November 2025

This November, Penang Monthly explores language, place and memory. As GTLF returns, we highlight Penang’s multilingual streets and the dialects that keep local history alive.

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A publication of Penang Institute, Penang Monthly is the voice of Penang - an inspiring read for the curious Malaysian, featuring stories about the people, ideas, and issues shaping the state's well-being. Sign up for a free account to enjoy unlimited access to all our articles.

Revealing the Wonderful World of Biodiversity

3 min read

FOR ONCE IN my life, let me quote from The Bible to make a weighty point of contrast. In Genesis 7:9, it is stated: "There went in two and two unto Noah into th...

by Dato' Dr. Ooi Kee Beng

Highlands that Never Stop Inspiring Artists

4 min read

SOME OF THE earliest records of Penang Hill before photography became popular are in the form of 19th century topographical drawings, most of which are now in t...

by Ooi Kok Chuen

Penang Poised to Grow Despite General Uncertainties

6 min read

PENANG’S ECONOMIC RECOVERY is estimated to remain cautiously buoyant, with the reopening of economic activities, continued external demand especially for semico...

by Ong Wooi Leng

The Happiness in Penang (HIP) Index 2020-2021

5 min read

MORE OFTEN THAN not, a nation’s state of progress and development is measured by the metrics of gross domestic product (GDP), gross national product (GNP), volu...

by Negin Vaghefi

The Impact of Covid-19 on Life Insurance

3 min read

THE LIFE INSURANCE industry has changed considerably since the Covid pandemic. Over the past five years, the life insurance penetration rate, a common indicator...

by Yap Jo-yee

Disunity in Diversity

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by Azmi Hussin

A Cineplex Business that Intends to Survive the Crisis

4 min read

ENTERTAINMENT A CENTURY ago was found mainly in George Town. But in 1936, the Odeon cinema, founded by the Chiah family, opened to serve the Butterworth communi...

by Noorhasyilah Rosli

A Brief History of 123 Macalister

4 min read

The 109.38-hectare (ha) George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site (WHS) contains more than 1,700 buildings, making it the largest collection of pre-war buildings i...

by Au Tai Yeow

The B-Movie – A Welcomed Mental Asylum

3 min read

I DON'T LOVE them; I don’t hate them. But I think they are indispensable. They are very much a necessary by-product of the film industry, the way any form of ar...

by Dato' Dr. Ooi Kee Beng

Hiking through Penang Island’s “Down Under”

5 min read

THE TURTLE-SHAPED Penang Island has four strategically positioned “flippers” at each of its geographic extremes. The bottom two “flippers” that extend to Tanjun...

by Rexy Prakash Chacko

Which Came First, the Chneh Hu or Pasembur?

8 min read

In the southern part of Malaysia, pasembur closely resembles the Indian Muslim or “Mamak” rojak. The Singapore Indian rojak is also similar to Malaysia’s northern pasembur or the southern Mamak rojak, but with several key differences.

by Dr. Ong Jin Teong & Peter Yeoh

Events

4 min read

FESTIVALIt’s time to rediscover Penang’s vibrant arts scene with George Town Festival’s Nine Days Eight Shows, happening from December 4-12. It features eight f...

by Penang Monthly

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