Famous people from Malaysia
Here is a list of famous people from Malaysia. Curious if anybody from Malaysia made it our most famous people in the world list? Read the aformentioned article in order to find out.
Lee Chong Wei
Olympic athlete
Datuk Lee Chong Wei is a Malaysian professional badminton player who is ranked World No. 1 by the Badminton World Federation. As a singles player, Lee was ranked first worldwide for 199 consecutive weeks from 21 August 2008 to 14 June 2012. He is the third Malaysian player after Rashid Sidek and Roslin Hashim to achieve such a ranking, and is the only Malaysian shuttler to hold the number one ranking for more than a year. Lee is a silver medalist in both the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games, becoming the sixth Malaysian won a medal in Olympic Games. He also becoming the first Malaysian to reach the final of the men's singles event and ending Malaysia's Olympic medal drought since the 1996 Games. This achievement also earned him the title Datuk, and a description by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak as a national hero. He repeated the achievement four years later in London, thus making him the most successful Malaysian Olympian in history.
Mahathir Mohamad
Politician
Mahathir bin Mohamad is a Malaysian politician who was the fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia. He held the post for 22 years from 1981 to 2003, making him Malaysia's longest serving Prime Minister. His political career spanned almost 40 years. Born and raised in Alor Setar, Kedah, Mahathir excelled at school and became a medical doctor. He became active in the United Malays National Organisation, Malaysia's largest political party, before entering parliament in 1964. He served one term before losing his seat, before falling out with the then Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman and being expelled from UMNO. When Abdul Rahman resigned, Mahathir re-entered UMNO and parliament, and was promoted to the Cabinet. By 1976, he had risen to Deputy Prime Minister, and in 1981 was sworn in as Prime Minister after the resignation of his predecessor, Hussein Onn. During Mahathir's tenure as Prime Minister, Malaysia experienced rapid modernisation and economic growth, and his government initiated a series of bold infrastructure projects. He was a dominant political figure, winning five consecutive general elections and seeing off all of his rivals for the leadership of UMNO. However, his accumulation of power came at the expense of the independence of the judiciary and the traditional powers and privileges of Malaysia's royalty. He also deployed the controversial Internal Security Act to detain activists, non-mainstream religious figures, and political opponents including his sacked deputy, Anwar Ibrahim. Mahathir's record of curbing civil liberties and his antagonism to western diplomatic interests and economic policy made his relationships with the likes of the US, Britain and Australia difficult. As Prime Minister, he was an advocate of third-world development and a prominent international activist for causes such as the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa and the interests of Bosnians in the 1990s Balkans conflict.
Guy Sebastian
Pop Artist
Guy Theodore Sebastian is an Australian pop, R&B, and soul singer-songwriter. He was the first winner of Australian Idol in 2003, and was a judge on Australia's The X Factor between 2010 and 2012. Sebastian has released seven top ten albums including two number ones, which have all gained either platinum or multi-platinum certification. 12 of his singles have reached the top ten, including six number ones. Sebastian is the only Australian male artist in Australian chart history to achieve six number one singles, and places third overall for all Australian acts. He has achieved six multi-platinum singles, including the 8× platinum "Battle Scars". His debut single "Angels Brought Me Here", was the highest selling song in Australia last decade. With 42 platinum and three gold certifications and combined album and single sales of over 3 million in Australia, he has the highest certifications and sales of any Australian Idol contestant. Sebastian has also reached the top ten in New Zealand with an album and six singles, including two number ones, and gained six platinum and three gold certifications there. "Battle Scars", a collaboration with American rapper Lupe Fiasco spent 20 weeks on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at number 71 and achieved platinum certification. "Battle Scars" also reached number two in Norway. Sebastian has worked with other notable American musicians including Brian McKnight, Robin Thicke, Steve Cropper, John Mayer, Jordin Sparks and Eve.
Siti Nurhaliza
Pop rock Artist
Dato', or occasionally Datin Sri, Siti Nurhaliza binti Tarudin DIMP, JSM, SAP, PMP, AAP is a Malaysian singer, songwriter, record producer, television presenter and businesswoman. Since her debut, she has won a number of international singing competitions. She had been crowned as Voice of Asia in 2002 after winning the Grand Prix Champion title at the Voice of Asia singing competition which was held in Almaty, Kazakhstan. A few years earlier, in 1999 she had won Gold Award in Asia New Singer Competition at Shanghai Asia Music Festival, held in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. Also, in the same year, she had won two awards from 'South Pacific International Song and Singing Competition 1999' held in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. To date, she has garnered more than 200 local awards as well as international awards. She rose to fame as a multiple-platinum selling artist, since her winning of Malaysia's reality show Bintang HMI 1995 when she was only 16 where she was given offers in form of singing contracts from four different international recording companies. Her first single, Jerat Percintaan from her debut album won the 11th Anugerah Juara Lagu and another two awards for Best Performance and Best Ballad. The album itself as of 2005, has been sold to a total of more than 800,000 units in Malaysia alone. In her career she has recorded and sung in multiple languages, including Bahasa Malaysia, Basa Jawa, English, Mandarin, Arabic, Hindi and Japanese.
Michelle Yeoh
Actor
Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh Choo-Kheng, DPMP, SPMP, PSM, is a Malaysian actress, best known for performing her own stunts in the Hong Kong action films that brought her to fame in the early 1990s. Born in Ipoh, Malaysia, she was chosen by People magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World in 1997. She is best known in the Western world for her roles in the 1997 James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies, playing Wai Lin, and the multiple Academy Award-winning Chinese-language martial arts film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, for which she was nominated the BAFTA in 2000, for Best Actress. In 2008, the film critic website Rotten Tomatoes ranked her the greatest action heroine of all time. In 2009, she was listed by People magazine – as the only Asian actress – as one of the "35 All-Time Screen Beauties". She is credited as Michelle Khan in some of her earlier films. This alias was chosen by the D&B studio who thought it might be more marketable to international and western audiences. Yeoh later preferred using her real name.
