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Johore

Johore

Johor, formerly Johore (Jawi:جوهور), is a state of Malaysia between 1°20"N and 2°35"N. The capital and royal seat of Johor is Johor Bahru, formerly Tanjung Puteri. The old capital is Johor Lama. The Arabic honorific of the state is Darul Ta'azim ("Abode of Dignity').

History of Johor

The name "Johor" originated from the Arabic word Jauhar, which literally means "Precious Stones". Founded in the early 16th century by the son of Sultan Mahmud Shah, the last Sultan of Malacca, after fleeing from the Portuguese in Malacca, it grew into the Johor Empire that covered the Riau Archipelago. Unable to retake Malacca, Johor harassed and attacked the Portuguese during their 130 year rule. Johor became a thorn to the Portuguese in maintaining dominance within the Straits. The history of Johor from the late 1500s to the late 1600s is characterised by a series of succession struggles interspersed with strategic alliances struck with regional clans and foreign powers to maintain its political and economic hold in the Straits. In competition with the Achehs of northern Sumatra and the port-kingdom of Malacca under Portuguese rule, Johor engaged prolonged warfare with their rivals, often striking alliances with friendly Malay states and in particular the Dutch. In 1641 Johor in cooperation with the Dutch succeeded in capturing Malacca. By 1660, Johor had become a flourishing entrepôt, although weakening and splintering of the empire in the late seventeenth and eighteenth century reduced its sovereignty. In the 18th century, the Bugis of Sulawesi and the Minangkabau of Sumatra controlled the political powers in the Johor-Riau Empire. However, in the early 19th century, Malay and Bugis rivalry commanded the scene. In 1819, the Johor -Riau Empire was broken into the mainland Johor, controlled by the Temenggong, and the Sultanate of Riau-Linggi, controlled by the Bugis. This is when the history of modern Johor began. In 1855, under the terms of a treaty between the British in Singapore and Sultan Ali of Johor, the control over the State was formally ceded to Dato' Temenggong Daing Ibrahim, with the exception of the Kesang area (Muar), which was finally handed over in 1877. Temenggong Ibrahim opened up Bandar Tanjung Puteri (later to become Johor's present-day capital) in south Johor as a major town. Muar Temenggong Ibrahim was succeeded by his son, Dato' Temenggong Abu Bakar, who later took the title Seri Maharaja Johor. In 1866, he was formally crowned the Sultan of Johor. Sultan Abu Bakar of Johor(1864 - 1895) was the one who gave Johor its own constitution and developed its efficient administration system and constructed the Istana Besar, the official residence of the Sultan. Due to these achievements, Sultan Abu Bakar is known by the title "Father of Modern Johor". He is immortalized at the Sultan Abu Bakar Monument. The monument is built in the seafront directly opposite the courthouse. The increased demand for black pepper and gambier in the nineteenth century lead to the opening up of farmlands to the influx of Chinese immigrants, creating Johor's initial economic base. The Kangchu system was put in place. Under the British Resident system, Sultan Ibrahim, Sultan Abu Bakar's successor, was forced to accept a British adviser in 1914. D.G. Campbell was dispatched as the first British adviser to Johor. Johor Bahru became the last city on the Malay peninsula to fall under the Japanese. General Yamashita Tomoyuki had his headquarters on top of Bukit Serene and coordinated the downfall of Singapore. Then in 1948, Johor joined the Federation of Malaya, which gained Independence in 1957.

Notable history of Johor

The first radio broadcast in Malaya began in the year 1921 when A.L. Birch, an electrical engineer from the Johore Government brought the first radio set into the country. He then established the Johore Wireless Association and commenced broadcasting through 300 meter waves. Johor gave birth to the Malay opposition which derailed the Malayan Union plan. Malays under Dato' Onn Jaafar's leadership formed the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) in Johor on 11 May 1946. UMNO Tanjung Kupang in Johor is also the site of the only crashed airliner (Malaysia Airlines Flight 653) hijacked from Kuala Lumpur. The designer of the Malaysian flag was Mohamad Hamzah, a Johorean. Tun Sri Lanang, the writer of 'Sejarah Melayu' or Malay Annals was born in Bukit Seluyut, Johor in 1565. Johor was the first state and currently the only state in Malaysia that has its own military force called Johor Military Force or 'Timbalan Setia Negeri'. It is considered a private army of the Sultan of Johor.

Geography

Physical

As of 2000, the estimated population of Johor is 2.7 million people. It the fifth largest state(18,984 km²) of Malaysia.It is the southernmost state in Peninsular Malaysia being South of Melaka, Negeri Sembilan and Pahang and North of Singapore from which it is separated by the Straits of Johor. The highest point in Johor is Gunung (mountain) Ledang (1276 m). Johor is the only state in Malaysia which has a 400 km beach stretching on both the East and the West coast. Johor has 8 large islands with numerous smaller ones. #Pulau Tinggi #Pulau Rawa #Pulau Sibu #Pulau Tengah #Pulau Pemanggil #Pulau Aur #Pulau Besar #Pulau Lima

Weather

Johor experience wet equatorial weather with monsoon rain from Nov until Feb blowing from the South China Sea. Average annual rainfall is 1778 mm with average temperature of between 25.5 °C (78 °F) and 27.8 °C (82 °F). Humidity is between 82 and 86 %.

Links to Singapore

Johor is linked to Singapore by two land links - First is the causeway originally called Tambak Johor which carries both a road and a railway link. Second is a road bridge on the west side of Johor. The causeway (1038 m) was designed by Messrs Coode, Fizmaurice, Wilson and Mitchell of Westminster was adopted and the contract awarded to Topham, Jones & Railton Ltd of London. It started in 1909 as a railway link by Johor State Railway to connect Johor Bahru to Singapore, then the administrative headquarters of British interests in South-East Asia. Construction of the road section started in 1919 and was completed in 1923. The causeway is a source of contention ever since Singapore separated from Malaysia. Stagnating water caused by the Causeway has raised health concerns in Johor. Malaysia has proposed to replace the causeway by a bridge, allowing water and tide movement through the Straits of Johor. Singapore has rejected this proposal, after which Malaysia came up with the idea of what became known as "the crooked half-bridge", 25 m above water level, and descending halfway to link up with the low-level causeway. The railway will have a swing bridge. The project is part of the Gerbang Selatan Bersepadu project.[http://www.mca.org.my/story.asp?file=/articles/news/2003/8/4/17183.html&sec=In+The+News] Animosity between previous leaders of both countries has abated with the rise of new leaders, Abdullah Badawi as Malaysian Prime Minister replacing Mahathir Mohamad and Lee Hsien Loong in Singapore replacing Goh Chok Tong. It has renewed talks and normalised relations between countries. Some analysts have concluded that replacing the causeway with a bridge would allow a creation of a comprehensive port system linking Johor Port and Tanjung Pelepas Port in Johor; some go on to suggest that this presents a threat to Singapore's port activity, thus explaining the initial reluctance of Singapore to agree to the causeway replacement. The more recent road bridge (the "Second Link") was completed in Oct 1997. The Second Link Bridge is a 1920 m twin-deck bridge which supports a dual-three lane carriageway linking Kampong Ladang at Tanjung Kupang, Johor to Jalan Ahmad Ibrahim at Tuas in Singapore. See also Geography and climate of Singapore.

Transportation hubs

Ports

It has two ports, Pasir Gudang Port and Port of Tanjung Pelepas.

Airports

Johor has one major airport 30 km away from the city centre, The Sultan Ismail International Airport in Senai (01’38’26’ N, 103’40’13’ E). It was opened on 6 June 1974 and has been expanded several times ever since. Currently, it has a 5 million passenger capacity with another parallel runway under construction,

Government structure of Johor

Monarchy

The State's Sultan or hereditary constitutional monarch since 1981 has been Sultan Iskandar Al-Haj.

State government

His Chief Minister or Menteri Besar is currently Dato' Abdul Ghani Othman, a former civil servant.

