Semporna

Semporna
Coordinates	4 ° 29 ′  N , 118 ° 37 ′  E Coordinates: 4 ° 29 ′  N , 118 ° 37 ′  E
Location of the city within the Semporna district
Basic data
Country	Malaysia
State	Sabah
Residents	35,301 (2010)
founding	May 10, 1887

Semporna is a city in the Malaysian state of Sabah . It is located on the east coast in the north of the island of Borneo at the exit of Darvel Bay, which is open to Lake Sulawesi . The city belongs to the Semporna district of the same name and is part of the Tawau Division , which includes the Kunak , Lahad Datu , Semporna and Tawau and Papar districts.

geography

Semporna is located at the tip of the Semporna peninsula in the south of Darvel Bay on Lake Sulawesi . The urban area includes more than 40 islands, including the touristic islands Sipadan , Mataking , Mabul and Kapalai .

Demographics

According to the last census in 2010, the population of Semporna is 35,301. The majority of the population are Bajau , many of whom live in the outskirts of Semporna in stilt houses directly over the water. As in many other cities in Sabah, there are significant numbers of illegal immigrants from the nearby Philippines , especially from Sulu and Mindanao , who are not recorded in the population statistics.

history

Semporna in the 1910s

Although people had already lived here and there on the coast of Semporna, Semporna was not founded until May 10, 1887 by the incumbent governor WM Crocker during a punitive expedition against the pirates in Ommadal. Shortly before, the North Borneo Chartered Company had settled in Sandakan. The place for the new settlement was formerly called Tong Talun . Semporna means "place to stay" in the Bajau language.

economy

The local economy is mainly based on fishing and the distribution of seafood. Here, the pearl farming is an important activity of the local industry.

Infrastructure

Streets

Semporna is connected to the Sabah trunk road network via the SA51 state road.

Airport

Semporna has a smaller airfield (English Semporna Airport , IATA airport code SMM , ICAO code WBKA ) with a 609 m long gravel runway. There is no regular passenger traffic.

The nearest international airport is Tawau Airport near the city ​​of the same name , about 70 kilometers west of Semporna. From there there are flight connections to Kota Kinabalu , Sandakan , Johor Bahru and the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur . The Malaysian airlines AirAsia and Malaysia Airlines serve these routes several times a day.

tourism

Regatta Lepa

The Lepa Regatta is a boat regatta that is held every year in April with the traditional Bajau boats. Semporna was also the start and finish of the Eco-Challenge sailing regatta in 2000.

Marine Park

Off the coast is Tun Sakaran Marine Park , named after Sakaran Dandai , also known as Semporna Islands Park . It was designated a protected area in 2004 and has been administered by the state authority Sabah Parks ever since .

Diving

Semporna is known for its unique diving and snorkeling areas on the island of Sipadan ( Sipadan Island ), which is about 36 kilometers southeast of the city.

Do Sakaran Museum

The Tun Sakaran Museum is located about two kilometers from the city center of Semporna in Kampung Imabah Kamal. The museum, which opened in 2015, is dedicated to the person Tun Sakaran Dandais and his services to the state of Sabah as well as the history and ethnography of Semporna.

languages

Semporna is the only place in Malaysia where Chabacano , a Spanish-based Creole language , is spoken. The language is otherwise mainly in the area around Zamboanga on the neighboring Philippine island of Mindanao .

See also

• Semporna district

literature

• KG Tregonning: A History Of Modern Sabah (North Borneo 1881–1963) , 2nd edition, University of Malaya Press, Kuala Lumpur, 1965, reprint 1967
• Owen Rutter: British North Borneo - An Account of its History, Ressources and Native Tribes , Constable & Company Ltd, London, 1922
• WH Treacher: British Borneo - Sketches of Brunai, Sarawak, Labuan and North Borneo , Singapore, Government print department, 1891

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Census 2010 for Sabah (PDF; 1.9 MB), page 137 ed. from the Bureau of Statistics, Malaysia
2. ↑ Pulau Sipadan Park ( Memento of the original from January 26, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ; Accessed January 10, 2012