Rasa Sayang

"Rasa Sayang" (also known as "Rasa Sayang Hey") is a Malay folk song. The basis of "Rasa Sayang" is similar to Dondang Sayang and Malay folk songs, which take their form from the pantun, a traditional ethnic Malay poetic form. == In Indonesia ==

"Rasa Sayange" is an Ambonese Malay folk song, a Malay creole originating from Maluku, specifically Ambon. Another more modern variant with an additional Indonesian verse goes as follows: ==2007 Malaysian tourism response==

Controversy over the song's provenance came to a head in 2007 when the Malaysian Tourism Board released the Rasa Sayang Commercial, an advertisement used as part of Malaysia's "Truly Asia" tourism campaign. Some Indonesians have accused Malaysia of heritage theft. Indonesian news sites reported that it is a song of the Maluku Islands, that it has appeared in early Indonesian films and recordings. Around a thousand Indonesians demonstrated outside the Malaysian embassy in Jakarta in November 2007 to protest the use of "Rasa Sayang" and other cultural items such as Reog Ponorogo in such adverts. In order to prevent what they considered cultural appropriation, the Indonesian government started making an inventory of such songs as cultural properties of the country. In cases where people have been migrating, trading and intermingling for centuries in a region, it may be difficult to make claim of cultural property. Malaysian Tourism Minister Adnan Mansor stated, "It is a folk song from the Nusantara (Malay Archipelago) and we are part of the Nusantara.". ==Early recordings and uses==

In 1938, a British documentary film titled "FIVE FACES" features "Rasa Sayang" as one of the background songs. In a report from the Singaporean newspaper The Straits Times on May 10, 1958, an unnamed singer in British Malaya confessed to having sung the "Rasa Sayang" in front of a public audience for the first time over 20 years ago. This suggests that the song was already known and performed publicly as early as the 1930s. In 1939, "Rasa Sayang" was among the songs played on Penang radio. In 1943, "Rasa Sayang" appeared in the Japanese film Marai no Tora, which depicted the exploits of a Japanese secret agent Tani Yutaka in Malaya during the World War II. In 1950 and 1954, "Rasa Sayange" was used in the soundtracks of Indonesian films Darah dan Doa and Lewat Djam Malam directed by Usmar Ismail. In a report from The Straits Times on August 20, 1958, The World Assembly of Youth (WAY) conference held in New Delhi has officially adopted the beloved Malayan folk song “Rasa Sayang” as its theme tune. In 1959, a comedy film in Malay language titled Rasa Sayang Eh was produced by Cathay Keris in Singapore. On April 1, 1959, "Rasa Sayang" was performed by Malay students from Malaya in Sydney during an exhibition held to raise funds for the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), which was officiated by the wife of the Malayan High Commissioner, Datin Gunn Lay Teik. In 1960, George de Fretes released an album titled Indonesian Classics No.1, it features a variety of Indonesian folk songs including "Rasa Sayange". In 1960, the Hindi version of the song was used in the movie Singapore, sung by Lata Mangeshkar and Mohammed Rafi. In 1962, the Lokananta Solo record company distributed LP records as souvenirs to the participants of the 4th Asian Games in 1962 held in Jakarta, the LP included several Indonesian folk songs including "Rasa Sayange". In 1989, Singaporean singer-songwriter Dick Lee produced a rendition of the song while including patriotic descriptions of Singaporean culture. ==See also==