The Tip of Borneo (;

Rungus The Momogun Rungus are an Austronesian ethnic group indigenous to Sabah, Malaysia. They primarily live in northern Sabah especially in Kudat, Kota Marudu and Pitas districts with small minorities in the Beluran district of the east coast S ...

: ''Tanjung Sampang Mangazou'') is the northernmost tip of

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

located in Kudat District, Sabah, Malaysia. The tip marks the meeting point of the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by South China, in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan island, Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luz ...

and

Sulu Sea The Sulu Sea (; Tausug: ''Dagat sin Sūg''; ; ) is a body of water in the southwestern area of the Philippines, separated from the South China Sea in the northwest by Palawan and from the Celebes Sea in the southeast by the Sulu Archipela ...

Geology

The tip as part of the Kudat Peninsula was formed through the Kudat formation in the

Early Miocene The Early Miocene (also known as Lower Miocene) is a sub-epoch of the Miocene epoch (geology), Epoch made up of two faunal stage, stages: the Aquitanian age, Aquitanian and Burdigalian stages. The sub-epoch lasted from 23.03 ± 0.05 annum, Ma to ...

age. The Kudat formation is divided into three major

lithological The lithology of a rock unit is a description of its physical characteristics visible at outcrop, in hand or core samples, or with low magnification microscopy. Physical characteristics include colour, texture, grain size, and composition. Lith ...

unit, namely the lower, middle and upper units based on significant changes in the composition of the

sediment Sediment is a solid material that is transported to a new location where it is deposited. It occurs naturally and, through the processes of weathering and erosion, is broken down and subsequently sediment transport, transported by the action of ...

s. The lower unit consisted mostly of

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

and

mudstone Mudstone, a type of mudrock, is a fine-grained sedimentary rock whose original constituents were clays or muds. Mudstone is distinguished from ''shale'' by its lack of fissility.Blatt, H., and R.J. Tracy, 1996, ''Petrology.'' New York, New York, ...

with the sandy beds predominating, the middle unit consisted of sandstone and mudstone with some occurrence of

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

beds and lenses, and the upper unit consisted of sandstone and mudstone of various proportions mainly in the southern part of the Peninsula.

History

The original name of Tanjung Sampang Mangazou comes from the

language Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...

of the indigenous

, an ethnic group which resides mainly in the district of Kudat. The words ''Tanjung'' (

cape A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment of any length that hangs loosely and connects either at the neck or shoulders. They usually cover the back, shoulders, and arms. They come in a variety of styles and have been used th ...

), ''Sampang'' (union) and Mangazou (battle) refers to this location of a battle that occurred when the ethnic Rungus defended their territory against the attack from

Moro Pirates The Sulu Sea, Sulu and Celebes Seas, a semi-enclosed sea area and porous region that covers an area of space around 1 million square kilometres, have been subject to illegal maritime activities since the pre-colonial era and continue to pose ...

. According to legend, this place was a favourite landing point for the pirates. Local

Chinese people The Chinese people, or simply Chinese, are people or ethnic groups identified with Greater China, China, usually through ethnicity, nationality, citizenship, or other affiliation. Chinese people are known as Zhongguoren () or as Huaren () by ...

referring the place as Den Foh Liew, which in

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 ...

means "

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

" due to a lighthouse on a nearby island of

Kalampunian Island Tiga Island Park was established in 1978, although the area has been under protection as a forest reserve since 1933. It is located north of Kuala Penyu, opposite the swampy Klias Peninsula, in Sabah, Malaysia. The park covers 158 square ki ...

can be seen from here. The lighthouse also serves as a reminder of treacherous coastline and past shipwrecks since during the Chinese dynasties era of

Song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...

Ming The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of China ruled by the Han people, t ...

and

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

, many Chinese trading vessels were capsized while on their way to

Celebes Islands Sulawesi ( ), also known as Celebes ( ), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the world's 11th-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Mindanao and the Sulu Archi ...

, to reach

Moluccas The Maluku Islands ( ; , ) or the Moluccas ( ; ) are an archipelago in the eastern part of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located in West Melanesi ...

(which is known as the Spice Islands). During the famous

circumnavigation Circumnavigation is the complete navigation around an entire island, continent, or astronomical object, astronomical body (e.g. a planet or natural satellite, moon). This article focuses on the circumnavigation of Earth. The first circumnaviga ...

era,

Ferdinand Magellan Ferdinand Magellan ( – 27 April 1521) was a Portuguese explorer best known for having planned and led the 1519–22 Spanish expedition to the East Indies. During this expedition, he also discovered the Strait of Magellan, allowing his fl ...

fleet supposedly went here to perform repairs on his ships.

Features

The tip is one of Sabah's popular tourist attractions. Within the area, there is a park-like grounds with a

Malaysian flag The national flag of Malaysia, also known as the Stripes of Glory (, also "Stripes of Excellence") is composed of a field of 14 alternating red and white stripes along the fly and a blue canton bearing a crescent and a 14-point star known as ...

pole and a large bronze globe which opened since 2004. The bronze globe marks the location of the Borneo Island tip at latitude 7 degrees north and longitude 116 degrees east with a map featuring the island embossed in bronze and laid on a flat surface at an angle with inscriptions to mark the tip. Over the years, several infrastructure and public amenities have been erected at the site which including a public rest area with a

café A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café (), is an establishment that serves various types of coffee, espresso, latte, americano and cappuccino, among other hot beverages. Many coffeehouses in West Asia offer ''shisha'' (actually called ''nargi ...

, souvenir shop and

washroom A bathroom is a room in which people wash their bodies or parts thereof. It can contain one or more of the following plumbing fixtures: a shower, a bathtub, a bidet, and a sink (also known as a wash basin in the United Kingdom). A toilet is al ...

s. In the park-like grounds, it has become one of the destination to view sunsets and full moons. Located not far from the tip is the Hibiscus Villa with panoramic views of the South China Sea amid a lushly landscaped one-hectare

tropical garden A tropical garden is a type of garden that features tropical plants and requires heavy rainfall or a decent irrigation or sprinkler system for watering. These gardens typically need fertilizer and heavy mulching. Tropical gardens are no longe ...

, once described by

Lonely Planet Lonely Planet is a travel guide book publisher. Founded in Australia in 1973, the company has printed over 150 million books. History 20th century Lonely Planet was founded by married couple Maureen Wheeler, Maureen and Tony Wheeler. In 19 ...

as "the place where

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...

and GQ magazine would throw the mother of all

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...

n parties".

Additional addition of facilities

The Tip of Borneo was closed since January 2022 for facilities improvement under the Twelfth Malaysia Plan (12MP) until it was reopened to the public in May 2025. File:Kudat Sabah Tanjung Simpang Mengayau-22.jpg, The park-like grounds. File:Kudat Sabah Tanjung Simpang Mengayau-03.jpg, Inscription regarding the park history. File:Kudat Sabah Tanjung Simpang Mengayau-07.jpg, Sea wave in the tip. File:Tip of Borneo - panoramio (1).jpg, The limit for visitors walk.

Notes

References

External links

* {{Geography of Sabah Geography of Sabah Kudat District Tourist attractions in Sabah