Austronesian · ISO 639-3 msi
Sabah Malay Language Sabah Melayu
Sabah Malay is an Austronesian language spoken by about 3.0 million people in 1 country. It is written in the Latin script.
Where Sabah Malay is spoken
- Official language
- Regional official
- Spoken by 10%+
- 1–10%
- Smaller communities
Countries that speak Sabah Malay
Language family
- Austronesian
- Malayo-Polynesian
- Malayo-Chamic
- Malayic
- Nuclear Malayic
- East Borneo Malay
- Banjar-Berau-Brunei Malay
- Berau-Brunei Malay
- Bruneic Malay
- Sabah Malay
Writing system
Latin script
Related languages
About the Sabah Malay language
Sabah Malay (Sabah Melayu) is spoken by about 3.0 million people, which makes it the 255th most spoken language in the world — just behind Ibibio (3.0 million) and ahead of Tonga (Zambia) (3.0 million). It belongs to the Austronesian language family and, more precisely, to the Bruneic Malay group within the Malayo-Chamic branch.
Where is Sabah Malay spoken?
Sabah Malay is used in 1 country. The largest communities live in Malaysia (3.0 million).
Sabah Malay is not a national official language anywhere.
Writing system and status
Sabah Malay is written in the Latin script. It is a safe, widely transmitted language: children still learn it at home as their first language.
Its closest relatives in the same branch of the family are Bukit Malay, Banjar, Indonesian, Minangkabau, Betawi, Pattani Malay and 2 more.
ISO codes: ISO 639-3 msi.
Frequently asked questions about Sabah Malay
How many people speak Sabah Malay?
Where is Sabah Malay spoken?
What language family does Sabah Malay belong to?
What is Sabah Malay called in Sabah Malay?
Is Sabah Malay an endangered language?
Data: Languages of the World dataset (MIT) — ISO 639-3, Glottolog (CC BY 4.0), Unicode CLDR, Google LinguaMeta (CC BY 4.0) and Wikidata; country lists: samayo/country-json (MIT). Speaker numbers include first- and second-language speakers where sources report them.