Orang Asli is a generic name given to the indigenous people living on the Malay Peninsula. Using extensive ethnographic data, Living on the Periphery reveals the way in which state-initiated development projects and the process of Islamization influence the life world of the Orang Asli in the name of national unity. The Malaysian government stands behind the Muslim Orang Asli and regards anyone resisting Islamization as a rebel against the nation state. The Islamization program that aims at state-based integration brought about large-scale socioeconomic changes and created class divides, splits, and disharmonies in the community. Conflicts escalated notably between the Muslims supported by the government and the non-Muslims that are subjected to repressive forces of the state.

About Editors and Authors

NOBUTA Toshihiro is Professor at the National Museum of Ethnology. His field of study is social anthropology and area studies in Southeast Asia. He completed his PhD at Tokyo Metropolitan University in 2002 and served as Assistant Professor at the university before being appointed to his current position in 2003.