Districts

The state of Johor is divided into the districts of
- Johor Bahru 1817.8 km², population 1,278,000
- Pontian 919.5 km², population: 143,729
- Kota Tinggi 3488.7 km², population: 192,220
- Kluang 2851.8 km², population: 254,631
- Segamat 2851.26 km², population: 178,620
- Muar 2346.12 km², population: 328,695
- Batu Pahat 1878 km², population: 335,368
- Mersing 2838.6 km², population: 67,557

State anthem

in Malay
Lagu Bangsa Johor
Allah peliharakan Sultan
'Nugrahkan dia segala kehormatan
Sehat dan ria, kekal dan makmur
Luaskan kuasa, menaungkan kami
Rakyat dipimpini berzaman lagi
Dengan Merdeka bersatu hati
Allah berkati Johor
Allah selamatkan Sultan
The anthem was composed by Armenian Bandmaster Mackertich Galistan or MG Abdullah and lyrics by Capt. HJ. Mohamed Said bin HJ. Sulaiman. Adapted the famous Malay tune 'Dondang Sayang' in 1897 and approved by Sultan Ibrahim, it was wihout lyrics until 1914 when a staff of the Hong Kong Bank in Johor Bahru, Hubert Allen Courtney (1878-1959), wrote the first English words and Capt. HJ. Mohamed Said (1876-1955) rewrote it in Malay.

Education in Johor

Johor has several institutions of higher learning. It has two universities called Universiti Teknologi Malaysia situated in Skudai, as well as Universiti Teknologi MARA Johor ( [http://www.uitm.edu.my UiTM]) in Segamat, a college university called Kolej University Tun Hussein Onn in Batu Pahat and several polytechnics. Johor also has a teaching college called Maktab Perguruan Temenggung Ibrahim. It has one non-profit community college called [http://www.sc.edu.my Southern College] situated in Skudai. Southern College was established in 1990 owing to the generous support from the communities. It is the first non-profit community college in the country wholly funded by public donation and is open to Malaysian students of all races.[http://www.sc.edu.my/english/aboutsc/aschome.htm]

Places of interest

Major tourist attraction

# Desaru - beaches & golf courses along the South China Sea # Johor Bahru- shopping, night market, colonial/royal district # Endau-Rompin Natural Park- pristine jungle # Kota Tinggi 34 meter waterfall. # Kukup - a fishing village with seafood restaurants built over water # Muar- picturesque riverside town # Seribuat Archipelago- islands with beautiful beaches, coral reefs # Tanjung Piai- the southernmost tip of mainland Asia

National park and forest reserves

Johor currently has five national parks, with a combined area of more than 700 km² and several smaller recreational forest. Almost all recreational parks are based around a mountain. Johor has the third largest mangrove forest reserve in peninsular Malaysia (167 km²).

Endau Rompin National Park


- Located on the Johor-Pahang border
- The park's name comes from the Endau and Rompin rivers that flow through the park, other rivers in the park are Selai River, and Jasin River.
- The Park is the second largest national park in the Peninsula after Taman Negara, covering an area of 489 km²
- There are two entry points to the park, Kampung Peta and Nitar
- Sites of interest are Opeh Guling waterfall, Buaya Sangkut waterfall and salt licks around Gunung Tiong
- There are approximately 26 km of jungle trails within the park with the most famous being the 16 km trail from the base camp at Kuala Jasin to Batu Hampar
- The park is the home to the Orang Asli of the Jakun tribe. One such settlement is Kampung Peta near the park entry point

Gunung Ledang National Park

Tanjung Piai
- The highest point in Johor is here on Gunung Ledang (1276m)
- The Sagil waterfall is the most famous picnic site
- Entry point from Sagil in Johor and Asahan in Melaka
- 107 km²
- Located in the district of Muar
- 170 km from Johor Bahru
- Is the most climbed mountain in Malaysia
- 64th highest mountain in Malaysia
- 6th difficult trekking route of Malaysia

Tanjung Piai National Park


- Home of mangrove crabs, mudskippers and crab-eating macaques.
- The name 'Piai' is taken from a type of indigenous wild fern 'Piai Raya' or [http://mangrove.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/text/1038.htm Acrostichum aureum] and 'Piai lasa' or A.speciosum.
- Geographically the southern most tip of the continent of Asia.
- Feeding ground for migratory birds like the Sandpiper, Whimbrel, Common Redshank, Greenshank and Grey Plover ('Pluvialis squatarola').
- Gazzeted as a World [http://www.ramsar.org/w.n.malaysia_tanjung.htm RAMSAR] site.

Pulau Kukup National Park


- 15 km² of mangrove and mudflats

Mersing Marine Park


- consisting of 13 islands of Pulau Harimau, Pulau Mensirip, Pulau Goal, Pulau Besar, Pulau Tengah, Pulau Hujong, Pulau Rawa, Pulau Tinggi, Pulau Mentinggi, Pulau Sibu, Pulau Sibu Hujung, Pulau Pemanggil and Pulau Aur.

Gunung Pulai Recreational Forest


- 700 meters in height
- One of the smaller parks with an area of 80,000 square metres. It is a forest reserve that serves as a catchment area
- Closest to Johor Bahru
- Popular attraction is Pulai waterfall

Gunung Arong Recreational Forest


- 120 meters in height
- 17km from Mersing and 22 km from Endau
- has a Forestry Museum on site
- [http://www.forestry.gov.my/hljoh_gngarong.html Photos]

Gunung Lambak Recreational Forests


- 510 meters in height
- near Kluang

Gunung Belumut (Moss Mountain) Recreational Forest


- 32 km from Kluang through Felda Ulu Dengar
- 1010 meters in height
- 4 hours of trekking on a 6 km path to the top
- near Kluang
- Interesting rock formation called Crown Rock (Batu Mahkota) which looks like a giant crown.

Gunung Panti Recreational Forests


- Preserved for Wild orchids and birds
- The southern most mountain in Peninsular Malaysia

Sungai Sedili Besar and Sungai Sedili Kecil Wetland Preservation


- 1.5 km² of freshwater mangrove swamp
- Preserved for migratory birds

Sungai Lebam Wetland Preservation


- Preserved for clams and fireflies.
- vast mangrove swamp, with Berembang trees where the fireflies congregate.
- near Kota Tinggi and approximately 91 km from Johor Bahru

Cultural heritage of Johor

Culture in Johor is influenced by visitors and traders throughout history. The biggest influence would be the Javanese and the Arabs. The strong Arab influence is apparent in art performances like Zapin and Hamdolok, musical instruments like gambus. Other visible legacies in Johor Bahru are the names Wadi Hana and Wadi Hassan area populated by Arab community from Hadhramaut in the southeast of Yemen. Wadi means valley in Arabic.

Clothing


- Cekak Musang and Teluk Belanga are types of collar design of the male attire ' baju melayu'. It is said that Teluk Belanga was design by Sultan Abu Bakar in 1866 to reminisce the transfer of Johor capital from Teluk Belanga to Johor Bahru. The Teluk Belanga design is a simple hemmed round collar with a stiff stitching called 'tulang belut' or 'eel's spine' and ended with a loop at the end to fit a 'kancing'. This collar design creates an exposed neck in contrast to the neck covering Cekak Musang design that is a raised stiff collar of about 1-2cm with an opening down to the chest. The collar ends have matching holes to fit it a 'butang' or buttons.
- Kurung Johor
- Kurung Riau
- Belah kebaya Panjang

Zapin dance

Zapin is a dance form which is popular in Malaysia especially in the state of Johor. It is believed to have been introduced by Muslim missionaries from the Middle East in the 14th century. In the old days, only males were allowed to perform but nowadays, female dancers are included. It used to be performed exclusively for religious ceremonies but through the years it has become a form of traditional entertainment, hence the participation of female dancers are allowed. The dancers usually perform in pairs and are accompanied by a traditional music ensemble normally consists of the gambus, accordion, violin, marwas (bongos), rebana (drum) and dok.

Kuda Kepang

Kuda kepang is a dance or game performed by Johoreans, especially of Javanese descent. Kuda kepang is a legless horse shaped puppet that is straddled by the performers. Usually, a troupe of performers consists of 10 to 15 people. It is performed in wedding ceremonies and cultural celebrations. There are several possible origins of Kuda Kepang. It is said to be originated from the struggles of “Wali Songo”, a group of nine Islamic preachers in Java. Others said it originated from the movement of horses commanded by Ali, the fourth Muslim Caliph. There are several dance rhythms or patterns; the 'Sola', 'Selendang', 'Pak Tani', 'Pucuk Rebung', 'Perjuangan', and 'Mempertahankan Diri'. The bobbing movement of the performers and their horse puppet is called 'Lenggang Kiprah'. The musical instruments used in kuda kepang performance are 'angklong', 'gendang', 'gong', 'kinong', 'jidor', 'soron kecil' and 'bonang'.

Legend of Badang

It is a story of Badang, a slave who gained super human strength by eating the vomit of a river spirit. He used this to win his release from his master. Contrary to popular belief, Badang was born in Johor, not Singapore or Temasik as it was known then. Badan was born in Sayong Pinang, a place upstream of the Johor River. Upon hearing his strength, he was summoned by the Seri Rama Wira Kerma of Temasik where he displayed his skills. Chalengers were sent by foreign kingdoms to defeat him. Among them were King of Kalinga i India who sent Nadi Bijaya Pikrama, a fierce wrestler and the noble of Perlak who sent Benderang. Badang emerged victorious from both fight and eventually stayed in Temasik until his death.

