Greeting customs vary according to age, ethnicity, and situation. Malays greet with the
salaam: two people bring right palms together, as if to shake hands, and then slide them apart; each person then touches the palm to his or her heart.
Malays greet with Selamat pagi (Good morning), Selamat petang (Good afternoon), or Selamat malam
(Good evening). More formal Malay terms include Selamat sejahtera ke atas anda
(I wish you peace and tranquility) or the Muslim phrase Assalam alaikum (Peace be upon you).
Chinese names begin with the family name followed by a two-character given name. So, a single woman
named Lee Hwi Chern is properly addressed by her full name or as Miss Lee. Many Chinese (especially
Christians) adopt Western names, which come first. So Catherine Tan Leng Yan is Miss Tan but Catherine
to her friends.
Malays have no surnames but instead use a given name followed by the father's given name. These are
separated by bin (son of) or binti (daughter of): Daud bin Hakim (addressed as Mr. Daud) or almah binte
Jufri (Miss Salmah).