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The Federation of Malaya , is the name given to a federation of 11 states that existed from 31 January 1948 until 16 September 1963. Comprising the nine Malay states
Malay states

Within Malaysia, the Malay states are the nine states of Peninsular Malaysia that have hereditary Malay Ruler. In practice, these Rulers are figureheads and follow the principles of constitutional monarchy....
 and the British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 settlements
Straits Settlements

The Straits Settlements were a collection of territories of the British East India Company in Southeast Asia, which were given collective administration in 1826 as a crown colony, as distinct from the native princely states, some of which later formed the Federated Malay States....
 of Penang
Penang

Penang is a States of Malaysia in Malaysia, located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia by the Strait of Malacca. Penang is the second smallest state in Malaysia after Perlis, and the eighth most populous....
 and Malacca
Malacca

Malacca is the third smallest States of Malaysia, after Perlis and Penang. It is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, on the Strait of Malacca....
, it was eventually superseded by Malaysia
Malaysia

Malaysia is a federation that consists of States of Malaysia in Southeast Asia with a total landmass of . The capital city is Kuala Lumpur, while Putrajaya is the seat of the federal government....
.

History
From 1946 to 1948, the 11 states formed a single British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 crown colony
Crown colony

A Crown colony was a type of colonial administration of the British Empire.Crown colonies were ruled by a governor appointed by The Crown . Though the term was not used at the time, the first of what would later become known as Crown colonies was the Colony of Virginia in the present-day United States, after the Crown took control from the...
 known as the Malayan Union
Malayan Union

The Malayan Union was a federation of the Malay states and the Straits Settlements excluding Singapore. It was the successor to British Malaya and was conceived to unify the Malay Peninsula under a single government so as to simplify administration....
. Due to opposition from Malay
Malay people

Malays are an ethnic group of Austronesian peoples predominantly inhabiting the Malay Peninsula, the east coast of Sumatra, the coast of Borneo, and the smaller islands between these locations....
 nationalists
Nationalism

Nationalism refers to an ideology, a feeling, a form of culture, or a social movement that focuses on the nation. While there is significant debate over the historical origins of nations, nearly all Expert accept that nationalism, at least as an ideology and social movement, is a Modernity phenomenon originating in Europe....
, the Union was disbanded and replaced by the Federation of Malaya, which restored the symbolic positions of the rulers of the Malay states.

Within the Federation, while the Malay states were protectorate
Protectorate

A protectorate, in international law, is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity, in exchange for which the protectorate usually accepts specified obligations, which may vary greatly, depending on the real nature of their relationship....
s of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
, Penang and Malacca remained British colonial territories.






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The Federation of Malaya , is the name given to a federation of 11 states that existed from 31 January 1948 until 16 September 1963. Comprising the nine Malay states
Malay states

Within Malaysia, the Malay states are the nine states of Peninsular Malaysia that have hereditary Malay Ruler. In practice, these Rulers are figureheads and follow the principles of constitutional monarchy....
 and the British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 settlements
Straits Settlements

The Straits Settlements were a collection of territories of the British East India Company in Southeast Asia, which were given collective administration in 1826 as a crown colony, as distinct from the native princely states, some of which later formed the Federated Malay States....
 of Penang
Penang

Penang is a States of Malaysia in Malaysia, located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia by the Strait of Malacca. Penang is the second smallest state in Malaysia after Perlis, and the eighth most populous....
 and Malacca
Malacca

Malacca is the third smallest States of Malaysia, after Perlis and Penang. It is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, on the Strait of Malacca....
, it was eventually superseded by Malaysia
Malaysia

Malaysia is a federation that consists of States of Malaysia in Southeast Asia with a total landmass of . The capital city is Kuala Lumpur, while Putrajaya is the seat of the federal government....
.

History


From 1946 to 1948, the 11 states formed a single British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 crown colony
Crown colony

A Crown colony was a type of colonial administration of the British Empire.Crown colonies were ruled by a governor appointed by The Crown . Though the term was not used at the time, the first of what would later become known as Crown colonies was the Colony of Virginia in the present-day United States, after the Crown took control from the...
 known as the Malayan Union
Malayan Union

The Malayan Union was a federation of the Malay states and the Straits Settlements excluding Singapore. It was the successor to British Malaya and was conceived to unify the Malay Peninsula under a single government so as to simplify administration....
. Due to opposition from Malay
Malay people

Malays are an ethnic group of Austronesian peoples predominantly inhabiting the Malay Peninsula, the east coast of Sumatra, the coast of Borneo, and the smaller islands between these locations....
 nationalists
Nationalism

Nationalism refers to an ideology, a feeling, a form of culture, or a social movement that focuses on the nation. While there is significant debate over the historical origins of nations, nearly all Expert accept that nationalism, at least as an ideology and social movement, is a Modernity phenomenon originating in Europe....
, the Union was disbanded and replaced by the Federation of Malaya, which restored the symbolic positions of the rulers of the Malay states.

