Pekan, Pahang
Pekan is a town in Pahang. It is located on the banks of the Pahang River, about 50 km south of Kuantan. It is a royal town, meaning the royal family of Pahang resides there. It is also the hometown of the current (as of 2009) prime minister of Malaysia, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.
There are a few theories to how the town got its name. Some believed that it was named after the Bunga Pekan flower, which grew along the banks of the Pahang River. Another theory claimed that it was named after Sungai Pekan, the river that flowed through the town near Mengkasar village. Yet another theory claimed that it was derived from Pekan Pahang, or town of Pahang. The most popular is that the name derived from it being a village settlement, or pekan in Malay, which grew into a small town.
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