Johor
Johor is a state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. It borders with Pahang, Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the north. Johor has maritime borders with Singapore to the south and Indonesia to the east and west. As of 2023, the state's population is 4.09 million, making it the second most populous state in Malaysia, after Selangor. Johor Bahru is the capital city and the economic centre of the state, Kota Iskandar is the state administrative centre and Muar serves as the royal capital.
Johor is one of Malaysia's most important economic hubs, having the highest gross domestic product in Malaysia outside of the Klang Valley, making it the country's second largest state economy. Its household income and total salaries are also the second highest among all Malaysian states. Johor has the world's second largest artificial intelligence hub, robust manufacturing and logistics centres, and home to the Port of Tanjung Pelepas, the 15th busiest port in the world. Located in southern Johor, Iskandar Malaysia is Malaysia's largest special economic zone by investment value.
Johor's history began with the Johor Sultanate, which emerged as a rump state of the Malacca Sultanate. It operated as a sovereign state until the arrival of European powers, when the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824 divided the wider polity between the British and the Dutch and fixed Johor's modern boundaries. Johor remained largely self-governing until 1885, when British oversight increased through the appointment of a General Adviser who directed all affairs over the Sultan apart from matters of local religion and customs. Johor became a British protected state within the Unfederated Malay States in 1914, a position interrupted only by the Japanese occupation of Malaya. After the war, it joined the Malayan Union in 1946 and subsequently the Federation of Malaya in 1948, the latter of which gained its independence from the British in 1957, before entering modern-day Malaysia under the Malaysia Agreement of 1963.
Johor has high diversity in ethnicity, culture, language, and is known for its traditional dance of zapin and kuda kepang. The head of state is the Sultan of Johor, while the head of government is the Chief Minister. The government system is closely modelled on the Westminster system. Johor is divided into administrative districts, with Johor Bahru District being the second largest district in Malaysia by population and economy. Islam is the state religion, but other religions can be freely practised. Johor has diverse tropical rainforests and an equatorial climate. Situated at the southern foothills of the Tenasserim Hills, inselbergs and massifs dominate the state's flat landscape, with Mount Ledang being the highest point.
Etymology
The area was first known to the northern inhabitants of Siam as Gangganu or Ganggayu due to the abundance of gemstones near the Johor River. Arab traders referred to it as , a word borrowed from the Persian , which also means 'precious stone' or 'jewel'. As the local people found it difficult to pronounce the Arabic word in the local dialect, the name subsequently became Johor. Meanwhile, the Old Javanese eulogy of Nagarakretagama called the area Ujong Medini, as it is the southernmost point of mainland Asia. Another name, through Portuguese writer Manuel Godinho de Erédia, made reference to Marco Polo's sailing to Ujong Tanah in 1292. Both Ujong Medini and Ujong Tanah had been mentioned since before the foundation of the Sultanate of Malacca. Throughout the period, several other names also co-existed such as Galoh, Lenggiu and Wurawari. Johor is also known by its Arabic honorific as or 'Abode of Dignity'.History
Hindu-Buddhist Era
A bronze bell estimated to be from 150 AD was found in Kampong Sungai Penchu near the Muar River. The bell is believed to have been used as a ceremonial object rather than a trade object as a similar ceremonial bell with the same decorations was found in Battambang province, Cambodia, suggesting that the Malay coast came in contact with Funan, with the bell being a gift from the early kingdom in mainland Asia to local chieftains in the Malay Peninsula. Another important archaeological find was the ancient lost city of Kota Gelanggi, which was discovered by following trails described in an old Malay manuscript once owned by Stamford Raffles. Artefacts gathered in the area have reinforced claims of early human settlement in the state. The claim of Kota Gelanggi as the first settlement is disputed by the state government of Johor, with other evidence from archaeological studies conducted by the state heritage foundation since 1996 suggesting that the historic city is actually located in Kota Tinggi District at either Kota Klang Kiu or Ganggayu. The exact location of the ancient city is still undisclosed, but is said to be within the forest reserve where the Lenggiu and Madek Rivers are located, based on records in the Malay Annals that, after conquering Gangga Negara, Raja Suran from Siam of the Nakhon Si Thammarat Kingdom had sailed to Ganggayu. Since ancient times, most of the coastal Malay Peninsula has had their own rulers, but all fell under the jurisdiction of Siam.Sultanate of Johor
After the fall of Malacca in 1511 to the Portuguese, the Johor Sultanate was established by Sultan Mahmud Shah of Malacca's son, Ala'udin Ri'ayat Shah II, in 1528 when he moved the royal court to the Johor River and set up his royal residence in Johor Lama. Johor became an empire spanning the southern Malay Peninsula, Riau Archipelago, Anambas Islands, Tambelan Archipelago, Natuna Islands, a region around the Sambas River in south-western Borneo and Siak in Sumatra with Pahang, Aru and Champa as allies. It aspired to retake Malacca from the Portuguese which the Aceh Sultanate in northern Sumatra also aspired to do leading to a three-way war among the rivals. During the wars, Johor's administrative capital moved several times based on military strategies and to maintain authority over trading in the region. Johor and the Portuguese began to collaborate against Aceh, which they saw as a common enemy. In 1582 the Portuguese helped Johor thwart an attack by Aceh, but the arrangement ended when Johor attacked the Portuguese in 1587. Aceh continued its attacks against the Portuguese, and only ceased when a large armada from the Portuguese port in Goa came to defend Malacca and destroy the sultanate.After Aceh was left weakened, the Dutch East India Company arrived and Johor formed an alliance with them to eliminate the Portuguese in the 1641 capture of Malacca. Johor regained authority over many of its former dependencies in Sumatra, such as Siak and Indragiri, which had fallen to Aceh while Malacca was taken by the Dutch. Malacca was placed under the direct control of Batavia in Java. Although Malacca fell under Dutch authority, the Dutch did not establish any further trading posts in the Malay Peninsula and Sumatra, as they had more interest in Java and the Maluku Islands. The Dutch only become involved with local disputes when the Bugis began to threaten their maritime trade.
