Heritage activist launches guidebook on exploring Seberang Perai

Heritage activist Khoo Salma Nasution has launched a new guidebook, “Exploring Seberang Perai,” aimed at introducing more people to the historical facts, cultural aspects, and places of interest on Penang’s often-overlooked mainland.

Seberang Perai accounts for over 70% of Penang’s land area and more than half of its population, Khoo said at the book’s launch, yet the mainland is often overshadowed by Penang island in public attention.

The guidebook is published with support from Think City‘s Seberang Perai Small Towns Grants Programme, and is available from Areca Books.

A mainland known by many different names

Khoo said Seberang Perai was originally part of Kedah before coming under British rule in 1800, when it was renamed Province Wellesley as part of the colony of Penang.

Province Wellesley remains the mainland’s gazetted English name in legal documents and government publications, while Seberang Perai is used in official Malay documents.

Residents refer to the area by an even wider range of names, including Butterworth, “the mainland,” “koe kang” and “pa hai” among Hokkien speakers, and simply “Seberang” among Malay speakers.

Khoo said this patchwork of names has led to confusion and a lack of clear destination branding for the mainland, a gap her guidebook aims to help close.

Even Seberang Perai residents don’t know their own mainland

While researching the book, Khoo found that many Penangites, including those living in Seberang Perai itself, know little about the mainland’s own attractions.

“What surprised me was that even Seberang Perai residents may not really know other parts of Seberang Perai that well,” she said, noting a tendency to visit the island instead.

The new guidebook builds on Khoo’s earlier work, having researched and produced a bilingual book called “Province Wellesley: A Pictorial History” in 2016.

That earlier project deepened her understanding of what she calls Penang’s “other half,” laying the groundwork for the more comprehensive guidebook now in print.

Mayor calls guidebook a mini-encyclopedia for all ages

Khoo described Seberang Perai as one of the biggest city councils in Malaysia, now enjoying a fast pace of growth driven by manufacturing, housing, and commercial development.

“We can say the future of Penang is going to be in Seberang Perai,” she said, pointing to the concentration of homegrown manufacturing plants and new development projects on the mainland.

Seberang Perai mayor Baderul Amin Abdul Hamid, who attended the launch, described the book as a mini-encyclopedia suitable for readers ranging from schoolchildren to travellers.

Copies of “Exploring Seberang Perai” are available through Areca Books.