Tapah is a town and the capital of
Batang Padang District,
Perak
Perak () is a state of Malaysia on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula. Perak has land borders with the Malaysian states of Kedah to the north, Penang to the northwest, Kelantan and Pahang to the east, and Selangor to the south. Thailand' ...
,
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...
.
Name
The name "Tapah" is said to be originated from the name of a freshwater fish, ''"Ikan Tapah"''. The scientific name of the fish is ''
Wallago leeri
''Wallagonia leerii'', also known as the Great Tapah, helicopter catfish, and formerly the striped wallago catfish is a species of catfish native to Southeast Asia. Its habitat ranges from the river drainages of Thailand through the Malayan penin ...
''.
The locals said that the name has been taken from the
Perak Malay
Perak Malay ( Standard Malay: ''bahasa Melayu Perak''; Jawi script: بهاس ملايو ڤيراق) is one of the Malay dialects spoken within the state of Perak, Malaysia. Although it is neither the official language nor the standard dialect i ...
word which means "no worry".
Geography
The
Batang Padang River flows through this town.
Major neighbouring towns are
Kampar and
Bidor. The
Lata Kinjang waterfall is about 18 km from Tapah on the road to
Chenderiang. It is an impressive series of cascades down a 100 m drop. The falls can be seen from the North–South Expressway (PLUS).
Transport
Tapah is located on the
trunk road between
Kuala Lumpur
, anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera''
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia
, pushpin_map_caption =
, coordinates =
, sub ...
and
Ipoh
, image_map =
, map_caption = Location of Ipoh in Perak
, pushpin_map = #Malaysia#Asia#Earth
, pushpin_mapsize = 275px
, pushpin_map_caption = Ipoh in Malaysia
, coordinates ...
. There is an entrance to the
North–South Expressway at Tapah. This town is also widely considered as the main entry point into the old
Cameron Highlands
The Cameron Highlands ( ms, Tanah Tinggi Cameron, , ta, கேமரன் மலை) is a district in Pahang, Malaysia, occupying an area of . To the north, its boundary touches that of Kelantan; to the west, it shares part of its border with ...
route, which is a winding and narrow road uphill. The nearest train station is
Tapah Road
Tapah Road (pop. ~7,000) is a small town in Batang Padang District, Perak, Malaysia. The population consists of 40% Muslim Malays, 30% Chinese, 20% Indians and a few indigenous.
History
Tapah Road was of greater importance in early to mid-20th c ...
.
References
Batang Padang District
Towns in Perak
{{Perak-geo-stub