Malaysia was first given the name in 1963 after the Federation of Malaya, North Borneo, Sarawak and Singapore formed a federation comprising 14 states. At that time other names were considered too, among them was Langkasuka which was the name of a historic kingdom in the same area.
The Portuguese took over the port of Malacca in the year 1511, which lies on the east coast of Malaysia. However with continual conflict between them and the Sultanate of Aceh and the Sultanate of Johor they relinquished control to the Dutch in 1641 after the Dutch sided with the Sultanate of Johor against them.
Taking a leap forward in time to 1963, Malaysia came into existence. At that time the Sultanate of Brunei had also wished to join the federation but due to their own political issues and some other problems with regards to oil duties they pulled out.
Troubles continued in the early years of the Federation and independence. President Sukarno of Indonesia tried to lay claim to Sarawak, but this "undeclared war" was quelled by the British. Then in 1965, just 2 years after the formation, Singapore pulled out due to some disagreements.
Then the Philippines laid a claim for the state of Sabah, although up till now this claim has not been recognized. Further problems have continued to vent due to the multi racial population of Malaysia.
Even recently there have been uprisings against the government mainly from the Chinese because they feel that they are unfairly treated and not fairly represented, where the Malays are offered far more by the government.
The governmental system is somewhat similar to the British style in that the power is held both federally and state by state. The government is made up of a multi party coalition which is named Barisan Nasional. In all 13 states now make up Malaysia, which includes the largest of them - Sarawak, and there are also 3 federal territories. The states are subdivided into districts.
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