Kedahan Malays

Kedahan Malays(Malay:Melayu Kedah,Jawi:ملايو ﻗﺪﺡ‎) or commonly known asOrang Utara('Northerners'), are a sub-group ofMalaysnative to northern Malay Peninsula in areas of both current and historical area of Kedah (which is now divided into the modern states of Malaysia, Thailand and Myanmar). They are among the oldest ethnic groups in theMalay peninsulawith a history dating back 2,800 years as proven by the discovery of sites in Bujang Valley and historical documents from India, China and Arabia. Kedahan Malays are one of the largest Malay sub-groups in Malaysia, comprising at least 15% of the totalMalaysian Malaypopulation including those with Kedahan ancestry.
The early history of Kedah can be traced from various sources, from the prehistoric period, archaeological site of Bujang Valley, early maritime trade of India, Persia, and the Arabs to the written works of early Chinese pilgrims and early Chinese records. The Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa (known as Kedah Annals) and Al-Tarikh Salasilah Negeri Kedah are the most important documents about Kedah history.
By around 788 BCE, a large settlement had been established on the northern banks of the Merbok River which is located near the city ofSungai Petanitoday. The settlement was one of several in the Bujang Valley which makes it the largest archaeological site in the country. The Merbok settlement was built near the estuary of the tributary river, Sungai Batu.Around 170 CE, Hinduism was introduced to Kedah by traders or migrants from the Indian subcontinent, joining them soon were peoples from nearby islands (mainly Austronesians) and northern regions of theKra Isthmus(mainly Mon-Khmers) that migrated to Kedah and assimilated with the local population. At the same time traders from China, Persia and Arabia, arrived at the brink of the Malacca Strait to Kedah, using Gunung Jerai as a marking point. Ancient Kedah civilization covered the areas of today's Kuala Kedah, Kuala Bara, Kuala Pila and Merpah.
In the 7th century, Kedah became part ofSrivijaya, a thalassocracy which covers the whole of the Malay Peninsula and some parts of Sumatra and Java. Kedah remained an important trading, culture, political and religious centre throughout the Malay archipelago. However in the 11th century, King Rajendra Chola I of theChola Empiresent an expedition to attack Kedah (Sri Vijaya) on behalf of one of its rulers who sought his assistance to gain the throne. This left Kedah in ruins after the war and became a vassal state for the CholasRajendra's overseas expedition againstSrivijayawas a unique event in India's history and its otherwise peaceful relations with the states ofSoutheast Asia. Several places in present-dayIndonesiaandMalay Peninsulawere invaded byRajendra Iof theChola dynasty.
Even though Old Kedah was founded as a Hindu kingdom, the arrival of Arab Muslim traders in the 7th century introduced Islam to the kingdom. KingPhra Ong Mahawangsabecame the last Hindu king of Kedah before converting to Islam in 1136, which marks Kedah as the earliest Muslim kingdom in the Malay Peninsula and one of the earliest in Southeast Asia.
Kedah's prestige and influence declined significantly in the 14-15th century after the rise of its southern neighbour,MalaccaandAyutthaya Kingdomin the north. Kedah came under the influence of Ayutthaya until the 1456 Malaccan-Siamese warwhich led to Kedah becoming a vassal state for Malacca.The influence of Malacca led to theMalayisationof Kedahan people in the mid 15th century. In the early 17th century, theAceh Sultanatebecame the new regional power in the region and invaded Kedah in 1629. Many Kedahans were forced to relocate elsewhere or were taken to Aceh as exiles.
The arrival of theBritishin the late 18th century forced Kedah to lease Penang as a protection from Siamese aggression. However, the treaty did not come to fruition as the British did not protect Kedah from Siamese invasion, which leads to Kedah attempting to take back Penang in 1790. The British managed to conduct a preemptive strike by attacking Kedah's fort and naval post and forced the Sultan of Kedah to sign a ceasefire agreement in 1791. Penang remained a British colony as part of theStraits Settlementsalongside Singapore and Malacca until 1948, where it became a sovereign state within Malaya and later Malaysia.
Constant aggression from the Siamese against the strategically important Kedah led to the 1821Siamese invasion of Kedah. The invasion devastated Kedah's political and economic stability including the exile of SultanAhmad Tajuddin Halim Shah II, partition of Kedah into smaller kingdoms (Setul,Perlisand theKubang Pasu) and direct Siamese rule over Kedah for over 20 years until its independence was restored in 1842. Kubang Pasu were reunited with Kedah in 1859 but Perlis and Setul remained independent until 1909, when theAnglo-Siamese Treatycaused the division of British-influence Perlis and Kedah and Siamese-controlled Setul (which would later become the province ofSatun). Kedah, along with 11 other states joined theFederation of Malayain 1948 and later as a state within Malaysia in 1963.
Nowadays, the term Kedahan Malay only refers to the Malays living in Kedah. Despite being ethnically similar to Kedah Malays, the Malays of Perlis and Penang prefer to identify themselves asOrang Utaraor "People of the Northern Region" instead of Kedahan Malay as the termOrang Utarais more politically neutral. This also extends to their language, which is calledPelat Utaraor Northern Dialect. However, the Kedahan population in Langkat (Indonesia), Pulau Dua (Myanmar) and Satun (Thailand) still call themselves asOrang Kedahor Kedah people due to their historical ties to Kedah Sultanate prior to the partition.
However, not all Malays living in Kedah call themselves asMelayu Kedah. In the interior parts of Kedah such as inBalingandSik, they usually call themselves asOrang Patanias the people there are the descendants of Malay settlers from the historical region ofPattaniwhich is now in modern day southern Thailand. They maintain their own unique dialect/language, tradition and identity from Kedahan Malays.
The Kedahan Malays have their own unique variety ofMalayknown asKedah MalayorPelat Utagha(northern dialect) as known by its native speakers. It is related to other varieties of Malay spoken in the peninsula but has its own unique pronunciation and vocabulary which makes it unintelligible to other Malays in the region. Kedahan Malay language can be divided into several sub-dialects, namely Kedah Persisiran (coastaldialect; standard) or Kedah Hulu (interior), Kedah Utara (northern Kedah), Perlis-Langkawi, Penang and some others (sub-dialects spoken inSatunandSouthern Myanmar). For instance instead of usingkamuto denote as 'you',hang(English pronunciation:hung) is used instead andcekorkamifor 'i/me' instead ofsaya / akuin other Malay varieties in the peninsula. Besides proper Kedah Malay, another variety of Malay spoken in Kedah isBaling Malay, which is an offshoot ofKelantan-Patani Malaybut has absorbed influences from Kedah Malay. Kedah Malay is considered distinct enough to have its ownISO codethat ismeo.
Due to their long history, Kedahan Malays have their own unique cuisines, customs and traditions compared to the rest of Malaysia.