Mamak stall

A mamak stall is a food establishment which serves mamak food.

History

The Malaysian Mamak are Malaysians of Tamil Muslim origin, whose forefathers mostly migrated from South India to the Malay Peninsula and various locations in Southeast Asia centuries ago. They are regarded as part of the Malaysian Indian community. Indian Muslims are believed to have first arrived at Samudera (now Aceh in Sumatra, Indonesia) in the early 10th century. Archaeological findings in Bujang Valley, Kedah, Malaysia suggest a trade relationship with India as early as the 1st to 5th century C.E. An inscription dated 779 AD that refers to the trade relationship between the Tamil country and Malaya has been found in Ligor, Malay Peninsula.

The word 'Mamak' is from the Tamil term for maternal uncle, or 'maa-ma'. In Singapore and Malaysia, it is used by children as an honorific to respectfully address adults such as shopkeepers. The silent K in 'Mamak' likely came about as a hypercorrection; since terminal Ks are not pronounced in Malay, a Malay who heard the Tamil word may have assumed there was a silent K at the end. Although the origins of the word are benign, it is sometimes used as a derogatory term for the Indian Muslim community in Malaysia.