Legend of Malim Deman

Malim Deman is a king in the Segamat who was in love with Princess 'Santan Bertapis'. The princess was kidnapped by an spirit and Malim Deman swore that as long as the princess is not returned, the Segamat area shall experience floods for all eternity. However, with modern town planning and irrigation, flooding is now a rare occurrence in Segamat.

Legend of Gunung Ledang

Gunung Ledang, also known as Mount Ophir, is said to be the home of the legendary Princess 'Puteri Gunung Ledang' once wooed by the Sultan of Melaka (Malacca). The Sultan wanted to marry her but she set impossible conditions for him. She asked him to build a golden bridge linking his palace in Melaka to the mountain. The princess also asked the Sultan to bring her seven jars of women’s tears, seven trays of the hearts of mosquitoes and seven bowls containing the blood of the Sultan’s son, all of which the Sultan could not fulfil!
Sultan Legend has it that the princess eventually married one Nakhoda Ragam, a hero whose name unfailingly struck terror into the hearts of those who had dared to oppose him. But this hero was later to die at the hands of his princess-wife. Ragam was found of tickling the Princess’s ribs and one day, in an uncontrollable burst of reaction, the Princess stabbed her husband in the breast with a needle she was handling. Therefore the Princess returned to Mount Ophir and vowed never to set eyes on another man. Ragam’s boat, not long after, was crushed during a storm and legend has it that the debris of the wreck was transformed into the present six islands off Malacca. It was claimed that the boat’s kitchen became Pulau Hanyut, the cake-tray Pulau Nangka, the water-jar Pulau Undan, the incense-burner Pulau Serimbun, the hen-coop Pulau Burong, and the honeymoon cabin of Ragam and the Princess became Pulau Besar. Ancient history points to the mountain being the site of rich gold deposits, luring traders from as far as Greece and China. The name ‘Ophir’ itself is thought to have originated from the Hebrew language. In the 14th Century, the Chinese seafarers plying the Straits of Melaka called it ‘Kim Sua’ meaning the ‘Golden Mountain’. The Javanese during the period of the Majapahit empire named it ‘Gunong Ledang’, which means ‘mount from afar’.

Awang's spear returned to Dayang

Awang's Spear Returned to Dayang is an incident that occurred in Parit Raja, Muar. In Malay it is translated as 'Lembing Awang Pulang ke Dayang'. It occurred in 1776 when a man called Awang returned to Parit Raja after more than 3 years abroad to marry his fiancee Dayang. Upon his return, he found out that another man called Bachok had told Dayang of Awang's death and planning to marry her the next day. Awang turned up at the wedding ceremony and using a spear given by Raja Bugis, he speared Bachok in the stomach. Bachok, fatally injured grabbed the spear in his stomach and speared his best man. The man then speared the next man he saw and this was repeated until the 99th person was speared. It was Dayang's father who was protecting Dayang. He did not continue the repeated spearing and died. Awang ran away to Endau and Dayang did not marry another till she died.

Hamdolok

Hamdolok originated from the exposure of Middle East culture introduced by Arabs in Johor. It is a traditional theatre performed during weddings and festivals. It is a blend of artistic characters of both the Middle-East and local Malay communities. Instruments used include the gambus, tambourine, maracas and conga drums. It was also inspired by the Bedouin celebrating the birth of Prophet Muhammad S.A.W playing musical instruments and reciting poetry.

Songs of Johor

The most famous song about Johor and Johor Bahru
Tanjung Puteri Tambak Johor Tanjung Puteri Selat Tebrau airnya biru Di Pantai Lido tepian mandi Sepanjang masa di hari minggu Atas bukit Tanjung Puteri Taman hiburan indah berseri Pemandangan menawan hati Jalan tambak hubungan negeri ( korus ) Tanjung Sekijang nun di kuala Tempat nelayan mengail gelama Istana Hinggap di Kuala Danga Pantai berkelah keluarga diRaja Dari Tebrau orang berakit Singgah Stulang membeli kopi Pusara Si Bongkok di lereng bukit Di tepi pantai Tanjung Puteri

Cuisine

Dishes and cuisine in Johor are influenced by Arabs and the surrounding Malay archipelago. Some of the dishes are a unique blend of ingredients not found anywhere in Malaysia. Sadly, due to its difficult and sometimes complicated recipe, some are rare delights that can only be sampled in celebrations and state banquets.
- Laksa Johor is a cuisine originated from Johor. It differs from Laksa Penang by having coconut milk added during cooking.
- Mee bandung is also a dish originated from Johor, specifically from Muar. The term 'bandung' is not derived from Bandung, Indonesia but as a term for anyting that is mixed from many ingredients.
- Penganan Kacau keledek is a dessert normally served for the Johor monarch and elites. it is made from sweet potatoes, lots and lots of eggs (at least 40), fresh coconut milk (no instant ones please) and tons of sugar. it is mixed together and stirred on a simmering heat for at least 4 hours.
- Mee rebus is the famous noodle dish which consists of Mee (a spaghetti like mixture of flour,salt and egg) and is served with a tangy, spicy brown sauce. Usually crumbs and bolied eggs are added.
- Arisa - A unique chicken dish that is very-very rare nowdays, normally served to the royalties and social elites in Johor at formal functions and celebrations.
- Sate - A favourite Malay food in Johor, mostly found in Johor Bahru and Muar.
- Kuih Sirat
- Pisang Salai or Gimpi
- Lontong
- Nasi Ambeng
- Telur Pindang
- Otak-otak
- Nasi Briyani Gam
- Mee Soto
- Burasak
- Halwa Maskat
- Bontrot/berkat
- Kerutup ikan
- Asam pedas daun kesum
- Pecal
- Tauhu bakar
- Pendaram
- Roti Kirai or Roti Jala - The name is derived from bread and net or 'roti' and 'jala' in Malay. A special ladle with a five hole perforation is used to make the bread looks like a fish net (picture in the works). It is usually eaten spicy with curry or sweet with 'serawa'.
- Mee Siput
- Rojak Petis
- Serawa - Made from a mixture of boiled coconut milk, brown sugar and pandan leaf.

External links


- [http://www.sabrizain.org/malaya/johor.htm The Johor Empire]
- [http://www.tourismmalaysia.de/maps/map-johor.gif Map of Johor] Category:States of Malaysia ms:Johor ja:ジョホール州 th:ยะโฮร์

Jawi

Jawi is an adapted Arabic alphabet for writing the Malay language. It is used as one of two official scripts in Brunei, and is employed to a limited extent in Malaysia, in Indonesia, in Patani in southern Thailand and in Singapore as well, particularly in religious contexts.

Introduction

The Jawi alphabet has existed for many centuries in Nusantara (the Malay world). Its development is linked with the arrival of Islam. It consists of mostly Arabic characters along with some extra characters unique to Jawi. The Jawi alphabet is one of the earliest scripts used for writing Malay. Jawi has been in use since the era of the kingdom of Pasai, to the era of the Sultanate of Malacca, Sultanate of Johor and also Acheh in the 17th century. Evidence of this is found in the Terengganu Tablet (Batu Bersurat Terengganu), dated 1303 A.D. (702H by the Islamic Calendar), whereas the earliest use of the Roman alphabet is found near the end of the 19th century. The Jawi script is the official script for Unfederated Malay States during British protectorate. Today, the script is used for religious and Malay cultural administration in Terengganu, Kelantan, Kedah, Perlis and Johor.

Letters

Further reading


- H.S. Paterson (& C.O. Blagden), 'An early Malay Inscription from 14th-century Trengganu', Journ. Mal. Br.R.A.S., II, 1924, pp. 258-263.
- R.O. Winstedt, A History of Malaya, revised ed. 1962, p. 40.
- J.G. de Casparis, Indonesian Paleography, 1975, p. 70-71.

