Kulim District

Kulim District
Daerah Kulim
District of Kedah
Independence Memorial Clock Tower
Independence Memorial Clock Tower
Official seal of Kulim District
Kulim Municipal Council
Official logo of Kulim District
Kulim Hi-Tech Industrial Park Local Authority
Nickname: 
City of High Technology (Bandar Teknologi Tinggi)
Motto(s): 
Dedikasi Ke Arah Kecemerlangan (Malay)
"Dedication Towards Excellence"
(motto of Kulim Municipal Council);
Kehidupan Selesa, Persekitaran Indah (Malay)
"Comfortable Life, Beautiful Environment"
(motto of Kulim Hi-Tech Industrial Park Local Authority)
Location of Kulim District in Kedah
Location of Kulim District in Kedah
Interactive map of Kulim District
Coordinates: 5°20′N 100°35′E / 5.333°N 100.583°E / 5.333; 100.583
Country Malaysia
State Kedah
Foundedmid-18th century
Establishment1957
Municipality status30 Ogos 2001
SeatKulim
Local area government(s)Kulim Municipal Council
(Kulim town)
Kulim Hi-Tech Industrial Park Local Authority
(Kulim Hi-Tech Park)
Government
 • District officerMohamad Rizal Mohamad Radzi
Area
 • Total
765 km2 (295 sq mi)
Population
 (2025)
 • Total
354,000
 • Density463/km2 (1,200/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+8 (MST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+8 (Not observed)
Postcode
09xxx
Calling code+6-04
Vehicle registration platesK
Websitempkk.gov.my

The Kulim District is a district and town in the state of Kedah, Malaysia. It is located on the southeast of Kedah, bordering Penang. The town of Kulim, a mere 27 km (17 mi) east of Penang's capital city, George Town, also forms part of the George Town Conurbation, Malaysia's second largest metropolitan area.

Etymology

The name of this district is taken after the name of the kulim tree or its scientific name Scorodocarpus borneensis Becc. which grew in many places in this district in the past.

History

Kulim is believed to have been opened and settled in since the 18th century by 100 Pattani Malay descent. A Chinese artisan known as Chin Ah Cheoh might have been the founder of Kulim. Around the mid-19th century, tin ore was discovered in Kulim. This led to Chinese tin miners starting operations in Kulim. Kulim had around 400 Chinese tin miners in 1890. The largest tin mines in Kulim were in Taman Tunku Putra, Kampung Bukit Besar, Karangan, Terap and Kelang Lama.

Administrative divisions

Kulim District is divided into 15 mukims, which are:

Map of Kulim District

3 big towns (Bandar)

and 8 small towns (Pekan)

Demographics

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1991 128,356—    
2000 190,952+48.8%
2010 281,260+47.3%
2020 337,699+20.1%
Source:

Government

Kulim Municipal Council

Majlis Perbandaran Kulim
Coat of arms or logo
Emblem
Type
Type
History
Founded30 August 2001
Leadership
President
Dato’ Haji Elmi Bin Yusoff
Municipal Secretary
Puan Noorul Azyyati binti Ahmad Salmi
Motto
Dedikasi Ke Arah Kecemerlangan
(Dedication Towards Excellence)
Meeting place
No 1, Lebuh Bandar 2, Bandar Putra, 09000 Kulim, Kedah, Malaysia
Website
pbt.kedah.gov.my/index.php/majlis-perbandaran-kulim/

All parts of Kulim District are administered by Kulim Municipal Council (Malay: Majlis Perbandaran Kulim), formerly Kulim District Council (Malay: Majlis Daerah Kulim), except for the Hi-Tech Park which is administered by a special local authority. Kulim District Council was formed on 1 February 1978 through the merger of Kulim Town Council and Board and the Padang Serai, Junjung, Mahang and Merbau Pulas Local Councils.

Economy

Kulim District is currently most notable for its flagship high technology industrial park Kulim Hi-Tech Park.

In March 2019, Economic Affairs Minister Azmin Ali announced the Federal Government's approval to invest MYR 1.6 billion (~USD 380 million) to build the proposed Kulim International Airport. In August 2019, it was announced that the proposed 17 km2 airport will have two runways, which will be able to cater to 60 flight movements per hour, or one flight landing/take-off per minute. Around July 2023, the Federal Government halted construction for this airport due to lack of need.

