Kota Kinabalu

Kota Kinabalu , formerly Jesselton, town (1991 pop. 160,122), capital of Sabah, Malaysia, in N Borneo and on a small inlet of the South China Sea. It is the chief port of the state and is connected by road and rail with the interior. Rubber is exported. It was founded in 1899 and in 1947 replaced Sandakan as the capital of what was then British North Borneo. The town was destroyed during World War II but has since been rebuilt and modernized.

Kota Kinabalu, Sabah/Malaysia Api Api, Jesselton The original name meant ‘Fire‐Fire’. There are several theories as to the reason for this name. One is that pirates from the Sulu Archipelago kept burning it down. Another, that frequent fires occurred during festive seasons when flying sparks from firecrackers burned the thatched roofs of the wooden structures; and a third, that it may be derived from the avicennia tree which grew in abundance along the coast and was used for kayu api ‘firewood’. The original settlement was founded on Pulau Gaya, an island, but it was burnt down in 1897. A new settlement was built on the mainland in 1899 and named after Sir Charles Jessel, the vice‐chairman of the British North Borneo Company. It was renamed in 1968 as the ‘Fort of Kinabalu’ after kota ‘fort’ and Mt Kinabalu. This name comes from the Kadazandusun aki nabalu ‘Revered Resting Place of the Ancestral Spirits’ from aki ‘ancestor’ and nabalu ‘mountain’.

Jesselton see Kota Kinabalu , Malaysia.