For other people named Tunku Abdul Rahman, see Tunku Abdul Rahman (disambiguation).
His Highness
Tunku Abdul Rahman
DMN DK (Kedah) DK I (Johor) DK (Kelantan) DK (Perlis) DK I (Selangor) DK I (Terengganu) DK I (Brunei) DUK DUNM SPMS SPMBCH AC
تونكو عبد الرحمن
Tunku in 1960
1st Prime Minister of Malaysia
In office 31 August 1957 – 22 September 1970
Monarchs
Abdul Rahman
Hisamuddin
Putra
Ismail Nasiruddin
Abdul Halim
Deputy
Abdul Razak Hussein
Preceded by
Office established
Succeeded by
Abdul Razak Hussein
Chief Minister of Malaya
In office 1 August 1955 – 31 August 1957
Monarch
Elizabeth II
High Commissioner
Donald MacGillivray
2nd President of the United Malays National Organisation
In office 25 August 1951 – 23 January 1971
Preceded by
Onn Jaafar
Succeeded by
Abdul Razak Hussein
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office 1 September 1960 – 22 September 1970
Monarchs
Hisamuddin
Putra
Ismail Nasiruddin
Abdul Halim
Prime Minister
Himself
Preceded by
Ismail Abdul Rahman
Succeeded by
Abdul Razak Hussein
Minister of Youth and Sports
In office 1964–1966
Monarchs
Putra
Ismail Nasiruddin
Prime Minister
Himself
Preceded by
Office established
Succeeded by
Senu Abdul Rahman
Minister of External Affairs
In office 31 August 1957 – 2 February 1959
Monarch
Abdul Rahman
Prime Minister
Himself
Preceded by
Office established
Succeeded by
Ismail Abdul Rahman
Minister of Home Affairs
In office 9 August 1955 – 30 August 1957
Monarch
Elizabeth II
High Commissioner
Donald MacGillivray
Preceded by
Office established
Succeeded by
Ismail Abdul Rahman
1st Secretary General of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation
In office 1970–1973
Preceded by
Position established
Succeeded by
Hassan Al-Touhami
5th President of AFC
In office 1958 – 11 December 1977
Preceded by
Nam Cheong Chan
Succeeded by
Kambiz Atabay
Personal details
Born
(1903-02-08)8 February 1903 Istana Tia Tangga, Alor Setar, Kedah Sultanate, Siam (now Malaysia)
Died
6 December 1990(1990-12-06) (aged 87) Kuala Lumpur Hospital, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Resting place
Kedah Royal Mausoleum, Langgar, Kedah, Malaysia
Political party
United Malays National Organisation (1946–1988)
Spouses
Meriam Chong
(m. 1933; died 1935)
Violet Coulson
(m. 1935; div. 1946)
Sharifah Rodziah Barakbah
(m. 1939)
Bibi Chong
(m. 1963)
Children
7
Parents
Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah (father)
Cik Menyelara (mother)
Education
Sultan Abdul Hamid College Debsirin School Penang Free School
Alma mater
St Catharine's College, Cambridge (BA in Law and History) Inner Temple
Profession
Lawyer
Signature
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Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah (Jawi: تونكو عبد الرحمن ڤوترا الحاج ابن سلطان عبد الحميد حليم شاه; 8 February 1903 – 6 December 1990) was a Malaysian statesman and lawyer who served as the first prime minister of Malaysia and the head of government of its predecessor states from 1955 to 1970. He was the first chief minister of the Federation of Malaya from 1955 to 1957. He supervised the independence process that culminated on 31 August 1957. As an independent Malaysia's first prime minister, he dominated the country's politics for the next 13 years.
In 1963, he successfully incorporated the Federation of Malaya, British North Borneo (renamed Sabah), Sarawak, and Singapore into the state of Malaysia. However, tensions between the Malay and Chinese communities resulted in Singapore's expulsion in 1965. His poor performance during race riots in Kuala Lumpur in 1969 led to his resignation in 1970. Commonly known simply as "Tunku" (a Malay royal title), Abdul Rahman is widely regarded, even by his critics, as Malaysia's "founding father", the architect of Malayan independence and of the formation of Malaysia. As such, he is often referred to as Father of Independence (Bapa Kemerdekaan) or Father of Malaysia (Bapa Malaysia).[1][2]
^"Tunku Abdul Rahman, 87, Dead; First Prime Minister of Malaysia". New York Times. 7 December 1990. Archived from the original on 17 June 2019. Retrieved 25 June 2015.
^Cheah, Boon Kheng (2002). "The Tunku as "Founding Father of the Nation"". Malaysia: The Making of a Nation. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. pp. 109–110. ISBN 9812301542.
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