Ipoh

Ipoh
怡保
إڤوه
ஈப்போ

Flag
Seal

Nickname(s): City of Millionaires

Bougainvillea City

Silver Valley
Ipoh
Coordinates: 4°35′40″N 101°05′00″E / 4.59444°N 101.08333°E / 4.59444; 101.08333Coordinates: 4°35′40″N 101°05′00″E / 4.59444°N 101.08333°E / 4.59444; 101.08333
Country  Malaysia
State  Perak
Establishment Around 1880
Government
 • Mayor Datuk Zamri Man
Area
 • City 643 km2 (248 sq mi)
Elevation 21.95 m (72 ft)
Population (2010)
 • City 757,892
 • Density 1,023/km2 (2,650/sq mi)
 • Metro 1,499,000 [1]
Time zone MST (UTC+8)
 • Summer (DST) Not observed (UTC)
Postcode 30xxx, 31xxx
Area code(s) 05
Website www.mbi.gov.my

Ipoh /ˈiːpoʊ/ (Chinese: 怡保; pinyin: Yí bǎo Tamil: ஈப்போ) is the capital city of Perak state, Malaysia and also one of the largest cities in the country. It is approximately 200 km (125 miles) north of Kuala Lumpur and 130 km (81 miles) south of Penang on the North-South Expressway.

It is bordered by Batu Gajah in the west, Cameron Highlands in the east and Simpang Pulai in the south.

History

Town Hall

Its geographic location in the rich tin-bearing valley of the Kinta River made it a natural centre of growth. It grew rapidly as a mining town, especially in the 1920s and 1930s. A local Hakka miner, millionaire Yau Tet-Shin, started developing a large tract of the city in the early 1930s, today known as the 'New Town', from the eastern bank of the Kinta River to Greentown.[2] In 1937, Ipoh was made the capital of Perak, replacing Taiping.

Ipoh was invaded by the Japanese on 15 December 1941. In March 1942, the Japanese Civil Administration or Perak Shu Seicho was set up at the St. Michael's Institution. After the liberation of Malaya by British forces, Ipoh remained the capital of Perak, till this day.[3]

Two of the largest entertainment groups then, the Cathay Organisation and Shaw Brothers Company, set up cinema chains in Ipoh.

Geography

Topography

Ipoh is in the state of Perak, which is in the northern part of Peninsular Malaysia. The city is in the middle of the Kinta Valley, on the bank of the Kinta River and the confluence of smaller rivers, Sungai Pinji and Sungai Pari. The city is surrounded by limestone hills, which can be found around suburban areas to the northeast, east and southeast.[4]

The Kledang mountain range stretches from the north to the west of the city. This range runs parallel to the Bintang mountain range with the Perak River flowing on its left bank and the Kinta River to its right. This range is interrupted to the north of Ipoh by a tributary of the Perak River called the Pelus River, which is sourced from the Titiwangsa mountain range, which runs to the east of Ipoh.[5]

Climate

Ipoh features a tropical rainforest climate. Temperatures are about the same throughout the year, showing little variation. The city's average temperature is 28 degrees Celsius. Ipoh sees high precipitation throughout the year with an average of 200mm of rain each month and averaging 2427.9 mm of rain per year. The wettest month is October where on average 297.2 mm of rain is seen. Ipoh's driest month is January which has 132.3 mm of rain fall on average.

