Pengkalan Kempas (

Negeri Sembilan Malay Negeri Sembilan Malay ( or ; ; Jawi: بهاس ملايو نڬري سمبيلن) is an Austronesian language spoken mainly in the Malaysian state of Negeri Sembilan, including parts of Hulu Langat District in southeastern Selangor, Alor Gajah ...

: ''Pongkalan Kompeh'') is a small town in the Linggi

mukim A mukim is a type of administrative division used in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. The word ''mukim'' is a loanword in English language, English. However, it was also originally a loanword in Malay language, Malay from the Arabic word ...

Port Dickson District Port Dickson District () is a district in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. It is the only coastal district in Negeri Sembilan. The district borders Sepang District, Selangor to the north, the Strait of Malacca to the west, Seremban District to the nor ...

, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Its small population is ethnically mixed, including a large

Hakka The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka-speaking Chinese, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas, are a southern Han Chinese subgroup whose principal settlements and ancestral homes are dispersed widely across the provinces of southern China ...

Chinese component. Once a significant trade port along the

Linggi River The Linggi River () is a river in Malaysia which flows through the states of Negeri Sembilan and Malacca. It is one of two major rivers that serve as water sources for most of Negeri Sembilan's population, the other being the Muar River, which ...

, attempts to revitalise the town are based around encouraging tourism. The town is a site for recreational tourism for the fishing of giant freshwater prawns, and the

Pengkalan Kempas Historical Complex The Pengkalan Kempas Historical Complex , built on a location known as ''Keramat Sungai Udang'' (Prawn River Shrine), is an archeological site and museum located on the edge of the town of Pengkalan Kempas, within the Port Dickson District of Ne ...

has been created as a museum for

megalith A megalith is a large stone that has been used to construct a prehistoric structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. More than 35,000 megalithic structures have been identified across Europe, ranging geographically f ...

Location

Pengkalan Kempas (sometimes spelt Pengkalan Kampas) is located from the main city of

Port Dickson Port Dickson (Negeri Sembilan Malay: ), colloquially referred to as PD, is a beach resort in Port Dickson District, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. It is the second largest urban area in the state after Seremban, the state capital. The town's admi ...

and around from the state capital of

Seremban Seremban (Negeri Sembilan Malay: ''Somban'') is a city in the Seremban District and the capital of the state of Negeri Sembilan in Peninsular Malaysia. The city's administration is run by the Seremban Municipal Council, Seremban City Council. ...

, and from

Malacca City Malacca City ( or ') is the List of capitals in Malaysia, capital city of the Malaysian state of Malacca, in Melaka Tengah District. It is List of cities by time of continuous habitation, the oldest Malaysian city on the Straits of Malacca, hav ...

. It lies on the

History

The name "Pengkalan Kempas" translates to "Kempas landing place", and may reflect a period in the past where the Linggi River met the sea further inland compared to its present position. Along with

Lukut Lukut is a suburb located to the northeast of Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. It was once part of Selangor, serving as a thriving tin mining town in the early 19th-century before being ceded to Sungai Ujong domain in 1880 to wh ...

, Pengkalan Kempas is one of the oldest settlements in the area. While historically important, the town today is much less known. During the 14th century, the town was an important trade port, and an important location for the area's Chinese community. In a 1901 census, the town was recorded as having a total population of 306 people, consisting of 126 Chinese agricultural workers, 87 Malays, 2 Indians, and 91 others. At this time, it was recorded as one of the two towns of the Coast district of Negeri Sembilan, along with Port Dickson. As of 1919, much of the natural forest in the area had been replaced by rubber plantations, mostly run by ethnic Chinese and Malays.

Administration

Pengkalan Kempas lies within the Linggi mukim of the

Demographics

The town has historically had a population including Malays,

Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...

, and

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...

s. Some of the Chinese community are

Economy

The town is a popular spot for giant freshwater prawn fishing, which has been the main source of tourism for more than 35 years. Fishing takes place from the town's jetty, or in rented boats. This is an especially popular activity on weekends, when the town attracts perhaps 1,000 people. Around 100 boats are available for rent. For local fishermen, the catch can sell for up to RM 100 per kilogram, especially near occasions such as

Chinese New Year Chinese New Year, or the Spring Festival (see also #Names, § Names), is a festival that celebrates the beginning of a New Year, new year on the traditional lunisolar calendar, lunisolar Chinese calendar. It is one of the most important holi ...

. There are some concerns around poisoning affecting prawn populations, which may be due to activities upstream. The government of

Negeri Sembilan Negeri Sembilan (, Negeri Sembilan Malay: ''Nogoghi Sombilan'', ''Nismilan''), historically spelled as Negri Sembilan, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state in Malaysia which lies on the Peninsular Malaysia#Other features, wes ...

is promoting the town as a tourist destination, based on historical sites such as the

, and wildlife such as crocodiles and fireflies. The town is a potential stop for river cruises, however the current jetty is poorly maintained and is unable to accommodate this demand. Construction of a new jetty was slated to begin in December 2024. This will cost around RM 50,000. The jetty revitalisation is part of a wider effort to enhance the town as a tourist destination. Old buildings within the town have been repainted towards this aim.

