Sarawak (sərä´wäk), state (1991 pop. 1,648,217), 48,342 sq mi (125,206 sq km), Malaysia, in NW Borneo and on the South China Sea. It is bordered on the NE by the states of Brunei and Sabah and on the S and W by Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo). Kuching is the capital, and Sibu is an important port. Petroleum is the chief mineral, and sago, pepper, and rubber are important commercial crops. Sometimes called the Land of the White Rajahs, Sarawak was ceded (1841) by the sultan of Brunei to James Brooke, an Englishman, who became rajah of the independent state. It became a British protectorate in 1888, but remained under the control of the Brooke family. In World War II the area was occupied by the Japanese. The Brookes ceded Sarawak to the British in 1946, and it became a crown colony. A leftist revolt (Dec., 1962) in nearby Brunei spread to Sarawak, and the rebels, who opposed the formation of the proposed Federation of Malaysia, occupied several towns. The revolt was quelled by British troops. However, sporadic activity by the rebels, who apparently were supported by Indonesia, continued into 1963, when Malaysia was formed. The name of the state is sometimes spelled Serawak.

See S. Runciman, The White Rajahs (1960).

Sarawak (north-west Borneo) long had trading links with Siam and China and, in the 15th cent., fell under the influence of the sultanate of Brunei. In 1841 the sultan offered it as a rajadom to Sir James Brooke, who had helped to put down a revolt of the local Dayaks and Malays. Sarawak was recognized as an independent state by the USA in 1850 and by Great Britain in 1864. It was overrun by the Japanese in 1942 and, after the war, became a British crown colony. Representative government was established in 1963 and Sarawak joined the Malaysian Federation.

David Anthony Washbrook

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Sarawak Largest state of Malaysia, in nw Borneo, comprising a highland interior and swampy coastal plain; the capital is Kuching City. Ruled as an independent state by Britain after 1841, it was made a British Protectorate in 1888 and a Crown Colony in 1946. Sarawak became a part of Malaysia in 1963, triggering a three-year dispute with Indonesia. Oil is an increasingly important product alongside the traditional coconuts, rice, rubber, and sago. Area: 124,449sq km (48,050sq mi). Pop. (2000) 2,012,616.