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Kuching
—  City  —
City of Kuching
A part of the western side of Kuching city centre skyline at dusk, viewed from across the Sarawak River. Official Seals of the City of Kuching Commission of the City of Kuching North Council of the City of Kuching South 100px File:Kuching South City Hall emblem.png
Nickname(s): "Cat City"
Kuching Location in Borneo
Kuching Location in Malaysia
Coordinates: 1°33′36″N 110°20′42″E / 1.56°N 110.345°E / 1.56; 110.345Coordinates: 1°33′36″N 110°20′42″E / 1.56°N 110.345°E / 1.56; 110.345
Country	Malaysia
State	Sarawak
Division	Kuching Division
District	Kuching District
First settled	Circa AD 600s (7th century)[2]
Incorporation (Municipality)	November 1906[3]
Incorporation (City)	1 August 1988
Government
• Type	Kuching South : Mayor–council government Kuching North : Council–manager government
• Mayor (Kuching South)	James Chan Khay Syn[4]
• Commissioner (Kuching North)	Datuk Abang Wahap Abang Julai[5]
Area[6]
• City of Kuching	431.01 km2 (166.41 sq mi)
• Kuching North	369.48 km2 (142.66 sq mi)
• Kuching South	61.53 km2 (23.76 sq mi)
	Sourced from the DBKU official website
Elevation	27 m (89 ft)
Highest elevation	810.2 m (2,658.1 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population (2012)[7]
• City of Kuching	617,887 [1]
• Density	1,208.2/km2 (3,129/sq mi)
• Metro	598,617
	Sourced from the Population and Housing Census of Malaysia 2010. Kuching Utara is the city population while metropolitan population is derived from adding Kuching Utara, Padawan and Kuching Selatan.
Demonym	Kuchingite
Time zone	MST (UTC+8)
• Summer (DST)	Not observed (UTC+8)
Postal code	93xxx
International dialling code prefix	+6082 (landline only)
Vehicle registration plate prefix	QQ, QA and QK (for all vehicles except taxis) HQ (for taxis only)
Website	Kuching North: www.dbku.gov.my/ Kuching South: www.mbks.gov.my/

Kuching ( /ˈkuːtʃɪŋ/ KOO-ching; Chinese: 古晋）), officially the City of Kuching,^[8] and formerly the City of Sarawak, is the capital and most populous city of the East Malaysian state of Sarawak. The city covers an area of 719 sq miles (1,863 km²) and and has an estimated population of 1 million of 2012.

Kuching is one of the two subsets of the Kuching Proper subdistrict, the other subset being part of the Padawan municipality. Kuching Proper is one of the three subdistricts in the Kuching District, which is one of the three districts in the Kuching Division.

Etymology[link]

More than 150 years ago, Sarawak was essentially Kuching. Kuching was known as Sarawak first, then the word Proper, was added to Sarawak, thus Sarawak Proper, so as to distinguish it from the larger Sarawak which, in 1841, consisted of only the area between Tanjung Datu, and the Samarahan River.^[9] On 12 August 1872, Sarawak Proper was given its present name, Kuching, under the rule of the second Rajah of Sarawak, Charles Brooke.^[10]

Kuching was named after a tidal stream called Kuching River (Sungai Kuching) that ran between the present-day Tua Pek Kong Temple, and Chinese History Museum. The stream originated from Cat's Eye Hill (Bukit Mata Kuching) where there was an abundance of a local fruit called Green Longan (Isau, Dimocarpus longan ssp malesianus), vernacularly known as Cat's Eye (Mata Kuching).^[9] In 1928, the stream was filled up to make way for the construction of Temple Street (Lebuh Temple), and thus the city's expansion eastwards.

History[link]

Kuching is the third capital of Sarawak, founded by the representative of the Sultan of Brunei, Pengiran Indera Mahkota in 1827. Prior to the founding of Kuching, the two past capitals of Sarawak were Santubong, founded by Sultan Pengiran Tengah in 1599, and Lidah Tanah, founded by Datu Patinggi Ali in the early 1820s.^{[citation needed]}

Kuching as the Capital of the Brooke Administration[link]

Downtown Kuching as seen from Fort Margherita

Sir James Brooke, the first Rajah of Sarawak.

Sarawak was a part of the Sultanate of Brunei before it was ceded to British adventurer James Brooke, who ruled it as his personal kingdom from 24 September 1841. The official declaration was not made until 18 August 1842. Brooke took over as a reward for helping to bring about a peaceful settlement facing Bidayuh uprising against the Sultan of Brunei.

Kuching became the seat of the Brooke government and underwent remarkable changes. As the administrative capital, it was the focus of attention and development. Some of the first things James Brooke did was to introduce a code of laws and build his residence on a site at the northern bank of the Sarawak River. The present-day Astana (Palace), which is now the official residence of the Governor of Sarawak, is next to the original Brooke building.^{[citation needed]}

Under James Brooke, piracy and headhunting were banned and law and order enforced. However, Kuching remained cramped and lacking in facilities. It was not until 1868 when Charles Brooke became the Second Rajah that greater efforts were made to upgrade the town. Drainage was improved, new buildings and streets sprang up and old shophouses were replaced with brick ones.^{[citation needed]}

The Brooke Administration was given the status of Protectorate under Rajah Charles Brooke's rule and was placed behind the Indian Rajas and Princes. By the end of the Charles Brooke rule, Kuching had grown from a small ramshackle place into a town with attractive Victorian-styled Government buildings and telecommunication service. Sampans (small boats) and trains were the primary mode of transport. There were even sports and entertainment facilities such as a race course and the Sarawak Club, complete with a bar, billiard tables and bowling alleys.^{[citation needed]}

Kuching continued to prosper under Charles Vyner Brooke, who succeeded his father as the Third Rajah of Sarawak. In 1941, Kuching became the venue of the Brooke Government Centenary Celebration. A few months later, the Brooke administration came to a close when the Japanese occupied Sarawak.

World War Two[link]

During the Second World War, six platoons of infantry from 2/15 Punjab Regiment were stationed at Kuching. Kuching would be defended because of its airfield, and because its occupation by the enemy would give access to the important Dutch airfield at Singkawang II, sixty miles to the southwest and only some 350 miles from Singapore.^[11]

Kuching was surrendered to the Japanese forces on 24 December 1941, and Sarawak was part of the Japanese Imperial Empire for three years and eight months, until the official Japanese surrender on 11 September 1945, on board HMAS Kapunda at Kuching. From March 1942, the Japanese operated a POW and civilian internee Batu Lintang camp, three miles (5 km) outside Kuching.^[12]

After the end of World War II the third and last Rajah, Sir Charles Vyner Brooke ceded Sarawak to the British Crown in 1946. Kuching was revitalised as the capital of Sarawak under the British Colonial Government. When Sarawak, together with Northern Borneo, Singapore and the Federation of Malaya, formed the Federation of Malaysia in 1963, Kuching was maintained as the State Capital.^{[citation needed]}

Geography[link]

Kuching is situated at the banks of the Sarawak River on the North-Western part of the island of Borneo.

The limits of the City of Kuching include all that area in Kuching District containing an area approximately 431.01 km² (166.4 sq mi) bounded from Gunung Lasak (Mount Lasak) in Muara Tebas to Batu Buaya (Crocodile Rock) in the Santubong peninsula following a series of survey marks as stated in the First Schedule of the City of Kuching Ordinance, 1988. As a simplification of the legal statute, the Kuching city limits extend from the Kuching International Airport in the south to the northern coast of the Santubong and Bako peninsulas; from the Kuching Wetlands National Park in the west to the Kuap River estuary in the east. The Sarawak River generally splits the city into North and South.

The highest point in the city is Mount Santubong on the Santubong peninsula, which is at 810.2 m (2,658 ft) AMSL, located 35 km north of the city centre.

Climate[link]

Kuching has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen climate classification Af), moderately hot but very humid at times and receives substantial rainfall. The average annual rainfall is approximately 4,200 mm or 165 inches (4,200 mm).^[13] Kuching is the wettest populated area (on average) in Malaysia with an average of 247 rainy days per year. Kuching receives only 5 hours of sunshine per day on average and an average of only 3.7 hours of sunshine per day in the month of January (wettest month of the year). The wettest times are during the North-East Monsoon months of November to February and the dry season starts from June till August. The temperature in Kuching ranges from 19 °C (66 °F) to 36 °C (97 °F) but the average temperature is around 23 °C (73 °F) in the early hours of the morning and rises to around 33 °C (91 °F) during mid afternoon but the heat index often reaches 42 °C (108 °F) during the dry season due to the humidity. This temperature stays almost constant throughout the year if it is not affected by the heavy rain and strong winds during the early hours of the morning which could but rarely bring the temperature down to 19 °C (66 °F).^{[citation needed]}

Demographics[link]

2010 Census reports that Kuching urban population is 660,000 (Kuching City South – 150,000; Kuching City North – 170,000; Padawan- 3rd Mile/ 7th Mile/ 10th Mile – 340,000) and is consisted of Chinese (330,000), Malays (260,000), Ibans (70,000) and other ethnic groups. The Dayaks, the grouping of local indigenous tribes, can be categorized into Ibans, Bidayuhs, Melanaus and Orang Ulu, among others. The Chinese are made up of Fujianese (Hokkien) in the city areas and Hakka in the suburbs mainly. Other Chinese consist of Foochow (Fuzhou), Teochew, Hainanese, Cantonese, Henghua and others. Interracial marriages among those of different ethnic backgrounds are common in Kuching.

The main religions are Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism and Islam^{[citation needed]} . The Chinese practice either Buddhism, Taoism or Christianity. Most Dayaks are Christian, with the exception of the Melanaus, who are partially Muslim.

The city is considered one of the cleanest cities in Malaysia and was voted as one of the world's healthiest cities, recognised and awarded by both United Nations (UN) and World Health Organisation (WHO)^[16] and by the Alliance for Healthy Cities (AFHC) in Suzhou, China.^[17]

A majority of people in Kuching are capable of communicating in Bahasa Melayu (Malay Language) and English. English is more widely spoken in Kuching than other Malaysian cities due to Sarawak's history and the large number of native dialect languages.^{[citation needed]} The dialect of Malay spoken in Kuching is known as Bahasa Sarawak (Sarawakian Malay Language), which is a subset of the Malay language.

Government[link]

Kuching is the only city in Malaysia to be administered by two distinct entities; a local authority (City Council) and a state government statutory body granted a City Hall status.

The city's twin administration was born out of the need of an efficient system which would allow for a balanced development and population distribution for the two territories. It will also ensure that the local authority of the city proper will not be hampered by the former jurisdiction of Kuching Rural District Council (KRDC).

The City of Kuching is divided into two areas; Kuching North and Kuching South. Each of these is administered by a Mayor (Malay: Datuk Bandar); legally called Mayor for Kuching South and Commissioner for Kuching North. The city delimitation exercise also resulted in the city centre being split into East and West.

Education[link]

Higher and tertiary education[link]

The city's higher education system follows the guidance of the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE). Under the purview of MOHE are two main departments, namely the Institutes of Higher Education Management Department and the Polytechnic and Community College Management Department.

There are currently no public university campuses in Kuching, apart from the UNIMAS Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences building situated next to the Sarawak General Hospital. The Sarawak state government has moved the last remaining public university campus (Universiti Teknologi MARA) from Kuching to Kota Samarahan in 1997 in a long-term initiative to transform Kota Samarahan into an education hub.^[18] However, there is a polytechnic (Politeknik Kuching Sarawak) and a community college (Kolej Komuniti Kuching) available for school leavers seeking further education in public institutions in Kuching.

Kuching is home to two full-fledged private university campuses; namely the Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus, the only branch campus of Swinburne University of Technology outside Australia; and UCSI University, Sarawak Campus which houses the Faculty of Hospitality & Management. Swinburne University Sarawak Campus is currently run by Professor Helmut Lueckenhausen; the CEO and PVC (Pro Vice Chancellor) since 2007.

The city has other private colleges, mainly subsidiaries from universities and university colleges established in West Malaysia, such as SEGi College, Sarawak, Sunway College Kuching, PTPL Sarawak, INTI College Sarawak, Limkokwing Borneo and Twintech College Sarawak.

There are also private institutions conducting franchised programmes from full-fledged universities (apart from running their own courses) such as SATT College (conducting franchised programmes from UiTM) and the Institute of Dynamic Management, Sarawak (conducting franchised programmes from UNIRAZAK).

The International College of Advanced Technology Sarawak or ICATS is an institution created as the state government's initiative to enhance technical and vocational training education among school leavers. Operated by a state-owned subsidiary, ICATS focuses on producing human capital for the hi-tech sector, especially for the development of the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy.

Primary and secondary education[link]

The Malaysian Ministry of Education (MOE) oversees the education system on the primary and secondary levels. The Sarawak Education Department manages all aspects of the education service in the state. Public schools in Sarawak are supervised according to districts under the purview of a District Education Officer.^[19] In Kuching, all schools under the National Education System (government education institution category), are managed by the Kuching Combined Education Office (Pejabat Pelajaran Gabungan Kuching).

There are more than 80 schools with an enrollment of more than 30,000 students in the City of Kuching.^[20] Schools are divided into 4 levels of education namely pre-school, primary, secondary (lower & upper) and post-secondary (excluding tertiary). As of January 2010, SMK Green Road has the highest enrollment of 2075 among all secondary schools in Kuching^[21] while SJK Chung Hua No. 3 has the highest enrollment of 1553 among all primary schools.^[22]

Libraries[link]

The Sarawak State Library (Pustaka Negeri Sarawak).

The Sarawak State Library is the major information resource centre and provides information services for the public and private sectors.^[23] The library serves Kuching and its outskirts as the main depository of public records. In addition it administers, monitors and facilitates the operations of 36 village libraries in the state funded by the National Library of Malaysia.^[24]

Other public libraries in Kuching include the DBKU City Library and village libraries such as in Bandar Baru Samariang, Kampung Samariang Lama and Taman Sepakat Jaya.

Transportation[link]