Anwar Ibrahim
Politician
Dato' Seri Anwar bin Ibrahim is a Malaysian politician. He is currently the Leader of Opposition of Malaysia, economic advisor to the state government of Selangor and de facto leader of PKR. He served as the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia from 1993 to 1998 and Finance Minister from 1991 to 1998 when he was in UMNO, a major party in ruling Barisan Nasional coaltion. He is an internationally renowned speaker on the subjects of democracy, freedom, governance, Islam and the need for accountability.
Jimmy Choo
Designer
Dato' Jimmy Choo, OBE, born Choo Yeang Keat, is a Malaysian Chinese fashion designer based in London, United Kingdom. He is best known for founding Jimmy Choo Ltd that became known for its handmade women's shoes. Choo was born in Penang, Malaysia, into a family of shoemakers, who are of Chinese descent. His family name is Chow but was misspelled on his birth certificate as Choo. He made his first shoe when he was 11 years old. He is perhaps the most notable of students of Cordwainers Technical College in Hackney, England, from which he graduated in 1983. Choo has divulged that he worked part-time at restaurants and as a cleaner at a shoe factory to help fund his college education. Jimmy Choo traced his beginnings back to his workshop in Hackney, North London, which he opened in 1986 by renting an old hospital building. His craftsmanship and designs were soon noticed and he came to the verge of international notability when his creations were featured in a record eight pages in a 1988 issue of Vogue. Patronage from Diana, Princess of Wales, from 1990 further boosted his image.
James Wan
Film Director
James Wan is a Malaysian Australian film producer, screenwriter and film director of Malaysian Chinese descent. He is widely known for directing the horror film Saw and creating Billy the puppet. Wan has also directed Dead Silence, Death Sentence, Insidious, Insidious: Chapter 2, and The Conjuring.
Najib Razak
Politician
Dato' Sri Haji Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak is a Malaysian politician who has been the sixth Prime Minister of Malaysia since 2009. He previously held the post of Deputy Prime Minister from 7 January 2004 until he succeeded Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi as Prime Minister on 3 April 2009, and The 13-party Barisan Nasional, led by Prime Minister Najib Razak, again secured 112 of the 222 parliamentary seats on 05th May 2013, Najib is President of the United Malays National Organisation. He is the son of Malaysia's second prime minister, Tun Abdul Razak and the nephew of Malaysia's third prime minister, Tun Hussein Onn. Najib is also the Minister of Finance. Najib succeeded Abdullah at a time after his ruling coalition, the Barisan Nasional, lost its long held two-thirds majority in parliament to the opposition led by former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in the 2008 parliamentary election. Since then Najib has tried to build a moderate image for himself and the UMNO through the 1Malaysia campaign.
Tony Fernandes
Organization leader
Tan Sri Anthony Francis "Tony" Fernandes, CBE is a Malaysian entrepreneur. He is the founder of Tune Air Sdn. Bhd., who introduced the first budget no-frills airline, AirAsia, to Malaysians with the tagline "Now everyone can fly". Fernandes managed to turn AirAsia, a failing government-linked commercial airline, into a highly successful budget airline public-listed company. He has since founded the Tune Group of companies. He was also instrumental in lobbying the then-Malaysian Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad in mid-2003, to propose the idea of open skies agreements with neighbouring Thailand, Indonesia, and Singapore. As a result, these nations have granted landing rights to AirAsia and other discount carriers. As of February 2013, Forbes Asia valued Fernandes' net worth at $625 million, ranking him at number 21 on the Forbes list of Malaysia's Richest.
Nicol David
Athlete
Datuk Nicol Ann David is a Malaysian female professional squash player. She is currently ranked world number 1 in women's squash, and is the first Asian woman to achieve this. She won the British Open title in 2005, 2006, 2008, and 2012, as well as the World Open title a record 7 times in 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012. David is the first squash player to have won the World Junior title twice; in 1999 and 2001 under the tutelage of Richard Glanfield. She remained the only female squash player to have achieved this, until Raneem El Weleily emulated David's feat by winning her second World Junior Championship in 2007. David joined WISPA and turned professional in 2000 when she won her first WISPA title, after only a month in the tour. The victory came in February, when she defeated Salma Shabana in the final of the Savcor Finnish Open. On 7 June 2008, David was honoured with the Order of Merit or D.B. in conjunction with the birthday of the His Majesty Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin. She was the first recipient of the award which was established on 26 June 1975. David was also invited to carry the Olympic torch for Malaysia during the build up to the Athens Olympics in 2004 and being appointed as UNDP National Goodwill Ambassador for Malaysia.
Tunku Abdul Rahman
Politician
Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah, AC, CH was Chief Minister of the Federation of Malaya from 1955, and the country's first Prime Minister from independence in 1957. He remained as the Prime Minister after Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore joined the federation in 1963 to form Malaysia. He is widely known simply as "Tunku" or "The Tunku" and also called Bapa Kemerdekaan or Bapa Malaysia.
Tiz Zaqyah
Actor
Tiz Zaqyah is a Malaysia actress, model and singer. She debuted in 2006 and since then has starred in dramas, telemovies, television and magazine advertisements, and movies. She is best known for playing the role of Nur Amina in the hit 2009 drama Nur Kasih with Remy Ishak, Fizz Fairuz and Sharifah Sofia. Her latest dramas were Sebenarnya, Saya Isteri Dia! where she played a role of Shaf alongside with the rising actor, Izzue Islam and Cinta Jangan Pergi where she acted with her acclaimed counterpart partner, Remy Ishak again.
P. Ramlee
Pop Artist
Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr. P. Ramlee, PSM, DA, AMN was a Malaysian film actor, director, singer, songwriter, composer, and producer. Due to his contributions to the movie and music industry and his literary work, he is often considered the icon of Malay entertainment in Malaysia, Singapore, and Sumatra.
