Johor Bahru
Johor Bahru | |
|---|---|
| City of Johor Bahru Bandaraya Johor Bahru | |
City centre skyline at night Opera House | |
| Nickname(s): JB, Bandaraya Selatan (Southern City) | |
| Motto(s): | |
Location of Johor Bahru in Johor | |
| Coordinates: 01°27′20″N 103°45′40″E / 1.45556°N 103.76111°E | |
| Country | Malaysia |
| State | Johor |
| District | Johor Bahru |
| Administrative areas | List |
| Founded | 10 March 1855 (as Tanjung Puteri) |
| Establishment of the local government | 1933 |
| Establishment of the Town Board | 1950 |
| Municipality status | 1 April 1977 |
| City status | 1 January 1994 |
| Government | |
| • Type | City council |
| • Body | Johor Bahru City Council |
| • Mayor | Noorazam Osman |
| Area | |
• Total | 391.25 km2 (151.06 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 32 m (105 ft) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 858,118 |
| • Density | 2,192/km2 (5,680/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Johor Bahru |
| Time zone | UTC+8 (MST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+8 (Not observed) |
| Postal code | 80xxx to 81xxx |
| Area code(s) | 07 |
| Website | www |
.jpg){kind=link}
.jpg){kind=link}
Johor Bahru, abbreviated as JB, is the capital city of the Malaysian state of Johor. It is the core city of Johor Bahru District, Malaysia's second-largest district by population and the second-largest district economy. Covering an area of 391.25 km2, Johor Bahru had a population of 858,118 people as of 2020, making it the nation's largest state capital city by population. It is located at the southern end of the Peninsular Malaysia, adjacent to the city-state of Singapore.
Johor Bahru is the financial and business centre of southern Malaysia. It is the second best-performing city in the country behind the capital, Kuala Lumpur, in terms of economic competitiveness and prosperity, and ease of doing business, according to World Bank. It also has the fastest urbanisation growth and internet speed among cities in Malaysia. Connecting with Singapore, Johor Bahru has the world's busiest international border crossing, primarily via the Johor-Singapore Causeway, KTM Shuttle Tebrau and the future RTS Link. Johor Bahru is served by Senai International Airport and the 15th-busiest port in the world, Tanjung Pelepas.
During the reign of Sultan Abu Bakar between 1886 and 1895, the city witnessed modernisation from a fishing village, with the construction of administrative centres, offices, schools, civic and religious buildings, and railways to Woodlands, Singapore. Japanese forces occupied Johor Bahru from 1942 to 1945 during the Pacific War. Johor Bahru thus became the post-war cradle of Malay nationalism, and a major political party, UMNO was founded at the Istana Besar in 1946. Johor Bahru was granted city status in 1994. It is currently the core region of Iskandar Malaysia, the nation's largest special economic zone, by investment value.