External links


- [http://www.omniglot.com/writing/malay.htm Omniglot article about written Malay]
- [http://www.geocities.com/Athens/6795/malay.html The Evolution of The Malay Script and Language] Category:Alphabetic writing systems Category:Languages of Malaysia ja:ジャウィ文字 ko:자위 문자 ms:Tulisan Jawi zh-min-nan:Jawi

Malaysia

The Federation of Malaysia (Malay (Rumi): Persekutuan Malaysia; Malay (Jawi): ڤرسكوتوان مليسيا; Simplified Chinese: 马来西亚; Pinyin: mǎláixīyà ; தமிழ்: மலேசியா ; Tamil: Malaysia), or simply known as Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. It consists of two geographical regions divided by the South China Sea:
- West Malaysia or Peninsular Malaysia on the Malay Peninsula shares a land border on the north with Thailand and is connected by the Johor Causeway and the Tuas Second Link on the south with Singapore.
- East Malaysia, consisting of the federal territory of Labuan and the states of Sabah and Sarawak, occupies the northern part of the island of Borneo, bordering Indonesia and the Sultanate of Brunei.

History

The Malay Peninsula developed as a major Southeast Asian commercial centre related to China. Ptolemy showed it on his early map with a label that translates as "Golden Chersonese", the Straits of Malacca as "Sinus Sabaricus". The earliest recorded Malay kingdoms grew from coastal city-ports established in the 10th century AD. These include Langkasuka and Lembah Bujang in Kedah, as well as Beruas and Gangga Negara in Perak and Pan Pan in Kelantan. It is thought that originally these were Hindu or Buddhist nations. Islam arrived in the 14th century in Terengganu. In the early part of the 15th century, the Sultanate of Malacca was established under a dynasty which was started by a prince by the name of Parameswara from Palembang who fled from the island Temasek, now Singapore. With Malacca as its capital, the sultanate controlled the areas which are now Peninsula Malaysia, southern Thailand (Patani), and the eastern coast of Sumatra. It existed for more than a century, and within that time period Islam spread to most of the Malay archipelago. Malacca was an important trading port. Portugal made Malacca a colony in 1511 by military conquest, thus ending the Sultanate of Malacca. The first Malacca sultan was Parameswara. However, the last Sultan fled to Kampar in Sumatra and died there. One of his sons went to northern peninsular Malaysia and established the Sultanate of Perak, and another son went to the south of the peninsula and made his capital there. This new kingdom was the continuation of the old Malacca sultanate but now known as the Sultanate of Johor, which still exists today. After the fall of Malacca, three nations struggled for the control of Malacca Strait: the Portuguese (in Malacca), the Sultanate of Johor, and the Sultanate of Aceh; and this conflict went on till 1641, when the Dutch (allied to the Sultanate of Johor) gained control of Malacca. The British took control of Malacca after the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824. 1824, one of the tallest buildings in the world]] The British Crown Colony of the Straits Settlements was established in 1826, and Britain gradually increased its control over the rest of the peninsula. The Straits Settlements consisted of the three ports of Singapore, Penang, and Malacca. Penang (Pearl of The Orient) was established in 1786 by Captain Francis Light as a commercial outpost granted by the Sultan of Kedah. Malacca came into British hands after the Anglo-Dutch Treaty; and two years later the Straits Settlements were formed. These settlements were collectively ruled from the British East India Company seat of government in Calcutta until 1867 when their administration was transferred to the Colonial Office in London. It was also about this time that many Malay states decided to obtain British help in settling their internal conflicts. Less than ten years after the transfer of power was completed with several west coast Malay States coming under under British influence. The role of the merchants of the Straits Settlements saw British government intervention in the affairs of the tin producing states in the Malay Peninsula. Coupled with Chinese secret society disturbances and civil war, British gunboat diplomacy was employed to bring about a peaceful resolution that favoured the merchants of the Straits Settlements. Finally, the Pangkor Treaty of 1874 paved the way for British expansion; and by the turn of the 20th century the states of Pahang, Selangor, Perak, and Negeri Sembilan, known together as the Federated Malay States (not to be confused with the Federation of Malaya), were under the rule of British residents appointed to advise the rulers/Sultans. The other Peninsular states were known as the Unfederated Malay States and, while not directly under rule from London, had British advisors in the Sultans' courts. The four northern states of Perlis, Kedah, Kelantan, and Terengganu were previously under Thai control. British North Borneo (currently the state of Sabah) was a British Crown Colony formerly under the rule of the Sultanate of Sulu, whilst the huge jungle territory of Sarawak was the personal fiefdom of the Brooke (White Rajah) family. Following the Japanese occupation during World War II, popular support for independence grew, coupled with a communist insurgency. Post-war British plans to form a "Malayan Union" were overwhelmed by strong Malay opposition who wanted a more pro-Malay system, and demanded only single citizenship as opposed to the dual-citizenship option which would have allowed the significant immigrant communities to have claimed citizenship in both Malaya and their country of origin. Independence was achieved for the peninsula in August 31, 1957 under the name of the Federation of Malaya. (See Hari Merdeka.) Singapore's request to be part of this independent state was rejected by London at the time. A new federation under the name of Malaysia was formed on September 16, 1963 through a merging of the Federation of Malaya and the British crown colonies of Singapore, North Borneo (renamed Sabah), and Sarawak, the latter two colonies being on the island of Borneo. The Sultanate of Brunei, though initially expressing interest in joining the Federation, pulled out due to opposition from certain segments of the population as well as wrangling over the payment of oil royalties. The early years of independence were marred by conflict with Indonesia (Konfrantasi) over the formation of Malaysia, Singapore's eventual exit in 1965, and racial strife in the form of racial riots in 1969 (popularly known as Mei 13). The Philippines also made an active claim on Sabah in that period based upon the Sultanate of Brunei's cession of its north-east territories to the Sultanate of Sulu in 1704. The Philippine claim is still on-going. After the May 13 racial riots of 1969, the controversial New Economic Policy - intended to increase the share of the economic pie owned by the bumiputeras as opposed to other ethnic groups - was launched by Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak. Malaysia has since maintained a delicate ethno-political balance, and developed a unique rule combining economic growth and a political rule that favours bumiputras (a group including mostly ethnic Malays) and moderate Islam. Between the 1980s and the early 1990s, Malaysia experienced significant economic growth under Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad, the 4th prime minister of Malaysia. The period saw a shift from an agriculture-based economy to one based on manufacturing and industry in areas such as computers and consumer electronics. It was during this period, too, that the face of the Malaysian landscape was changed dramatically with the emergence of numerous megaprojects. The most notable of these projects are the Petronas Twin Towers (once the tallest building in the world), KL International Airport (KLIA), the Sepang F1 Circuit, Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) and Putrajaya (the Malaysian Government's administrative capital). In the late 1990s, Malaysia was shaken by the Asian financial crisis. Opposition to certain aspects of the existing system was put down by the government. The opposition runs the gamut from socialists and reformists to a party that advocates the creation of an Islamic state. In 2003, Dr. Mahathir, Malaysia's longest serving prime minister, retired in favour of his deputy, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, fondly known as Pak Lah. The new government has advanced a moderate view of an Islamic state defined by the term Islam Hadhari. Islam Hadhari

Politics

The Federation of Malaysia is a constitutional elective monarchy. It is nominally headed by the Paramount Ruler or Yang di-Pertuan Agong, commonly referred to as the king. Kings are selected for five-year terms from among the nine Sultans of the Malay states; the other four states, which have titular Governors, do not participate in the selection. The system of government in Malaysia is closely modelled on that of Westminster, a legacy of British colonial rule. In practice however, more power is vested in the executive branch of government than in the legislative. The general election must be held at least once every five years. The last general election was in March 2004 and the previous one was in 1999. The ruling coalition is Barisan Nasional. Executive power is vested in the cabinet led by the prime minister (Perdana Menteri); the Malaysian constitution stipulates that the prime minister must be a member of the lower house of parliament who, in the opinion of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, commands a majority in parliament. The cabinet is chosen from among members of both houses of parliament and is responsible to that body. The bicameral parliament consists of the upper house (Dewan Negara, literally "National Hall") and the lower house (Dewan Rakyat, literally "People's Hall"). All 69 Senators sit for 6-year terms; 26 are elected by the 13 state assemblies, and 43 are appointed by the king. The 219 members of the House of Representatives are elected from single-member districts by universal adult suffrage, for a maximum term of 5 years. Legislative power is divided between federal and state legislatures. The state governments are led by chief ministers (Menteri Besar) selected by the state assemblies (Dewan Undangan Negeri) advising their respective sultans or governors. See also: Courts of Malaysia
- List of Malaysian political parties

States

Malaysia is divided into two types of political divisions: states (negeri) and Federal Territories (Wilayah Persekutuan) that collectively have the status of a state. Eleven states and two federal territories are in Peninsular Malaysia. Two states and one federal territory are in East Malaysia, on Borneo. The states are Johor, Kedah, Kelantan, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Selangor, and Terengganu on the peninsula; Sabah, Sarawak, both on Borneo, each with a federally apointed 'head of state'. The federal territories are Kuala Lumpur (the formal and commercial capital ; generally abbreviated to KL in speech by most Malaysians), Putrajaya (the new administrative capital city) and Labuan (an island off the coast of Sabah specialising in financial services). Labuan

Geography

The two distinct parts of Malaysia, separated from each other by the South China Sea, share a largely similar landscape in that both West and East Malaysia feature coastal plains rising to often densely forested hills and mountains, the highest of which is Mount Kinabalu at 4,095.2 m on the island of Borneo. The local climate is equatorial and characterised by the annual southwest (April to October) and northeast (October to February) monsoons. Tanjung Piai, located in the southern state of Johor, is the southernmost tip of continental Asia — if Singapore, an island connected to the continent by a man-made causeway, is excluded. The Straits of Malacca, lying between Sumatra and West Malaysia, is arguably the most important shipping lane in the world. Putrajaya is the newly created administrative capital for the federal government of Malaysia, aimed in part to ease growing congestion within Malaysia's capital city, Kuala Lumpur. The prime minister's office moved in 1999 and the move is expected to be completed in 2005. Kuala Lumpur remains the seat of parliament, as well as the commercial and financial capital of the country. Other major cities include George Town, Ipoh and Johor Bahru. See also List of cities in Malaysia.