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
Politician
Tun Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi is a Malaysian politician who served as Prime Minister from 2003 to 2009. He was also the President of the United Malays National Organisation, the largest political party in Malaysia, and led the governing Barisan Nasional parliamentary coalition. He is informally known as Pak Lah, 'Pak' meaning 'Uncle' while 'Lah' is taken from his name 'Abdullah'. He also called Father of Human Capital Development. After Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad sacked Anwar Ibrahim, he appointed Abdullah as Deputy Prime Minister. Abdullah went on to succeed Mahathir as Prime Minister in 2003. In the 2004 general election, Abdullah scored a significant victory. In the 2008 general election, the Barisan Nasional won a slim majority of seats, but lost the two thirds majority. He stepped down in favor of his successor, Najib Tun Razak, during the UMNO General Assembly held on 1 April 2009. On 3 April 2009, he was succeeded by Najib Tun Razak as Prime Minister.New Malaysian PM sworn in, Al Jazeera Archived 15 February 2011 at WebCite Abdullah was then conferred the title Tun by his majesty Mizan Zainal Abidin for his service to the nation.Exit PM Pak Lah, enter Tun Abdullah He called Bapa Pembangunan Modal Insan.Archived 15 February 2011 at WebCite
Shaun Maloney
Soccer Midfielder
Shaun Richard Maloney is a Scottish footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for English Championship club Wigan Athletic and the Scotland national team. He is the first player to claim both the SPFA Players' Player of the Year and the SPFA Young Player of the Year awards in the same season, doing so in 2006 during his first spell with Celtic.
Alex Yoong
Racing driver
Alexander Charles Yoong Loong, is a Malaysian Chinese race car driver of European and Han Chinese parentage. Yoong began his career in saloon cars before moving into the Proton one-make series. He later raced in single-seater cars where he won the Malaysian Championship in 1995. He moved into Formula Renault in 1996 with help from sponsors but finished outside the top-10. Yoong consulted his father who believed his son would succeed in lower categories. Yoong decided to drive in Formula Three but dropped out in 1999 after withdrawal from his sponsors. He subsequently went into Formula 3000 and managed to improve despite a horrific crash at Spa-Franchomps during the season. Yoong also raced in Formula Nippon where he achieved no success. Yoong became the first Malaysian to race in Formula One with Minardi at the 2001 Italian Grand Prix and left the sport in 2002. Yoong had a less successful career in CART World Series but had improved in the Porsche Carrera Cup with a less successful foray into V8 Supercars. Yoong raced in A1 Grand Prix series between 2005 and 2008 and scored three victories. In between this, Yoong raced in the Le Mans 24 Hours. Yoong worked for Lotus Racing as head of driver development and is also a commentator for ESPN Star Sports. Yoong married Arriana Teoh, who was Miss Malaysia World 1997 in 2002 and has a son, Alister, born in 2003.
Penny Wong
Politician
Penelope Ying-Yen Wong, an Australian senator representing South Australia since 2002, was the Commonwealth Minister for Finance and Deregulation, and the Leader of the Government in the Senate. Wong is a member of the Labor Party and was a member of the Australian federal cabinet. Wong is now currently the Leader of The Opposition in The Senate under Opposition Leader Bill Shorten. Wong was the first Australian Minister for Climate Change and Water. Her appointment was amended on 26 February 2010 to Minister for Climate Change, Energy Efficiency and Water. This change in the Government's cabinet was brought about by the controversy of the Home Insulation Program. On 13 September 2010, she was sworn in as Minister for Finance and Deregulation in the Gillard Labor cabinet. Wong is the first Asian-born member of an Australian Cabinet, and also the first openly lesbian member of the Australian cabinet. On 27 June 2013 she became the first person of Asian descent to assume the role of Leader of the Government in the Senate. Before entering Parliament, Penny Wong was a barrister and solicitor in Adelaide, South Australia and an adviser to the Carr Government in New South Wales.
Simon Russell Beale
Actor
Simon Russell Beale, CBE is an English actor and music historian. He has been described by The Independent as "the greatest stage actor of his generation." He has appeared in Persuasion, The Young Visiters, Dunkirk, The Deep Blue Sea and as Falstaff in the BBC made-for-television films Henry IV, Part I and Part II.
Abdul Razak Hussein
Politician
Tun Abdul Razak bin Hussein Al-Haj was the second Prime Minister of Malaysia, ruling from 1970 to 1976. Tun Razak was the Prime Minister responsible in setting up Barisan Nasional, which is the ruling coalition of political parties that have held power in Malaysia till today, taking over from its predecessor, the Alliance. He is also renowned for launching the Malaysian New Economic Policy.
Koo Kien Keat
Olympic Badminton Player
Koo Kien Keat is a professional badminton player from Malaysia. Besides being a men's doubles player, he also represents Malaysia in the mixed doubles event. He started his career at seventeen years of age and has won the Asian Junior title. He played in the Thomas Cup 2004 with Chan Chong Ming. They won bronze in the World Championship 2005. His current doubles partner is Tan Boon Heong, and together, in 2010, they became the number 1 ranked men's doubles team in the world. They have since lost that ranking but remain one of the top men's doubles team in the world.
Lim Kit Siang
Politician
Lim Kit Siang is a prominent leader of the Democratic Action Party, a Social Democratic opposition party in Malaysia. He is the father of current Chief Minister in the State of Penang, Lim Guan Eng. Lim was called to the Bar by Lincoln's Inn in 1977. He is married with four children. Since 1978, he has published 34 books.
Lim Guan Eng
Politician
Lim Guan Eng is the fourth Chief Minister of the State of Penang and the current Secretary-General of the Malaysian Democratic Action Party. He is the son of Lim Kit Siang, Leader of the Opposition in the Dewan Rakyat from 1973 to 1999 and 2004 to 2008. He is married to Betty Chew Gek Cheng, a member of the DAP and a state assemblyman in Malacca.
Safee Sali
Footballer
Mohd Safee Mohd Sali commonly known as Safee Sali is a Malaysian footballer who is a Striker for Johor Darul Takzim FC on loan from Arema Cronous. Safee also represents the Malaysia national team at the international level and was a member of the Malaysian team who won the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup for the first time with Safee being the top scorer. Safee previously played for Melaka TMFC, Kuala Lumpur FA, Sarawak FA and Selangor FA. Safee is also the first Malaysian to play at the Indonesian Super League with Pelita Jaya.
