Tun Sharifah Rodziah binti Syed Alwi Barakbah (; 1920 – 12 March 2000) was the third wife of

Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj Tunku Abdul Rahman (8 February 19036 December 1990), commonly referred to as Tunku, was a Malaysian statesman who served as prime minister of Malaysia from 1957 to 1970. He previously served as the only chief minister of Malaya from 1955 to ...

, the founding father and first

Prime Minister of Malaysia The prime minister of Malaysia (; ) is the head of government of Malaysia. The prime minister directs the executive branch of the Government of Malaysia, federal government. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong appoints the prime minister who is a membe ...

Early life

Born in 1920, Sharifah Rodziah is of Hadhrami- Malay descent; her Arab ancestors had migrated from

Hadhramaut Hadhramaut ( ; ) is a geographic region in the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula which includes the Yemeni governorates of Hadhramaut, Shabwah and Mahrah, Dhofar in southwestern Oman, and Sharurah in the Najran Province of Saudi A ...

and settled in

Kedah Kedah (), also known by its honorific Darul Aman (Islam), Aman (دار الأمان; Arabic for 'The Safe Abode') and historically as Queda, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of ...

for several generations. Being of the Barakbah clan, she is related to

Syed Sheh Hassan Barakbah Malay titles#Tun, Tun Syed Sheh Al-Haj bin Syed Hassan Barakbah (10 November 1906 – 8 October 1975) was a prominent Malaysian judge. He was the second Lord President of the Federal Court, and the first Malaysian to hold that office. After his ...

, the former

Yang di-Pertua Negeri In Malaysia, the Governor, officially Yang di-Pertua Negeri (Jawi script, Jawi: , ) is a constitutional title given to the head of state in States and federal territories of Malaysia, states without a ruler, namely: Penang, Malacca, Sabah and S ...

(Governor) of

Penang Penang is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia along the Strait of Malacca. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay Peninsula. Th ...

Marriage

Sharifah Rodziah was actually the younger sister of Tunku's university mate in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, Syed Omar Barakbah. Tunku and Sharifah Rodziah married in 1939 when he returned to

from

upon hearing news that

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

was about to erupt in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. She became Tunku's third wife after the death of Meriam Chong and his divorce from Violet Coulson. However, the marriage did not result in any offspring. Sharifah Rodziah became a loving stepmother to Tunku's children from his first marriage to Meriam Chong. They later adopted three children, Sulaiman, Mariam and Faridah.

Tunku Abdul Rahman Tunku Abdul Rahman (8 February 19036 December 1990), commonly referred to as Tunku, was a Malaysian statesman who served as prime minister of Malaysia from 1957 to 1970. He previously served as the only chief minister of Federation of Malaya ...

's eldest daughter, Tunku Khadijah said in an interview to '' The Star'' that Sharifah Rodziah "loved my father dearly to a fault. She did not want to share him with anyone else".

Influence

Sharifah Rodziah played an important role in rallying political support for her husband during

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

's tumultuous formative years.

Death

She died due to

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

, in

, on 12 March 2000 at the age of 80 and was buried next to her husband's grave,

Kedah Royal Mausoleum Kedah Royal Mausoleum or Langgar Royal Mausoleum () is a royal burial ground in the Kedah state of Malaysia. It is located in Langgar, in Kota Setar District. List of graves Sultan graves * Sultan Haji Sir Abdullah Muadzam Shah ibni Alma ...

in Langgar,

Honours

Honours of Malaysia

* : ** Grand Commander of the

Order of the Defender of the Realm The Most Esteemed Order of the Defender of the Realm () is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country. The Order Motto are 'Dipeliharakan Allah-Pangkuan Negara' (By the Grace of God-Defender of the Realm). The o ...

(SMN) – Tun (1970) * : ** MY-TER Order of the Crown of Terengganu - SPMT - SMT - AMT

Knight Grand Commander of the

Order of the Crown of Terengganu The Most Distinguished Order of the Crown of Terengganu (Bahasa Melayu: ''Darjah Kebesaran Mahkota Terengganu Yang Amat Mulia'') is an honorific order of the Sultanate of Terengganu. History It was founded by Sultan Ismail Nasiruddin of Terengg ...

(SPMT) – Dato' (1964)

Places named after her

Several places were named after her, including: *SMK Tun Sharifah Rodziah in

Alor Setar Alor Setar ( Kedah Malay: ) is the state capital of Kedah, Malaysia. It is the second-largest city in the state after Sungai Petani and one of the most-important cities on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia. It is home to the third-tallest ...

*SMK Agama Sharifah Rodziah in

Telok Mas Telok Mas is a small town in Melaka Tengah District, Malacca, Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy c ...

Melaka Malacca (), officially the Historic State of Malacca (), is a state in Malaysia located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, facing the Strait of Malacca. The state is bordered by Negeri Sembilan to the north and west and Johor to t ...

*Tun Sharifah Rodziah Sea Base, located at

Eastern Sabah Security Zone The Eastern Sabah Security Zone (ESSZONE) is a security zone in the Malaysian state of Sabah that was launched by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak on 25 March 2013 following persistent Cross border attacks in Sabah, attacks by pirates and m ...

(ESSZONE),

Sabah Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalima ...

* Piala Tun Sharifah Rodziah

References

Sources

Asiaweek.com
24 March 2000. * ''Putera Negara''; 1987, Firma Publishing, Aziz Zarina Ahmad. {{Authority control Spouses of prime ministers of Malaysia Malaysian people of Yemeni descent 1920 births 2000 deaths Grand Commanders of the Order of the Defender of the Realm Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Crown of Terengganu Malaysian people of Malay descent Malaysian Muslims People from Kedah