10 of the Most Famous Malaysians

Petronas towers photo by Marcin Koncek- Wikimedia

10 Most Famous Malaysians

Malaysia is a Southeast Asian country occupying parts of the Malay Peninsula and the island of Borneo. It’s known for its beaches, rainforests and mix of Malay, Chinese, Indian and European cultural influences.

The capital, Kuala Lumpur, is home to colonial buildings, busy shopping districts  and skyscrapers such as the iconic, 451m-tall Petronas Twin Towers

Malaysia’s population is a mix of three major ethnic groups, each with its own heritage, culture and tradition. 60% of the population are Bumiputera – traditional inhabitants of the country and includes Malays, Orang Asli and other indigenous peoples.

Minorities are Chinese, about 20%, and Indians (6%). Malaysia has more than 130 living languages; the official language is Bahasa Malaysia (Melayu).

Malaysia is a relatively small country, the nation has produced its fair share of famous and talented people. They are leaders in their fields, ranging from the arts to entertainment to sports.

They inspire Malaysians to achieve the status and success they have already gained. Here is a list of the 10 most famous Malaysians:

1.      Jimmy Choo- Fashion Designer

Photo Richalbertoa – Wikimedia

He was born in Penang, Malaysia to a shoemaker and at the age of 11 years old, he had already crafted his very first shoe.

Choo went to London to study and in 1983,  he graduated from the London College of Fashion. Three years later, he opened his shoe shop in Hackney.

His designs quickly established him as an up-and-coming shoe designer and when British Vogue expressed a desire to feature him in their publication, his career as a shoe designer took off.

The magazine gave him a record 8-page spread where he featured his collection and from then on, Jimmy Choos have become the sought-after footwear of the rich and famous.

Even the late Princess Diana was a loyal royal client of his.

Jimmy Choo has achieved what no other Malaysian has in the fashion world. For his work, he was conferred Order of British Empire (OBE).

2. Michelle Yeoh- Actress

Photo by Georges Biard – Wikimedia

Malaysia’s most successful movie star. Her status was cemented by her appearances as a Bond girl in the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies alongside Pierce Brosnan. 

The girl from the town of Ipoh began her career in Hong Kong in the movie Police Story 3 starring Jackie Chan.

Her repertoire is impressive and includes Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, The Mummy 3 and Memoirs of a Geisha.

She is a talented and versatile actress who cannot be type-cast. All in all, she has conquered Hong Kong and Hollywood on behalf of Malaysia.

3. Noor Neloofa- Model/ Entrepreneur

Noor Neelofa Mohd Noor is a Malaysian actress, TV presenter, model and entrepreneur.

She is a Muslim icon also known as Lofa and boasts 6.1 million followers on Instagram.

Lofa did modelling work for Dior, Lancome and Swarovski She rose to fame when participated and won in a beauty queen competition, Dewi Remaja (Miss Teen Malaysia 2009/10.

Beyond her entertainment career, she has been involved in multiple business ventures including Naelofar Hijabs.

Her decision to publicly wear and endorse the niqab spiked discussions that made her trend globally.

Undoubtedly, Neelofa is a leader and was named amongst ‘Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia’ in 2017.

4.  Henry Golding- Actor

Photo by world Travel and Tourism Council- Wikimedia

Malaysian television host, actor and model hailing from Kuching,  Sarawak, Malaysia.

His mother is from the Iban people, an Indigenous group in Sarawak where Henry completed the bejalai, an Iban rite of passage, in the jungles of Borneo.

He has extensively spoken about the challenges of his dual ancestry and how it helped him develop resilience. At 8 years the family moved to England but he moved back to Malaysia at 21.

Henry made his feature film debut in Crazy Rich Asians (2018), playing Nick Young. In addition, he also starred in A Simple Favor (2018), in the romantic comedy Last Christmas (2019), The Gentlemen (2019) and Snake Eyes (2021).

5.   Ambiga Srneevasan- Lawyer

Photo by US Dept. of State – Wikimedia

Ambiga Sreenevasan is a Malaysian lawyer. Known for her pursuit of judicial reform, religious tolerance and women’s equality.

She has served as president of the Malaysian Bar Council.

Sreenevan successfully fought to amend the Malaysian Constitution to ensure that women’s testimony carried equal weight to that of men in courts.

Her work has resulted in accountability, expanded democratic space and chairing Bersih 2.0 rally led to the historic change of government, in 2018.

The Bersih 2.0 rally was a civic movement devoted to free and fair elections in Malaysia.

Her firm stand on justice has led to calls for her arrest and has been a target of attacks. She is an alternate member of the ICJ’s Executive Committee.

6.      Abdul Samad bin Muhamad Samad- Poet

 Abdul Samad bin Mohamed Said, pen name A. Samad Said (born 9 April 1935) is a Malaysian poet and novelist.

A native of the Malaccan Kampung village of Belimbing Dalam, near the town of Durian Tunggal.

He has written in almost all fields of literature and creative writing; novels, short stories, poem, essays, drama and articles.

His notable works are Salina which is about a prostitute in Malay pre Independence and Hujan Pagi (translated to English as Morning Post). 

Together with other literary scholars, he campaigned to abolish the teaching of mathematics and science in English secondary schools leads to the degradation of the Malay language

7.      Pua Khen- USB Inventor

Born in Sekinchan, Selangor, Malaysia. Pua is the “father of pen-drive” in Malaysia. This is because he is one of the inventors of USB flash drives.

The CEO of Phison Electronics Corp based in Taiwan claims to have incorporated the world’s first single-chip USB flash drive. 

Pua received his undergraduate education in electrical control engineering at the National Chiao Tung University, Taiwan.

8. Nicol David- Tennis Player

Nicol David was born in Penang Malaysia and is best known as a professional squash player who held the longest No.1  rated player for a consecutive 108 days.

In addition, on her shelves are 8 World Open Titles, 5 British Open Titles besides being the only player to win the world junior title twice.

David is an advocate for Squash, promoting the game worldwide and has pushed for Olympic inclusion.

Squash fans voted her as the greatest squash player of all-time in the women’s category.

Nicol retired at the end of the 2018/2019 PSA season. She is a Sport for Good Ambassador for the Laureus Foundation.

9.      Robert Kuok- Tycoon

The Chinese-Malaysian business magnate is the richest man in Malaysia. He was born in Johor Baru, Johor Malaysia.

He made his fortunes in the sugar business.

His net worth currently stands at 11.3 Billion dollars. The billionaire is the CEO of the Kuok Group, which has interests in hotels, real estate and commodities.

He founded the internationally renowned Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts chain in Singapore.

Kuok’s biggest source of wealth is a stake in Wilmar International, the world’s largest listed palm oil trading company.

Further, Kuok is a member of the Council of Eminent Persons who advise the Malaysian government.

10. Yuna

Photo by Irwandy Mazwir – wikimedia

Yuna is a Malaysian singer-songwriter from Alor Setar, Kedah, Malaysia real name Yunalis Mat Zara’ai.

She is a successful songbird signed with the Fader Label.

She is best known for her collaboration with Usher on her breakout single “Crush”, which peaked at number 3 on the US Billboard Adult R&B chart.

The talented singer taught herself to play the guitar.

Yuna’s debut self-titled EP album earned four Malaysian Music Awards nominations (the Malaysian equivalent of the Grammy).

She has taken home many trophies including Best New Artist and Best Song for her breakthrough hit Dan Sebenarnya.