Economy

The Malay Peninsula and indeed Southeast Asia has been a center for trade for centuries. Various items such as porcelain and spice were actively traded even before Malacca and Singapore rose to prominence. In the 17th century, large deposits of tin were found in several Malay states. Later, as the British started to take over as administrators of Malaya, rubber and palm oil trees were introduced for commercial purposes. Over time, Malaya became the world's major largest producer of tin, rubber and palm oil. These three commodities along with other raw materials firmly set Malaysia's economic tempo well into the mid-20th century. In 1970s, Malaysia imitated the footsteps of the original four Asian Tigers and committed itself to a transition from being reliant on mining and agriculture to an economy that depends more on manufacturing. With Japan's assistance, heavy industries flourished and in a matter of years, Malaysian exports became the country primary growth engine. Malaysia consistently achieved more than 7% GDP growth along with low inflation in the 1980s and the 1990s. During the same period, the government tried to eradicate poverty with a controversial race-conscious program called New Economic Policy (NEP). Healthy economic environment helped drive Malaysia to upgrade its infrastructures and indulge in many huge national projects. Among them are Putrajaya, a new international airport (Kuala Lumpur International Airport) and a hydroelectric dam (Bakun dam). Despite the prosperity of the 90s, certain factions within Malaysian were worried that the government was spending beyond its means. That concern became more than apparent when the Asian Financial Crisis hit in 1997. The year 1997 saw the drastic changes in local scenarios. Foreign direct investment fell at an alarming rate and Ringgit depreciated substantially from MYR 2.50 per USD to much levels lower (up to MYR 4.80 per USD at its bottom) as capital flowed out. The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange's composite index fell from approximately 1300 to nearly merely 400 points in a few short weeks. In response, the Malaysian government imposed capital controls and pegged the Malaysian Ringgit at 3.80 to a US dollar while refusing economic aid from International Monetary Fund (IMF) which came with austere lending conditions. In March 2005, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) published a paper on the sources and pace of Malaysia's recovery, written by Jomo K.S. of the applied economics department, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur. The paper concluded that the controls imposed by Malaysia's government neither hurt nor helped that country's recovery. The chief factor was an increase in electronics components exports, which was caused by a large increase in the demand for components in the United States, which was caused, in turn, by a fear of the effects of the arrival of the year 2000 (Y2K) upon older computers and other digital devices. Regardless of cause/effect claims, rejuvenation of the economy also coincided with massive government spending and budget deficits in the years that followed the crisis. Later, the country enjoyed faster economic recovery compared to its neighbors though in many ways, the level of pre-1997 affluence has yet to be achieved. The fixed exchange rate regime was abandoned in July 2005 in favor of managed floating system within an hour of China's announcing of the same move. In the same week, Ringgit strengthened a few percent against various major currencies and is expected to appreciate further. In September 2005, Sir Howard J. Davies, director of the London School of Economics, at a meeting Kuala Lumpur, cautioned Malaysian officials that if they want a flexible capital market, they will have to lift the ban on short selling created in 1997.
- Islamic banking in Malaysia
- List of Malaysian companies

Natural resources

Malaysia is well-endowed with natural resources in areas such as agriculture, forestry as well as minerals. In terms of agriculture, Malaysia is the world's primary exporter of natural rubber and palm oil, which together with sawlogs and sawn timber, cocoa, pepper, pineapple and tobacco dominate the growth of the sector. Palm oil is also a major foreign exchange earner. Regarding forestry resources, it is noted that logging only began to make a substantial contribution to the economy during the nineteenth century. Today an estimated 59 per cent of Malaysia remains forested. The rapid expansion of the timber industry, particularly after the 1960s, has brought about a serious erosion problem in the country's forest resources. However, in line with the Government's commitment to protect the environment and the ecological system, forestry resources are being managed on a sustainable basis and accordingly the rate of tree felling has been on the downtrend. In addition, substantial areas are being silviculturally treated and reafforestration of degraded forest land is also being carried out. The Malaysian government provide plans for the enrichment of some 31,230 hectares of land with rattan under natural forest conditions and in rubber plantations as an intercrop. To further enrich forest resources, fast-growing timber species such as meranti tembaga, merawan and sesenduk are also being planted. At the same time, the cultivation of high-value trees like teak and other trees for pulp and paper are also encouraged. Rubber, once the mainstay of the Malaysian economy, has been largely replaced by oil palm as Malaysia's leading agricultural export. Tin and petroleum are the two main mineral resources that are of major significance in the Malaysian economy. Malaysia was once the world's largest producer of tin until the collapse of the tin market in the early 1980s. In the 19th and 20th Century, tin played a predominant role in the Malaysian economy. It was only in 1972 that petroleum and natural gas took over from tin as the mainstay of the mining sector. Meanwhile, the contribution by tin has declined. Petroleum and natural gas which were discovered in oilfields offshore from Sabah, Sarawak and Trengganu have contributed much to the Malaysian economy particularly in those three states. Other minerals of some importance or significance include copper, gold, bauxite, iron-ore and coal together with industrial minerals like clay, kaolin, silica, limestone, barite, phosphates and dimension stones such as granite as well as marble blocks and slabs. Small quantities of gold are produced. In 2004, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Datuk Mustapa Mohamed, revealed that Malaysia's oil reserves stood at 4.84 billion barrels while natural gas reserves increased to 89 trillion cubic feet (2,500 km³). This was an increase of 7.2 percent. The government predicts that at current production rates Malaysia will be able to produce oil for 18 years and gas for 35 years. In 2004 Malaysia is ranked 24th in terms of world oil reserves and 13th for gas. 56% of the oil reserves exist in the Peninsula while 19% exist in East Malaysia. The government collects oil royalties of which 5% are passed to the states and the rest retained by the federal government.

Communications

Malaysia has extensive railroads that connects all major cities and town on the peninsular and east Malaysia itself. The North-South Expressway basically span from the northern tip of Bukit Kayu Hitam and Johor Baru in the south, which also connects roads into Thailand and Singapore. There are sea ports in Tanjong Kidurong, Kota Kinabalu, Kuching, Pasir Gudang, Penang, Port Kelang, Sandakan and Tawau. There are also world class airports that provide international and domestic destinations. See also Transportation in Malaysia. Roads in the East Malaysia and the eastern coast of West Malaysia are still relatively undeveloped. Those are highly curved roads passing through mountainous regions and many are still unsealed, gravel roads. This has resulted in the continued use of rivers as the main mode of transportation for interior residents. Malaysia is also the home of the first low-cost carrier in the region, Air Asia. It retains Kuala Lumpur as its hub and maintains flights around Southeast Asia and now China as well. The intercity telecommunication service provided on Peninsular Malaysia mainly by using microwave radio relay. International telecommunications are provided through submarine cables and satellite. In December 2004, Energy, Water and Communications Minister Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik reported that only 0.85 per cent or 218,004 people in Malaysia used broadband services. However these values are based on subscriber number, whilst household percentage can reflect the situation more accurately. This represented an increase from 0.45% in three quarters. He also stated that the government targeted usage of 5% by 2006 and doubling to 10% by 2008. Lim Keng Yaik had urged local telecommunication companies and service provider to open up the last mile and lower prices to benefit the users. One of the largest and most significant telecommunication company of choice in Malaysia is Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM), providing products and services from fixed line, mobile to Internet Service Provider.
- List of Malaysian television stations
- List of Malaysian radio stations
- List of Malaysian newspapers

