French missionary’s WWII diary offers a glimpse of life during wartime in Penang August 16, 2021 – Posted in: In The News, Reviews

Rouwen Lim One can only imagine the significance of the moment when French historian Bernard Patary stumbled upon handwritten accounts dating back to the 1930s, in the archives of the College General in Penang, about 15 years ago. This was a black hardcover notebook and numerous exercise books with brown covers. There were times when the author even wrote on loose sheets of paper that were then inserted into the book proper when it was…

Batu Uban: Bukti Pertapakan Melayu di Pulau Pinang June 10, 2021 – Posted in: Uncategorized

Francis Light dianggap sebagai orang yang bertanggungjawab membuka Pulau Pinang pada tahun 1876. Kaum-kaum lain yang datang berhijrah pula dianggap membantu menyemarakkan lagi perkembangan kapitalisme di Pulau Pinang. Atas sebab itu sumbangan mereka dijulang dan segala yang berkaitan dengan mereka seperti kawasan (petempatan), bangunan dan tokoh dianggap warisan sejarah yang perlu disimpan malah diwartakan sebagai warisan sejarah yang diiktiraf oleh UNESCO. Dalam waktu yang sama, pihak-pihak tertentu melupakan sejarah tempatan iaitu sejarah orang-orang Melayu yang…

Menulis sejarah orang kalah April 21, 2021 – Posted in: In The News

Oleh DR MUHAMIN SULAM / April 17, 2021 Buku ‘Batu Uban. Sejarah Awal Pulau Pinang’ tulisan Prof Dr. Ahmad Murad Merican dianugerahkan sebagai buku terbaik dalam kategori buku sejarah sempena Majlis Anugerah Buku Negara baru-baru ini. Beliau bukanlah terdidik dalam disiplin sejarah dan bukan pakar sejarah. Namun karyanya itu, saya anggap sebagai sejarah orang kalah. Orang asal Pulau Pinang adalah ‘orang kalah’. Mungkin sebagai anak tempatan, Prof Dr. Ahmad Murad Merican cuba bangun menolak pemikiran yang sedia…

Penang trams January 29, 2021 – Posted in: In The News

This page is about Penang Trams. George Town was one of the first cities in the region to introduce trams, ahead of even Calcutta and Singapore. A steam tramway with a single metre gauge line commenced operation in the 1880s linking Weld Quay in the town centre with Ayer Itam, four miles away across picturesque scenery and coconut plantations. It was used both as a passenger service and to transport farm produce to the docks…

Syair Boria: a review December 6, 2018 – Posted in: Reviews

Syair Boria, Biografi Abdullah Darus problematized the origins of boria, a performing art form peculiar to Penang to Persian Syiah beginnings arising from the murder of Hussain, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in Karbala, Iraq in the 7th century, to mark the occasion. The practice came to Penang with the arrival of sepoy soldiers from the 21st Madras Regiment. Speculations abound as to its origins that boria is derived from boriah or mat…

She who wants to see Penang at its classic best October 15, 2018 – Posted in: In The News

George Town native Khoo Salma Nasution @ Khoo Su Nin, 55, wears many hats in championing the Penang capital’s colonial era heritage. She was the president of Penang Heritage Trust, and prior to that was involved in the group’s successful lobbying to the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) to list George Town as a World Cultural Heritage Site in 2008. Khoo Salma has written multiple books about Penang’s history, some of which were…

The memoirs of the last British headmaster of PFS July 23, 2018 – Posted in: Reviews

2016 will surely be remembered for some momentous events. However I am not talking about Brexit or the results of US Presidential Election. I am referring instead to the bi-centenary celebrations of Penang Free School, my alma mater, which took place on 21 October 2016. Founded by Rev. Robert Sparke Hutchings in 1816 not long after the British East India Company took over the island from the Sultan of Kedah, Free School was the first…

Zooming in on living heritage July 2, 2018 – Posted in: In The News

TRADITIONAL trades that are often overlooked in Penang have been beautifully captured and documented in a 248-page book. Author Chin Yoon Khen, a project programme management advisor, said his Traditional Trades of Penang book comprised photographs of 54 different trades that he found in the state. “Besides the photographs, I have also included the descriptions of the skilled trade workers. “All the artisans who worked with me for the book were very helpful and did…

Postcard Journeys June 4, 2018 – Posted in: Reviews

Every once in a while, a book comes along that surpasses expectations. Although there have been other publications about postcards in Malaysia, Penang Postcard Collection 1899-1930 is by far the most ambitious study of the subject to date. Serious collectors or scholars of postcards (deltiologists, as they are called), as well as casual readers, are sure to delight in this richly illustrated and beautifully designed volume. Packed with fascinating historical detail, this book is a…

French book on Penang launched in Paris – Posted in: In The News

A book on Penang entitled Penang: la Porte des Secrets (Penang – Through Gilded Doors) as well as an exhibition of photographs on the Malaysian island were launched today, 18 October 2006 in Paris. The book, its French edition stylishly written by Julia de Bierre and superbly photographed by James Bain Smith was officially launched by the Malaysian Ambassador to France, H.E. Dato? S. Thanarajasingam, at a ceremony held at the Café des Initiés in Paris.…