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 ...

, the Yang di-Pertua Negeri ( in Malay) is a constitutional title given to the head of state in states without a Ruler, namely:

Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the M ...

Malacca Malacca ( ms, Melaka) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state in Malaysia located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Strait of Malacca. Its capital is Malacca City, dubbed the Historic City, which has bee ...

Sabah Sabah () is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indonesia to the south. The Federal Territory ...

and

Sarawak Sarawak (; ) is a state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in northwest Borneo Island, and is bordered by the Malaysian state of Sabah to the northeast, ...

. This is in constrast to a Ruler () which is a constitutional title given to states with hereditery monarchies, namely: the

Sultans Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, i ...

Johor Johor (; ), also spelled as Johore, is a state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. Johor has land borders with the Malaysian states of Pahang to the north and Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the northwest. Johor shares mariti ...

Kedah Kedah (), also known by its honorific Darul Aman and historically as Queda, is a state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of Peninsular Malaysia. The state covers a total area of over 9,000 km2, and it consists of the mainland ...

Kelantan Kelantan (; Jawi: ; Kelantanese Malay: ''Klate'') is a state in Malaysia. The capital is Kota Bharu and royal seat is Kubang Kerian. The honorific name of the state is ''Darul Naim'' (Jawi: ; "The Blissful Abode"). Kelantan is located in t ...

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 ...

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' ...

Selangor Selangor (; ), also known by its Arabic honorific Darul Ehsan, or "Abode of Sincerity", is one of the 13 Malaysian states. It is on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and is bordered by Perak to the north, Pahang to the east, Negeri Sem ...

and

Terengganu Terengganu (; Terengganu Malay: ''Tranung'', Jawi: ), formerly spelled Trengganu or Tringganu, is a sultanate and constitutive state of federal Malaysia. The state is also known by its Arabic honorific, ''Dāru l- Īmān'' ("Abode of Faith") ...

; the

Raja ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested ...

Perlis Perlis, ( Northern Malay: ''Peghelih''), also known by its honorific title Perlis Indera Kayangan, is the smallest state in Malaysia by area and population. Located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, it borders the Thai provinces ...

: and the ''Yang di-Pertuan Besar'' (lit. 'He Who is Made Chief Ruler' in Malay) of

Negeri Sembilan Negeri Sembilan (, Negeri Sembilan Malay: ''Nogoghi Sombilan'', ''Nismilan'') is a state in Malaysia which lies on the western coast of Peninsular Malaysia. It borders Selangor on the north, Pahang in the east, and Malacca and Johor to the s ...

. They are appointed to renewable four-year terms by the ''

Yang di-Pertuan Agong The Yang di-Pertuan Agong (, Jawi: ), also known as the Supreme Head of the Federation, the Paramount Ruler or simply as the Agong, and unofficially as the King of Malaysia, is the constitutional monarch and head of state of Malaysia. The o ...

'' (lit. 'He Who is Made Supreme Ruler' in Malay), the supreme head of state of Malaysia, after consulting the chief minister. A ''Yang di-Pertua Negeri'' functions as a head of state in a

parliamentary democracy A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of t ...

. Their discretionary roles include appointing the

head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a ...

, the chief minister, or k''etua menteri'' in Malay, who are usually the leader of the party with a majority in the

state legislature A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

, and withholding consent to dissolve the state legislature. On all other matters, they must act on the advice of the chief minister, such as appointing the members of the Executive Council in Penang and Malacca, and the Cabinet in Sabah and Sarawak, conferring state honours and granting pardons for offences committed in their state—except pardons for

court martial A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...

and '' syariah'' offences, which are granted by the ''Yang di-Pertuan Agong''. There are two major distinctions between the constitutional roles of the nine hereditary rulers and the four ''Yang di-Pertua Negeri''. While the ''Yang di-Pertua Negeri'' are members of the

Conference of Rulers The Conference of Rulers (also Council of Rulers or Durbar, ms, Majlis Raja-Raja; Jawi: ) in Malaysia is a council comprising the nine rulers of the Malay states, and the governors or '' Yang di-Pertua Negeri'' of the other four states. It w ...

