There is evidence of humans in Malaysia as far back as 40,000 years ago. The original inhabitants are thought to be the Negrito people that live in the northern mountainous rainforests. They were later joined by the Senoi people who came down from Thailand and the Malay people who came up from Indonesia. By the second century AD, Malaya was already known for gold, tin and aromatic jungle woods and Indians regularly came to buy these goods. The Indians introduced Buddhism, Hinduism, and the notion of Kingship.

During the 7th century, the Malaysian peninsula was conquered by the Srivijaya Empire, which was ruled by a king in Sumatra (the island directly west of the Malaysian peninsula, across the Malacca Straits, and today part of Indonesia). Under that empire, southern Malaya flourished as a trading state. The Srivaijaya empire lost control of Malaya in the 13th century. Malaysia went back to being made up of several small and separate empires ruled by local sultans (kings).

In 1400, a self-proclaimed sultan conquered the town of Melaka and turned it into a thriving trading port where Indonesians, Malays, Chinese and Indians came to trade goods. As Islam gained popularity in India, the Indians introduced Islam to Melaka and it eventually spread to the rest of Malaysia and Indonesia.

Meanwhile, the Portuguese Continue reading →