File:万国来朝图 Johor delegates in Beijing in 1761.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Johor delegates in Beijing, China, in 1761. 万国来朝图
The dynasty that descended from the rulers of Malacca lasted until the death of Mahmud II, when it was succeeded by the Bendahara dynasty, a dynasty of ministers who had previously served in the Malacca Sultanate. The Dutch felt increasingly threatened in the 18th century, especially when the English East India Company started to establish a presence in the northern Malay Peninsula, leading the Dutch to seize the Bugis areas of Riau and expel the Bugis from both Riau and Selangor so these areas would not fall under British rule. This ended Bugis political domination in the Johor-Pahang-Riau empire, resulting in the Bugis being banned from Riau in 1784. During the rivalry between the Bugis and Dutch, Mahmud Shah III concluded a treaty of protection with the VOC on board the HNLMS Utrecht and the sultan was allowed to reside in Riau with Dutch protection. Since then, mistrust between the Bugis and Malay escalated. From 1796 to 1801 and from 1807 to 1818, Malacca was placed under British Residency as the Netherlands were conquered by France in the Napoleonic Wars and was returned to the Dutch in 1818. Malacca served as the staging area for the British Invasion of Java in 1811.
British protected states
When Mahmud Shah III died the sultan left two sons through commoner mothers. While the elder son Hussein Shah was supported by the Malay community, the younger son Abdul Rahman Muazzam Shah was supported by the Bugis community. In 1818, the Dutch recognised Abdul Rahman Muazzam Shah as the legitimate heir to the Johor Empire in return for supporting their intention to establish a trading post in Riau. The following year, the British recognised Hussein Shah as the legitimate heir to the Johor Empire in return for supporting their intention to establish a trading post in Singapore. Before his death, Mahmud Shah III had appointed Abdul Rahman as the Temenggong for Johor with recognition from the British as the Temenggong of Johor-Singapore, marking the beginning of the Temenggong dynasty. Abdul Rahman was succeeded by his son, Daeng Ibrahim, although he was only recognised by the British 14 years later.With the partition of the Johor Empire due to the dispute between the Bugis and Malay and following the defined spheres of influence for the British and Dutch resulting from the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824, Daeng Ibrahim intended to create a new administrative centre for the Johor Sultanate under the new dynasty. As he maintained a close relationship with the British and the latter wanted full control over trade in Singapore, a treaty was signed between Daeng Ibrahim and Hussein Shah's successor, Ali Iskandar, recognising Ali as the next sultan. Through the treaty, Ali was crowned as the sultan and received $5,000 and an allowance of $500 per month, but was required to cede the sovereignty of the territory of Johor to Daeng Ibrahim.
File:Partition of the Johor Empire.png|thumb|235px|left|Partition of the Johor Empire before and after the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824
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Under British influence:
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Under Dutch influence:
File:Exhibit of Undang-Undang Tubuh Kerajaan Negeri Johor at Pameran Raja Kita in conjunction with the coronation of Ibrahim Iskandar of Johor as Yang di-Pertuan Agong XVII 20240901 125301.jpg|thumb|The first written constitution among the Malay states was Johor, namely Undang-undang Tubuh Negeri Johor by Abu Bakar
Following the establishment of a new capital in mainland Johor, the administrative centre was moved from Telok Blangah in Singapore. As the area was still an undeveloped jungle, the Temenggong encouraged the migration of Chinese and Javanese to clear the land and develop an agricultural economy in Johor. During Daeng Ibrahim's reign, Johor began to be modernised which was continued by his son, Abu Bakar. In 1885, an Anglo-Johor Treaty was signed that formalised the close relations between the two, with the British given transit rights for trade through Johor's territory and responsibility for its foreign relations, as well as providing protection to the latter. It was also in this year that Johor had formed its present-day boundary. The treaty also provided for the appointment of a British agent in an advisory role, although no advisor was appointed until 1910. Abu Bakar also implemented a constitution known as the Johor State Constitution and organised his administration in a British style. By adopting an English-style modernisation policy, Johor temporarily prevented itself from being directly controlled by the British, as happened to other Malay states.
Under the reign of Ibrahim, the British appointed Douglas Graham Campbell as an advisor to the sultanate in 1910, although the sultan only appointed Campbell as a General Adviser unlike in other Malayan states which had Resident Advisors, becoming the last Malay state to accept a British Adviser. However, due to Ibrahim's overspending, the sultanate faced problems caused by the falling price of its major source of revenue and problems between him and members of his state council, which gave the British an opportunity to intervene in Johor's internal affairs. Despite Ibrahim's reluctance to appoint a British adviser, Johor was brought under British control as one of the Unfederated Malay States by 1914, with the position of its General Adviser elevated to that of a Resident in the Federated Malay States.