PETALING JAYA, Feb 20 — The friendly rivalry between Malaysians and Singaporeans reared its ugly head once again online as an American website added fuel to the fire.

This comes a day after the BBC claimed that ‘yee sang’ originated from the island republic.

Before the dust had settled on fuming Malaysians who lambasted the article on BBC’s Travel that hailed "Singapore’s salad” — American website thezoereport.com listed Singapore as in Malaysia and referred it as "the Malaysian island city-state”.

The faux pas was spotted in the list titled The Most Expensive Cities In The World To Live In, According To Experts. — Screenshot from thezoereport.com

Both Malaysians and Singaporeans alike roasted the site for its error.

The faux pas was spotted in the list titled The Most Expensive Cities In The World To Live In, According To Experts.

Yesterday, an article in BBC’s Travel segment online that read Singapore’s Salad That Makes You Rich, the ‘yee sang’ was "brought to Singapore by Chinese immigrants in the 1930s” and before "four Singaporean chefs then created their own recipe of the "salad” in 1964, which has now become the "focal point of every Singaporean Chinese New Year celebration”.

American website thezoereport.com listed Singapore as in Malaysia and referred it as ‘the Malaysian island city-state’. — Screenshot from thezoereport.com

The origin of the seasonal favourite, has been attributed in the book, A Toss Of Yee Sang as cited by website Cilisos, to Loke Ching Fatt, a Chinese immigrant who settled down in Seremban in the 1920s, before introducing his own take of the dish since the 1950s.

Malaysians were less than amused with BBC’s version and vented online.