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Story: Malaysians and Singaporeans

Page 5: Facts and figures

Ethnic identity

In the New Zealand census, people were asked to indicate the ethnic group or groups with which they identified. The numbers include those who indicated more than one group.

  • Malay: 3,537 (2006); 4,794 (2013); 3,729 (2018)
  • Malaysian Chinese: 1,353 (2006); 1,851 (2013); 4866 (2018)
  • Singaporean Chinese: 606 (2006); 738 (2013); 675 (2018)

Country of birth

The New Zealand census figures listed here show the number of residents born in countries now called Malaysia and Singapore.

Malaya

  • 1951 census: 165

Malaysia

  • 1976 census: 4,101
  • 2001 census: 11,463
  • 2006 census: 14,547
  • 2013 census: 16,353
  • 2018 census: 19,860

Singapore

  • 1881 census: 4
  • 1951 census: 94
  • 1976 census: 1,672
  • 2001 census: 3,912
  • 2006 census: 4,857
  • 2013 census: 5,370
  • 2018 census: 6,741
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How to cite this page

Carl Walrond, Malaysians and Singaporeans – Facts and figures, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/malaysians-and-singaporeans/page-5 (accessed 25 June 2026).

Story by Carl Walrond, published 19 October 2015, updated 1 August 2024.