Kuala Rompin or ''Rompin town'' is the largest town of

Rompin District The Rompin District is a district located in the southeastern corner of Pahang, Malaysia. Rompin is currently under the Rompin District Council. The district covers an area of 5,296 km and located 130 kilometres from Kuantan, the capital ci ...

, southeastern

Pahang Pahang (; Jawi: , Pahang Hulu Malay: ''Paha'', Pahang Hilir Malay: ''Pahaeng'', Ulu Tembeling Malay: ''Pahaq)'' officially Pahang Darul Makmur with the Arabic honorific ''Darul Makmur'' (Jawi: , "The Abode of Tranquility") is a sultanate and ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. It is located on the South-East coast of Peninsular Malaysia and faces the South China Sea. It is about south from Kuantan, the State Capital of

. From Singapore, travellers must travel north by the coastal road via the city of Johor Bahru and the town of

Mersing Mersing (Terengganu Malay: ''Merecing'' or ''Ngesing'') is a town, mukim and the capital of Mersing District, Johor, Malaysia. As of 2010, the town has an estimated population of 70,894. Mersing town, is particularly significant for a number ...

. From the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Rompin is located east and is about 3½ hours journey by road.

History

It was said at one time in this area there is a tree named ''Ru'', or ''Rhu'' ('' Casuarina equisetifolia''). Ru trees are unique compared with other casuarina trees that live here because of its cascading shape. One story tells of ''rhu'' trees having a circumference that can fit as many as 40 people dining together. At first, people call this place name as ''Rhu Ramping'', and eventually ''Rumpin'' and ''Rompin''. In colonial days, Kuala Rompin was a fishing village that is often visited by traders who commute between

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

and

Kuantan Kuantan ( Jawi: ) is a city and the state capital of Pahang, Malaysia. It is located near the mouth of the Kuantan River. Kuantan is the 18th largest city in Malaysia based on 2010 population, and the largest city in the East Coast of Peni ...

. In 1952 the Pahang state government made Rompin an autonomous sub-district under Pekan. An Administrative Officer was subsequently appointed, taking the post of ''Assistant District Officer'', to be stationed in the autonomous subdistrict; British officer, J.B. Melford was appointed to that post on 16 December 1952. On July 31, 1976, the Sultan of Pahang, His Majesty Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah Al Musta'in Billah upgraded Rompin into a full district, hence separating it from Pekan and making Rompin the ninth district of Pahang. Rompin was given one vote in the

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

one decade later. Today, Rompin District is divided into five mukims (communes), namely

Tioman Tioman Island ( ms, Pulau Tioman) is a mukim and an island in Rompin District, Pahang, Malaysia. It is located off the east coast of the state, and is some long and wide. It has seven villages, the largest and most populous being Kampung Te ...

, Endau, Pontian, Keratong and Kuala Rompin town.

Attractions

Kuala Rompin is probably best known as the gateway to

Tioman Island Tioman Island ( ms, Pulau Tioman) is a mukim and an island in Rompin District, Pahang, Malaysia. It is located off the east coast of the state, and is some long and wide. It has seven villages, the largest and most populous being Kampung ...

. However, it is not without its own attractions. The restaurants of Kuala Rompin are famous for their seafood, especially for their freshwater prawns and freshwater clam caught in the surrounding areas especially at the estuary of Sungai Rompin (Rompin River). Crabs and squids are also popular. Kuala Rompin is also building a name for itself in the sport of sailfish fishing. It is increasingly being recognized as the Sailfish Capital of Asia, and hosts a yearly world-class fishing event, the Royal Pahang International Billfish Challenge. Kuala Rompin is considered to be one of the best places in the world to catch

Sailfish The sailfish is one or two species of marine fish in the genus ''Istiophorus'', which belong to the family Istiophoridae ( marlins). They are predominantly blue to gray in colour and have a characteristically large dorsal fin known as the ...

Politics

The town of Kuala Rompin is situated in the State electoral constituency of Tioman, which was won by YB Mohd. Johari from

Barisan Nasional The National Front ( ms, Barisan Nasional; abbrev: BN) is a political coalition of Malaysia that was founded in 1973 as a coalition of centre-right and right-wing political parties. It is also the third largest political coalition with 30 ...

. Its representative to the Malaysian Parliament is Datuk Hasan Arifin, also from

Climate

Kuala Rompin has a

tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate, humid tropical climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southea ...

(Af) with heavy rainfall year-round.

References

{{Pahang Mukims of Pahang Rompin District Towns in Pahang