Malaysian names

Personal names in Malaysia are extremely useful in tracing a person's cultural and ethnic background as Malaysia comprises many ethnicities and cultures in which each has its own distinct system of names. Personal names are, to a certain degree, regulated by the national registration department, especially since the introduction of the National Registration Identity Card (NRIC).

The Malaysian Chinese are the only major ethnic group in Malaysia to use family names. Most other groups, including the ethnic Malays, Orang Asli and the Bumiputera of Sabah and Sarawak, share a naming custom that includes the use of a personal name followed by a patronym name.

Traditional Malay names were taken from one of a number of languages, or even a combination of two or more elements from these languages:

Arabic names were introduced later along with Islam but didn't become dominant among commoners until the colonial era. Although traditional Malay names were still widely used for centuries afterward, they are now primarily confined to rural areas. Malaysia's National Registration Department doesn't allow names which they deem have negative or obscene meanings, such as Pendek which means short. The Department additionally bans names with the meaning of colors, animals and natural phenomena. This effectively renders many traditional names illegal including Puteh or Putih (white), Wulan or Bulan (moon), Suria (sun), Rimau (tiger) and Awan (cloud). Partly because of these restrictions and mostly as a result of the increased religious awareness during the last century, the vast majority of Malays today tend to favour Arabic names. However, names from the following languages are common as well:

Names of Arab-Hebrew origins are also common, for example Adam, Yaacob, Ishak, Bunyamin and Daniel and Sarah. Additionally, names of Arab-Hebrew origins that are seldom used by the Muslim Arabs are widespread among Malays, such as the female names of Meriam or Miriam (the Arabs commonly spell it as Maryam), Saloma and Rohana.

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