Kota Belud () is the capital of the Kota Belud District in the

West Coast Division West Coast Division () is an administrative Divisions of Malaysia, division of Sabah, Malaysia. It occupies the northwest portion of Sabah. With an area of 7,588 square kilometres, it occupies 10.3% of Sabah's territory. It also has approximate ...

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 ...

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 ...

. Its population was estimated to be around 8,392 in 2010. It is roughly at the midpoint of the federal highway connecting the state capital,

Kota Kinabalu Kota Kinabalu (; formerly known as Jesselton), colloquially referred to as KK, is the state capital of Sabah, Malaysia. It is also the capital of the Kota Kinabalu District as well as the West Coast Division of Sabah. The city is located on the ...

, and

Kudat Kudat () is the capital of the Kudat District in the Kudat Division of Sabah, Malaysia. Its population was estimated to be around 29,025 in 2010. It is located on the Kudat Peninsula, about north of Kota Kinabalu, the state capital, and is nea ...

, near the northern tip of Sabah. The town is considered as the unofficial capital and gateway to the heartland of the West Coast Bajau people. Kota Belud's population is divided between the Bajau-Sama (including Illanun) and Dusun peoples. There is a Chinese minority, which consists mainly of Hakkas. It is noted for its open air market, or ''tamu'', which is held every Sunday. Once a year, the ''tamu'' is held on a much larger scale. During this time, it is known as the ''Tamu Besar'' or Grand Market. A

bailey bridge A Bailey bridge is a type of portable, Prefabrication, pre-fabricated, Truss Bridge, truss bridge. It was developed in 1940–1941 by the British Empire in World War II, British for military use during the World War II, Second World War and saw ...

was opened on 12 November 1962, following three months of construction. It was opened by Governor William Goode.

Gallery

File:KotaBelud Sabah Rice-Padi-06.jpg, A paddy field in Kota Belud. File:KotaBelud Sabah -TaoistTemple-01.jpg, A

Taoist Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ...

temple in Kota Belud. File:KotaBelud Sabah BigLettersOfTown-01.jpg, Kota Belud town sign on a hill. File:KotaBelud Sabah PasarTani-04.jpg, Market in Kota Belud.

References

External links

Kota Belud District Towns in Sabah {{Sabah-geo-stub