Being Malay: ethnic and religious identity formation and adjustment among Malay students in Western Australia

[Truncated abstract] Malay-Muslims have distinctive ideas of who they are: as an ethnic group and as Muslims. In the opening of the twenty-first century, it was predicted that with modernization there would be an increasing separation of state and religion, and that religious issues would probably become somewhat less important (Means 1978; Rosenthal 1965). Yet, Peletz (2002) notes that Malays are increasingly referring to themselves as Muslim people (religious identity) rather than Malay people (ethnic identity). Indeed, Shamsul A.B. (1997b) has redefined Malay ethnicity through emphasizing Islam as a pillar of Malayness, with the idea of Malay ethnicity as centre stage in politics and society. Although Malay-Muslims in Malaysia were once more conscious of ethnic than religious identity, the beginning of Islamic revivalism in the 1970s involved the idea of religious identity becoming more important instead of Malay identity. Yet, over the last decade, Malay ethnic identity has been again gaining its importance as a more politicised identity compared to religious identity in Malaysia. Malay-Muslims have since then been continuously confronted by the changes that have been underway within Islam especially within the 'Malay’ community in Malaysia. However, at the international level, Malay-Muslims who have studied abroad have alternate conceptions of Malay-Muslim identity compared to the local version as well as links to outsiders. This thesis focuses on the key emblematic features of ethnic and religious identity and the idea of 'Malayness' outside Malaysia at a time when Islamic identity has become increasingly important in the global arena. It is revealed in this study how religion has become a powerful basis of personal and collective identification for Malay-Muslim postgraduate students in Western Australia.