Notable natives

Federal Parliament and State Assembly Seats

List of Kulim district representatives in the Federal Parliament (Dewan Rakyat)

ParliamentSeat NameMember of ParliamentParty
P17 Padang Serai Azman Nasrudin Perikatan Nasional (BERSATU)
P18 Kulim-Bandar Baharu Roslan Hashim Perikatan Nasional (BERSATU)

List of Kulim district representatives in the State Legislative Assembly (Dewan Undangan Negeri)

ParliamentStateSeat NameState AssemblymanParty
P17 N33 Merbau Pulas Siti Ashah Ghazali Perikatan Nasional (PAS)
P17 N34 Lunas Khairul Anuar Ramli Perikatan Nasional (PPBM)
P18 N35 Kulim Wong Chia Zhen Perikatan Nasional (GERAKAN)

See also

References

  1. ↑ primuscoreadmin (30 December 2015). "Latar Belakang".
  2. ↑ "Profil Daerah Kulim" (PDF) (in Malay). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-12-01. Retrieved 2017-11-26.
  3. ↑ "Population (2025)" (PDF) (in Malay and English). Department of Statistics, Malaysia. 2025-10-02. Retrieved 2026-03-31.
  4. ↑ Samat, Narimah; Mahamud, Mohd Amirul; Abdul Rashid, Siti Masayu Rosliah; Elhadary, Yasin; Mohd Noor, Norzailawati (2019). "Urbanisation Beyond Its Core Boundary and Its Impact on the Communities in George Town Conurbation, Malaysia". Planning Malaysia Journal. 17 (2) (published 2019-09-04): 38–49. doi:10.21837/pm.v17i10.627 – via MyJurnal.
  5. ↑ Thow, Eng Kee (1995). Kedah selepas Perang Kulim: Faktor British dan Siam dalam kajian perkembangan sosio-politik Kedah, 1888-1909 [Kedah after the Kulim War: British and Siamese factors in the study of Kedah's socio-political development, 1888-1909] (in Malay). Alor Setar: Nealdy Publisher & Distributor. ISBN 9789839996104.
  6. ↑ Mohd Bakri Jaffar (2007). .Untukmu Malaysia sempena 50 tahun merdeka : menjejaki warisan kita : himpunan gezet monumen dan bangunan bersejarah. Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia: Dr. Azmi Morsidi. Page 118. ISBN 978-983-43540-0-8
  7. ↑ Kulim’s Background Archived 2010-04-08 at the Wayback Machine, Laman Web Rasmi Majlis Perbandaran Kulim (Official Website of Kulim Government). January 16, 2010.
  8. ↑ Kulim’s City Centre Archived 2010-10-31 at the Wayback Machine, Kulim’s Municipal council website-Kulim’s Background October 31, 2010.
  9. ↑ "Laporan profil daerah - Daerah Kulim/Bandar Baharu, Kedah Darul Aman" [District profile report - Kulim/Bandar Baharu District, Kedah Darul Aman] (PDF) (in Malay). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-11-06.
  10. ↑ "Key Findings of Population and Housing Census of Malaysia 2020" (pdf) (in Malay and English). Department of Statistics, Malaysia. ISBN 978-967-2000-85-3.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: periodical has ISBN (link)
  11. ↑ "PBT Taman Perindustrian Hi-Tech Kulim".
  12. ↑ "Majlis Perbandaran Kulim".
  13. ↑ "LATAR BELAKANG MPK – Portal PBT Kedah". pbt.kedah.gov.my.
  14. ↑ Tee, Kenneth (19 March 2019). "Putrajaya announces RM1.6b for Kulim airport as part of 11MP review | Malay Mail". www.malaymail.com. Retrieved 2019-08-28.
  15. ↑ "Kulim airport to have two runways". The Star Online. 2019-08-28. Retrieved 2019-08-28.
  16. ↑ Reporters, F. M. T. (2023-07-01). "Govt says no-go for Kulim airport for now". Free Malaysia Today (FMT). Retrieved 2024-02-08.
  17. ↑ "Tan Sri Haji Ismail Bin Haji Omar" (in Malay). Royal Malaysian Police. Archived from the original on 24 January 2016. Retrieved 5 May 2012.
  18. ↑ "Australian High Commission in".