Climate data for Ipoh
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 32.9
(91.2)		 33.7
(92.7)		 33.9
(93)		 33.7
(92.7)		 33.5
(92.3)		 33.3
(91.9)		 33.0
(91.4)		 33.0
(91.4)		 32.5
(90.5)		 32.4
(90.3)		 32.1
(89.8)		 32.1
(89.8)		 33.0
(91.4)
Average low °C (°F) 22.6
(72.7)		 23.0
(73.4)		 23.4
(74.1)		 23.9
(75)		 24.0
(75.2)		 23.7
(74.7)		 23.2
(73.8)		 23.3
(73.9)		 23.2
(73.8)		 23.1
(73.6)		 23.1
(73.6)		 22.8
(73)		 23.3
(73.9)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 132.3
(5.209)		 149.8
(5.898)		 169.9
(6.689)		 259.1
(10.201)		 210.9
(8.303)		 151.8
(5.976)		 156.6
(6.165)		 157.8
(6.213)		 216.0
(8.504)		 297.2
(11.701)		 275.4
(10.843)		 251.1
(9.886)		 2,427.9
(95.587)
Average rainy days (≥ 1.0 mm) 9 10 12 14 14 10 10 12 15 18 18 15 157
Source: World Meteorological Organisation[6]

Limestone caves, mountains and lakes

The Gua Tempurung Limestone Caves
Sam Poh Tong, one of the many beautiful temples in Ipoh

Kek Lok Tong (Chinese: 極樂洞; Cavern of Utmost Happiness) is a cave temple that lies on the other side of the same hill as Sam Poh Tong. It is accessible through the Gunung Rapat housing area. It has a clean, quiet and cool environment.

Limestone hills extend 20 km north of Ipoh and 20 km to the south. There are many caves in these hills; cave temples are built in some.[7] Gua Tempurung, near Gopeng south of Ipoh, is a show cave open to the public. It is popular among spelunkers. More than 3 km long, it is one of the longest caves in Peninsula Malaysia. Part of it has been developed as a show cave with electric lighting and walkways, and there are tours of different lengths and difficulty. A fine river cave, the river passage runs about 1.6 km through the hill. There are five very large chambers and some stalactites and stalagmites.

Lakes in Ipoh include the one at Gunung Lang.

Lang Mountains in Ipoh

Cuisine

Ipoh has a vibrant food scene with a vast proliferation of hawker centres and restaurants. It is well known for dishes such as "Sar Hor Fun" (Chinese: 沙河粉) a complete one-dish rice noodle meal with prawn, meat, fish, vegetables and a savoury sauce. Other dishes from Ipoh include "Hor Hee", flat white rice noodles served with fish cakes and/or fish balls, "Nga Choi Kai" (Chinese: 芽菜鸡), chicken with soy sauce and beansprouts topped with pepper,"Kai Shi Hor Fun" (Chinese: 丝河粉鸡) rice noodles with Chicken ,"Hakka Mee" (Chinese: 客家麵), yellow rice noodles served with mince meat (pork) sauce and Ipoh's famous pastry "Heong Peng" (Chinese: 香餅), literally translated to "fragrant biscuit". The city is well known in Malaysia for its "Ipoh white coffee" where the coffee beans are roasted with palm-oil margarine and the resulting coffee is served with condensed milk.

Main article: Ipoh cuisine

Cityscape

The Old Town

The Old Town is west of the Kinta River. There is a vibrant commercial district with many historical 'shop-houses' centred around Leech Street (Chinese: 烈治街; now Jalan Bandar Timah). Other notable features include:

The New Town

D.R. Seenivasagam Park, formerly Coronation Park

The so-called New Town, to the east of the Kinta River, was developed by Yau Tet Shin around 1908.[2] The New Town houses the Perak Medical University and Ipoh City Hall building, among others. There are numerous shops, shopping malls, and hotels.

D. R. Seenivasagam Park (Coronation Park), located in the heart of Ipoh (New Town), is known for its scenic beauty and recreational facilities. It comprises recreational fields, an artificial lake filled with fish, a nursery for potted plants and a children's traffic playground. The latest addition is the newly landscaped Japanese garden featuring a Japanese carp pond.

Sports

For golf, the courses are the Royal Perak Golf Club off Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah (Tiger Lane), the Meru Golf Club in Jelapang, and Clearwater Sanctuary Golf Club en route to Batu Gajah.