Healthcare

Malaysian society places importance on the expansion and development of healthcare, putting 5% of the government social sector development budget into public healthcare - an increase of more than 47% over the previous figure. This has meant an overall increase of more than RM 2 billion. With a rising and aging population, the Government wishes to improve in many areas including the refurbishment of existing hospitals, building and equipping new hospitals, expansion of the number of polyclinics, and improvements in training and expansion of telehealth. Over the last couple of years they have increased their efforts to overhaul the systems and attract more foreign investment. The Malaysian healthcare system requires doctors to perform a compulsory 3 years service with public hospitals to ensure the manpower of these hospitals are maintained. Recently foreign doctors have also been encouraged to take up employment here. There is still, however, a compound shortage of medical workforce, especially that of highly trained specialists resulting in certain medical care and treatment only available in large cities. Recent efforts to bring many facilities to other towns have been hampered by lack of expertise to run the available equipment made ready by investments. There are currently 114 government hospitals and healthcare centers with a total of 28,163 beds. There are also seven special medical institutions (including psychiatric institutions) with a total of 6,292 beds. As for private hospitals, there are 225 of them (including maternity and nursing homes) in Malaysia, and they provide 9,498 beds. The majority are in urban areas and, unlike many of the public hospitals, are equipped with the latest diagnostic and imaging facilities. Private hospitals have not generally been seen as an ideal investment - it has often taken up to 10 years before companies have seen any profits. However, the situation has now changed and companies are now looking into this area again, particularly in view of the increasing interest by foreigners in coming to Malaysia for medical care.
- List of Malaysian hospitals

Education

Malaysian children begin schooling from the age of 5 or 6 in kindergarten. Primary one begins the year a child turns 7. There is a primary education leaving exam, called 'Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah', or UPSR (Primary School Assessment Examination) where all primary Six students take before going into secondary schools. The purpose of this examination is to assess the quality of the primary education in Malaysia. An exam called Penilaian Tahap Satu (PTS; First Level Assessment) which was used to measure the ability of bright students, and to allow them to move from Standard 3 to 5 but this exam has since been removed. Secondary education lasts five years. At the end of the third year, students must sit for the 'Penilaian Menengah Rendah' (PMR; Lower Secondary Assessment), to guide them on what subjects to take next year. The combination of subjects available to Form 4 students vary from one school to another. In the last year, students will sit for 'Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia', or SPM (Malaysian Certificate of Education; equivalent to the British Ordinary or 'O' levels). Some Chinese choose to study in Indepentdent High School, where most subject are taught in Chinese. Independent high school takes 6 years to complete. Instead of sitting for PMR or SPM, student will sit for UEC in Junior Middle 3 (Form 3) and Senior Middle 3 (Form 6). Some independent high school teach in Malays and Chinese, so that the students can sit for PMR, SPM and UEC. Students wishing to enter university have to complete 2 more years of secondary schooling.They must take up either the school based Form Six and sit for Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia', or STPM (Malaysia Higher Certificate of Education; equivalent to the British Advanced or 'A' levels), matriculation (1 year only), or other pre-university courses before they may apply for entry into local universities. Independent High School students can enter some of the universities using their UEC result. Students can opt to go to private colleges after secondary studies. Most colleges have education links with overseas universities especially in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. Malaysian students abroad study mostly in the UK, United States, Australia, Singapore, Japan and Canada. Until recently, all subjects except foreign languages (English, Mandarin and Tamil) were taught in Bahasa Melayu (Malay). The result was that while many Malaysian students were proficient with the Malay language, they later struggled with English based tertiary education, especially in overseas universities and colleges. Currently Mathematics and Science are the only subjects other than languages that are taught in English. The reasoning was that students would no longer be hindered by the language barrier during their tertiary education in fields such as medicine and engineering. All other subjects are taught in Bahasa Melayu. In addition to the the National Curriculum, Malaysia has many international schools. International schools offer students the opportunity to study the curriculum of another country. These schools mainly cater for the growing expatriate population in the country. International schools include - Australian International School, Malaysia (Australian curriculum), The Alice Smith School (British curriculum), The International School of Kuala Lumpur (International Baccalaureate and American curriculum), amongst others.
- List of Malaysian schools
- List of Malaysian universities and colleges

Demographics

Malaysia's population is comprised of many ethnic groups, with the politically dominant Malays making up the majority. By constitutional definition, all Malays are Muslim. About a quarter of the population are Chinese, who have historically played an important role in trade and business. Malaysians of Indian descent comprise about 7% of the population and include Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, and Buddhists. About 85% of the Indian community is Tamil but various other groups are represented, including Malayalis, Punjabis and Telugus. Non-Malay indigenous groups make up more than half of the state of Sarawak's population, constitute about 66% of Sabah's population, and also exist in much smaller numbers on the Peninsula, where they are collectively called Orang Asli. The non-Malay indigenous population is divided into dozens of ethnic groups, but they share some general cultural similarities. Other Malaysians also include those of, inter alia, European, Middle Eastern, Cambodian, and Vietnamese descent. Europeans and Eurasians include British who colonized and settled in Malaysia and some Portuguese, and most of the Middle Easterners are Arabs. A small number of Kampucheans and Vietnamese settled in Malaysia as Vietnam War refugees. Population distribution is uneven, with some 20 million residents concentrated on the Malay Peninsula. May 13, 1969 saw an incident of civil unrest which was then thought to be largely due to the socio-economic imbalance of the country along racial lines, though in retrospect it may have been more motivated by political firebrands in both governing and opposition parties, as the violence involved only the areas in and around the capital, with much of the country remaining at peace. This incident led to the adoption of the New Economic Policy as a two-pronged approach to address racial and economic inequality and to eradicate poverty in the country. Due to the rise in labour intensive industries, Malaysia has 10 to 20 percent foreign workers with the uncertainty due in part to the large number of illegal workers; there are a million legal foreign workers and perhaps another million unauthorized foreigners. The state of Sabah alone has nearly 20% of its 2.5 million population listed as illegal foreign workers in the last census. Unauthorized foreigners are subject to RM10,000 fines and two-year prison terms, while Malaysian employers face up to a year in jail and a fine of up to RM50,000 for each illegal worker hired, with those hiring more than five also liable to caning. Caning is a standard punishment for more than 40 crimes in Malaysia, ranging from sexual abuse to drug use. Administered with a thick rattan stick, it splits the skin and leaves scars. Some 380,000 unauthorized foreigners left during an "amnesty" that began in Fall 2004 and was extended several times. During amnesties, unauthorized foreigners can leave without paying fines for being illegally in the country. On March 1, 2005, some 300,000 policemen as well as the 560,000-strong Peoples Volunteer Corp began searching for the remaining unauthorized foreigners under Operation Tegas; the volunteers receive RM100 for each foreigner arrested. Source: [http://migration.ucdavis.edu/mn/index.php Migration News, April April 2005 Volume 12 Number 2]
- List of Malaysian people

Religion

Malaysia is a multi-religious society, but Islam is the official religion of the country. The four main religions are Islam (60.4% of the population according to government census figures in 2000), Buddhism (19.2%), Hinduism (6.3%), and Christianity (9.1%, mostly in East Malaysia, i.e. Borneo). Until the 20th century, most practiced traditional beliefs, which arguably still linger on to a greater degree than Malaysian officialdom is prepared to acknowledge. Although the Malaysian constitution theoretically guarantees religious freedom, in practice the situation is not so simple. Non-Muslims often experience restrictions in activities such as construction of religious buildings. Meanwhile Muslims follow the decisions of sharia courts. Whether Muslims may freely leave Islam is not yet legally clear. In some situations, the Malaysian courts have defended one's right to freedom of religion even when one has renouced Islam (such as the Yeshua Jalilludin versus the Minister of Home Affairs case in the 1980's) however not so in other times. Generally one who wishes to leave Islam makes a legal declaration, but this is still not recognised by the Malaysian civil courts. One is said to have to obtain a declaration of apostasy with a Syariah Court, but the court will not generally grant one. Malaysians tend to personally respect one another's religious beliefs, with inter-religious problems arising mainly from the political sphere.
- Islam in Malaysia
- Christianity in Malaysia
- Buddhism in Malaysia
- Hinduism in Malaysia
- Status of religious freedom in Malaysia

