Bandar Seri Begawan

 

(bän'där sĕr'ē bĕgä'wän) , city (1991 est. pop. 46,229), capital and chief port of the sultanate of Brunei, of which it is also the business and commercial center. Its manufactures include furniture, textiles, handicrafts, and building materials. Petroleum and natural gas are processed there. It is the site of the Royal Ceremonial Hall and the Brunei History Center. It was formerly called Brunei.

Bandar Seri Begawan بندر سري بگاوان
Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque
Coordinates: 4.9167°40′N 114.9167°25′E / 5.583, 115.333
Country	Brunei
Area
- City	km²  ( sq mi)
Time zone	([[UTC+8]])
Mean solar time UTC+07:39:00
Website: http://www.municipal-bsb.gov.bn/

Bandar Seri Begawan, (Malay: Bandar Seri Begawan, Jawi: بندر سري بگاوان ) estimated population 46,229 (1991), is the capital of the Sultanate of Brunei. The city produces furniture, textiles, handicrafts, and timber.

The city incorporates a nearby water village, Kampung Ayer, which has houses on stilts and stretches out into the sea for about  meters ( ft). The Malay Technology Museum contains exhibits about water village architecture.

History

The origin of human settlement on the banks of the Brunei River can be traced back to the 7th century where there had been similar to those in Kampong Ayer located on areas close to the present site of the Brunei Museum.

Seri Begawan was named after the Sultan's late father Sir Omar Ali Safuddin on October 5th 1970, its original name being Bandar Brunei(Begawan is a name given to Bruneian monarchs who have abdicated, originally coming for the Sanskrit work for "god"). Bandar, comes from Persian بندر and means "port" or "haven" (bandar means "town" in Malay).

On August 1st, 2007, The Sultan of Brunei gave consent for the extension of Bandar Seri Begawan to an area ten times bigger than its original size, from 12.87 square kilometres to 100.36 square kilometres.[1]

Geography

Bandar Seri Begawan is located on 4.890338°N, 114.942457°E, on the northern bank of Brunei River with the downtown part located precisely on the confluence of Brunei River and Kedayan River.

Climate

The climate of Bandar Seri Begawan is tropical (hot and wet throughout the year).

Transportation

Land

The capital is connected to all parts of the country by road.

Air

Brunei International Airport, the international airport, serves Bandar Seri Begawan and the whole of Brunei. It is located around 11 km from the town centre and can be reached in 10 minutes via the Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Highway.

Water

A water taxi service known locally as 'penambang' is available for transportation between downtown Bandar Seri Begawan to Kampong Ayer. In addition to that a speedboat is also available for passengers travelling to and from Bangar and Limbang.

Places of Interest

Bandar Seri Begawan is the site of the Royal Ceremonial Hall or Lapau, Royal Regalia Building, the Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque, the Malay Technology Museum, and the Brunei History Center.

The Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque, built in 1958, features a giant golden dome and a luxurious interior of Italian marble walls, carpeting and an elevator. It also has opulent underground tunnels, which are used by the sultan on private journeys through the town.

Education

All levels of education are available in Bandar Seri Begawan from kindergarten to tertiary level. Among notable schools in the capital are St. Andrew's School, International School, Brunei (ISB), Chung Hwa Middle School, Jerudong International School,Kolej Universiti Perguruan Ugama Seri Begawan and Institut Tahfiz Al Quran Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah(ITQSHHB)

Bandar Seri Begawan in Popular Culture

• Anthony Burgess's Brunei novel Devil of a State is set in Bandar Seri Begawan. The construction of the Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque is a major theme in the book.

• Matt Harding, from the Internet phenomenon "Where the Hell is Matt?," danced in Bandar Seri Begawan for his second travel video, seen here at [2].

External links

• Official website
• Aerial view of Bandar Seri Begawan from the Brunei Eye

• Maps and aerial photos for 4°′00″N 114°′00″E / 4.9167, 114.9167Coordinates: 4°′00″N 114°′00″E / 4.9167, 114.9167
  • Maps from MapQuest, Multimap and Yahoo! Maps
  • Satellite images and maps from Google Maps and Live Search
  • Other mapping from GlobalGuide and WikiMapia

Capitals of Asia
Central Asia	Kabul, Afghanistan (sometimes considered South Asian) · Astana, Kazakhstan · Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan · Dushanbe, Tajikistan · Ashgabat, Turkmenistan · Tashkent, Uzbekistan
East Asia	Beijing, People's Republic of China (China) · Taipei, Republic of China (Taiwan) · Tokyo, Japan · Pyongyang, North Korea · Seoul, South Korea · Ulan Bator, Mongolia
South Asia	Kabul, Afghanistan (often considered Central Asian) · Dhaka, Bangladesh · Thimphu, Bhutan · New Delhi, India · Malé, Maldives · Kathmandu, Nepal · Islamabad, Pakistan · Kotte (official, administrative) and Colombo (commercial), Sri Lanka
Southeast Asia	Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei · Phnom Penh, Cambodia · Dili, East Timor · Jakarta, Indonesia · Vientiane, Laos · Kuala Lumpur (official) and Putrajaya (administrative), Malaysia · Naypyidaw, Myanmar · Manila, Philippines · Singapore, Singapore · Bangkok, Thailand  · Hanoi, Vietnam
Southwest Asia	Yerevan, Armenia · Baku, Azerbaijan · Manama, Bahrain · Nicosia, Cyprus · Tbilisi, Georgia · Tehran, Iran · Baghdad, Iraq · Jerusalem (official, administrative) and Tel Aviv, (diplomatic) Israel · Amman, Jordan · Kuwait City, Kuwait · Beirut, Lebanon · Muscat, Oman · Doha, Qatar · Riyadh, Saudi Arabia · Damascus, Syria · Ankara, Turkey · Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates · San‘a’, Yemen

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