Letter to the Editor
3 min read
Sepoy Lines Recreation Club.Thank you for the great articles that really do bring back so many memories. I am now a resident of Perth, Australia, and sinc...
June 2026
Discover Penang Monthly’s June issue: explore the stories behind Penang’s enduring heritage brands, the richness of its multilingual and multicultural heritage, innovative local businesses, community-led initiatives, and the challenges shaping the state’s future. From family enterprises and semiconductor pioneers to traditional food, festivals, education, and environmental sustainability, this issue celebrates Penang’s resilience, identity, and capacity for renewal.
Did Merdeka Liberate or Create Malaya?
2 min read
Sixty years may have passed since Merdeka Day, but its historical significance remains something we continue to debate.Did Malaya fight to free itself from...
Wan Azizah & Nurul Izzah: Rebuilding A Nation Long Divided
21 min read
By Ooi Kee BengNurul Izzah, Daughter of the Reformasi, and of the jailed opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, was pulled into politics as a young gi...
A Portrait of Change: Bayan Lepas
6 min read
Once known as the rice bowl of Penang, not many would have envisioned Bayan Lepas as the vibrant urbanscape that it is today. This visual account of everyday life in and around Bayan Lepas at present is as much a dip into the past as it is a glimpse of the future.
One Thing is Certain – Expect More Amendments to the Constitution
3 min read
As with all agreements, consensus and contracts, a Constitution is a hunt for a balance – and a dynamic one at that – between the expressing on one hand of lofty national aspirations and ambitions, and on the other of compromises meant to be more binding than they usually turn out to be.
Historical Heights of Penang
2 min read
Historically, tall structures served as beacons of peace and war. From afar, belfries, minarets and pagodas provided visitors and local communities with a recog...
The Primacy of Political Economy in Asia
3 min read
It’s a complicated subject, this thing we call Economics. I don’t always know what it means.I remember once talking to Robert Kuok about it. His...
The Rotiman Rides On – Perhaps into the Sunset
Call him Rotiman. His ringing bell – like clockwork on most days – brings folk out from their houses to clamour around his motorbike for wholesome b...
Ecotourism – Conduit to a New Consciousness?
3 min read
Ecotourism sounds like an oxymoron, doesn’t it?We do know that tourism brings benefits to a place, but we cannot deny the larger truth of what I like...
The Sights, Sounds and Smells of Butterworth are Getting Stronger
3 min read
Think City, a community-focused urban regeneration organisation along with a few other passionate parties are encouraging new ventures and looking for proposals and ideas to put new heart into Butterworth.
The Hokkien Vernacular
3 min read
In lieu of a normal editorial, and in keeping with this month’s cover story being about Penang Hokkien, I am providing here in a somewhat truncated form, the Introductory from The Hokkien Vernacular.
Ageing in Numbers
4 min read
We look at the population data to identify Penang’s population trends, compared to that of the nation and to other states. The data also identifies &ldquo...
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