Cont...Ethnic Groups ( Chinese)

The Chinese have been settling in Malaysia for many centuries, and form the second largest ethnic group.The first Chinese to settle in the Straits Settlements, primarily in and around Malacca, gradually adopted elements of Malaysian culture and intermarried with the Malaysian community and with this, a new ethnic group called emerged, the "Straits Chinese" (Peranakan). These Chinese have adopted Malay traditions while maintaining elements of Chinese culture such as religion. The more common dialects of Chinese spoken in Peninsular Malaysia are Cantonese, Mandarin, Hokkien, Hakka, Hainanese, and Foochow.