August 31 - National Day of Malaysia

[StephenAbraham]

On August 31, Malaysia will celebrate our country’s 61st anniversary of Independence or what locals usually call the National Day of Malaysia. It is a public holiday on which the morning starts with a national parade in Kuala Lumpur the capital of Malaysia.

Image result for malaysia national day celebration (93.5 KB)

Malaysia (graphic below) today is divided into the West (Peninsular Malaysia) and East Malaysia (North Borneo), separated by the South China Sea. There are 13 states (11 in West Malaysia and 2 in East Malaysia), and also certain territories belonging to the Federal Government (called Federal territories, currently 3 main areas)

(Graphic below borrowed from facts.co)

The Malaysian flag (graphic below) has 14 alternating red and white stripes of equal width, signifying the 13 states and Federal territories, and all states having equal rights and power. There is a 14 pointed star signifying all states and Federal territories are united. And a crescent moon signifying Islam as the state religion of Malaysia. The moon and star is colored yellow representing the royal color of the kings in most states. And the blue background signifies a large ocean of many people united.

There are some facts that may not be known to most outside of Malaysia.

1. On August 31, 1957, the actual Independence day, the country was called the Federation of Malaya and only had 11 states at that time had gained independence from the British. The first Prime Minister was Tengku Abdul Rahman who was the main figure in the negotiations for independence. East Malaysia has yet to join.

2. The actual Federation of Malaysia, which included the previous Federation of Malaya, the 2 new states in East Malaysia, and also Singapore (did you know that Singapore was part of Malaysia many years ago), was formed on 16 September 1963, now also an annual holiday called “Malaysia day”

3. Singapore decided to leave the Federation of Malaysia on 9 August 1965 and gained Independence.

4. So today Malaysia has 11 states in West Malaysia and 2 states in East Malaysia and 3 Federal Territories (Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya).

Wishing all Malaysians happy National Day on August 31 2018. And share photos in replies below.

@Cweng @Shirni @AdrianLunsong @AlsmieA @EugeneWong @Haseeb @AkmalB @Nabeel-Khan @PavelSarwar @Saidulkarim

[PavelSarwar]

Hari Merdeka (Malaysian for ‘Independence Day’), also known as Hari Kebangsaan (National day), refers to the day when the Federation of Malaya’s independence from the British Empire was officially declared. Hari Merdeka was declared a national holiday in Malaysia and observed annually on 31 August.

Upload your photo and write a few words, what you love about Malaysia. You can be written in Bahasa Malaysia or English.

@StephenAbraham @Shirni and all Local Guides from Malaysia.

[AnuradhaP]

@PavelSarwar This is a good idea. Better to create a shared Google Photo Album.

[PavelSarwar]

@AnuradhaP Thanks for your good advice. I will create a shared google photos album.

[AbdullahAM]

Hello @StephenAbraham

Happy Independence Day to Malaysia,

[AdrianLunsong]

Thanks @StephenAbraham for the tag! It’s a nice warm fuzzy feeling to be a Malaysian!

Like eating nasi lemak and enjoying the familar spicy taste of sambal. Like freshly made roti canai that is fluffy and light, ready to be dipped in delicious dhal. Like KL chee cheong fun with a side portion of yong taufu that I miss so dearly. Like having to choose beteeen teh tarik, kopi c, teh limau ais, ABC or gukfa. All that and more!

[PavelSarwar]

Wishing all Malaysians Happy National Day

[Saidulkarim]

Thank you so much @StephenAbraham for mentioning me here. I have learned a lot from your post, It’s truly informative post.

@PavelSarwar , @Haseeb , @StephenAbraham , @AkmalB , @Shirni , @Cweng ,