Penny Tai
Mandopop Artist
Penny Tai is a Malaysian Chinese singer and songwriter in the Mandopop scene. Since her debut in 2000 she has released ten albums.
Abdul Taib Mahmud
Politician
Pehin Sri Haji Abdul Taib bin Mahmud is the fourth and current Chief Minister of Sarawak. He is also the state Financial Minister and Resource Planning and Environment Minister. Taib is the President of Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu, which is part of the Barisan Nasional coalition. He is of ethnic Melanau descent. Taib is informally known as Pak Uban, which translates into "white-haired uncle". Among Chinese speaking communities he is known as Pek Moh which means "white hair". Another informal name for him, in reference to the British Brooke family that ruled Sarawak as White Rajahs in the 19th and early 20th century, is the "last white rajah" or "white-haired rajah". Holding the post of the Chief Minister of Sarawak since 1981, he is the longest serving Chief Minister in Malaysia. He assumed the Chief Minister post at the age of 45. Being a member of the Malaysian Parliament for 38 years, Taib is also the second longest-serving parliamentarian in Malaysia after Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah. Taib and his wider family are regularly accused of corruption and personally benefiting from Sarawak's natural and economic resources.
Christopher Lee
Actor
Christopher Lee Meng Soon is a Malaysian-born Singaporean actor, host and singer.
Tan Boon Heong
Olympic Badminton Player
Tan Boon Heong is a male badminton player from Malaysia in the men's doubles event. He and his current doubles partner—Koo Kien Keat—are ranked World No. 4 in men's doubles.
Jenny Seagrove
Actor
Jennifer Ann Seagrove is an English actress. She trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and rose to fame playing the lead in a TV dramatisation of Barbara Taylor Bradford's A Woman of Substance and the 1983 film Local Hero. She is now well known in the character of Jo Mills in the long-running BBC drama series Judge John Deed. Her credits as a voiceover artist include a series of Waitrose television advertisements.
Iskandar of Johor
Monarch
Iskandar ibni Ismail Al-Khalidi was the eighth Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia, from 26 April 1984 to 25 April 1989. He succeeded his father, Sultan Ismail, to become the 24th Sultan of Johor upon the former's death in 1981. Sultan Iskandar's reign lasted for almost 29 years until his death in January 2010, upon which he was succeeded by his oldest son, Tunku Ibrahim. As was the case with his grandfather, Sultan Ibrahim, Sultan Iskandar's independent mindset resulted in strained relations with the Malaysian federal government on numerous occasions. This was more so during his days as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, whereby a number of notable public incidents involved Sultan Iskandar. Nevertheless, Sultan Iskandar was reputed to show great concern to his subjects, and was held in high esteem by many of his subjects–particularly the Malays and Orang Aslis. Sultan Iskandar is reputed to have been a staunch disciplinarian, with willingness to occasionally voice personal opinions on governmental issues. On the personal side, subjects who have personally approached the Sultan in his later years described him as a person with a warm and generous personality. However, past critics had also argued that Sultan Iskandar was a person with a turbulent temper. These claims were made by citing records of past notorious incidents, which include an experience of being disinherited from being the Tunku Mahkota by his father, in 1961, as well as a series of alleged criminal acts occurring between the 1970s and the 1990s which were published in the press and provoked widespread moral outrage within the Malaysian public.
Zee Avi
Acoustic Artist
Zee Avi,PBK is a Malaysian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and ukulele player. She hails from the oil-rich town of Miri, located in Sarawak, Malaysia on the island of Borneo. She moved to Kuala Lumpur at 12 and at 17, she taught herself to play the guitar. She studied fashion design at American InterContinental University in London, but as it turned out, fashion was not her true calling. She claims that she was "bred to become a lawyer" and even studied law at one point. Avi also has a penchant for art. In fact, her artwork is featured on the CD of her second album. She also produced three art pieces for a charity project with Pledge Music.
Namewee
Singer
Namewee or Wee Meng Chee; is a Malaysian Chinese of Hainanese descent. He is widely known as Namewee, a bilingual pun on his Mandarin name, which sounds like the Mandarin term for name. Wee gained popularity after releasing a controversial song fused with the national anthem of Malaysia, Negaraku, which describes what he thinks of the state of the country and its government. The lyrics of the 'remake' shocked the society. In the following weeks, the song increasingly drew both praise and criticism from various quarters of Malaysian society thus been entitled "Muka Ubi Kentang" by the locals.
Abdul Halim of Kedah
Monarch
Almu'tasimu Billahi Muhibbuddin Tuanku Alhaj sir Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah Ibni Almarhum Sultan Badlishah, GCB KStJ is the 14th and current Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia, as well as the 27th and current Sultan of Kedah. He previously served as the fifth Yang di-Pertuan Agong from 1970 to 1975. He is the first person to hold the position twice, as well as the oldest elected to the office.
Gary Cao
Singer-songwriter
Gary Chaw, also known as Gary Cao or Cao Ge is a Malaysian Chinese singer-songwriter based in Taiwan, who has had achieved success in Taiwan, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Singapore. He is renowned for his stage presence, wide vocal range, and rich voice. In addition, he composes for himself and other singers.
Huang Wenyong
Actor
Huang Wenyong was a Malaysia-born Singaporean actor, musician, and former teacher of Chinese descent. He was an actor for MediaCorp from the early 1980s until his death. Appearing in more than 100 television programmes, he was among the first few batches of locally-trained actors to enter the local entertainment industry and considered to be one of the "pioneers in local Chinese drama". Huang died on 20 April 2013 of lymphoma, a cancer of the blood. Reactions to his death were reported to have "flooded the Internet".
Hussein Onn
Politician
Tun Hussein bin Dato' Onn was the third Prime Minister of Malaysia, serving in this role from 1976 to 1981. He was born in Johor Bahru, Johor, on 12 February 1922 to Dato Onn Jaafar and Datin Halimah Hussein, and is of 3/4 Malay and 1/4 Circassian ancestry. He was granted the soubriquet "Bapa Perpaduan".
Claudia Wells
Actor
Claudia Grace Wells is an American actress.
