Ipoh, the capital of the
state of Perak in Malaysia, is situated in the Kinta Valley which
was once the richest single tin field in the world.
The City is
half-way between Penang and Kuala Lumpur and has its fair share of
tourist attractions. Not only is Ipoh interesting in itself, but it
also serves as a base for a tour of the many towns and
places in Perak such as the royal town of Kuala Kangsar and the
inviting beaches of the beautiful Pangkor Island off the coast of
Perak.
A
Column From The Past
Ipoh derived its name from
the 'Ipoh Tree' which grew widely and in abundance in this
locality. The poisonous latex obtained from these trees was much sought after
by the natives for their blow-pipe darts used in the hunting
of wild animals. Today, these trees can still be found growing sparcely in certain parts of the city.
Ipoh is situated along the bank of the Kinta river and the
confluence of smaller rivers namely Sungai Pinji and Sungai Pari.
It
was then the bounding area or harbour for all incoming junks and
sampans from the Straits of Malacca through the Perak river which
was the main thorough fare of all transportation at that time.
Ipoh
was then a small village headed by the then Dato Panglima Kinta, a
territorial chief appointed by the Sultan of Perak. By 1890, Ipoh experienced tremendous development when tin was mined
in the Kinta Valley which later became the principal tin producing
area in the world. With the influx of immigrants, Ipoh became the
focal destination of wealth hunters and jobseekers from all over the
world; the English, the French, the Chinese and the Indians.
Between 1905 and 1914, the most outstanding development was Ipoh's
extension across the Kinta River which was to become today's 'New
Town'. From then on, the village became a town, a municipality
and on 27th May 1988, Ipoh was conferred city status by the Sultan
of Perak, His Royal Highness Sultan Azlan Shah.
Ipoh city covers an area of 171 sq. km with a cosmopolitan
population of almost 500,000 which is expected to reach 600,000 by
the year 2000.
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