Culture

Malaysia is a multi-ethnic society, consisting of 65% Malays and other indigenous tribes, 25% Chinese, 7% Indians. The Malays, which form the largest community, are mainly Muslims. The Malays play a dominant role politically and are known as bumiputera. Their native language is Malay (Bahasa Melayu), which is also the national language of the country. In the past, Bahasa Melayu was written widely in Jawi script. As time progresses, romanized script has over taken Jawi as the dominant script. The largest indigenous tribe in terms of numbers is the Iban of Sarawak, who number over 600,000. The Iban who still live in traditional jungle villages live in longhouses along the Rajang and Lupar rivers and their tributaries. The Bidayuh (170,000) are concentrated in the south-western part of Sarawak. The largest indigenous tribe in Sabah is the Kadazan. They are largely Christian subsistence farmers. The Orang Asli (140,000), or aboriginal peoples, comprise a number of different ethnic communities live in Peninsular Malaysia. Traditionally nomadic hunter-gatherers and agriculturists, many have been sedentarised and partially absorbed into modern Malaysia. However, they remain the poorest group in the country. The Chinese comprise of about a quarter of the population. They are mostly Buddhists (of Mahayana sect), Taoists or Christian, and speak a variety of Chinese dialects including Hokkien/Fujian, Cantonese, Hakka and Teochew , and have been historically dominant in the business community. The Indians account for about 7% of the population. They are mainly Hindu Tamils from southern India, speaking Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Hindi, living mainly in the larger towns on the west coast of the peninsula. There is also a sizeable Sikh community. Eurasians, Cambodians, Vietnamese, and indigenous tribes make up the remaining population. A small number of Eurasians, of mixed Portuguese and Malay descent, speak a Portuguese creole, called Papia Kristang. There are also Eurasians of mixed Malay and Spanish descent, mostly in Sabah. Descended from immigrants from the Philippines, some speak Chavacano, the only Spanish creole in Asia. Cambodians and Vietnamese are mostly Buddhists (Cambodians of Theravada sect and Vietnamese, Mahayana sect). Malaysian traditional music is heavily influenced by Chinese and Islamic forms. The music is based largely around the gendang (drum), but includes other percussion instruments (some made of shells); the rebab, a bowed string instrument; the serunai, a double-reed oboe-like instrument; flutes, and trumpets. The country has a strong tradition of dance and dance dramas, some of Thai, Indian and Portuguese origin. Other artistic forms include wayang kulit (shadow puppet theatre), silat (a stylised martial art) and crafts such as batik, weaving, and silver and brasswork.

Citizenship

All Malaysians are Federal citizens with no formal citizenships within the individual states. Every citizen is issued with an identity card at birth (MyKid card for persons under the age 12 and MyKad for persons above the age of 12) and must carry the card with him. A citizen is required to present the card to police, or in the case of an emergency, to any military personnel, to be identified.

Miscellaneous topics


- Cuisine of Malaysia
- Foreign relations of Malaysia
- Holidays in Malaysia
- Military of Malaysia
- Films of Malaysia
- Music of Malaysia
- Malaysian writers

External links

Official sites


- [http://www.bernama.com.my/ Bernama] - Malaysian national news agency
- [http://www.statistics.gov.my Malaysian Department of Statistics]
- [http://www.gov.my/ myGovernment Portal] - Malaysian Government Portal
- [http://www.tourism.gov.my/ Tourism Malaysia] - Malaysian tourism portal
- [http://www.pmo.gov.my/ Office of the Prime Minister of Malaysia]
- [http://www.rtm.net.my/ Radio Televisyen Malaysia] - Government-owned television network

Other sites


-
- [http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/my.html CIA World Factbook entry on Malaysia]
- [http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/fields/2070.html CIA - Disputes - International] Category:ASEAN member states A Category:Monarchies Category:Southeast Asian countries als:Malaysia ja:マレーシア ko:말레이시아 ms:Malaysia simple:Malaysia th:ประเทศมาเลเซีย zh-min-nan:Má-lâi-se-a

Malacca

:This article is about a state in Malaysia. Malacca is also another name for Car Nicobar Melaka (Jawi: ملاك; also Malacca) is the second smallest state in Malaysia, and is located in the southern part of the Malay Peninsula, on the Straits of Malacca. The state's capital is also called "Melaka". Although the first Malay sultanate started in Melaka, the state has no Sultan today. Instead, the head of state is the Governor or Yang Di-Pertuan Negeri.

Governor












Geography

Melaka is on the southwest coast of the Malay peninsula opposite Sumatra, with the states of Negeri Sembilan to the north and Johor to the east.

Demographics

Melaka has a population of 648,000 as of 2001. The population comprises:
- Malays: 50%;
- Chinese: 40%;
- Indians: Constitutes a sizeable minority, inclusive of a small group, known as "Chitty";
- Others: Inclusive of a Eurasian minority of semi-Portuguese descent, also known as "Papia Kristang", who speak an ancient Portuguese creole, called Cristão. The major towns of Melaka are Melaka Town, Alor Gajah, Masjid Tanah, Jasin, Merlimau, Pulau Sebang and Ayer Keroh.

History

Melaka Sultanate

Melaka was founded by Parameswara, a Srivijayan prince who left Sumatra in 1396 in order to further his enmity with the Majapahit Empire. According to a popular legend, Parameswara was resting under a tree while hunting, when one of his dogs cornered a deer. In self-defence, the deer forced the dog into a river. Impressed by the courage of the deer, Parameswara decided on the spot to found an empire on the very place that he was sitting. He named it "Melaka" after the tree that he was sheltering under. Parameswara converted to Islam in 1414 and changed his name to "Sultan Iskandar Shah". What started as a fishing village then grew into the most important port in the region, attracting traders from Java, India, Arab and China, and served as a stopping point for China-India trade during the two monsoon periods. Mass settlement of Chinese, mostly from the imperial and merchant fleet occurred during the reign of Parameswara, occurred in the vicinity of the Bukit China ("Chinese Hill") area, which has among the best Feng Shui (geomancy) in Melaka then. Sultan Iskandar Shah died in 1424, and was succeeded by his son, Sri Maharaja. Unfortunately, the prosperity of Melaka attracted the invasion of the Siamese. Attempts in 1446 and 1456, however, were warded off by Tun Perak, the then Chief Minister. The development of relations between Melaka and China was at that time a strategic decision to ward off further Siamese attacks. Because of its strategic location, Melaka was an important outpost for Zheng He's spectacular exploration fleet. To enhance relations, Hang Li Poh arrived in Melaka, accompanied by 500 attendants, to marry Sultan Mansur Shah who reigned from 1456 until 1477. Her attendants married the locals and settled mostly in Bukit China. A cultural result of the vibrant trade was the expansion of the Peranakan people, who spread to other major settlements in the region.

Colonization

Melaka was conquered on August 24, 1511 by the Portuguese viceroy of India, Alfonso d'Albuquerque and it became a strategic base for Portuguese expansion in the East Indies. Sultan Mahmud Shah, the last Sultan of Melaka took refuge in the hinterland, and made intermittent raids both by land and sea, causing considerable hardship for the Portuguese. Finally in 1526, a large force of Portuguese ships, under the command of Pedro Mascarenhaas, was sent to destroy Bentan, where Sultan Mahmud was based. Sultan Mahmud fled with his family across the Straits to Kampar in Sumatra, where he died two years later. The Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier spent several months in Melaka in 1545, 1546 and 1549. In 1641 the Dutch defeated the Portuguese to capture Melaka with the help of the Sultan of Johore. Johor The Dutch ruled Melaka from 1641 to 1795 but they were not interested in developing it as a trading centre, placing greater importance to Batavia (Jakarta) in Indonesia as their administrative centre. Melaka was ceded to the British in the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824 in exchange for Benkoelen on Sumatra. From 1826 to 1946 Melaka was governed, first by the British East India Company and then as a Crown Colony. It formed part of the Straits Settlements, together with Singapore and Penang. After the dissolution of this crown colony, Melaka and Penang became part of the Malayan Union, which later became Malaysia.

State government

Melaka is administered by its State Assembly and Executive Committee (EXCO). The State Assembly represents the highest authority in the state and decides on policy matters. The EXCO is responsible to the State Assembly and comprises members who are appointed every five years by the political party in power. It is headed by the Governor (Yang Di-Pertuan Negeri) who is appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia. The Chief Minister's Department is the administrative pillar of the State Government, and is responsible for the overall administration of the State, as well as its political interest. The administrative complex houses the Chief Minister's office, as well as the office of the State Secretariat. For administrative purposes, Melaka is divided into three districts under separate jurisdiction:
- Melaka Tengah District & Land Office
- Alor Gajah District & Land Office
- Jasin District & Land Office. These offices render various services and facilities to the people in their daily lives.

Culture and economy

The tourism and manufacturing sectors are the two most important sectors in the state economy. Melaka has adopted as its slogan, "Visiting Melaka Means Visiting Malaysia" ("Melawat Melaka Bererti Melawati Malaysia"). It is rich in cultural heritage and bears several places of historical interest. Melaka is well-known for its food. Most notable of all is the Nyonya-Baba cuisine which is a mixture of Chinese and Malay cooking with most dishes being spicy in nature. cuisine Even to this very day, many of the ancient traditions passed down since the Portuguese occupation are still practised, i.e. "Intrudu" (water festival that marks the beginning of the Catholics fasting season, the season of Lent), "branyu" (traditional dance), "santa cruz" (a yearly fiesta of street celebrations). Apart from tourismn, Melaka is also a manufacturing centre for products ranging from food and consumer products, through high-tech weaponry and automotive components to electronic and computer parts. There are at least 23 industrial estates that houses some 500 factories from the United States, Germany, Japan, Taiwan, and Singapore. Melaka's private healthcare services are becoming increasingly sought after by patients from as far away as Indonesia and Singapore. Mahkota Medical Centre, Hospital Pantai Ayer Keroh, Hospital Melaka, and Southern Hospital are the four major private hospitals that are providing services on par with those of developed countries. The State government is the majority shareholder of Southern Hospital.

Popular historical attractions


- Fort A' Formosa: Constructed by the Portuguese in 1511, it suffered severe structural damage during the Dutch invasion. The plan by the British to destroy it was aborted as a result of the intervention of Sir Stamford Raffles in 1808.
- St. John's Fort: Reconstructed by the Dutch in the third quarter of the 18th century, the canons in this fort point inwards towards the mainland because at that time, the threat to Melaka was mainly from inland rather than the sea.
- St. Peter's Church: Constructed in 1710 under the Dutch administration, the church is the oldest Catholic church in Malaysia. This facade and decorative embellishment is a mix of both eastern and western architecture. Its bell was delivered from Goa in 1608. 1608
- St. Paul's Church: Constructed by the Portuguese captain, Duarte Coelho, this church was named "Our Lady of The Hill", but was later turned into a burial ground by the Dutch for their noble dead, and renamed "St. Paul's Church".
- Christ Church: Constructed in 1753, the structure reflects original Dutch architecture. The building houses hand-crafted church benches, jointless ceiling skylights, a copper replica of the Bible, a headstone written in the Armenian language, and a replica of "The Last Supper".
- Francis Xavier Church: This Gothic church was built by the French priest, Father Paderi Fabre, in 1849, to commemorate St. Francis Xavier who is also known as the "Apostle of the East". St. Francis Xavier is credited for his Catholic missionary work in Southeast Asia during the 16th century.
- Stadhuys Building: Constructed in 1650 as the residence of the Dutch Governor and his deputy, the structure reflects Dutch architecture. It is today the "Museum of History and Ethnography". The museum exhibits traditional wedding clothes and artifacts of Melaka, dating back to its days of glory.
- Jonker Street (Jalan Hang Jebat): This street is famous for its antique goods. In order to attract more tourists to Melaka, the State government has built a number of museums to house its rich cultural heritage.

Transport

Tampin, a town 30 km north of Melaka town, is the nearest train station that serves Melaka. There were railway tracks from Tampin to Melaka before World War II but was dismantled by the Japanese during the war for the construction of the infamous Burmese Death Railway. It was never rebuilt after the war though traces of the line remain. Melaka has a bus station with regular bus services to Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru, and other places in Malaysia. It also has an airport at Batu Berendam which today mainly serves chartered flights from around the region. The Ayer Keroh exit at the North-South highway the main entry to Melaka. There are two additional exits along the North-South highway, namely the Alor Gajah and Jasin exits.

External links


- [http://www.melaka.gov.my/ Official Melaka government website]
- [http://www.malacca.org/ Malacca's Colonial Past]
- [http://www.colonialvoyage.com/malacca.html Portuguese rule in Malacca]
- [http://www.colonialvoyage.com/malaccaNL.html Dutch rule in Malacca]
- Category:States of Malaysia Category:Cities in Malaysia ms:Melaka ja:マラッカ

Riau

Riau is a province of Indonesia, located in the center of Sumatra island along the Strait of Malacca. The provincial capital and largest city is Pekanbaru. Riau is rich with natural resources, particularly petroleum and natural gas, rubber, and palm oil. The majority of the province are heavily forested lowlands; logging is a major industry in the province. Being a shallow province, the coastal regions are rapidly losing land to the ocean. The Riau Islands were part of Riau until 2004, when they were made into a separate province. 2004 Category:Provinces of Indonesia ms:Riau

Archipelago

An archipelago is a landform which consists of a chain or cluster of islands. Archipelagoes usually occur in the open sea; less commonly a large land mass may neighbour them. Archipelagos are often volcanic, forming along ocean ridges or hotspots, but there are many other processes involved in their construction, including erosion and deposition. The word comes from the Aegean Sea (Greek αρχιπέλαγος, Italian Arcipelago), which literally means "chief sea", from Greek arkhi (leader) and pelagos (sea). The Aegean Sea is located between Greece in the west and Turkey in the east. In the Aegean, the Venetian Dukes of the Archipelago ruled from Naxos, 1210–1566. "Archipelago" is also the name of a popular videogame from the early 1990s. The Archipelago Exchange is a fully electronic stock exchange that agreed to merge with the New York Stock Exchange in April 2005 to form the for-profit NYSE Group. "Archipelago" is also the name of an improvisational free-folk group of musicians from New Orleans, and records on the Backporch Revolution label.

List of archipelagoes


- ABC islands
- Aegean islands
  - Cyclades
  - Dodecanese
- Aleutian Islands
- Alexander Archipelago
- Andaman Islands
- Antilles (West Indies)
  - Greater Antilles
    - Puerto Rican Islands
  - Lesser Antilles
    - Leeward Islands
    - Windward Islands
- Azores
- Bahama Islands
  - Turks and Caicos Islands
- Balearic Islands
- Baltic Sea archipelagoes
  - Stockholm archipelago
  - Turku archipelago
  - Åland Islands
- Bight of Bonny islands
- British Isles
  - Channel Islands
  - Hebrides
  - Isles of Scilly
  - Orkney Islands
  - Shetland Islands
- Canadian Arctic islands
  - Belcher Islands
- Chagos Archipelago
- Channel Islands of California
- Chausey
- Chonos Archipelago
- Comoro Islands
- Diego Ramírez Islands
- Falkland Islands (Malvinas)
- Faroe Islands
- Florida Keys
- Fox Islands
- Frisian Islands (or Wadden Islands)
  - East Frisian Islands
  - North Frisian Islands
  - West Frisian Islands
- Furneaux Group
- Galápagos Islands (Colón
- Gothenburg archipelago
- Guayaneco Archipelago
- Japanese Archipelago
- Juan Fernández Islands
- Kerguelen Islands
- Kermadec Islands
- Kornati
- Lakshadweep (Laccadives)
- Lofoten
- Los Roques
- Macaronesia
  - Canary Islands
  - Cape Verde Islands
    - Barlavento
    - Sotavento
  - Madeira Islands
- Magdalen Islands
- Malay archipelago (the world's largest)
  - Maluku Islands
  - Philippine Islands
  - Sunda Islands
    - Greater Sunda Islands
    - Lesser Sunda Islands
- Maldives
- Maltese islands
- Mascarene Islands
  - Seychelles Islands
    - Aldabra Group
    - Amirante Islands
    - Farquhar Group
- Melanesia
  - Bismarck Archipelago
  - Fiji Islands
  - New Caledonia (Kanaky)
    - Loyalty Islands
  - Solomon Islands
  - Vanuatu (New Hebrides)
- Micronesia
  - Caroline Islands
  - Gilbert Islands (Kiribati)
  - Line Islands
  - Mariana Islands
  - Marshall Islands
    - Ralik Chain
    - Ratak Chain
  - Palau
  - Phoenix Islands
- New Siberian Islands
- Nicobar Islands
- New England and New York islands (Manhattan, City Island, Long Island, Rikers Island, Roosevelt Island, Staten Island, Block Island, Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, Liberty Island, Ellis Island, Long Beach Island, Elizabeth Islands)
- Novaya Zemlya islands
- Polynesia
  - Cook Islands (Hervey Islands)
  - French Polynesia
    - Austral Islands
    - Gambier Islands
    - Marquesas
    - Society Islands
      - Îles du vent (Windward Islands)
      - Îles sous le vent (Leeward Islands)
    - Tuamotus
  - Hawaiian Islands (Sandwich Islands)
  -