Tunku Ampuan Najihah binti Almarhum Tunku Besar Burhanuddin ( Jawi: تونكو امڤوان ناجحة بنت المرحوم تونكو بسر برهان الدين; born 1 September 1923) is the Tunku Ampuan of Negeri Sembilan. She was formerly the Tunku Ampuan Besar or Queen of Negeri Sembilan from 1967 to 2008. She also served as

Raja Permaisuri Agong ''Raja Permaisuri Agong'' ( Jawi: راج ڤرمايسوري اݢوڠ; full title: ''Kebawah Duli Yang Maha Mulia Seri Paduka Baginda Raja Permaisuri Agong''; سري ڤدوک بݢيندا راج ڤرمايسوري اݢوڠ, literally ''The Que ...

of Malaysia between 1994 and 1999. Tuanku Najihah was married to the former Yang di-Pertuan Besar Negeri Sembilan Tuanku Jaafar ibni Almarhum Tuanku Abdul Rahman. Tuanku Jaafar is also the stepson of Tuanku Najihah's sister, Tunku Kurshiah binti Almarhum Tunku Besar Burhanuddin, who also served as Tunku Ampuan Besar. Tuanku Najihah succeeded her sister, Tunku Durah, as Tunku Ampuan Besar in 1967.

Early life

Daughter of Tunku Besar Burhanuddin ibni Almarhum Tuanku Antah (sometime Regent of Negeri Sembilan) and born on 1 September 1923, Tuanku Najihah received her formal education at the Tuanku Muhammad School in

Kuala Pilah Kuala Pilah (Negeri Sembilan Malay: ''Kolo Pilah''), or simply Pilah, is a town in Kuala Pilah District, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Townscape Kuala Pilah is an old valley town with many of the pre-war Chinese shop houses still fronting the ...

, Negeri Sembilan. She graduated from the London School of Oriental Studies. She also attended the special language and training course provided for the wives of diplomats while Tuanku Ja’afar was pursuing a course in diplomatic services in London.

Social contributions

Tuanku Najihah was made a committee member of the

Associated Country Women of the World The Associated Country Women of the World (ACWW) is the largest international organization for both rural and urban women, with a membership of nine million in over 70 countries. ACWW holds a triennial conference and publishes a magazine, ''The Cou ...

. She is the patron of various women's organizations such as the Girl Guides of Negeri Sembilan, the Islamic Women's Welfare Council and the Women's Institute. She is the president of the Tuanku Ampuan Badminton Team, the Patron of the Malaysian Women's Hockey Team, Malaysian Women's Football Team, Malaysian Women's Golf Team and the Malaysian Women's Golf Association (MALGA). He also served as first Chancellor of Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia.

Family life

The royal couple had three sons and three daughters : * Tunku Tan Sri Naquiah, ''Tunku Dara'' (born 26 December 1944
photo
* Tunku Dato' Seri Utama Naquiyuddin, ''Tunku Laksamana'' (born 8 March 1947
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* Tunku Tan Sri Dato' Seri Imran, ''Tunku Muda of Serting'' (born 21 March 1949
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* Tunku Puan Sri Jawahir, ''Tunku Putri'' (born 27 January 1952
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* Tunku Dato' Seri Irinah (born 23 November 1957
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* Tunku Dato' Seri Nazaruddin, ''Tunku Panglima Besa''r (born 26 October 1959
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Awards and recognitions

She was awarded :

Honours of Negeri Sembilan

* Member of the

Royal Family Order of Negeri Sembilan Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a ci ...

(DKNS) *

MY-NEG Grand Order of Tuanku Jaafar - SPTJ

Knight Grand Commander or Dato’ Sri Paduka of the Grand Order of Tuanku Ja’afar (SPTJ)

Honours of Malaysia

* , as

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 ...

(26 April 1994 to 25 April 1999), she has been awarded : ** Recipient of the Order of the Crown of the Realm (DMN) * : ** MY-KED Royal Family Order of Kedah (DK)

Member of the

Royal Family Order of Kedah The Most Illustrious Royal Family Order of Kedah (Bahasa Melayu: ''Darjah Kerabat Yang Amat Mulia Kedah'') is an honorific order of the Sultanate of Kedah. History It was founded by Sultan Abdul Halim of Kedah on 21 February 1964. Classes It ...

(DK) * : ** MY-KEL Royal Family Order - Star of Yunus - DK

Recipient of the Royal Family Order or ''Star of Yunus'' (DK) ** MY-KEL Order of the Crown of Kelantan - Star of Muhammad

Knight Grand Commander of the

Order of the Crown of Kelantan Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...

or "Star of Muhammad" (SPMK, 11.11.1992)

Foreign honours

* : **

Dame Grand Cross of the

Order of Civil Merit The Order of Civil Merit ( es, Orden del Mérito Civil) was established by King Alfonso XIII of Spain in 1926. The order recognizes "the civic virtue of officers in the service of the Nation, as well as extraordinary service by Spanish and fore ...

(24.3.1995)Boletín Oficial del Estado
/ref>

Places named after her

Several places were named after her, including: * Tuanku Ampuan Najihah Hospital in Kuala Pilah, Negeri Sembilan * Kompleks Sukan Tunku Najihah,

Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (; ar, جامعة العلوم الاسلامية الماليزية; abbreviated as USIM) is an Islamic university in Nilai, Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, which is fully owned and funded by the Malaysian govern ...

, Nilai, Negeri Sembilan * SMK Tunku Ampuan Najihah, a secondary school in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan * Taman Sinar Harapan Tuanku Ampuan Najihah in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan * Taman Tuanku Ampuan Najihah, a residential area in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan

References

"Syarikat Pesaka Antah Sdn Bhd" Website
presentation of the Board of Directors wit
photo of Tuanku Najihah
{{DEFAULTSORT:Najihah, Tunku 1923 births Living people People from Negeri Sembilan Royal House of Negeri Sembilan Malaysian Muslims Malaysian people of Minangkabau descent Negeri Sembilan royal consorts Malaysian royal consorts Members of the Royal Family Order of Kedah Grand Cross of the Order of Civil Merit Malaysian queens consort Recipients of the Order of the Crown of the Realm