Jata Negara: Reading Malaysia’s National Coat of Arms, Element by Element

It sits on the front cover of your passport, on the letterhead of every ministry, on the coins in your pocket, and on the wall behind every official ceremony. Yet ask anyone: how many kris blades are on the Jata Negara, and which states are represented by the four coloured stripes at the centre of the shield? Most people falter.

In fact the Jata Negara is a map — not a geographical map, but a map of the arrangement of the states that make up the Federation. Every element represents a state or a group of states, and its place on the shield is not mere decoration.

Short answer: The Jata Negara is the official emblem of the Federal Government, approved by the Malay Rulers and gazetted on 27 May 1952. Its shield brings together the emblem for every group of states; it is supported by two tigers, crowned by a crescent moon and star, and bound by the motto Bersekutu Bertambah Mutu.

The Jata Negara at a glance

According to the Department of Information Malaysia, the Jata Negara “is the official emblem of the government of Malaysia that has been approved by the Malay Rulers and gazetted on 27 May 1952.”

The design has been updated several times as the membership of the Federation changed. The version in force today is set out through the Government Gazette P.U. (B) 563: Statutes of the National Emblem of Malaysia dated 20 September 1990.

This article is descriptive. It states the official meaning of each element as recorded by government sources, without comparing any state or institution, and with full respect for the royal elements on the emblem.

Top of the shield: religion and sovereignty

The highest feature on the emblem is the crescent moon and star. According to official records, the crescent moon and star are “the symbol of the religion of Islam that has been adopted as the religion of the Federation.” The star is a 14-point star, and the number of its points carries the same count as on the Jalur Gemilang: 13 states and the Federal Government.

Spread beneath it are clouds coloured yellow. That yellow is not just any colour — it is “the royal colour of Their Royal Highnesses the Malay Rulers.” That same yellow is the colour of the crescent moon and star on the Jalur Gemilang, and it is what marks the Rulers’ sovereignty across Malaysia’s national emblems.

Shield-bearers: two tigers

The shield is borne on the left and right by two tigers. Their meaning is recorded simply: the tigers “support the shield to symbolise courage, valour and strength.”

The tiger is an animal long associated with the Peninsula, and its presence as a shield-bearer links Malaysia’s emblem to an older tradition of heraldry in the region.

The shield: a symbolic map of the states

This is where the emblem tells its richest story. The shield is divided into several sections, and each section represents a state or a group of states following the historical order of the federation.

Element on the shield	State / group represented
Five kris blades	Unfederated Malay States: Johor, Kedah, Perlis, Kelantan and Terengganu
Four coloured stripes (red, black, white, yellow) at the centre	Federated Malay States: Pahang, Selangor, Perak and Negeri Sembilan
Areca palm tree and the Penang bridge	Penang
Melaka tree	Melaka
Sabah emblem	Sabah
Sarawak emblem	Sarawak
Bunga Raya at the centre	National Flower of Malaysia

Notice how the four coloured stripes themselves carry two layers of meaning. Each colour combination is taken from the flag of a Federated Malay State:

• Black and white — the colours of the Pahang state flag
• Red and yellow — the colours of the Selangor state flag
• Black, white and yellow — the colours of the Perak state flag
• Red, black and yellow — the colours of the Negeri Sembilan flag

So a single small stripe at the centre of the shield in fact holds four states at once. Beside it, the Melaka tree refers to the story of the tree that gave its name to the Melaka Sultanate, while the areca palm tree and bridge identify Penang. The lower part of the shield carries the Sabah emblem and the Sarawak emblem for the two Borneo states that joined the Federation in 1963.

At the very centre of the shield stands the Bunga Raya, Malaysia’s national flower — the only element that represents the country as a whole, rather than a single state.

The motto: ‘Bersekutu Bertambah Mutu’

Binding the whole emblem together is the motto on the ribbon beneath the shield: BERSEKUTU BERTAMBAH MUTU. It is written in two scripts at once — “Rumi script on the left and Jawi script on the right.”

This motto sums up the idea behind the entire emblem: that the states which came together — the Federated Malay States, the Unfederated Malay States, the Straits Settlements, and later Sabah and Sarawak — together form a union of greater worth than the sum of its parts. Every kris, every coloured stripe and every tree on the shield is one member of that federation; the motto states the meaning of that union in four words.

Who may use the Jata Negara

This is the part most often misunderstood. The Jata Negara is not a general logo that anyone may use.

The Department of Information states clearly: “The emblem of the Federal Government (Jata Negara) is the right of the Federal Government. This emblem may only be used by ministries, departments and officers of the Federal Government for official business.” Local Authorities, Federal Statutory Bodies and national organisations may not use it — this is set out through Prime Minister’s Department General Circular Letter No. 1 of 2005.

Several administrative decisions reinforce this usage:

• The Cabinet Meeting of 25 November 2016 decided that the official emblems of ministries, departments and agencies of the Federal Government be replaced with the Jata Negara emblem for official business.
• Exemptions are given to a few agencies that keep their own emblems, such as the Malaysian Armed Forces and the Royal Malaysia Police.

The Jata Negara is also protected by the Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act 1963 [Act 414], which prevents the improper use of the national emblem of honour for business or other purposes without permission.

Common mistakes

• “The Jata Negara is the same as the Jalur Gemilang.” The two are separate national emblems. The Jalur Gemilang is the flag; the Jata Negara is the government’s official coat of arms. Only some elements — the crescent moon, the 14-point star, and the royal yellow colour — are shared between them.
• “There are four kris blades on the emblem.” The number is five, one for each Unfederated Malay State: Johor, Kedah, Perlis, Kelantan and Terengganu.
• “The four coloured stripes are just decoration.” Each colour combination is the flag of a Federated Malay State — Pahang, Selangor, Perak and Negeri Sembilan.
• “Anyone can use the Jata Negara as a logo.” It is the right of the Federal Government and is protected by Act 414; its use is limited to official government business.
• The gazette date. The Department of Information’s official book records the emblem as gazetted on 27 May 1952, while some other official references cite 30 May 1952. The design in force today is the version under Government Gazette P.U. (B) 563 dated 20 September 1990.

What’s next

For the national emblem that shares the royal yellow colour and the 14-point star with this emblem, read Jalur Gemilang and see why the count of 14 remains even though Malaysia has 13 states. To understand the institution of the Malay Rulers whose sovereign colour is reflected in the emblem’s yellow clouds, read Malaysia’s nine royal houses. And for the melody that accompanies every ceremony where this emblem is displayed, read Negaraku.