The Rice Bowl Of Malaysia
Kedah is traditionally known as the “Rice Bowl
of Malaysia”, producing one third of Malaysia's total production of rice. As
you travel through Kedah, vast stretches of rice fields will greet you over the
horizon like a carpet of green.
Kedah can claim to be the most ancient State in
the country, the present royal family being able to trace its line back to
Hindu times. Was once a prosperous center for traders in the old days, it
attracted traders who traveled between China and India. This is reflected in
the numerous stone age artifacts and Hindu-Buddhist temple sites found in
Kedah.
In the seventh and eighth centuries AD, Kedah
was a vassal state of the Sumatran Kingdom, Sri Vijaya. The state fell
under the influence of the Thais when the powers of Sri Vijaya fall. The rise
of Malacca in the 15th. century liberated Kedah from the Thais and led to the
Islamization of the state. After the fall of Malacca, the old threats returned.
Portuguese and Achinese attacked Kedah in the 17th. century, out to destroy the
state as a rival producer of pepper. At the end of the 18th. century, the
sultan handed over Penang and then Province Wellesley to the British in the
hope that the British would protect what remained of Kedah from the Thais. But
this did not save the state and eventually in 1821, the Thais captured Kedah
and subsequently in 1909 the Thais transferred the state to the British by the
Anglo-Siamese Treaty. In 1941, Kedah was the first state along with Kelantan to
be invaded by the Japanese and subsequently joined the Federation of Malaya in
1948 before gaining independent along with the rest of Malaysia in 1957 from
the British.
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Today, Kedah set its pace to modernize with
most recently forging its economy towards the automotive and aerospace industry
while maintaining to be the “rice bowl” of Malaysia and other agricultural
products such as rubber and oil palm.
Tourism is also given priority in the
development of the state’s economy apart from industrial and agricultural,
particularly on the island of Langkawi, tourism is of growing
importance. It is hard to imagine that only a decade ago Langkawi is a cluster
of fishing villages surrounded by coconut trees, but this is something the
visitors must see for themselves. To sum it all, Langkawi is a reclusive
retreat for the tired and beaten down corporate executive, an island resort for
the entire family, a romantic escapade for the honeymooners, a heaven for water
sports enthusiast and a sanctuary for sun worshippers or in other words – a
haven to blend into just for the fun of it all.
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