SABAH, "The Land Below The Wind"

Sabah is the second biggest region in Malaysia after Sarawak and one of the states in Malaysia. Sabah also lies in the South of Kalimantan Province, Indonesia, and Kota Kinabalu is the capital of the state. Sabah is sometimes related to "Land below the wind," a term used in the past by sailors to characterize the southern country of the cyclone belt, as it is located under the typhoon prone region of Philippines.

1. HISTORY OF SABAH

Sabah is the easternmost state of Malaysia and forms the northern portion of the island of Borneo. Sabah also shares the boundary with Sarawak, which is to the southwest of Sarawak and Borneo or Kalimantan, which is to the south. Kota Kinabalu is the capital city of Sabah. The history of Sabah started when the civilization began in the 15th century when the Sultanate of Brunei was ruling. The Sultan of Sulu was given the power to rule in the eastern region. In the 18th century, British infiltrations landed on the Sabah coast and looked at the abundance of the natural resources in Sabah. They ruled until 1942, and that's when World War 2 began in the forest of Sabah. The Japanese army began walking over the mountains from Sandakan (east port city) to the western Mount Kinabalu and ended up in the town of Renau. The British controlled until 1963, when North Borneo joined Sarawak, Malaya and Singapore to form the Federation of Malaysia. Two years later, Singapore was split from the Federation of Malaysia and became an independent state. There has always been friction between the natives and the inhabitants of the mainland of Malaysia. The united Sabah party was a movement of the Kadazan people, in which Barisan Nasional joined the governing coalition in 1985. They combined power to fight against the federal government. Sabah was forced to take the lead, but Barisan Nasional abandoned them before the general election, and the united Sabah party had to face the consequences. Now there are just a few of Sabah's timber and wealth going to the province, most of them going to Kuala Lumpur. After that, Sabah was the poorest nation in Malaysia(GoSabah,2015).

2. ETYMOLOGY OF SABAH

On September 16, 1963, North Borneo was granted independence by Malaysia and changed its name to Sabah. It was suggested to modify the name, because it seems to be more like the original name of the state than the British Colony. Yet the original name of Sabah was not popularly recognized, so there is still a lot of debate about the name. But on September 16, 1963, all the people in the state were pleased, excited, and welcomed the name. It gives and shows the new face that the state has and should be proud of. There are still several records to be studied to test the evidence that the records are over 130 years old. Some evidence also suggests that the name comes from travelers who migrated from Sulu Island to Brunei in the 15th century. Donald Stephens, who is also regarded as an influential local leader, frequently supports the name as he feels that the name is the original name of the state. For that, the name inspired the people and gave Sabah a new identity in Malaysia (Danny Wong Tze Ken,2015)

3. GEOGRAPHY OF SABAH

Sabah is Malaysia's eastern border zone and also one of Malaysia's largest states. The southern portion of Sabah also shares its boundaries with East Borneo, while the other half faces the South China Sea.

The land of Sabah consists of many natures, such as mountains, trees, lakes, beaches, lagoons, etc. The western side is primarily mountainous, with three of the highest mountains in Malaysia. The most famous of them is the Crocker range, with a height of up to 4,000 meters. Apart from that, Mount Kinabalu is also part of the highest mountain in Malaysia and has also been rated the fourth highest mountain in the Asian region, which reaches about 4,095 meters.  Mount Tambuyukon, 2.579 meters above sea level and the third highest point in the state, is near Mount Kinabalu. These mountains extend out to the central part of Sabah. Most of the lower mountain laying areas are rivers and dense rainforests. The forest around the river is Malaysia's largest protected area.

Many settlements are dispersed along the coast, while the region consists of small villages and cities. Many protected nature reserves, such as the Maliau River, the Danum Valley, Tabin, and Sepilok, exist in Sabah other than Kinabalu. The region consists of five divisions: the West Coast, North, Sandakan, the Tawau Region, the Labuan Region, and the Kudat Region. With a lot of culture, nature, and also human influence and infiltration of man-made structures surrounding Sabah, this place is attracted to the eyes of tourists (Hutchison, C. S.,2005).