In interpreting the figures in respect of population size and growth, we should be mindful of the population censuses not being conducted on a uniform time interval of ten years as practised in most countries. The holding of the third pan-Malaysia Census in 1991 has resulted in a break in the intercensal time interval, 10 years for the 1970–1980 period, 11 years for the 1980–1991 period and nine years for the 1991–2000 period. What this implies is that we should pay more attention to the figures for annual rate of growth rather than intercensal rate of growth presented in Table 2.1 and other tables where time-series data are included for the purpose of examining population trends.

It is also necessary to explain the presentation of the figures according to geographic areas. The practice of examining some of the census results in terms of three broad geographic regions in the census reports has been adopted in our analysis. West Malaysia, also known as Peninsular Malaysia, consists of eleven states and the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur with common land boundaries and shared historical, political and economic background. The two states of Sabah and Sarawak, collectively known as East Malaysia, are separated by the vast expense of the South China Sea, apart from their separate history, economy and population.

OVERALL POPULATION GROWTH

The figures for 1960 are obtained from the pre-Malaysia Censuses conducted in this year in Sabah and Sarawak and from intercensal population estimate for West Malaysia where the census was held in 1957 instead of 1960. The changes in the size of the population over time are caused by natural increase and net international migration. The population of Malaysia prior to its establishment was estimated to total about 8,035,600 in the pre-merger year of 1960. By the first pan-Malaysia Census held in 1970 the population has grown to above the ten-million mark of 10,439,400, an increase of 2,405,800 or an annual growth rate of 2.7 per cent during this ten-year period. In the second pan-Malaysia Census conducted in 1980 the population was enumerated as 13,136,100, an increase of 2,696,700 since 1970 or an annual growth rate of 2.3 per cent. The race riots that flared up on 13 May 1969 in Kuala Lumpur started a fresh movement of non-Bumiputera persons outward to Singapore and other countries.