Editing Alor Setar (section)

{{Short description|State capital of Kedah, Malaysia}}
{{For|the federal constituency represented in the Dewan Rakyat|Alor Setar (federal constituency)}}
{{EngvarB|date=July 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2016}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name               = Alor Setar
| native_name        = {{native name|meo|Loqstaq}}
| settlement_type    = [[list of capitals in Malaysia|State capital]] [[List of cities in Malaysia|city]] and [[List of capitals in Malaysia#District capitals|district capital]]
| official_name      = City of Alor Setar<br />{{nobold|''Bandaraya Alor Setar''}}
| image_skyline      = {{multiple image
| border                          = infobox
| total_width                     = 290
| image_style                     = border:1;
| perrow                          = 1/3/3/2
| image1                          = AlorSetarSkyline.jpg
| caption1                        =
City centre skyline
| image2                          = Menara Alor Setar-zamwan.jpg
| caption2                        =
[[Alor Setar Tower]]
| image3                          = Balai Nobat.jpg
| caption3                        =
Nobat Tower
| image4                          = Istana anak bukit.jpg
|caption4                         =
[[Anak Bukit|Anak Bukit Palace]]
| image5                          = Muzium seni kedah.jpg
| caption5                        =
[[Kedah State Art Gallery|State Art Gallery]]
| image6                          = Pekan Rabu, Alor Setar.jpg
| caption6                        =
[[Pekan Rabu]]
| image7                          = MasjidZahir.jpg
| caption7                        =
[[Zahir Mosque]]
| image8                          = Kuala Kedah.jpg
| caption8                        =
[[Kuala Kedah]] Marina
| image9                          =
Tun Dr M house-zamwan.jpg
| caption9                        =
[[Mahathir Mohamad]]'s house
}}
| image_caption      = 
| image_flag         = The Flag of Alor Setar City Council.png
| image_seal         = Alor Setar Emblem.svg
| seal_size          = 100px
| nickname           = 
| motto              = {{lang|ms|Bandaraya Berdayahuni 2035}}<br /> {{smaller|"Livable City by 2035"}}
| image_map          = {{maplink|frame=yes|plain=yes|type=shape|stroke-width=2|stroke-color=#000000|zoom=10|frame-lat=6.11833333333333|frame-long=100.36944444444444}}
| map_caption        = Location of Alor Setar in Kedah
| pushpin_map        = Malaysia Kedah#Malaysia##Southeast Asia#Asia
| pushpin_mapsize    = 275px
| pushpin_map_caption = {{Legend inline|#800000|outline=black}} '''Alor Setar''' in {{Legend inline|#FEFEEF|outline=black}} '''[[Kedah]]'''
| coordinates        = {{Coord|06|07|06|N|100|22|10|E|region:MY|display=inline,title}}
| subdivision_type   = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name   = {{flagicon|Malaysia}} [[Malaysia]]
| subdivision_type1  = [[States and federal territories of Malaysia|State]]
| subdivision_type2  = [[List of districts in Malaysia|District]]
| subdivision_name1  = {{flagicon|Kedah}} [[Kedah]]
| subdivision_name2  = [[Kota Setar District|Kota Setar]]<br />[[Pokok Sena District|Pokok Sena]]
| founder            = [[Sultan Muhammad Jiwa Zainal Adilin II]]
| established_title  = Establishment
| established_date   = 30 December 1735
| established_title1 = Establishment of the local government
| established_date1  = 1905
| established_title2 = Establishment of the town board
| established_date2  = 1958
| established_title3 = Establishment of the town council
| established_date3  = 1970
| established_title4 = Establishment of the local government district council
| established_date4  = 1976
| established_title5 = Municipality status
| established_date5  = 1 February 1978
| established_title6 = City status
| established_date6  = {{start date and age|2003|12|21|df=y}}
| government_type    = [[List of local governments in Malaysia|City council]]
| governing_body     = [[Alor Setar City Council]]
| leader_title       = [[Mayor]]
| leader_name        = Yang Berbahagia Dato' Haji Abdul Gafar bin Yahya (since 2 February 2025)
| area_total_km2     = 424
| area_total_sq_mi   = 257.14
| elevation_m        = 57
| elevation_max_m    = 99
| elevation_max_point = Mount Keriang
| population_total   = 417,800
| population_as_of   = 2020
| population_footnotes = <ref name="stats">{{cite web|url=http://www.statistics.gov.my/portal/download_Population/files/population/03ringkasan_kawasan_PBT_Jadual1.pdf |title=Key Summary Statistics For Local Authority Areas, Malaysia 2010 |publisher=Department of Statistics, Malaysia |access-date=19 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150205090002/http://www.statistics.gov.my/portal/download_Population/files/population/03ringkasan_kawasan_PBT_Jadual1.pdf |archive-date=5 February 2015 }}</ref>
| population_density_km2 = 982.00
| population_metro   = 839,400
| population_demonym = 
| postal_code_type   = [[Postal codes in Malaysia|Postal code]]
| postal_code        = 05xxx
| area_code          = +6047 (landline only)
| area_code_type     = [[Telephone numbers in Malaysia|International dialling code prefix]]
| website            = {{URL|https://pbt.kedah.gov.my/index.php/majlis-bandaraya-alor-setar/|mbas.gov.my}}
| footnotes          = 
| timezone           = [[Time in Malaysia|MST]]
| utc_offset         = +8
| timezone_DST       = Not observed
}}

