Editing Alor Setar (section)

===Origin===
[[File:Muzium Diraja Kedah (11270861454).jpg|thumb|left|The Kedah Royal Museum. Completed in 1735, it was formerly functioned as the official residence for several sultans of Kedah. The current building is dated from the 19th century.]]
Alor Setar was established on 30 December 1735 by Kedah's 19th Ruler, [[Sultan Muhammad Jiwa Zainal Adilin II]] and was the state's eighth administrative centre since the establishment of the Kedah Sultanate in 1136.<ref>{{cite web|title=Background of Alor Setar |url=http://www.mbas.gov.my/latarbelakang |work=Alor Setar's Early History |publisher=Alor Setar City Council |access-date=29 April 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717100534/http://www.mbas.gov.my/latarbelakang |archive-date=17 July 2011 }}</ref> The earlier administrative centres were located in Kota Bukit Meriam, Kota Sungai Emas, Kota Siputeh, Kota Naga, Kota Sena, Kota Indera Kayangan and Kota Bukit Pinang.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Cayron|first=Jun G.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ntNp_IeYbQsC&q=The+earlier+administrative+centres+&pg=RA1-PA31|title=Stringing the Past: An Archaeological Understanding of Early Southeast Asian Glass Bead Trade|date=2006|publisher=UP Press|isbn=978-971-542-506-3|language=en}}</ref>

The pre-existing settlement was originally a small village. However, the sultan found the area to be in a strategic location, he was drawn to the area as it was covered in a lush greenery and a center between the two estuaries of [[Kedah River]] converged. Upon the agreement with fellow Kedahan ministers, they agreed to institute a new town known as "Kota Setar" (the "Town of Setar"). The name was derived from [[Bouea macrophylla]], a type of tree that can be found in the area.<ref name="hasrulhassan.com">{{cite web |title= Ketahui Asal-Usul Alor Setar & Sejarah Unik Disebalik Ibu Negeri Tertua di Malaysia|url=https://www.hasrulhassan.com/2020/03/asal-usul-alor-setar-sejarah-unik.html|website= Hasrul Hassan}}</ref>