Wildlife

In addition to the commonly fished giant freshwater prawns, native species in the river include native

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order (biology), order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Catfish are common name, named for their prominent barbel (anatomy), barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, though not ...

archerfish The archerfish (also known as spinner fish or archer fish) or Toxotidae are a monotypic family (although some include a second genus) of perciform tropical fish known for their unique predation technique of "shooting down" land-based insects a ...

bronze featherback The bronze featherback (''Notopterus notopterus'') is a ray-finned fish in the family Notopteridae found in South and Southeast Asia. Although primarily found in fresh water, it has been known to enter brackish water. At present, it is the only ...

, ''

Channa ''Channa'' is a genus of predatory fish in the Family (biology), family Channidae, commonly known as snakeheads, native to freshwater habitats in Asia. This genus contains about 50 Binomial nomenclature, scientifically described species. The gen ...

'',

pufferfish Tetraodontidae is a family of marine and freshwater fish in the order Tetraodontiformes. The family includes many familiar species variously called pufferfish, puffers, balloonfish, blowfish, blowers, blowies, bubblefish, globefish, swellfis ...

sea bass Sea bass is a common name for a variety of species of marine fish. Many fish species of various families have been called sea bass. In Ireland and the United Kingdom, the fish sold and consumed as sea bass is exclusively the European bass, ''Dic ...

Indo-Pacific tarpon The Indo-Pacific tarpon (''Megalops cyprinoides''), also known as the oxeye herring or simply herring due to its superficial resemblance to the Clupeidae, true herrings, of which it is not a member, is the smaller of the two species of Megalops, ...

, and ''

Scatophagus argus ''Scatophagus argus'', the spotted scat, butterfish, mia mia, spotted butterfish or tiger scat, is a species of fish in the scat family Scatophagidae. It occurs in two basic color morphs which are called green scat and ruby or red scat. This fis ...

''. Introduced fish present include

tilapia Tilapia ( ) is the common name for nearly a hundred species of cichlid fish from the coelotilapine, coptodonine, heterotilapine, oreochromine, pelmatolapiine, and tilapiine tribes (formerly all were "Tilapiini"), with the economically mos ...

Java barb The Java barb (''Barbonymus gonionotus''; ''Ta-phian''; Lao: ''Pa keng''; ''Trey Chpin''; ; Vietnamese: ''Mè Vinh''), more commonly known as silver barb in aquaculture, is a species of ray-finned fish in the genus ''Barbonymus''. Descript ...

, and

iridescent shark The iridescent shark or iridescent shark catfish (''Pangasianodon hypophthalmus'') is a species of shark catfish (family Pangasiidae) native to the rivers of Southeast Asia. Despite its name, it is not a shark. It is found in the Mekong basin as ...

catfish.

Buildings

A shrine to

Na Tuk Kong Na Tuk Gong are local guardian spirits worshipped by overseas Chinese communities in Malaysia, Singapore and parts of Indonesia, especially Sumatra. An alternate more generic name for the cult is Datuk Gong (or Kong), uniting Dato or Datuk fro ...

in the town fuses Chinese, Malay, and Indian influences, containing clay figures from various religions, including the presence of

Hanuman Hanuman (; , ), also known as Maruti, Bajrangabali, and Anjaneya, is a deity in Hinduism, revered as a divine ''vanara'', and a devoted companion of the deity Rama. Central to the ''Ramayana'', Hanuman is celebrated for his unwavering devotio ...

as a guard, and the inclusion of

koranic The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...

verses. This was created by locals in the remains of a derelict

rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Types of polyisoprene ...

plantation warehouse.

Pengkalan Kempas Historical Complex

The Pengkalan Kempas Historical Complex was developed on a site called ''Keramat Ujung Pasir'' (prawn river shrine). This site includes an Islamic tomb and a variety of megaliths, including the three most prominent (the "rudder", "spoon", and "sword"). The tomb is thought to be from the 15th century, while the megaliths may be many centuries older. Registered under the National Heritage Act 2005, the site is managed by the , and is now home to other donated megaliths, a gallery, and a

surau A surau is an Islamic assembly building in some regions of Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula, used for worship and religious instruction. Generally smaller physical structures, their ritual functions are similar to those of a mosque, they admit ...

, with proposals to further expand it to become a larger megalith museum.

References

External links

A Very Rough Guide To Pengkalan Kempas and Kuala Linggi

Photos of Pekan Pengkalan Kempas (船頭)

The Story of Pengkalan Kempas, Sungai Linggi

Carlsberg ad from 1923
with Pengkalan Kempas listed alongside Malacca, Seremban, and Muar
Port Dickson Jottings, Malacca Guardian, 25 November 1929, Page 3
{{Negeri Sembilan Port Dickson District Towns in Negeri Sembilan