More Malay youths picking up Mandarin as third language

The popularity of Mandarin classes is rising among Malaysians, including those without Chinese heritage, who are starting to recognise its significance, especially living in a multicultural country.

This trend is apparent especially through the mushrooming of Mandarin classes, which use Bahasa Malaysia as a medium of instruction, catering mostly to the adult Malay students who are eager to pick up the language for a variety of reasons.

One of them is Khizanat Mandarin, a class offered in Ipoh founded by 21-year-old Deena Erissa Delaila Mohd Zawawi (above, middle), who herself does not have Chinese heritage, but learnt Mandarin as a student of a...