What’s in a Kampung Name?

By Beh May Ting

May 2022 FEATURE
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An old kampung house in Kampung Seronok.
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EVER WONDERED WHY certain kampungs are so named? Maybe they were named after their founders or an upstanding community member? Or perhaps, they got their names from plantation crops, or the hills and rivers in their immediate environs?Some do have rather straightforward monikers, but there are those too whose names hint at interesting local histories:Kampung SeronokKampung Seronok in Bayan Lepas translates as “Joyous Village” in English. It was initially called Kampung Haji Muhammad before it was renamed in 1946 at...

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Beh May Ting

is an urban anthropologist and a senior analyst in Penang Institute. She draws professional and personal inspirations from the finer things in life.


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