Malaysia is in South-eastern Asia, peninsula and northern one-third of
the island of Borneo, bordering Indonesia and the South China Sea, south of
Vietnam.
During the late 18th and 19th centuries, Great Britain
established colonies and protectorates in the area of current Malaysia; these
were occupied by Japan from 1942 to 1945. In 1948, the British-ruled territories
on the Malay Peninsula formed the Federation of Malaya, which became independent
in 1957. Malaysia was formed in 1963 when the former British colonies of
Singapore and the East Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak on the northern
coast of Borneo joined the Federation. Singapore seceded from the Federation in
1965.
