Majie, in Cantonese, means “mother and sister.”
The term refers to unmarried women who migrated from a small locale in Guangdong, China, to work as domestic helpers mainly in Penang and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, etc.
The term Majie appears to be peculiar to our region. It is not used at all in an excellent chapter that researched the reasons why women in this particular locality in Guangdong refused to marry, from the 19th to the beginning of the 20th century, in the book “Cantonese Society in Hong Kong and Singapore” by Marjorie Topley.
There is currently an immersion exhibition on these majies in Penang.
Here are 2 excellent articles in the Star papers: