[71][72], Between 1944 and 1945, Allied bombers based in India repeatedly bombed George Town, seeking to destroy the naval facilities and administrative centres. [302][303], George Town was once the centre of Malaysia's print media. [168], According to the 2010 Census conducted by the Malaysian federal government, George Town had a population of 708,127. [22][24] Aware of this situation, Light formed friendly relations with the then Sultan of Kedah, Sultan Muhammad Jiwa Zainal Adilin II, and promised British military protection, while the Sultan reciprocally offered Penang Island, then part of Kedah. As of 2017[update], Penang attracted almost 8.6 million tourists, with the airport posting a record 7.2 million passenger arrivals and the pier registering another 1.35 million tourist arrivals. [183][185][186], As with other multi-ethnic cities in Malaysia, all four major languages are widely spoken in George Town – Malay, English, Chinese and Tamil. [239], In the suburbs, the Siamese and Burmese communities have left their mark too; the Buddhist temples at Pulau Tikus include Wat Chaiyamangkalaram and the Dhammikarama Temple. Penang is oft hailed as Southeast Asia writ small. [7] More recent estimates from Malaysia's Department of Statistics indicated that about 738,500 inhabitants lived within this cosmopolitan city as of 2012[update]. [29] The Governor of Penang, the head of state, also has his official residence within the city. [203], George Town has always been one of the most popular tourist destinations in Malaysia. ", "How a dilapidated Penang shophouse became a dream second home", "Tech in Asia – Connecting Asia's startup ecosystem", "Portal Rasmi Kerajaan Negeri Pulau Pinang – The Launching of PENANG @CAT Programme", "Penang eyes foreign companies to set up IT operations", "Special Report: Importance of services sector grows", "Retail Activity in Malaysia : From Shophouse to Hypermarket", "The Architectural Style of the Peranakan Cina", "50 best foods in the world | CNN Travel", "Official Website of Penang Philharmonic", "The good, bad and ugly of street artist Ernest Zacharevic's murals", "Penang Art Gallery: Art Galleries and Museums in Penang Area, Malaysia", "Made in Penang Interactive Museum :: 美因槟廊", "Penang Time Tunnel | The History Museum", "Grand Songkran festival celebration in Penang", "St Patrick's Day celebrated with merriment over four days", "Penang Hot Air Balloon Fiesta 2017 memberangsangkan, jumpa lagi tahun depan! In addition, George Town contains a number of private tertiary educational institutions, as well as one of the premier Malaysian public universities – Universiti Sains Malaysia. The George Town Festival, first held in 2010, has evolved into one of the top arts events in Southeast Asia, while the Penang Hot Air Balloon Fiesta attracts close to 200,000 visitors from all over the world. The city has attracted approximately half of Malaysia's medical tourist arrivals in 2013 and generated about 70% of the nation's medical tourism revenue. [80][89][90], The city's decline continued into the early 2000s. 132 were here. Aside from these, the city has a handful of language institutions, such as the British Council, Alliance Française and the Malaysian German Society.[280][281][282]. [209] Most of the foreign banks still maintain their Penang headquarters at Beach Street, which serves as the city's main Central Business District. Penang food is amazing and so affordable, with a glorious choice to tantalise taste buds- Indian cuisine, Moslem delicacies, Nonya cooking, Chinese and Malay food. [175][176], The Peranakans, descendants of mixed Malay and Chinese ancestries, were once the political and business elites in George Town. [304] One of Malaysia's top dailies currently in circulation, The Star, was founded in George Town in the 1970s, while the country's oldest Chinese newspaper, Kwong Wah Yit Poh, was also founded in the city in 1910. [273] The SPICE Arena at Bayan Baru consists of an indoor stadium, an aquatics centre and a convention centre, while the Nicol David International Squash Centre at Gelugor is a major squash training facility. 147 French and Russian sailors were killed. George Town, the capital city of Penang state, is located on Penang Island in the North-West of Malaysia. [232], An integral part of Penang's services sector is medical tourism, which has made George Town the medical tourism hub of Malaysia. [15][16] The city also serves as the financial centre of northern Malaysia and the nation's most vital medical tourism hub. [60], World War II, on the other hand, brought unparalleled social and political upheaval to Penang. Founded as an entrepôt in 1786, it was the first British settlement in Southeast Asia. [224], The state government launched its ten-year Penang Tourism Master Plan in February 2019 with the goal of ensuring sustainable development and making Penang a hub for tourism, heritage, culture and arts in the region. Under British rule, missionary schools were set up across George Town. Get best deals on money. [138], The central hills of Penang Island, situated to the west of George Town, serve as a gigantic green lung and water catchment area for the urbanised island. [10][22][27] After an agreement was signed between Light and the Sultan, Light and his entourage sailed on to Penang Island, where they arrived on 17 July 1786. [119] The zone includes the city's administrative precinct, which is home to the most historic landmarks like Fort Cornwallis, City Hall and the Penang State Museum, as well as the main Central Business District along Beach Street. [149], George Town's proximity to the island of Sumatra makes it susceptible to dust particles carried by wind from the perennial but transient forest fires, creating a yearly phenomenon known as the Southeast Asian haze. This is the version of our website addressed to speakers of English in the United States. The State of Penang also has a sister area partnership with Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan, which was ratified in 1991.[353]. — Picture by Hari Anggara. However, the capital was then shifted to Singapore in 1832, as the latter had usurped George Town's position as the region's preeminent harbour. The historical core of George Town has been inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2008. George Town is the capital city of the Malaysian state of Penang. The High Court remains at Light Street to this day, along with the Magistrates and Sessions Court across the street. [48][49], Also in the same year, the Straits Settlements was made a British crown colony, to be governed directly by the Colonial Office in London. [242], George Town, long known as the food capital of Malaysia, is renowned for its good and varied street food, incorporating Malay, Chinese, Indian, Peranakan, Thai and European influences into its literal melting pot. There are also 54 government-run clinics throughout George Town, supported by 11 private hospitals and 352 private clinics. Currently, 77.8 % of the population of Malaysia is urban (24,862,312 people in 2019) Population Density The 2019 population density in Malaysia is 97 people per Km 2 (252 people per mi 2 ), calculated on a total land area of 328,550 Km2 (126,854 sq. George Town offers views of the famous Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion, Kapitan Keling Mosque and many of the capital's golden crowned Buddhist temples. [84] As the Malaysian federal government continued to develop Kuala Lumpur and nearby Port Klang, Penang began to suffer considerable brain drain. Penang state is located in Peninsular Malaysia and is one of the most urbanized and economically developed states in the country. The median asking price for a 3 bedroom house for sale in George Town is $200,000. 111 ] [ 267 ] [ 130 ] [ 265 ], then! Chinese, Malay, Indian, Peranakan, Eurasian, Thai and other ethnicities www.propertiesinpenang.com help you find cuisine varied. 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