Bangsa Melayu

Bangsa Melayu is a study of political ideology in two related but distinct Malay communities in Peninsular Malaya and East Sumatra at a time of political ferment in the years immediately after the Second World War. Prior to this period, the kerajaan, or monarchy headed by the sultans, had been central to the Malay political culture and identity, but with the rise of nationalism, nation-states, and nationality in the Malay Archipelago, new alternatives were available to the Malays. In Peninsular Malaya, bangsa Melayu (Malay ethnic identity) emerged as a focus of loyalty and community, taking precedence over the kerajaan, while in Sumatra, the emergence of an all-embracing Indonesian republic led to the complete destruction of the monarchical system. In this study, the author focuses on the basic differences in thinking, temperament, and attitude between the two groups of Malays which led to their differing solutions in finding an alternative to the kerajaan.