'''Alor Setar''' ([[Kedah Malay]]: {{lang|meo|Loqstaq}}) is the state capital of [[Kedah State|Kedah]], [[Malaysia]].<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L5nIAlHSMxgC&q=alor+setar+capital+kedah|title=Fact Sheets on the Federation of Malaya|date=1957|language=en}}</ref> It is the second-largest city in the state after [[Sungai Petani]] and one of the most-important cities on the west coast of [[Peninsular Malaysia]]. It is home to the third-tallest tower in [[Malaysia]], the [[Alor Setar Tower]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Atiyah|first=Jeremy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uRX5zMsCeNgC&q=alor+setar+second+largest&pg=PA716|title=Southeast Asia|date=2002|publisher=Rough Guides|isbn=978-1-85828-893-2|language=en}}</ref>

Its location along the main travel corridor from Malaysia to Thailand has long made it a major transportation hub in the northern [[Malay Peninsula]]. Alor Setar sits along the country's longest expressway, located {{convert|430|km|abbr=on}} from Kuala Lumpur and {{Convert|79|km|abbr=on}} north of [[George Town, Penang|George Town]], [[Penang]]. From Thailand, the city is easily accessible via the [[Padang Besar–Sadao Highway]], it is {{Convert|51.8|km|abbr=on}} from [[Sadao District|Sadao]] and {{Convert|106|km|abbr=on}} from [[Hat Yai]].

The city was originally founded as Kota Setar in 1785. Owing to the long status as the [[List of capitals in Malaysia|capital]] of Kedah, Alor Setar is regarded as one of the core cultural centres for the [[Kedahan Malays]]. It is also among the key pioneer in the [[British Malaya|Malayan]] transportation history, the [[Alor Setar railway station|railway station]] was commissioned in 1915 followed by its [[Sultan Abdul Halim Airport|airport]] in 1929.

Alor Setar is home to the Central State Administration Centre and is the [[administrative centre]] of [[Kota Setar District]]. At present, the city covers a land area of {{Convert|666|km2|mi2|abbr=on}}, which is occupied by more than 400,000 inhabitants (as per the 2020 census). At the local-government level, Alor Setar is administered by the Alor Setar City Council.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2015-08-12|title=Message from Mayor|url=http://www.mbas.gov.my/en/mas/management/message-mayor|access-date=2020-12-24|website=Official Portal of Alor Setar City Council (MBAS)|language=ms}}</ref>

It is the birthplace of two pivotal [[Prime Minister of Malaysia|prime ministers of Malaysia]]; namely [[Tunku Abdul Rahman]], the founding father of the nation (in office from 1957 to 1970) and [[Mahathir Mohamad]], the country's longest-serving prime minister of 24 years (in office from 1981 to 2003, from 2018 to 2020).<ref>{{Cite web|title=Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Alhaj {{!}} Prime Minister of Malaysia|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Tunku-Abdul-Rahman-Putra-Alhaj|access-date=2020-12-23|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Mahathir bin Mohamad {{!}} Facts & Biography|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mahathir-bin-Mohamad|access-date=2020-12-23|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref>