Kuala Lumpur: Profile

From nothing more than muck and marsh 150 years ago, Kuala Lumpur (‘muddy confluence’), or KL as it is fondly known, has evolved into Malaysia’s cosmopolitan capital city, abundant with statuesque buildings, swanky malls and throbbing nightlife. But for all its shiny modernity, the city is also richly imbued with a multicultural and traditional spirit. 

History

Miners and traders first came upriver to where the Klang and Gombak rivers converge in search of tin. The Gombak estuary was the highest point upstream that the miners could land their supplies for prospecting tin in Ampang, a few kilometres further inland. They named the settlement Kuala Lumpur, which means “muddy estuary” in Malay. By the 1860s, the landing place had become a flourishing village. Fierce rivalries over mining claims and water rights led to gang clashes and bitter feuds. Finally, the predominantly Chinese settlement was put under the leadership of Yap Ah Loy, the kapitan cina (Chinese headman). The kapitan warred against crime, built a prison and quelled revolts. Under his supervision, KL grew into a thriving township.

Then Frank Swettenham, the British resident of Selangor, moved his administration to KL. Brick buildings were introduced and, street by street, the wooden shanties were pulled down. In 1886, the country’s first railway line connected KL to the coastal town of Klang. As the state capital of Selangor, KL was the centre of administration and trade. In 1946, it was established as the headquarters of the Federation of Malaya, with its development intensifying after independence in 1957. But KL truly came of age in 1974, when it became a unit of its own called Wilayah Persekutuan (Federal Territory). Today, it is the seat of the Parliament of Malaysia as well as its financial and commercial centre. 

KL-ites

KL-ites come in all sorts. Malays and Chinese make up 80 percent of the population, and about 7 percent are Indians. Among the rest are offspring of intermarriages between races. Most KL-ites speak at least two languages, one of which is Malay, or Bahasa Malaysia, the national language; some speak up to five – including Chinese and Indian dialects. Many hail from other parts of the country, drawn by the city’s economic opportunities. Constitutionally Malaysia is a secular state, and its population largely enjoys freedom of faith in a relatively harmonious milieu that has mosques, temples and churches sited close to one another. Core ethnic values are largely preserved, especially in religion, but the ethnic groups borrow liberally from one another, in language, dress, food and other areas.

‘Sudah makan?’ (‘Have you eaten?’) is the common Malay greeting that transcends all ethnic and social barriers, the perfect icebreaker in this food-obsessed city. Food is always on the mind of any KL-ite, and there is an abundance of it, from humble street-hawker fare to upmarket cuisines, 24 hours a day.