, they cannot participate in the election of the ''Yang di-Pertuan Agong'', discussions related to the privileges of the Malay rulers and matters concerning the observance of Islam. In addition, the ''Yang di-Pertua Negeri'' does not function as Head of Islam in their states; the role is fulfilled by the ''Yang di-Pertuan Agong''. Stylistically, states with Rulers appoint ''menteri besar'' (lit. 'chief minister' in Malay) while the Yang di-Pertua Negeri appoint chief ministers of their respective states. This convention was first started with the former

Straits Settlements The Straits Settlements were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia. Headquartered in Singapore for more than a century, it was originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Com ...

: Penang and Malacca, and subsequently extended to the Borneo States of Sabah and Sarawak. However in 2022, Sarawak deviated from this convention by changing the title of chief minister to

premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

to reflect its status as one of the Borneo states which are of a different constitutional position than the States of Malaya as they are asymetrically accorded more autonomy. This move is similar to how Singapore retained the title of Prime Minister for the head of government (which was first established after it gained self-independence from the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

in 1959) when it became a state of the Federation as it was the state with the most autonomy. Sabah as of yet has not changed the title of chief minister. Prior to 1976, the heads of state of Penang, Malacca and Sarawak were titled as "Governor" in English and "''Gabenor''" in Malay, whereas the head of state of Sabah was titled "''Yang di-Pertua Negara''" (lit. 'He Who is Made Leader of the Nation' in Malay) in both languages. Meanwhile, the head of state in Singapore was titled "''

Yang di-Pertuan Negara Yang di-Pertuan Negara (English: (he) who is Lord of the State) is a title for the head of state in certain Malay-speaking countries, and has been used as an official title at various times in Brunei and Singapore. Sabah The head of state of Sa ...

''" (lit. 'He Who is Made Ruler of the Nation' in Malay) in both English and Malay which was also first established after achieving self-independence in 1959. After the formation of Malaysia in 1963, upon adopting new state constitutions, Sarawak retained the title of Governor passed down from the British colonial rule, Sabah created a new title called the ''Yang di-Pertua Negara'', while Singapore retained the title of ''Yang di-Pertuan Negara'' passed down from the period self-governance. After the Federation of Malaya achieved independence in 1957, "Governor" referred to the heads of state of the former

, Penang and Malacca. When Malaysia was formed, the previous definition of Governor was extended to the states of Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore in the newly promulgated Federal Constitution. This means that constitutionally speaking, the heads of state in all the states without a Ruler: Penang, Malacca, Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore, were of the same constitutional role, regardless of the style of name. When Singapore was expelled from Malaysia to become an independent

republic A republic () is a " state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th ...

, the office of ''Yang di-Pertuan Negara'' was eventually replaced with the office of

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

. Since 1976, the style of name for the heads of state of Penang, Malacca, Sabah and Sarawak were made uniform by titling it ''Yang di-Pertua Negeri'' in both English and Malay.

Current Yang di-Pertua Negeri

The following is a table of Yang di-Pertua Negeri of each state:

Living former Yang di-Pertua Negeri

* Ahmadshah Abdullah (former Yang di-Pertua Negeri of Sabah) *

Mohd Khalil Yaakob Tun Datuk Seri Utama Mohd Khalil bin Yaakob ( Jawi: محمد خليل بن يعقوب; born 29 December 1937) is a Malaysian politician who served as the 6th Yang di-Pertua Negeri of Malacca from June 2004 to June 2020, 12th Menteri Besar of ...

(former Yang di-Pertua Negeri of Malacca) *

Abdul Rahman Abbas Abdul Rahman bin Abbas (born 15 April 1938) is a Malaysian politician who served as the 7th Yang di-Pertua Negeri of Penang from 1 May 2001 to 30 April 2021. He is a former politician from the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO). Abdul Ra ...

(former Yang di-Pertua Negeri of Penang)

References

{{reflist Politics of Malacca Politics of Penang Politics of Sabah Politics of Sarawak Malaysian monarchy

Current Yang di-Pertua Negeri

Living former Yang di-Pertua Negeri

See also

References