Other sports venues include the Kilat Club in Pasir Pinji, Ipoh Field (Padang Ipoh) in the Old Town, the Polo Grounds, and the Iskandar Polo Club, in Ampang Baru.

The Sultan Azlan Shah Cup is an annual international men's field hockey tournament held in Ipoh.

Governance

The Ipoh City Council governs the city. Datuk Zamri Man, appointed in August 2015, is the current mayor of Ipoh.[8]

Ipoh is divided into two parliamentary constituencies: Ipoh Barat (Ipoh West) and Ipoh Timur (Ipoh East). The parliamentary seat for Ipoh Timur is held by DAP Representative, Su Keong Siong, which was formerly held by Lim Kit Siang while the seat for Ipoh Barat is held by fellow DAP leader, M. Kulasegaran.[9]

Demographics

Ipoh remains one of Malaysia's largest cities. It is the fourth largest city in Malaysia. As of 2010, it has a population of 757,892.[10] It ranks as the seventh most populous urban centre in Malaysia (2010).[10]

The following is based on Department of Statistics Malaysia 2010 census.[10]

Ethnic groups in Ipoh, 2010

census

Ethnicity Population Percentage
Chinese 290,165 44.1%
Bumiputera 253,592 38.5%
Indian 92,587 14.1%
Others 1,559 0.2%
Non-Malaysian 19,989 3.0%

Toponymy

The name Ipoh is derived from a local tree, Pohon Epu or now more commonly known as Pokok Ipoh. The sap of this plant is poisonous and was used by Orang Asli (indigenous peoples in Malay) to coat the tips of the darts of their blowpipes for hunting.

Transportation

Ipoh Railway Station
Sultan Azlan Shah Airport

Notable people

Film and Television:

Music: 

   Australian & International
   Composer/ Orchestrator/ Producer
   Musical Director/ Carnegie Hall /          
   Olympics  /  Numerous World            
   Stage & Media Performances

Sports: (Badminton):

Sports (Football):

Sports (Others):

Business:

Politics:

Historical:

Other:

Film and television

Movies filmed in Ipoh include:

Gallery

https://au.linkedin.com/in/chong-lim-0b892720

International relations

Sister cities

Ipoh currently has two sister cities:

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.statistics.gov.my/portal/download_Population/files/BPD/ad_2010.pdf
  2. 1 2 Ipohworld’s World » Yau Tet Shin’s New Town Under Construction 1908. Ipohworld.org. Retrieved on 27 September 2013.
  3. ↑ Khoo Salma Nasution & Abdur-Razzaq Lubis, Kinta Valley: Pioneering Malaysia's Modern Development, Ipoh: Perak Academy, 2005. pp. 273–292
  4. ↑ "Limestone Hills (Bukit Batu Kapur), Ipoh, PERAK - Malaysia Travel Review". Malaysiahotelreview.com. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
  5. ↑ Jacq-Hergoualc'h, Michel; Victoria Hobson (September 2002). The Malay Peninsula: Crossroads of the Maritime Silk Road (100 BC - 1300 AD). BRILL. ISBN 90-04-11973-6.
  6. ↑ "World Weather Information Service — Ipoh". World Meteorological Organisation. Retrieved 7 May 2014.
  7. ↑ "Home". Cavesofmalaysia.com. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
  8. ↑ "New mayor for Ipoh sworn in - Community | The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2015-11-11.
  9. ↑
  10. 1 2 3 "Population Distribution by Local Authority Areas and Mukims, 2010" (PDF). Department of Statistics Malaysia.
  11. ↑ "Malaysia / Perak / The Ipoh Railway Station". Cockatoo.com. 14 November 2011. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
  12. ↑ "Guangxi signed cooperation project of US$ 400 million with Malaysia". Ministry of Commerce, People's Republic of China. 6 April 2005. Archived from the original on 20 December 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  13. ↑ "Exchange with sister cities". Fukuoka City. 23 April 2009. Archived from the original on 20 December 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2015.

External links

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