Klang (city)

History

The royal town of Klang has been a site of human settlement since prehistoric times. Bronze Age drums, axes and other artefacts have been found in the vicinity of the town and within the town itself. A bronze bell dating from the 2nd century BC was found in Klang and is now in the British Museum. Iron age tools called "tulang mawas" ("ape bones") have also been found in Klang. Commanding the approaches to the tin rich Klang Valley, Klang has always been of key strategic importance. It was mentioned as a dependency of other states as early as the 11th century. Klang was also mentioned in the 14th century literary work Nagarakretagama dated to the Majapahit Empire, and the Klang River was already marked and named on the earliest maritime charts of Chinese Admiral Cheng Ho on his visits to Malacca from 1409 to 1433.

The celebrated Tun Perak, the Malacca Sultanate's greatest Bendahara, came from Klang and became its territorial chief. After the fall of Melaka to the Portuguese in 1511, Klang remained in Malay hands, controlled by the Sultan Johor-Riau until the creation of Selangor sultanate in the 18th century. Klang was also once known as Pengkalan Batu meaning "stone jetty".

In the 19th century the importance of Klang greatly increased by the rapid expansion of tin mining as a result of the increased demand for tin from the West. The desire to control the Klang Valley led directly to the Selangor Civil War (also called the Klang War) of 1867–1874 when Raja Mahdi fought to regain what he considered his birthright as territorial chief against Raja Abdullah. During the Klang War, in 1868, the seat of power was moved to Bandar Temasya, Kuala Langat, and then to Jugra which became the royal capital of Selangor. Klang however did not lose its importance. Until the construction of Port Swettenham (now known as Port Klang) in 1901, Klang remained the chief outlet for Selangor's tin, and its position was enhanced by the completion of the Klang Valley railway (to Bukit Kuda) in 1886. In the 1890s its growth was further stimulated by the development of the district into the State' leading producer of coffee, and later rubber. In 1903, the royal seat was moved back to Klang when it became the official seat of Sultan Sulaiman (Sultan Alauddin Sulaiman Shah).

In 1874, Selangor accepted a British Resident who would "advise" the Sultan, and Klang became the capital of British colonial administration for Selangor from 1875 until 1880 when the capital city was moved to Kuala Lumpur. Today Klang is no longer State capital or the main seat of the ruler, but it remains the headquarters of the District to which it gives it name.

In May 1890, a local authority, known as Klang Health Board, was established to administer Klang town. The official boundary of Klang was first defined in 1895. In 1926 the health boards of Klang and Port Swettenham were merged, and in 1945 the local authority was renamed Klang Town Board. In 1954, the Town Board became the Klang Town Council after a local election was set up to select its members in accordance with the Local Government Election Ordinance of 1950. In 1963, the Port Klang Authority was created and it now administers three Port Klang areas: Northport, Southpoint, and West Port.

In 1971, the Klang District Council, which incorporated the nearby townships of Kapar and Meru as well as Port Klang, was formed. After undergoing a further reorganisation according to the Local Government Act of 1976 (Act 171), Klang District Council was upgraded to Klang Municipal Council (KMC) on 1 January 1977. From 1974 to 1977, Klang was the state capital of Selangor before the seat of government shifted to Shah Alam in 1977.

Etymology

Klang may have taken its name from the Klang River which runs through the town. The entire geographical area in the immediate vicinity of the river, which begins at Kuala Lumpur and runs west all the way to Port Klang, is known as the Klang Valley.

One popular theory on the origin of the name is that it is derived from the Mon–Khmer word Klong. The word may mean a canal or waterway, alternatively it has also been argued that it means "warehouses", from the Malay word Kilang – in the old days, it was full of warehouses (kilang currently means "factory").

Districts

Klang is divided into North Klang and South Klang, which are separated by the Klang River. North Klang is divided into three sub-districts which are Kapar (Located at the north of North Klang), Rantau Panjang (situated at the west of North Klang) and Meru (at the east of North Klang).

Klang North used to be the main commercial centre of Klang, but since 2008, more residential and commercial areas as well as government offices are being developed in Klang South. Most major government and private health care facilities are also located at Klang South. Hence, this area tends to be busier and becomes the centre of social and recreational activities after office hours and during the weekends. This is triggered by the rapid growth of new and modern townships such as Bandar Botanic, Bandar Bukit Tinggi, Taman Sri Andalas, Taman Bayu Perdana, Glenmarie Cove, Kota Bayuemas etc. all located within Klang South.

At the Klang North side, some of the older and established residential areas include Berkeley Garden, Taman Eng Ann, Taman Klang Utama, Bandar Baru Klang and so forth. Newer townships include Bandar Bukit Raja, Aman Perdana and Klang Sentral.

Malaysia's busiest port, Port Klang is located at Klang South.

