Malaysia
Location: Southeastern Asia. Shares borders with
Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore and Brunei.
Capital: Kuala Lumpur
Climate: tropical; annual southwest (April to October)
and northeast (October to February) monsoons
Population: 24,821,286 (July 2007 est.)
Ethnic Make-up: Malay 50.4%, Chinese 23.7%, indigenous 11%, Indian 7.1%, others 7.8%
Religions: Muslim 60.4%, Buddhist 19.2%, Christian 9.1%, Hindu 6.3%, Confucianism, Taoism, other traditional Chinese religions 2.6%, other or unknown 1.5%, none 0.8%
Government: constitutional monarchy
Language in Malaysia
The Malay language is an Austronesian language spoken not only by Malaysians but all Malay people who reside in the Malay Peninsula, southern Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, central eastern Sumatra, the Riau islands, parts of the coast of Borneo, Cocos and Christmas Islands in Australia. It is also very similar to Indonesian, known locally as Bahasa Indonesia.
In Malaysia, the language is officially known as Bahasa Malaysia, which translates as the "Malaysian language". The term, which was introduced by the National Language Act 1967, was predominant until the 1990s, when most academics and government officials reverted to "Bahasa Melayu," which is used in the Malay version of the Federal Constitution.
Malay Culture and Society
A Multi-Cultural Society
Malaysia is a multi-cultural society. The main ethnic groups are the native Malays as well as large populations of Chinese, and Indians. When visiting the country it is clear that the ethnicities retain their religions, customs and way of life. The most important festivals of each group are public holidays.
Although growing up, children are educated in the same schools and will eventually work in the same offices; few marry outside their own ethnicity. Families tend to socialize within their own ethnic group – all part of retaining their individual traditions and lifestyles.
Despite the ethnic differences there are commonalities culturally speaking.
monarchyGroup Orientation
The family is considered the center of the social structure. As a result there is a great emphasis on unity, loyalty and respect for the elderly. The family is the place where the individual can be guaranteed both emotional and financial support. When one member of the family suffers a financial setback, the rest of the family will contribute what they can to help out. Families tend to be extended, although in the larger cities this will naturally differ.
The Concept of Face
Malays, Chinese and Indians all strive to maintain face and avoid shame both in public and private. Face is a personal concept that embraces qualities such as a good name, good character, and being held in esteem by one's peers. Face is considered a commodity that can be given, lost, taken away, or earned. On top of this face also extends to the family, school, company, and even the nation itself.
The desire to maintain face makes Malaysians strive for harmonious relationships.
Face can be lost by openly criticizing, insulting, or putting someone on the spot; doing something that brings shame to the group; challenging someone in authority, especially if this is done in public; showing anger at another person; refusing a request; not keeping a promise; or disagreeing with someone publicly. Conversely, face can be saved by remaining calm and courteous; discussing errors or transgressions in private; speaking about problems without blaming anyone; using non-verbal communication to say "no"; and allowing the other person to get out of the situation with their pride intact.
Etiquette and Customs in Malaysia
Meeting and Greeting
Greetings in a social context will depend upon the ethnicity of the person you are meeting. In general, most Malays are aware of Western ways so the handshake is normal. There may be slight differences though and a few things to bear in mind include:
•Malay women may not shake hands with men. Women can of course shake hands with women. Men may also not shake hands with women and may bow instead while placing their hand on their heart.
•The Chinese handshake is light and may be rather prolonged. Men and women may shake hands, although the woman must extend her hand first. Many older Chinese lower their eyes during the greeting as a sign of respect.
•Indians shake hands with members of the same sex. When being introduced to someone of the opposite sex, nodding the head and smiling is usually sufficient.
Among all cultures, there is a general tendency to introduce:
o The most important person to the lower ranking person.
o The older person to the younger person.
o Women to men.
Names
The way names are used also varies between ethnicities:
Chinese
•The Chinese traditionally have 3 names. The surname (family name) is first and is followed by two personal names.
•Many Chinese adopt more Western names and may ask you to use that instead.
Malays
•Many Malays do not have surnames. Instead, men add their father's name to their own name with the term "bin" (meaning …son of‟). So Rosli bin Suleiman, would be Rosli the son of Suleiman.