Carmen Soo
Fashion Model
Carmen Soo is a Malaysian Chinese model and actress.
Robert Kuok
Businessperson
Robert Kuok Hock Nien, is an influential Malaysian Chinese businessman. According to Forbes his net worth is estimated to be around $14.7 billion on Feb 2012, making him the richest person in Malaysia and second richest in Southeast Asia after Dhanin Chearavanont of Thailand, according to Forbe's List of World Billionaires 2013 which Robert Kuok was placed 76th. As of December 2012, According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Kuok has an estimated net worth of 17.3 billion making him the 40th richest person in the world. Kuok is media-shy; most of his businesses are privately held by him or his family. Apart from a multitude of businesses in Malaysia, his companies have investments in many countries throughout Asia. His business interests range from sugarcane plantations, sugar refineries, flour milling, animal feed, oil, mining, finance, hotels, properties, trading, freight and publishing. Biggest source of wealth is stake in Wilmar International, the world's largest listed palm oil company. He was a student from Raffles Institution.
Shila Amzah
Pop Artist
Nur Shahila binti Amir Amzah or popularly known by her commercial name Shila Amzah, is a Malaysian singer, dancer, actress. The daughter of famous 1980s era Malaysian singer ND Lala, she was the runner-up of the second season of One in a Million in 2007 and the winner of Asia New Singer Competition in 2008. In 2012, she became the champion of the inaugural season of the Chinese reality competition, Asian Wave. She has been accoladed as Asia's Sweetheart.
Nicholas Teo
Mandopop Artist
Nicholas Teo was born November 29, 1981 in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia. He is also known as Nicholas Zhang and he is a Malaysian Chinese singer signed under Play Music based in Taiwan.
Malaysia Vasudevan
Singer
Vasudevan Nair, known as Malaysia Vasudevan was a Tamil playback singer and actor in the Tamil film industry.
Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor
Astronaut
Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor is a Malaysian orthopaedic surgeon and was the first Malaysian to go into space. He was launched to the International Space Station aboard Soyuz TMA-11 with the Expedition 16 crew on October 10, 2007. Sheikh Muszaphar flew under an agreement with Russia through the Angkasawan program, and returned to Earth on October 21, 2007, aboard Soyuz TMA-10 with the Expedition 15 crew members, Fyodor Yurchikhin and Oleg Kotov.
Wong Mew Choo
Olympic athlete
Wong Mew Choo is a female badminton singles player from Malaysia. She is known for her exceptional endurance and stamina, the result of training alongside male shuttlers. Without any significant attacking arsenals, she initially built her game based on fitness and defence, with the ability to run a continuous, long rally; sending everything back to tactically superior opponents until a mistake or an attacking opportunity appears. Such tactics have served her well, but put a lot of pressure on her knees and ankles. She has been known to suffer from various long term injuries in her playing career.
Joe Simpson
Mountaineer
Joe Simpson is an English mountaineer, author and motivational speaker. He is best known for his book Touching the Void and the 2003 film adaptation of his book.
Ahmad Zahid Hamidi
Man
Dato' Seri Dr. Ahmad Zahid Hamidi is a Malaysian politician and is currently the Minister of Home Affairs in the Barisan Nasional coalition government of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and the Member of the Parliament of Malaysia for the Bagan Datoh constituency in Perak. Before this, he was the Defence Minister of Malaysia. He is a member of the United Malays National Organisation. Early in his political career, Zahid was a Senator and chairman of Bank Simpanan Nasional before becoming the head of UMNO's youth wing. In 1998, Zahid spoke out against Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, calling for an end to cronyism and nepotism in the Malaysian government. Zahid, seen as an ally of deposed Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, was subsequently arrested and held in prison under the Internal Security Act. However, in 1999, Zahid was welcomed back into the UMNO fold, stating that Anwar had put him up to raising allegations of cronyism and nepotism and alleging that Anwar had used his position as Finance Minister to direct business opportunities to Zahid. After the 2004 election, Zahid became a Deputy Minister in the government of Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. While a Deputy Minister, Zahid studied for and was conferred the degree of Doctor of Philosophy from Universiti Putra Malaysia.
Jenny Eclair
Comedian
Jenny Eclair is an English comedian, novelist and actor, best known for her roles in Grumpy Old Women between 2004 and 2007 and in Loose Women in 2011 and 2012.
Adia Chan
Actor
Adia Chan is an Indonesian-born Hong Kong actress and singer. Her parents are Indonesian Chinese and the family moved to Hong Kong when she was three years old. She started show business in 1985 at the age of 14, winning a Sally Yeh impersonation contest hosted by TVB, within the show Enjoy Yourself Tonight. Thereafter she hosted many children's show and sang many children's songs which gained her much popularity within the younger generation. Chan stars in films as well as Hong Kong/Singaporean/mainland-Chinese television serials although she is most well known for many of her roles in the TVB Series, especially Song Bird. She has also performed alongside Jacky Cheung in the musical Snow.Wolf.Lake, the Mandarin and Cantonese version. In 1995, Chan changed her name from 陳松龄 to 陳松伶. The pronunciation was still the same - Ling - but a different character was used. The 'Ling' in her original name means "age" and the 'Ling' in her new name is part of a phrase that means "intelligent and witty". As her short hair grew longer, Chan went through yet another metamorphosis in 1999. She officially changed her English name from Nadia to Nnadia. The added "n" was a self reminder to "never give up." It also symbolized "new". In 2012, she has again changed her English stage name to Adia, removing the 2 initial "n's". A reason for the change has not been given publicly.
Angelica Lee
Actor
Angelica Lee Sin-Jie is a Malaysian Chinese film actress and pop singer. She started her career in singing and later moved on to acting in Taiwan and Hong Kong. Lee starred in The Eye, the hit Asian horror film by the Pang Brothers, winning her the Golden Horse Award for Best Actress, Best Actress at the Hong Kong Film Festival and a Hong Kong Golden Bauhinia Award. She is among the very few Asian artists to be awarded as Berlin Film Festival Best Newcomer Awards in 2001 for her role in Betelnut Beauty. Lee has also starred in the films 20 30 40, and Koma. She worked with the Pangs again on Re-cycle, which was screened at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival. She is married to director Oxide Pang. Lee speaks five languages: Mandarin, Hokkien, Malay, Cantonese, and English.
