# Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram

Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram (born 28 August 1966) is the head of the Royal House of Sulu, a position which he has held since 16 February 1986. As the eldest son of Sultan Mohammad Mahakuttah Abdulla Kiram (who reigned 1974–1986), Crown Prince, and senior claimant to the throne of the Sultanate of Sulu, he succeeded his father as the 35th Sultan of Sulu.

## Personal life

Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram was born on 28 August 1966 on the island of Jolo in present-day Philippines, the eldest son of Mohammad Mahakuttah Abdulla Kiram, 34th Sultan of Sulu and North Borneo and his first wife Dayang-Dayang Farida Tan-Kiram.
Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram studied at Universidad de Zamboanga in Zamboanga City where he got his Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree. Between 1995 and 1996, he continued his higher studies in Islam in Lahore, Pakistan. As of 2016, he lives on the island of Jolo. Currently, he is also involved as a local civic leader on the island and Sulu in general, regularly meeting with the local population.
He is married to Ampun Dayang Babai Mellany S. Kiram and has seven children

## Recognition

The government of the Philippines through different Presidents has officially recognized the Sultans of Sulu, including his grandfather Sultan Mohammed Esmail Kiram and father Sultan Mahakuttah Kiram, as recorded on the Philippine Gazette in 1957, 1962, 1969, and 1974.
In 2007, then President Gloria Arroyo mentioned Sultan Kiram in one of her speeches.

## Coronation

Datu Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram was crowned as Raja Muda (Crown Prince) of Sulu on 24 May 1974 beside his father in Sulu, under Memorandum Order No. 427, which was issued by President Ferdinand Marcos, President of Philippines. The ceremony was held in Jolo, Sulu. Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram is the last recognised Raja Muda (Crown Prince) by the Philippine government. When his father died in 1986, Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram could not take the crown because of his age, which led to relatives trying to claim the crown for themselves. Raja Muda Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram was crowned Sultan in a coronation event on the island of Jolo on 16 September 2012.

## Acceptance

The Mindanao Examiner recognizes Sultan Kiram as the "legitimate Sultan of Sulu and North Borneo."
Sultan Kiram is acknowledged as the Sultan of Sulu by the former Chairman of the Mindanao Development Authority, Emmanuel Piñol.
The Eastern Caribbean-Southeast Asia Chamber, an international non-government organization recognized by the United Nations lists Sultan Muedzul-Lail Kiram as their "Social Advocacy Consultant".
Nikkei Asia identifies him as the "reigning sultan" of Sulu.
A leading broadsheet in the Philippines, the Daily Tribune constantly publishes Sultan Muedzul Kiram as the Sultan of Sulu.
On his official social media account, Teodoro Locsin Jr., former Secretary of Foreign Affairs (Philippines) and currently the Philippine Ambassador to the United Kingdom, acknowledged a letter addressed to him from Sultan Kiram.
On her research publication, Professor Dr. Elsa Clavé, a professor for Austronesian Studies at the Department for Southeast Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Hamburg has indicated Sultan Muedzul-Lail Kiram as the 35th Sultan of Sulu.
ABS-CBN News reports Muedzul-Lail Tan Kiram as the 35th Sultan of Sulu and Northern Borneo.
The Royal Society of Saint George, the patriotic society of England which has the Royal Patronage of every reigning monarch including King Charles III recognizes Muedzul-Lail Kiram as the 35th Sultan of Sulu and North Borneo.
He has also been noted in an article on the Westside Gazette.
The Sultan has also been referenced on the online newspaper of the province of Viterbo, Italy.

## Royal and Hashemite Order of the Pearl

Sultan Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram awards the Royal and Hashemite Order of the Pearl as a formal Royal Honour. The Associazione Insigniti Onorificenze Cavalleresche (Association of Chivalric Honors), an entity under the International Commission for Orders of Chivalry recognizes the Royal Order.

## Regnal name

Kiram uses the full regnal name of His Royal Majesty Paduka Mahasari Al-Maulana Ampun Sultan Hadji Muedzul-Lail Tan Kiram ibni Almarhum Sultan Mohammad Mahakuttah Abdulla Kiram, The 35th Sultan of Sulu and North Borneo.

## Honours and awards

Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram has received honours from a number of Royal Houses and other awards:
* Grand Cross, Order of the Eagle of Georgia and the Seamless Tunic of Our Lord Jesus Christ (Georgia)
* Grand Cordon, Imperial Order of the Dragon of Annam (Vietnam)
* Grand Cordon, Order of the Ethiopian Lion
* Grand Cross of the Royal Confraternity Of Saint Teotonio
* Accademico d'Onore Classe Speciale - Real Academia Sancti Ambrosii Martyris Italia

## 2013 Lahad Datu standoff

Sultan Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram clearly and emphatically decried these actions led by Jamalul Kiram III, a self-proclaimed pretender to the throne in a press release and on a Malaysiakini TV interview.

## Genealogy

Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram is the grandson of Sultan Mohammed Esmail Kiram (1950–1973) while Sultan Muwallil Wasit II (1936) was his great-grandfather and Sultan Jamalul Kiram II (1893–1936) was his great-granduncle. He is a direct male descendant and claimant to the defunct throne of the Sultanate of Sulu.

### Ancestry

Ancestors of Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram :