Malaya
/məˈlaɪ.ə/noun
A historical name for the Malay Peninsula and, formerly, a British colonial territory there.
Did you know?The name is ultimately tied to the Malay peoples and appears in early Indian, Chinese, and Arabic sources long before modern colonial borders fixed it on the map.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient/early historical
Sanskrit/Indian
Malayu
“An early name used in Indian sources for a region or people in Southeast Asia”
7th–13th Century
Chinese
Mo-lo-yu / Malayu
“Transcribed references to a polity or region in the Malay world”
Medieval
Arabic
Malayu / Malaiu
“Names recorded by geographers and traders for the peoples and lands of the Malay Archipelago”
16th–19th Century
Portuguese/English
Malaya
“A European geographical term for the Malay Peninsula”
Modern English
English
Malaya
“Historical regional name, later used in colonial and postcolonial contexts”