Ethnic Groups of Sabah: Peoples, Languages & Census Figures

How many ethnic groups are there in Sabah?

The 2020 census table for Sabah lists 14 named Sabah Bumiputera groups — among them Kadazan/Dusun, Bajau, Murut, Orang Sungai, Suluk, Brunei Malay and Rungus — plus 335,347 people recorded as other Sabah Bumiputera, alongside Malay, Chinese, Indian and other citizens (DOSM). Linguists count about 50 languages in Sabah and 83 forms of speech once dialects are included (King and King, 1984).

This is not a modern phenomenon. Sabah's diversity is the product of tens of thousands of years of Austronesian migration, indigenous community divergence across isolated mountain valleys and river systems, and centuries of maritime trade routes connecting Borneo to the Philippines, Java, China, and the Arabian Peninsula. The result is a living mosaic unlike anywhere else in Southeast Asia.

At the 2020 census, 88.7% of Sabah's citizens were Bumiputera (2,313,471, including 236,934 Malays). Of all Bumiputera, Kadazan/Dusun were 28.6%, Bajau 24.4% and Murut 4.6%. Chinese citizens numbered 248,920 (DOSM Census 2020, Sabah, Tables 2 and 5).

The 2020 census counted 810,443 non-citizens, 23.7% of residents and the highest share of any Malaysian state; DOSM's estimate for 2025 is about 1.04 million, or 27.7% (DOSM, Current Population Estimates 2025, checked 7 October 2026). The census does not break non-citizens down by nationality.

Who are the major ethnic groups in Sabah?

Sabah's major ethnic groups can be broadly grouped by their historical origins and geographic distribution: indigenous highland and coastal peoples (Kadazan-Dusun, Murut, Rungus, Lundayeh), maritime peoples (Bajau, Bajau Laut, Suluk/Tausug), immigrant communities (Chinese, Malay), and cross-border communities (Bajau Laut, Suluk, Filipino).

Indigenous Peoples of Sabah

The Kadazan-Dusun — Sabah's largest indigenous group — are primarily rice farmers of the west coast and interior highlands. The Bajau span two very different worlds: the horse-riding "Cowboys of the East" on the west coast, and the sea-nomadic Bajau Laut of Semporna's waters. The Murut are interior forest peoples of the Tenom, Keningau, and Nabawan districts, known for the spectacular Lansaran trampoline dance. The Rungus, concentrated around Kudat at the Tip of Borneo, maintain some of the most intact traditional longhouse cultures in Sabah, famed for intricate beadwork. The Lundayeh (called Lun Bawang in Sarawak and Brunei) are a small but deeply Christian community in Sipitang, divided by colonial borders across three countries.

Maritime and Migrant Communities

The Suluk (Tausug) carry the historical legacy of the Sulu Sultanate — one of Southeast Asia's most powerful maritime polities — and remain concentrated on Sabah's east coast. The Chinese community, predominantly Hakka in origin, arrived from China in organised groups from December 1882, when about 100 Hakka Christian labourers landed at Kudat (Basel Christian Church of Malaysia, checked 7 October 2026), under the British North Borneo Chartered Company and built much of Sabah's agricultural and commercial economy. Sabah Malay (Melayu Sabah) is distinct from Peninsular Malay — many Sabah Malays have Bajau, Brunei, or Kadazan ancestry who adopted Islam and Malay cultural identity over generations.

Ethnic group population breakdown (2020 census)

The 2020 census counted 3,418,785 people in Sabah. The largest groups were:

Source: DOSM, Key Findings of the Population and Housing Census 2020, Sabah, Table 5. Ethnic groups are self-declared; non-citizens are not broken down by ethnicity or nationality. Main districts are indicative. No official count of the Bajau Laut is published.

What languages are spoken in Sabah?

The standard linguistic survey of the state counted 51 languages in Sabah, 33 of them centred in the state, and 83 forms of speech once dialects are included (King and King, Languages of Sabah, 1984). The indigenous languages fall into four main groupings: Dusunic, Sama-Bajau, Murutic and Paitanic. The full language guide covers all major languages in detail.

What are the major cultural festivals by ethnic group?

Sabah's ethnic diversity means virtually every month has a significant cultural festival somewhere in the state. The calendar below covers the major recurring celebrations tied to specific ethnic communities.

What makes Sabah's diversity unique in Malaysia?

Sabah's ethnic diversity is qualitatively different from Peninsular Malaysia's. On the Peninsula, diversity largely means three major communities — Malay, Chinese, Tamil Indian — who arrived at different points in the colonial era. In Sabah, the diversity is pre-colonial, rooted in tens of thousands of years of indigenous divergence, and involves dozens of distinct peoples who have lived side by side since before recorded history.

Several factors make Sabah's case exceptional:

Linguistic richness: About 50 languages and 83 forms of speech (King and King, 1984) in one state of about 3.76 million people in 2025 (DOSM, Current Population Estimates 2025, checked 7 October 2026). The Sama-Bajau language family alone branches into dialects so distinct that West Coast Bajau and Bajau Laut speakers cannot fully understand each other.

Cross-border identities: Colonial borders cut through living ethnic territories. The Bajau Laut live across Malaysian, Filipino, and Indonesian waters. The Lundayeh are split between Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei, and Kalimantan. The Suluk/Tausug's historical homeland is the Sulu Archipelago in the Philippines — yet the 2020 census counted 72,734 Suluk citizens in Sabah, with more among non-citizens. These are not immigrant populations but people whose ancestral territories pre-date the nations that now claim them.

Rapid change: Sabah's ethnic landscape is shifting faster than at any point in its history. Young Kadazan-Dusun are urbanising and shifting to Malay and English. Bajau Laut sea nomads are being forced onto land. What visitors see today is both an ancient culture and a community in the middle of profound transformation.

In-depth guides for each ethnic group

Each guide below covers the group's origins, population, language, traditional culture, food, festivals, and current situation — sourced from academic research, DOSM data, and Sabah government publications.

Frequently asked questions