Within the Federation, while the Malay states were protectorate
Protectorate

A protectorate, in international law, is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity, in exchange for which the protectorate usually accepts specified obligations, which may vary greatly, depending on the real nature of their relationship....
s of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
, Penang and Malacca remained British colonial territories. Like the Malayan Union before it, the Federation did not include Singapore
Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country microstate located at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula. It lies 137 kilometres north of the equator, south of the Malaysian state of Johor and north of Indonesia's Riau Islands....
, which before this time had usually been considered to be part of Malaya
British Malaya

British Malaya loosely described a set of states on the Malay Peninsula that were colonized by the United Kingdom from the 18th and the 19th until the 20th century....
.

The Federation achieved independence within the Commonwealth of Nations
Commonwealth of Nations

The Commonwealth of Nations, also known as the Commonwealth or the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organization of fifty-three independent member states....
 on 31 August 1957. In 1963, the federation together with Singapore, Sarawak
Sarawak

Sarawak is one of two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo. Known as Bumi Kenyalang , it is situated on the north-west of the island. It is the largest state in Malaysia; the second largest, Sabah, lies to the northeast....
 and British North Borneo (which was renamed Sabah
Sabah

Sabah is a Malaysian States of Malaysia located on the northern portion of the island of Borneo . It is the second largest state in Malaysia after Sarawak, which it borders on its south-west....
) formed a new federation called Malaysia. Singapore separated from Malaysia to become an independent republic on 9 August 1965.

Demographics


Federation of Malaya Population
Year Malay Chinese Indian Other
1948 2,457,014 1,928,965 536,646 64,802
1951 2,631,154 2,043,971 566,371 75,726
Source: Annual Report on the Federation of Malaya: 1951 in C.C. Chin and Karl Hack, Dialogues with Chin Peng pp. 380, 81.


List of member states


  • Perlis
    Perlis

    This article is about the Malaysian state. For the computer scientist, see Alan Perlis.Perlis , is the smallest state in Malaysia. It lies at the northern part of the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and has Satun Province and Songkhla Province Provinces of Thailand on its northern border....
  • Kedah
    Kedah

    Kedah is a state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of Peninsular Malaysia. The state covers a total area of 9,425 km?, and consists mostly of flat areas growing rice, plus the island of Langkawi....
  • Penang
    Penang

    Penang is a States of Malaysia in Malaysia, located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia by the Strait of Malacca. Penang is the second smallest state in Malaysia after Perlis, and the eighth most populous....
  • Perak
    Perak

    Perak is one of the 13 states of Malaysia. It is the second largest state in Peninsular Malaysia bordering Kedah and Yala Province of Thailand to the north, Penang to the northwest, Kelantan and Pahang to the east, Selangor southward and to the west by the Strait of Malacca....
  • Selangor
    Selangor

    Selangor is one of the 13 states of Malaysia. It is on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and is bordered by Perak to the north, Pahang to the east, Negeri Sembilan to the south and the Strait of Malacca to the west....
  • Negeri Sembilan
    Negeri Sembilan

    Negeri Sembilan , meaning "state of nine" in Malay language, is one of the 13 states that consitute the Federation of Malaysia. It is located on the western coast of Peninsular Malaysia, just south of Kuala Lumpur and is bordered in the north by Selangor, in the east by Pahang and in the south by Malacca and Johor....
  • Malacca
    Malacca

    Malacca is the third smallest States of Malaysia, after Perlis and Penang. It is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, on the Strait of Malacca....
  • Johore
  • Pahang
    Pahang

    Pahang is the third largest state in Malaysia, after Sarawak and Sabah, occupying the huge Pahang River river basin. It is bordered to the north by Kelantan, to the west by Perak, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, to the south by Johor and to the east by Terengganu and the South China Sea....
  • Terengganu
    Terengganu

    Terengganu is a sultanate and constitutive state of federal Malaysia. The state is also known by its Arabic honorific, Darul Iman . The coastal city of Kuala Terengganu which stands at the mouth of the broad Terengganu River is both the state and royal capital as well as the largest city in Terengganu....
  • Kelantan
    Kelantan

    Kelantan is a state of Malaysia. The capital and royal seat is Kota Bharu. The Arabic honorific of the state is Darul Naim, .Kelantan is positioned in the north-east of Peninsular Malaysia....

See also

  • Federal Legislative Council
    Federal Legislative Council

    The Federal Legislative Council was the legislative body of Federation of Malaya and the predecessor of the Parliament of Malaysia. It was formed in 1948 right after the abolition of the Malayan Union and the formation of the Federation, as part of United Kingdom's promise to grant self-rule to the Malayans....
  • Peninsular Malaysia
    Peninsular Malaysia

    Peninsular Malaysia , also known as Malaya or West Malaysia, is the part of Malaysia which lies on the Malay Peninsula, and shares a land border with Thailand in the north....
  • Malayan Emergency
    Malayan Emergency

    The Malayan Emergency refers to a guerrilla warfare for independence fought between Commonwealth armed forces and the Malayan Races Liberation Army, the military arm of the Malayan Communist Party, from 1948 to 1960; some have gone as far as to characterise it as a civil war....