WE have all experienced or heard about the infamous "Malaysian time" where appointments are seen as fluid and not fixed.
But has the actual time in Malaysia been frequently changed? In fact, is it true that such adjustments have happened more than five times?
Verdict:
TRUE
Malaysia, like many countries around the world, has undergone several time adjustments over the years.
Are you ready to experience some time travel, of sorts?
The country's first time adjustment took place on Jan 1, 1901, when the Federated Malay States adopted Singapore time, which was seven hours and 30 minutes ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).
However, just four years later, the time zone was changed to seven hours and 20 minutes ahead of GMT.
On Jan 1, 1933, New Year’s Day, the daylight saving time ordinance, initially met with much opposition due to what was deemed a large time jump, came into effect. Daylight saving time was 20 minutes faster than the standard time of GMT+07:20.
In 1941, the daylight saving time Ordinance was amended by Ordinance 33 of 1941. Daylight saving time would henceforth be 30 minutes ahead of the mean time of the 105th meridian, or GMT+07:30. This came into effect on Sept 1.
During World War II, when Malaysia was occupied by Japan, Japan Standard Time was introduced on Feb 15, 1942.
After Japan's surrender, however, Malaysia reverted to the previous time.
In 1982, Malaysia changed its time zone to be eight hours ahead of GMT. This change was made to align the country's time with our major trading partners to facilitate easier communication and trade.
As we can see, Malaysia has undergone several time adjustments throughout its history.
And these adjustments were made for various reasons, including to align with international partners, facilitate trade and communication, and reduce electricity consumption.
References:
https://cilisos.my/guess-how-many-timezones-malaysia-had-before-finally-having-one-standard-time/
https://www.timeanddate.com/time/change/malaysia
