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The Arab Malaysians (Malay: Orang Arab MalaysiaCategory:Articles containing Malay (macrolanguage)-language text; Arabic: ماليزيون عربCategory:Articles containing Arabic-language text; Jawi: اورڠ عرب مليسياCategory:Articles containing Malay (macrolanguage)-language text) consists of people of full or partial Arab descent (specifically Hadhrami, other Southern Arabian and Gulf Arab descent) who were born in or immigrated to Malaysia.

Arab traders had been visiting Southeast Asia since pre-Islamic times, as Southeast Asia was well connected via the sea route to the markets of Arabia, Persia and China. These Arab traders came from all over the Arabian Peninsula, today comprising the nations of Saudi Arabia, Oman, Yemen, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, UAE and other GCC nations. The earliest Arab traders who arrived in South East Asia were followers of Arabian traditional religion and other religions that had existed in Arabia before the advent of Islam, and a minority of Christians. Following the rise of Islam and the first caliphates, Islam was introduced by Arab traders in Malaysia in the 7th and 8th centuries. Arab interest in Southeast Asia soared during the Islamic era, during which more Arab traders arrived to spread Islam. Many Arab migrants were incorporated into the royalty and assimilated into the local Malay culture rather than retaining their Arab identity.Category:All articles with unsourced statementsCategory:Articles with unsourced statements from May 2022^{[citation needed]}

The federal territory of Kuala Lumpur and the states of Penang, Perlis, and Johor contain a high population of people with mixed Malay and Arab ancestry. Like the Arab diaspora residing in nearby countries such as Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei and the Philippines, The Arabs of Malaysia have been largely assimilated into the greater Malay culture and more-often do not consider themselves "Arab". This was a historical trend of Arab traders in Southeast Asia who quickly assimilated into the native culture.Category:All articles with unsourced statementsCategory:Articles with unsourced statements from May 2022^{[citation needed]}

See also

• Arab diaspora
• Arab Indonesians
• Arab Singaporean
• Arab Filipinos
• Arabization in Malaysia
• Hadhrami people
• Islam in Malaysia

Further reading

• Ahmed Ibrahim Abushouk; Hassan Ahmed Ibrahim (2009). The Hadhrami Diaspora in Southeast Asia: Identity Maintenance Or Assimilation?. BRILL. pp. 45–. ISBN 978-90-04-17231-9.
• Sumit K. Mandal (2018). Becoming Arab: Creole Histories and Modern Identity in the Malay World. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1107196797.
• Eric Tagliacozzo (1 January 2009). Southeast Asia and the Middle East: Islam, Movement, and the Longue Durée. NUS Press. pp. 105–. ISBN 978-9971-69-424-1.
• Hussein Alatas (Syed) (January 1977). The Myth of the Lazy Native: A Study of the Image of the Malays, Filipinos and Javanese from the 16th to the 20th Century and Its Function in the Ideology of Colonial Capitalism. Psychology Press. ISBN 978-0-7146-3050-2.
• Nawar Shora (2009). The Arab-American Handbook: A Guide to the Arab, Arab-American & Muslim Worlds. Cune Press. pp. 302–. ISBN 978-1-885942-47-0.
• Keat Gin Ooi (1 January 2004). Southeast Asia: A Historical Encyclopedia, from Angkor Wat to East Timor. ABC-CLIO. pp. 170–. ISBN 978-1-57607-770-2.