Economy

The economy of Klang is closely linked with that the greater Klang Valley conurbation which is the most densely populated, urbanised and industrialised region of Malaysia. There is a wide range of industries within the Klang municipality, major industrial areas may be found in Bukit Raja, Kapar, Meru, Taman Klang Utama and Sungai Buloh, Pulau Indah, Teluk Gong and others. Rubber used to be an important part of the economy of the region, but from the 1970s onwards, many rubber plantations have switched to palm oil, and were then converted again for urban development and infrastructure use.

Port Klang forms an important part of the economy of Klang. It is home to about 95 shipping companies and agents, 300 custom brokers, 25 container storage centres, as well as more than 70 freight and transport companies. It handled almost 50% of Malaysia's sea-borne container trade in 2013. The Port Klang Free Zone was established in 2004 to transform Port Klang into a regional distribution hub as well as a trade and logistics centre.

Politics

Klang encompasses three parliamentary seats: Kapar (Mr. Manikavasagam a/l Sundaram of PKR), Kota Raja (Mdm. Siti Mariah Mahmud of Amanah), and Klang (Mr. Charles Anthony Santiago of DAP). All three are held by the Pakatan Harapan coalition. These constituencies are subdivided into state seats.

Demographics

The following are the census figures for the population of Klang. The 1957 and 1970 figures are for the Klang district and were collected before Klang reorganisation and Bumiputra status being used as a category. The 2010 figures are for MP Klang. The figure for Klang city is not given as what constitutes Bandar Klang appears to be inconsistent with considerable fluctuation in numbers over the years.

Crime

There are a number of criminal gangs operating in Klang, and gang violence is not uncommon. Among the Chinese community, there are the Ang Bin Hoey triad gangs such as Gang 21 which operates in Kuala Lumpur and the Klang Valley. There are also Gang 24, Gang 36 and others, and their members are often Indians. Due to economic development and changes in the industry, many rubber estates where Indian plantation workers used to live and work were closed, and this is thought to have contributed to a rise of gangsterism amongst the displaced and economically-deprived Indians. It is thought that the Indians originally worked for Chinese gang leaders but they now dominate many of these criminal organisations.

Transportation and accessibility

Klang is served by five commuter stations that constitute the Batu Caves-Port Klang Route of the KTM Komuter system, namely the Bukit Badak Komuter station, the Kampung Raja Uda Komuter station, the Klang Komuter station, the Teluk Pulai Komuter station and the Teluk Gadong Komuter station.

Klang is well connected to the rest of the Klang Valley via the Federal Highway, the New Klang Valley Expressway, South Klang Valley Expressway, the North Klang Straits Bypass (New North Klang Straits Bypass) as well as the KESAS Highway.

Klang is also served by the RapidKL bus route. Klang Sentral acts as a terminal for long-distance buses and taxis in northern Klang. There is a non-stop hourly bus service everyday from and to KLIA2 to Klang, of which the embarkation point is located at the AEON Bukit Tinggi Shopping Centre.

The RM230 million Klang Third Bridge is scheduled to open in May 2017, complementing the existing two other bridges in the city that connect Klang North and Klang South. By August 2020, Klang will also be connected to the RM 9 billion LRT 3 rail line.

Shopping complexes

There are several shopping complexes and hypermarkets in Klang, primarily in Klang South, namely:

Hospitals and medical centres

Local landmarks and attractions

Malay food

The most significant food spot in Klang is at "Emporium Makan", this old spot situated in the heart the city, opposite of Pasar Jawa and next to Jambatan Kota. One of the popular stall is "Lontong Klang" and it serves unforgettable dishes such as, lontong and nasi lemak sambal sotong. This spot is visited by all races, Malay, Chinese and Indian, and still open until now.

Chinese food

Klang is well known for its Bak Kut Teh (Chinese: 肉骨茶, Pinyin: Ròu Gŭ Chá), a herbal soup that uses pork ribs and tenderloins. The dish is popularly thought to have originated in Klang. Bak Kut Teh is popular in various locations including Taman Intan (previously called Taman Rashna), Teluk Pulai, Jalan Kereta Api and Pandamaran.

There are a number of foodcourts in Klang which served local cuisine. Located in Taman Eng Ann is a large foodcourt serving many daytime snacks ranging from the well-known Chee Cheong Fun, Yong Tau Foo, Popia (Chinese springrolls), the medicinal herb Lin Zhi Kang drink, to Rojak and Cendol. Other stalls found also serving Chee Cheong Fun in Klang are located around the Meru Berjaya area. The Yong Tau Foo, a Malaysian Hakka Chinese delicacy, is a popular meal for lunch and dinner as well.

Seafood

The coastal regions and islands near Port Klang are also well known for their seafood, such as Pulau Ketam, Bagan Hailam, Teluk Gong, Pandamaran and Tanjung Harapan.

Education

Schools

Sister cities

Klang currently has two sister cities: