure, complete. https://data.un.org/Data.aspx?d=POP&f=tableCode%3a26%3bsexCode%3a0%3bareaCode%3a0%3bcountr…
  4. United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD). Demographic Yearbook, table 26: Population by national and/or ethnic group. Sri Lanka, Census - de jure - complete tabulation, Final figure, complete. https://data.un.org/Data.aspx?d=POP&f=tableCode%3a26%3bsexCode%3a0%3bareaCode%3a0%3bcountr…
  5. Hammarström H., Forkel R., Haspelmath M., Bank S. (2026). Glottolog 5.3. Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. glottolog.org (CC BY 4.0)