Kamahl
Singer
Kamahl is an Australian singer. Kamahl is the stage name of Kandiah Kamalesvaran, a Malaysian-born Australian singer and recording artist, perhaps best known for "The Elephant Song", and his repertoire of popular music.
Vijayaraghavan
Actor
Vijayaraghavan is an Indian actor who mainly acts in Malayalam cinema. He is popular for his character roles. He is the son of popular drama and cinema artist N. N. Pillai.
Mizan Zainal Abidin of Terengganu
Monarch
Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin is the 17th and current Sultan of Terengganu. He served as the 13th Yang di-Pertuan Agong, the constitutional head of state of Malaysia, from 2006 to 2011. He is Malay by ethnicity and an adherent of Sunni Islam, both of which are prerequisites for Malaysian royalty.
Mohd. Safiq Rahim
Soccer Midfielder
Mohammad Safiq Rahim is a Malaysian footballer who is currently playing for Johor Darul Takzim FC. He is also a member of Malaysia national, Malaysia U-23 and former Malaysia U-20 squad. Safiq previously played for Selangor helping them to win the 2010 Super League and the 2010 Malaysia Charity Shield. Presently, he captains the Malaysian national team.
Yusof bin Ishak
Politician
Yusof bin Ishak was the first President of Singapore, serving from 1965 to 1970. His portrait appears on the Singapore Portrait Series currency notes introduced in 1999.
Datin Seri Paduka Rosmah Mansor
Politician
Datin Seri Rosmah binti Mansor is the wife of 6th Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato' Sri Mohd Najib bin Tun Abdul Razak. Rosmah was married to Mohd Najib in 1987, when Najib was the UMNO Deputy Youth Chief and Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports.
Farid Kamil
Actor
Farid Kamil is a Malaysian actor. He is a well-known male model turned actor and is arguably one of the most famous male actors in Malaysia as of current. Kamil had also been dubbed "Hero Melayu" for several of his outstanding performances in drama series and movies alike. To date, Kamil has also been credited as both a screen play writer as well as a film director for his work in Remp-It V3.
Karpal Singh
Politician
Karpal Singh s/o Ram Singh is a Malaysian lawyer and politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for the constituency of Bukit Gelugor in the state of Penang since 2004. He is the current National Chairman of the Democratic Action Party, a position that he assumed in 2004. Born in Penang to an Indian Punjabi immigrant father, Karpal read law at the University of Singapore. He is one of Malaysia's most prominent lawyers, and has taken up numerous high-profile cases, including drug trafficking charges against foreign nationals, and sodomy accusations against former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim. Karpal is a staunch opponent of the death penalty, especially in relation to drug trafficking offences. In both courtrooms and parliament, he is known as a controversial figure. He has been suspended from parliament numerous times, charged for sedition, and has been detained under Malaysia's internal security laws. His reputation as a lawyer and opposition politician has earned him the nickname "the Tiger of Jelutong". Karpal's political career began in 1970 when he joined the DAP. He won a seat in the Kedah State Legislative Assembly in 1974. He was first elected to parliament in 1978 as the representative for Jelutong, Penang, and held the seat for more than 20 years until losing it in 1999. He returned to parliament in the next general election, and led the DAP to its strongest ever performance in the 2008 general election.
Azlan Shah of Perak
Noble person
Azlan Muhibbuddin, GCB, KStJ is the current Sultan of Perak. He was the ninth Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia from 26 April 1989 to 25 April 1994. A lawyer by profession, he served as a judge, and the Lord President of the Federal Court before becoming the Sultan of Perak.
Tsai Ming-liang
Film Director
Tsai Ming-liang is a Malaysian Chinese and one of the most celebrated "Second New Wave" film directors of Taiwanese Cinema, along with earlier contemporaries such as Hou Hsiao-Hsien and Edward Yang. His films have been acclaimed worldwide and have won numerous film festival awards.
Sudirman Arshad
Pop Artist
Dato' Sudirman bin Haji Arshad, DIMP, JMN, AMN, AMP was a Malaysian famous singer and songwriter. He had started his career after winning the "Bintang RTM" on 11 August 1976. Besides, he is the title holder of "Asia's No. 1 Performer" on 19 March 1989 as he won the ‘‘Asian Popular Music Awards’’ competiton in Royal Albert Hall in London. He was known as the "Singing Lawyer", the "People's Singer" and the "Elvis of Malaysia". He is also a multi-talented person as a singer, entertainer, composer, lawyer, writer, cartoonist, entrepreneur and actor.
Muhyiddin Yassin
Politician
Tan Sri Muhyiddin bin Yassin is a Malaysian politician and the current Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Education. He is also the Deputy President of the United Malays National Organisation, the main component party of the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition. Muhyiddin grew up in the state of Johor and joined the state public service after graduating from university. He later took up management positions at various state-owned companies. He joined politics in the 1970s and was elected as Member of Parliament for Pagoh in 1978. During his term as MP, he was appointed Deputy Federal Territories and later Deputy Trade and Industry Minister. As Johor UMNO chief, he became Menteri Besar of Johor from 1986 to 1995. He returned to federal politics in 1995 and was appointed to the Cabinet as Minister of Youth and Sports. He was appointed Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs after the 1999 general election and became a vice president of UMNO in 2000. Under the premiership of Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Muhyiddin became Minister of Agriculture and then Minister of International Trade and Industry. In 2008, he contested and won the UMNO deputy presidency and was appointed Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education by Prime Minister Najib Razak in 2009. As Education Minister, Muhyiddin ended the use of English as the medium of instruction for science and mathematics in public schools. He also attracted controversy after describing himself as "Malay first" when challenged by the opposition to pronounce himself as "Malaysian first."
Hafiz AF7
Pop Artist
Hafiz is a musical artist.
