FAY-COOPER COLE - "THE PEOPLE OF MALAYSIA" (1945)
The image you uploaded shows the cover of "The Peoples of Malaysia" by Fay-Cooper Cole, published in 1945.
Fay-Cooper Cole was a prominent American anthropologist from the University of Chicago. This book is considered a significant historical and ethnological survey of the region.
Key Facts About the Book
- Scope: Despite the title using the word "Malaysia," the book actually covers a much broader geographical area than the modern nation-state. In the 1940s, "Malaysia" was often used as a general term for the Malay Archipelago.
- Regions Covered: The text explores the customs, history, and lifeways of people in the Philippines, the Dutch East Indies (modern-day Indonesia), and British Malaya.
- Core Thesis: Cole argued that the diverse cultures of this region—from the head-hunting tribes of Borneo to the sophisticated courts of Java—shared a fundamental "Malayan" unity that had been shaped and varied by centuries of contact with India, China, and Europe.
- Historical Context: Written at the end of World War II, the book was intended to provide colonial administrators and the general public with a better understanding of the region as it transitioned into the post-war era.
Table of Contents Overview
The book is divided into several sections focusing on specific groups and historical periods:
- Prehistory and History: Archaeological backgrounds and the impact of Hindu, Islamic, and European influences.
- Specific Groups: Dedicated chapters on the Pygmies, the Sakai, the Malays of the Peninsula, and the diverse peoples of Borneo, Bali, Java, Sumatra, and Nias.
- The Philippines: Extensive focus on the Philippines, which was a primary area of Cole's field research.
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RUPERT EMERSON - MALAYSIA : A STUDY IN DIRECT AND INDIRECT RULE (1937)
Both images you've shared showcase foundational 20th-century academic works that helped define the Western understanding of "Malaysia"—a term that, at the time, broadly referred to the Malay Archipelago rather than just the modern nation-state.
While Fay-Cooper Cole’s "The Peoples of Malaysia" (1945) is an anthropological survey of the region's diverse cultures, Rupert Emerson’s "Malaysia: A Study in Direct and Indirect Rule" (1937) is a political and administrative analysis.
Rupert Emerson – Malaysia (1937)
Rupert Emerson was a Professor of Government at Harvard University. This book is widely regarded as a classic for its "objective analysis" of colonial governance during the height of Western imperialism in Southeast Asia.
Geographic Scope: Like Cole, Emerson uses "Malaysia" to cover both British Malaya and the Netherlands East Indies (modern Indonesia). However, about five-sixths of the 536-page book focuses specifically on the Malay States.
Direct vs. Indirect Rule: * Direct Rule: Investigates areas where colonial powers ruled more overtly, such as the Straits Settlements.
Indirect Rule: Focuses on the complex "constitutional hodge-podge" of the Federated and Unfederated Malay States, where the British ruled through indigenous monarchs (Sultans).
Central Argument: Emerson was critical of imperialism, suggesting that colonial rule was often maintained for the benefit of "imperial trade and capitalist interests" rather than the indigenous populations. He argued that the British policy of keeping the country "disjointed" politically helped prevent a unified nationalist movement from forming at that time.
| Feature | The Peoples of Malaysia (Cole, 1945) | Malaysia: A Study... (Emerson, 1937) |
| Primary Field | Anthropology & Ethnology | Political Science & Government |
| Focus | Customs, physical traits, and cultural origins | Administrative structures and colonial policy |
| Tone | Descriptive survey of diverse tribes and groups | Critical assessment of British and Dutch imperialism |
| Significance | Provided a cultural background for post-WWII administrators | Provided a political blueprint of pre-war colonial systems |
Exactly. You are absolutely right—the name "Malaysia" was a recognized geographical and academic term for over a century before it was ever adopted as the name of the modern nation-state in 1963.
The two books you've highlighted are perfect examples of this "pre-independence" usage. They show that "Malaysia" was originally an ethno-geographical term used to describe the entire Malay Archipelago (including what is now Indonesia and the Philippines), rather than a specific political entity.
Timeline of the Name "Malaysia"
Why the name shifted
Before 1963, the area we now call Malaysia was known politically as "Malaya" (or Tanah Melayu).4 When the proposal arose to merge Malaya with Singapore and the Borneo territories, a new name was needed to reflect the broader union.
"Malaysia" was chosen because it was already a familiar term in international academic and map-making circles, as evidenced by your books.5 Interestingly, politicians in the Philippines also briefly considered renaming their country "Malaysia" in the early 1960s, but the federation led by Tunku Abdul Rahman moved faster to claim the title.
The term "Malaysia" appeared on maps and in scientific journals throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries long before it became a sovereign nation. During this era, it was a purely geographical label, much like "Scandinavia" or "The Balkans."
Here are several significant older documents and maps that used the name "Malaysia" long before 1963:
1. The 1894 Map of "Malaysia"
By the late 1800s, many English and American mapmakers used the term to label the entire region. One famous example is the map by J. Bartholomew, which labels the entire island region—including the Philippines, Celebes, and Borneo—as Malaysia.
2. Thomas Stamford Raffles and the "Malay Nations"
While Raffles (the founder of modern Singapore) more commonly used "The Malay Archipelago," his letters and colleagues in the Asiatic Society in the early 1800s frequently debated the naming of the region. They experimented with terms like "Malayana" and "Malaysia" to describe the vast area where the Malay language served as a lingua franca.
3. Alfred Russel Wallace's Research (1850s–1860s)
The famous naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace spent years in the region. While his most famous book is titled The Malay Archipelago (1869), his scientific papers often referred to the "Malaysian" flora and fauna. By the mid-19th century, "Malaysia" was the standard term used by scientists to describe the biological sub-region that includes the Malay Peninsula and the Greater Sunda Islands.
4. Jules Dumont d'Urville (1831)
As mentioned before, this French explorer is officially credited with "coining" the term for modern geography. In his report to the Geographical Society of Paris, he proposed dividing Oceania into four parts: Polynesia, Micronesia, Melanesia, and Malaisie (the French form of Malaysia).
5. Early 20th Century Newspapers
The Malaysia Message (1891): This was a monthly journal published in Singapore by the Methodist Episcopal Mission. It used "Malaysia" to describe their mission field, which stretched from the Malay Peninsula to Java.
The Malaysia Advocate (1910): A Singapore-based newspaper that explicitly used the name in its masthead, reflecting the term's growing use in local English-speaking circles.
Summary of the "Old" Malaysia
In these documents, "Malaysia" typically referred to three main zones:
- The Malay Peninsula (British Malaya)
- The Sunda Islands (Dutch East Indies / Indonesia)
- The Philippine Archipelago
This explains why, when Tunku Abdul Rahman proposed the federation in 1961, there was some pushback from neighboring countries—they felt he was "claiming" a name that historically belonged to the whole region.
Compiled by:
Hj Zulheimy Maamor
Lembah Keramat,KL
7/1/2026: 9.43 p.m
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