Siamese in a Malay-Muslim state: Identity, belonging, and integration in Terbak Village, Tumpat, Kelantan

Lee, Kenneth Tze Wui (2026) Siamese in a Malay-Muslim state: Identity, belonging, and integration in Terbak Village, Tumpat, Kelantan. PhD thesis, UTAR.

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Abstract

Situated at the intersection of Thai cultural heritage and Malaysian citizenship, the Siamese community in Kelantan occupies a complex position as a non-Muslim Bumiputera minority within a sociopolitical landscape increasingly defined by Malay-Islamic dominance. Despite being legally recognized, this community navigates structural limitations and assimilative pressures within governance frameworks that provide symbolic, incomplete inclusion. While previous scholarship has documented the historical and anthropological aspects of Siamese Malaysians, particularly in Kedah, significant gaps remain regarding how communities in Kelantan respond to these contemporary sociopolitical pressures. To address this gap, this study examines the identity negotiation and adaptive strategies of the Siamese community in Terbak Village, Tumpat, Kelantan. Using an ethnographic design grounded in participant observation and in-depth interviews, it explores how Terbak’s Siamese maintain cultural resilience while adapting to their environment. The findings reveal that the community negotiates assimilative pressures through adaptive identity positioning, a dynamic and situational approach that allows them to strategically balance their Thai-Buddhist heritage with adaptive integration. Despite generational shifts, the community exhibits minimal erosion of its identity, instead engaging in a dual process of identity rearticulation and consolidation that reinforces core cultural anchors while navigating new social realities. Furthermore, they construct a grounded national identity defined by civic participation and dual symbolic loyalty, demonstrating agency within constraints rather than succumbing to simple assimilation or resistance. This research sheds light on minority identity negotiation within multicultural contexts characterized by power imbalances, highlighting the need for genuinely inclusive policies that acknowledge cultural diversity as a national asset, rather than a threat to cohesion.

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