•Women use the term "binti", so Aysha bint Suleiman is Aysha the daughter of Suleiman.
Indian
•Many Indians do not use surnames. Instead, they place the initial of their father's name in front of their
own name. The man's formal name is their name "s/o" (son of) and the father's name.
•Women use "d/o" to refer to themselves as the daughter of their father.
Gift Giving Etiquette
Here is some general gift giving etiquette guidelines:
Gift giving to Malays:
• If invited to someone's home for dinner, bring the hostess pastries or good quality chocolates.
• Never give alcohol.
• Do not give toy dogs or pigs to children.
• Do not give anything made of pigskin.
• Avoid white wrapping paper as it symbolizes death and mourning.
• Avoid yellow wrapping paper, as it is the color of royalty.
• If you give foo d, it must be “halal” (meaning permissible for Muslims).
• Offer gifts with the right hand only or both hands if the item is large.
• Gifts are generally not opened when received.
Gift giving to Chinese:
• If invited to someone's home, bring a small gift of fruit, sweets, or cakes, saying that it is for the children.
• A gift is traditionally refused before it is accepted to demonstrate that the recipient is not greedy.
• Do not give scissors, knives or other cutting utensils as they indicate a desire to sever the relationship.
• Flowers do not make good gifts as they are given to the sick and are used at funerals.
• Do not wrap gifts in mourning colors - white, blue, or black.
• Wrap the gifts in happy colors - red, pink, or yellow.
• Elaborate gift - wrapping is imperative.
• Never wrap a gift for a baby or decorate the gift in any way with a stork, as birds are the harbinger of death.
• It is best to give gifts in even numbers since odd numbers are unlucky.
• Gifts are generally not opened when received.
Gift giving to Indians:
• If you give flowers, avoid frangipani as they are used in funeral wreaths.
• Money should be given in odd numbers.
• Offer gifts with the right hand only or both hands if the item is large.
• Do not wrap gifts in white or black.
• Wrap gifts in red, yellow or green paper or other bright colors bring good fortune. • Do not give leather products to a Hindu.
• Do not give alcohol unless you are certain the recipient drinks.
• Gifts are generally not opened when received.
Business Etiquette and Protocol in Malaysia
Meeting and Greeting
Within the business context most Malaysian businesspeople are culturally-savvy and internationally exposes. Your experience may very well depend upon the ethnicity, age, sex and status of the person you are meeting. The best approach is always friendly yet formal. A few tips include:
• Initial greetings should be formal and denote proper respect.
• If in a team, introduce the most important person first.
• Many Malays and Indians are uncomfortable shaking hands with a member of the opposite sex.
• Foreign men should always wait for a Malaysian woman to extend her hand. Foreign women should also wait for a Malaysian man to extend his hand.
• To demonstrate respect Chinese may look downwards rather than at the person they are meeting.
• It is important that professional titles (professor, doctor, and engineer) and honorific titles are used in business. Malays and Indians use titles with their first name while Chinese use titles with their surname.
Business Card Etiquette
• Business cards are exchanged after the initial introductions.
• If you will be meeting Chinese, have one side of your card translated into Chinese, with the Chinese
characters printed in
gold.
• If you will be
meeting
government officials,
have one side of
your card translated
into Bahasa
Malaysia.
• Use two hands or
the right hand only
to exchange
business cards.
• Examine any
business card you
receive before
putting it in your
business card case.
• The respect you
show someone's
business card is
indicative of the
respect you will show the individual in business. Act accordingly.
• Never write on someone's card in their presence.
Communication
As an extension to the need to maintain harmonious relations, Malaysians rely on non-verbal communication (i.e. facial expressions, tone of voice, body language, etc.). Such a communication style tends to be subtle, indirect and. Malays may hint at a point rather than making a direct statement, since that might cause the other person to lose face. Rather than say "no", they might say, "I will try", or "I‟ll see what I can do". This allows the person making the request and the person turning it down to save face and maintains harmony in their relationship.

版权声明：本站内容均来自互联网，仅供演示用，请勿用于商业和其他非法用途。如果侵犯了您的权益请与我们联系QQ:729038198，我们将在24小时内删除。