Vincent Tan
Businessperson
Tan Sri Dato' Seri Vincent Tan Chee Yioun is a Malaysian businessman and investor. He is the Chairman and Chief Executive of Berjaya Corporation Berhad, which is in a wide array of businesses which includes golfing, property, resorts, and gambling in a group known as the Berjaya Group. In 2010, he entered the Forbes billionaire list with an estimated worth of US$1.3 billion (RM4.2 billion). Tan's success in the Malaysian business sector has been attributed in part to his close association with prominent Malay political figures.
Mohd Amri Yahyah
Soccer Midfielder
Mohd Amri Yahyah is a Malaysian footballer who is a versatile player, who can operate as a striker and midfielder. Recently, he has been playing as attacking midfielder for team Selangor FA.
Chen Hanwei
Singer
Tan Hung Wee, better known by his Chinese stage name Chen Hanwei 陈汉玮, is a Malaysia-born Singaporean actor.
巫啟賢
Singer-songwriter
Eric Moo Kai-yin is a Malaysian Chinese award-winning singer-songwriter and record producer.
Ananda Krishnan
Businessperson
Tatparanandam Ananda Krishnan is a Malaysian businessman and philanthropist. Nicknamed A K, currently he is estimated to have a net worth of US$11.7 billion according to Forbes' latest annual list of wealthiest people, making him the second wealthiest in Southeast Asia behind Robert Kuok, and number 82 in the world. Ananda Krishnan shuns public exposure and is known to maintain a low profile for a person of his stature.
Zulfahmi Khairuddin
Man
Muhammad Zulfahmi Khairuddin is a Malaysian motorcycle racer who currently competes in the Moto3 class in the Motorcycle World Championship. He made his debut in 125 championship in the 2009 Malaysian Grand Prix where he finished 20th. In 2010, Zulfahmi competed in his first full season on board an Aprilia for the Air Asia-Sepang International Circuit. He finally grab his first ever Moto3 podium as he finish 2nd position at the 2012 Malaysian Grand Prix, and achieved the first pole position by a Malaysian rider in any class at his home race in October 2012. Zulfahmi led for most of the race, but finished second behind team-mate Sandro Cortese, after Cortese made a final-lap pass. At the end of the 2012 MotoGP campaign at Valencia, he claimed the 2nd podium of his career; he climbed from 17th on the grid to finish 3rd behind Danny Kent and Sandro Cortese in a dramatic thrilling race.
Jaclyn Victor
Ballad Artist
Jaclyn Joshua Thanaraj Victor, popularly known as Jac, is a singer and actress who won the inaugural Malaysian Idol and Ikon Malaysia. For being the winner of Malaysian Idol, she won a recording contract under Sony BMG Entertainment. She is under the management of The 8 Unit. She represented Malaysia in the first Asian Idol and Ikon Asean. She is also dubbed as Asia's Divette for her vocal prowess.
Indra Putra Mahayuddin
Soccer Forward
Indra Putra Mahayuddin is a Malaysian footballer who plays for Malaysia Premier League side FELDA United and a former Malaysia national team. He is a versatile forward, who can operate as a striker and winger.
Chua Tian Chang
Democracy activist
Chua Tian Chang, better known as Tian Chua, is a Malaysian politician and is currently the Member of Parliament for the Batu constituency in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He is vice-president of Parti Keadilan Rakyat, an opposition party in the Parliament of Malaysia. He formerly served as information chief of the party. Tian Chua first burst into the limelight in 1999 when images of him sitting defiantly in front of a police water cannon truck were splashed across the global media during the height of the Reformasi movement in Malaysia due to the sacking of Anwar Ibrahim as Deputy Prime Minister. Between September 27 and 30, 1999, Tian Chua and six other activists, including Keadilan leaders; Youth leader Mohd Ezam Mohd Nor, Mohamed Azmin Ali and Dr Badrul Amin Baharun; were arrested and as a result prevented from contesting in the 1999 general elections. Further arrests were made on 10 April 2001 and those arrested were subsequently charged and incarcerated under the Internal Security Act. They became known as the Reformasi 10. In the 2008 general elections, Tian Chua contested in the Batu parliamentary constituency in Kuala Lumpur and won, defeating Barisan Nasional's Lim Si Pin with a 9,455 majority.
Mohd Aidil Zafuan Abdul Radzak
Footballer
Mohd Aidil Zafuan Abdul Radzak is a Malaysian footballer who currently plays as a Defender for Johor Darul Takzim. He also a member of Malaysia national, Malaysia U-23 and former Malaysia U-20 squad. He is the older of his twin, Mohd Zaquan Adha Abdul Radzak
Pandelela Rinong
Diver
Pandelela Rinong anak Pamg,JBK is a Malaysian diver. She became the first female Malaysian athlete to win a medal at the Olympics, as well as the first to win an Olympic medal in any sport other than Badminton, when she took the bronze in the 10m diving event at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat
Politician
Dato' Bentara Setia Haji Nik Abdul Aziz bin Nik Mat is a Malaysian politician, a Muslim ulama and a former Menteri Besar of the state of Kelantan. He is the Mursyidul Am or spiritual leader of the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party.
Wan Zack Haikal Wan Noor
Soccer Midfielder
Wan Zack Haikal Wan Noor is a Malaysian footballer who currently plays as a striker or a midfielder for FC Ryukyu. He is also a member of the Malaysia national football team and Malaysian Olympic team. He is a younger brother of Sabah FA player, Wan Mohd Azwari Wan Nor. Wan Zack, alongside Irfan Fazail and Fadhli Shas, is the first Malaysian to play at the Slovakian League with Zlaté Moravce.
Paul Tan
Man
Paul Tan, is a blogger based in Malaysia. He is an automotive journalist who writes about cars and the automotive industry in his blog, paultan.org. Established in 2005, his blog enjoyed a quick rise to fame, visited by over 800,000 unique people a month with 7 million pageviews. The term paultan is the second most frequently searched person on Google by Malaysian Google users after Siti Nurhaliza, according to Google's 2007 Malaysia Year-End Zeitgeist, beating celebrities like Paris Hilton and Britney Spears.
