Malaysia, Philippines and Brunei have had lots of cultural interactions in history. Parts of northern Malaysia and southern Philippines, were once part of the ancient Sultanate of Brunei. Ethnic Malays, also brought over the Islamic religion to the Philippines. Which is why the backboard, the stock of Filipino cuisine is of Malay stock and bears some resemblance to Malaysian cuisine to a certain extent. Old Malay, was once spoken in the Philippines by aristocrats. Which is why, Tagalog and Malay have lots of cognates. This dates back thousands of years, as opposed the Spanish cognates in Tagalog which is simply a result of colonization. Filipinos and Malaysians have common physical traits. We look the same. I've seen Malaysian and Bruneien soldiers, and they look just like Filipinos. But it is sometimes quite easy to distinguish, because Malaysians wear sarongs, and Filipinos don't. Also, Malaysians are Muslims so their clothing is of Arabic influence. Malaysian people also have Arabic-style names, Filipinos have English and Spanish. (source:http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Malaysian_influence_in_the_Philippines_culture)