The word ‘Malaysian’, and the beauty of travel
28 June 2017(Reprinted from The Edge – Options pullout, 26 June 2017 issue)
Dear Kam,
When was the name “Malaysia” invented?
Local insight
Below is a poem written by an unknown British man in Kuala Lumpur in 1895. It’s not a great poem, and it might not even be a good poem but it is about all the different types of people who could be found in the streets of early KL. I found it in an old newspaper called The Selangor Journal and I have put it here because of the way the anonymous author signed his poem. It is the earliest mention I have found of the word “Malaysian”.
Until I found this poem, I had always thought that the name of Malaysia was a post-Independence creation, so I was surprised to find it being mentioned as early as 1895. I do not know how the poet came upon the name — if he created it himself or if it was already in common usage. I do not understand all the things he mentions but I thought you might find it interesting. Please take a look. You might even find your forebears mentioned:
Confusion “Worst Confounded”
(Or the Lay of a Modern Babel)
Globetrotters, health seekers,
And world’s record-breakers,
And MPs on the hunt for new “topics”,
Friends old and friends new,
Come and see what’s on view,
In the streets of this parts of the tropics.
We’ve Chinese of all races,
With passionless faces,
Narrow eyes and pigtails perpendicular,
“Straits-born” from Malacca,
Hailam, Hokkien and Hakka,
Unlicked “Sinkhehs”, and Towkays
particular.
We have clerks from Colombo,
And rebels from Lombok,
Menengkabows and men of Pahang,
Jelolo and Jelei,
The Dinidings and Deli,
Pontianak, Pekin and Penang.
We’ve Baboo and Bengali,
Men of Bangka and Bali,
And coolies both Tamil and Telegu,
Shikarries from Kuantan,
Sungei Ujong, Kelantan,
And miners from Kinta and Jelebu.
We have cooks (at long prices),
And Boyanese syces,
Java “Boys” — (for dilution of sodas),
Hajis, Rajas and Brahmans,
Toh Gajahs, Si Bahmans,
Chetties, Dhobies, Syrangs, and
Nakhodas.
We have vendors and kickshaws,
And pullers of ‘rickshaws,
And goat-chaises, meant for the
wealthy?
“Tukangs”, peons and “mata-matas”,
Amok-ers and “Latahs”,
And houses “surprisingly” healthy!
We’ve contractors, odd jobbers,
And clever “safe” robbers,
(As in lands which are not merely Asian);
In short we’ve all breeds,
From the Sakai “in beads”,
To the coalscuttle-hatted Caucasian,
Take them all in the lump, or-
Avoid Kuala Lumpur,
With its roar of importunate voices;
Distrust them all steadily,
And pay for them — readily,
And choose whatsoever your choice is!
Malaysian
As I said, I don’t understand all the references in the poem. Although I don’t know what is a “clever ‘safe’ robber” or why a house should be “surprisingly” healthy, I do know that quite a lot of rich Europeans used to pass through KL as tourists. They were “globetrotters” taking advantage of the new steamships that could take them almost anywhere in the world far faster and cheaper than the sail ships that were rapidly disappearing from the oceans in the 1890s. Just 10 years earlier, it would have been incredibly hard to travel around Asia but the steamships made it possible for “clerks from Colombo and rebels from Lombok” to find opportunity in the booming and safe economy of KL. I wish I could have seen that world and the streets of early KL. There were so many different types of people that it must have been confusing.
Kam,
I read the stories on the internet about Malaysia and I get so worked up about it. What can I do?
Bag of nerves
I am not in Malaysia right now because Options has sent me on a mission to Britain. I will write about my discoveries at a later date but a lot is happening to Britain at the moment and much of it is not good. Since I have been away, I have glanced at my Facebook a few times and have seen that a lot is happening in Malaysia as well but my schedule has been so hectic and so completely absorbing that I have not had the time to think about all the craziness. I have not had the time to care, and that has been terrific.
It has been a delight to be able to think about something else or to think about nothing at all. That is the beauty of travel — to have a break from caring about calamities over which I have absolutely no control. Perhaps I could not live forever away from the concerns for my nation but it is good to get away from it and the internet for a short while. I highly recommend it. So for the next few weeks, I will enjoy the charms of England in the summertime.
Reprinted with the kind permission of