Khairul Fahmi Che Mat
Soccer
Khairul Fahmi Che Mat is a Malaysian goalkeeper who plays for Kelantan and the Malaysia national football team. He is also former Malaysia U-23 and Malaysia U-20 squad.
Chin Peng
Politician
Chin Peng, former OBE, born Ong Boon Hua was a long-time leader of the Malayan Communist Party. A determined anti-colonialist, he led the party's guerrilla insurgency in the Malayan Emergency, fighting against British and Commonwealth forces in an attempt to establish an independent communist state. After the MCP's defeat and subsequent Malayan independence, Chin waged a campaign against Malaya and, after 1963, the new state of Malaysia in an attempt to replace its government with a communist one from exile, until signing a peace accord with the Malaysian government in 1989. Chin Peng died at the age of 88, in Bangkok, Thailand. Prior to his death, he was living in exile in Thailand and had not been permitted to return to Malaysia contrary to one of the conditions of the 1989 peace agreement.
Jesseca Liu
Woman
Jesseca Liu Zi Xuan, stage-name Liu Zi Xuan 刘子绚, before Liu Zi Xuan actually is Liu Zhi Xuan 刘芷绚, real-name is Lao Chew Yen 刘秋雁, is a Malaysian and Singapore-based singer and actress. Previously, she was a contracted artiste under MediaCorp, now belonging to HIM International Music.
Hishammuddin Hussein
Politician
Datuk Seri Panglima Hishammuddin bin Tun Hussein is a Malaysian politician and member of the United Malays National Organisation. He is currently the Minister of Defence and acting Minister of Transport since 16 May 2013. He served in the government of Malaysia as Minister of Home Affairs from 2009 to 2013 and Minister of Education from 2004 to 2009. He has been mentioned as a likely successor to his cousin, Prime Minister Najib Razak. He is the son of Malaysia's third prime minister, Tun Hussein Onn and the nephew of Malaysia's second prime minister, Tun Abdul Razak.
Francisco Macías Nguema
Politician
Francisco Macías Nguema was the first President of Equatorial Guinea, from 1968 until his overthrow in 1979.
Jill Bennett
Actor
Jill Bennett was a British actress, and the fourth wife of playwright John Osborne.
Devan Nair
Politician
Devan Nair Chengara Veetil, also known as C. V. Devan Nair, was the third President of Singapore. He was elected by the Parliament of Singapore on 23 October 1981, and served as President until his resignation on 28 March 1985.
Lisa Surihani
Actor
Lisa Surihani binti Mohamed or better known as Lisa Surihani is a Malaysian actress, model, television host and commercial model.
Abby Abadi
Woman
Arbaiyah Abdul Manan or better known as Abby Abadi is a Malaysian actress who stars on the popular police drama, Gerak Khas. She won the Berita Harian's Anugerah Bintang Popular Award for Most Popular TV Actress in 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2003.
Nurul Elfira Loy
Actor
Nurul Elfira Loy Binti Ahmad Sabri better known by her stage name Elfira Loy is a Malaysian actress. She is popularly known in her first telemovie drama Cinta Itu Buta where she acted as a school girl. She is known for her role as Qalesya in the hit drama Qalesya and as Amirah in Disney's Waktu Rehat. She gained popularity playing the main character in the drama series Qalesya which aired throughout Ramadan month on Astro Prima in 2009 and 2010. Elfira's siblings, Ahmad Ezzrin Loy and Nurul Ezzlisa Loy are also actors and performance both of have roles on Oh My English!.
Fung Bo Bo
Actor
Petrina Fung Bo Bo is a Hong Kong actress. She is the daughter of Hong Kong actor Feng Feng and the sister of actor Fung Hak-On. She started her career as a child actress.
Catherine Lim
Author
Catherine Lim Poh Imm is a Singaporean fiction author known for writing about Singapore society and of themes of traditional Chinese culture. Hailed as the "doyenne of Singapore writers", Lim has published nine collections of short stories, five novels, two poetry collections, and numerous political commentaries to date. Her social commentary in 1994, titled The PAP and the people - A Great Affective Divide and published in The Straits Times criticised the ruling political party's agendas.
Nur Fazura
Actor
Nur Fazura Sharifuddin is a Malaysian actress, TV Host and VJ. She began her career in Malaysian entertainment industry in hosting a television show and several minor acting roles. She was the host of a television show called Teens World. In 2004, she launched her film career with playing the leading role in Bicara Hati which became her breakout role and earned her an award nomination. Later in 2005, she starred as the bubbly-energetic lead character in the film Gol & Gincu. Fazura is considered as one of the most stylish actress and celebrity in Malaysia according to many entertainment and fashion magazines and frequently appears in these magazine's "Stylish" and "Hot" lists. Up to 2010, she has done 10 featured films and countless hit TV series and dramas as well as hosting a numbers of television program.
Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah
Politician
Tan Sri Tengku Razaleigh bin Tengku Mohd Hamzah is a major Malaysian political figure from the state of Kelantan, and a former Finance Minister. He is an uncle of the current Raja Perempuan of Kelantan. Tengku is a Malay hereditary title usually translated as prince. He is fondly known as Ku Li, derived from the last syllables of Tengku Razaleigh: this is a common kind of contraction in the dialect of Kelantan. He was the Malaysian Finance Minister, the Trade and Industry minister, the former chairman of the World Bank, former chairman of Asian Development Bank, former chairman of Islamic Development Bank and the founder and former chairman of Malaysian oil company, Petronas. He is now the longest-serving member of parliament in Malaysia followed by Abdul Taib Mahmud. Razaleigh is energetic, humorous and chatty. Both allies and opponents say he is generous and doesn’t hold grudges. He likes to cook. Nicknames include “The People’s Prince”, “Ku Kita”. Tengku Razaleigh continues to be involved in politics until today and has been serving his constituency since 1969 without ever losing in a General Election, one of the few politicians who can boast of this privilege.
Mohammed Ghaddar
Footballer
Mohammed Mahmoud Ghaddar is a Lebanese footballer who plays as a striker who is currently a free agent and a member of Lebanon national football team.