Javanese Malaysians

The Javanese Malaysians are people of full or partial Javanese descent who were born in or immigrated to Malaysia. They form a significant part of Malaysia's population and Malaysian law considers most of them to be Malays. Malaysia is home to the largest Javanese population outside Indonesia. The Javanese are not the only Indonesian ethnic group that has assimilated into Malaysian society; there are also the Minangkabau people, Bugis people, Banjar people, Bawean people, and others.

The majority of Javanese Malaysians originate from Central Java; the first wave came during the Shailendra era from the sixth to ninth century, then during the Singhasari, Srivijaya, and Majapahit era from the twelfth to fourteenth century. Political marriages between kingdoms, such as the union between Sultan Mansur Shah of Malacca and Princess Raden Galuh Chandra Kirana of Majapahit, serve as evidence of long-standing inter-ethnic interactions. This story is recorded in the 16th-century classical Malay manuscript, Sulalatus Salatin.

There were also migrants from the Dutch East Indies looking for new opportunities in British Malaya. Although many of them arrived during the colonial era, there are also those who arrived during World War II to both Japanese-occupied British Malaya and Borneo as forced labour. In the present day, they live predominantly in the West Malaysian states of Johor, Perak and Selangor, with significant minorities found in East Malaysia, especially in the states of Sabah and Sarawak.

Most Malaysians of Javanese descent have assimilated into the local Malay culture and speak Malaysian as a native tongue and first language rather than the Javanese language of their ancestors. This occurred through usual assimilation, as well as intermarriages with other ethnic groups. This qualifies them as Malays under Malaysian law. The situation is identical with the Javanese in Singapore, where they are considered Malay. The presence of Javanese people in Malaysia has become part of history and contributed to the country's development. Many political figures hold important positions in the Malaysian government, including Dato' Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia (Deputy Prime Minister) since July 29, 2015, and Muhyiddin Yassin, the President of the Malaysian United Indigenous Party and former holder of several ministerial positions in Malaysia. Several Malaysian artists also have Javanese ancestry, such as Mohammad Azwan bin Mohammad Nor, widely known as Wak Doyok, an entrepreneur and fashion icon, and Herman Tino, a pioneer of dangdut music in Malaysia.