Alor Star, the capital of Kedah Darul Aman, is a city of about 400,000 inhabitants. It was founded on 31 December in 1735 by Sultan Muhammad Jiwa Zainal Abidin (1710-1778), the 19th ruler of the Kedah Sultanate, when he moved his palace from Kota Bukit Pinang to Kota Star. Kota Star was eventually renamed Alor Star. Alor Star was the eighth administrative centre for Kedah after Kota Bukit Meriam, Kota Sungai Emas, Kota Siputeh, Kota Naga, Kota Sena, Kota Indera Kayangan and Kota Bukit Pinang. The name Alor Star comes from two words. "Alor" means small river. It derives from Tamil where "alur" means drain. "Star" is the name of a tree, Bouea macrophylla, which bears small, sourish fruits.
Alor Star skyline at dusk.
The Sultan named his new capital Kota Star because of the abundance of star trees. However merchants called it Alor Star to describe the place between the Kedah and Anak Bukit rivers. Eventually the name stuck.
Since its founding, the city was ransacked by external forces twice, the first time by the Bugis in 1770 and the second by the Siamese in 1821. The Bugis attack of 1770 destroyed Istana Kota Star and razed the Balai Besar. As a result of that, the ruler of Kedah at that time, Sultan Abdullah Mukaram Shah, entered into an agreement with Captain Francis Light. It indirectly led to the establishment of Penang.
The conquest of Kedah by Siam caused the sultanate to once again lose its territories, this time Perlis and Setul. During Siamese occupation of Kedah, the Sultan of Kedah went into exile in Penang, while the administrative capital shifted to Alor Ganu. In 1897, Perlis and Setul were returned to Kedah, but not for long. At that time, all were still under Siamese suzerainty. When Siam handed Kedah to the British in 1909, Perlis became an independent state in 1909 while Setul became Satun Province in Thailand. For more details on the history of Kedah, please read the details I documented on the Kuala Kedah Fort.
Alor Star attained city status on 21 December 2003, during which time the spelling of its name was changed back from Alor Setar to Alor Star.
How to go to Alor Star
Alor Star is located to the west of the North South Expressway that runs from Bukit Kayu Hitam to Johor Bahru. To reach Alor Star, exit the expressway at either Exit 178 (Alor Star South) or Exit 180 (Alor Star North). It is 126km from Penang Island (via Penang Bridge) and 45km from the Malaysian-Thai border.
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