Kuala Lumpur

I

Introduction

Kuala Lumpur, capital city and federal territory of Malaysia, located on the southern Malay Peninsula. Kuala Lumpur, or KL, as it is commonly known, is Malaysia’s largest city and its economic and cultural hub. Since it was founded as a Chinese mining settlement in the 1850s, the city has developed into an important South East Asian centre of manufacturing and trade.

KL lies at the confluence of the muddy Kelang (Klang) and Gombak rivers. In the Bahasa Malaysia language, Kuala Lumpur means “muddy confluence”. A large metropolitan area called the Kelang Valley conurbation extends beyond KL’s borders into surrounding suburbs and new towns. Because KL lies just north of the equator, the city experiences a hot, humid climate year-round with little seasonal variation in temperature or rainfall. The total annual rainfall is high, averaging 2,370 mm (93 in) a year. The average annual temperature is 27° C (80° F).

From 1980 to 1991 the population growth rate of the federal territory was similar to the national growth rate. In Selangor, however, the rate was about double the national rate. Much of this growth took place in the KL metropolitan area, reflecting the urban sprawl that extends outward from the federal territory. The growth also suggests heavy rates of migration from Malaysia’s rural areas to KL’s outer suburbs. The migration has had various consequences, including a decline in Malaysia’s rice production caused by labour shortages in rural areas. In addition to Malaysia’s rural poor, migrants to KL’s metropolitan area have included large numbers of immigrants from nearby nations, especially Indonesia, the Philippines, and Bangladesh. These newcomers, many of whom are illegal immigrants, are a source of friction for long-term residents of Kuala Lumpur. Most of the migrants are poor, and many live in low-income areas, including squatter settlements located mostly in the suburbs. The ethnic make-up of KL’s population varies from the overall national pattern, reflecting the city’s origins as a Chinese settlement. Whereas ethnic Malays (see Malayan Peoples) are in the majority nationally, ethnic Chinese constitute the predominant group in KL, although the city also has a large Malay population and a substantial ethnic Indian minority. The principal languages include Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese, and Tamil (an Indian language); English is widely used in business. Buddhism, Islam, and Hinduism are the principal religions practised by Chinese, Malays, and Indians, respectively. Population 1,352,000 (2003 estimate).

II

Economy

Kuala Lumpur’s economy originally developed around the processing of locally produced tin and rubber. Other leading manufactures included food products and traditional handicrafts. Although these items are still produced, Malaysia’s efforts to develop a more industrialized and export-oriented economy have created new industries in and around KL. The production of electrical and electronic products and machinery is now the most important manufacturing industry in the region. Since 1985 the national motor vehicle, the Proton, has been produced in Shah Alam mostly for the domestic market. New industrial estates and other growth areas, such as the HICOM industrial estate in which the Proton plant is located, are emerging throughout the Kelang Valley conurbation. These areas have created thousands of new job opportunities for KL’s residents.

KL has an integrated transport network, which includes the Light Rail Transit system and a number of expressways, such as the one between Shah Alam and the international airport at Sepang. The transport infrastructure is inadequate to serve KL’s growing needs, and traffic congestion has worsened with the rapid population growth.

III

Places of Interest

A

City and Metropolitan Area

The city of Kuala Lumpur, which is equal in size to the federal territory officially called Wilayah Persekutuan, covers an area of 243 sq km (94 sq mi). The Kelang Valley conurbation, however, extends into an area at least twice that size, although it is not precisely defined and some consider it even larger. KL’s urban sprawl extends in all directions well into the surrounding state of Selangor, but particularly into the Kelang Valley to the south and south-west. A motorway connects KL with the other cities in this valley, of which the most important are Petaling Jaya; Shah Alam, Selangor’s capital; Kelang; and Port Kelang, Malaysia’s most important seaport (formerly Port Swettenham). The KL metropolitan region is undergoing extensive growth and modernization. New industrial areas and suburbs are emerging all around KL, especially in the cities of the Kelang Valley, in Ampang to the east of the city centre, and south towards the district of Sepang. In 1999 Malaysia’s new administrative capital of Putrajaya was opened, 35 km (22 mi) south of KL near the city of Sepang; the site is planned for completion in the early 21st century. Sepang is also the site of the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

Merdeka Square, located just west of the point where the Gombak River joins the Kelang, marks the heart of KL. To the south, on the Kelang’s west bank, are the Sultan Abdul Samad Building, where Malaysia’s Federal Court sits; the Kuala Lumpur Railway Station, constructed in a Moorish architectural style; and the main post office. Farther west are the Lake Gardens (Taman Tasek Perdana), and in and around this park are the Malaysian Parliament House, the National Monument, and the National Museum. Near the confluence on the Kelang’s east bank lies KL’s Old Town, which includes Chinatown, the Central Market, and two of the city’s major religious structures—the Sri Mahamariamman Temple and the Masjid Jame mosque. The city’s commercial heart, with modern banks, retail stores, shopping malls, restaurants, and hotels, also lies east of the Kelang. Outside the old core area of the city, housing consists of two-storey Chinese shop houses and villages of Malay kampongs, wooden houses built on stilts. Still farther outside the core are residential areas of all types, from low-income squatter settlements to the upper-class Kenney Hill neighbourhood. To the east and north of the city centre, the Golden Triangle includes luxury hotels, multi-storey office buildings, and a development project known as the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC). The KLCC contains the world’s tallest building, the Petronas Towers.

B

Education and Culture

Kuala Lumpur is the nation’s educational and cultural centre. Cultural landmarks include the National Museum; the National Planetarium; the National Art Gallery, which features Malaysian artists; and the Karyaneka Handicraft Centre, which includes a collection of handicrafts from Malaysia’s 13 states. The metropolitan area contains several important religious buildings including Malaysia’s largest mosque, the Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Mosque, in Shah Alam. The national mosque, the Masjid Negara, lies south-west of the city centre. Farther south is the International Buddhist Pagoda. To the north, in Selangor, the Batu Caves attract many Hindu pilgrims.

The KL metropolitan area contains several of the nation’s universities. The University of Malaya, the Putra University, Malaysia, and a branch of the Technological University of Malaysia are all in the city, while the National University of Malaysia is located in Bangi, just south of KL, and the International Islamic University is in Petaling Jaya.