Negaraku: How the Perak State Anthem Became Malaysia's National Anthem

On the night of 31 August 1957, when the melody of Negaraku was played publicly for the first time at the Selangor Club Padang, that melody was nothing new. It had already been the state anthem of a Malay state for decades before that.

That is the most widely misunderstood thing about Malaysia’s national anthem: it was not composed for a newly independent country. It was selected — from a repertoire that already existed.

The Melody Belonged to Perak First

The Official Portal of the Government of Malaysia states clearly that the original tune of the national anthem was taken from the Perak state song. The same portal links the state song to a song titled “Terang Bulan”, recorded as Sultan Abdullah’s favourite song during his exile in the Seychelles.

The official website of the Perak Royal House offers a different angle — not how the melody arrived in Perak, but how it became the state anthem.

According to that website, the state anthem emerged during the reign of Sultan Idris Murshidul’adzam Shah (Marhum Rahmatullah, 1887–1916), when he travelled to London. There, a representative of Queen Victoria asked the late Raja Mansor, his aide, for the notation of the Perak State Anthem. Raja Mansor said he had forgotten to bring the notation, and instead whistled a tune that — in the words of the official website — was very popular among the people of Perak at that time.

The tune he whistled was “Terang Bulan”.

The two official accounts do not conflict. One explains where the melody may have entered Perak; the other explains how a melody already popular in the state was elevated to become its official song.

One Date That Does Not Line Up

The official website of the Perak Royal House states that the trip to London was to attend Queen Victoria’s coronation in 1888.

This detail is difficult to reconcile with British royal records. The official royal.uk website records that Victoria ascended the throne in 1837, marked her Golden Jubilee in 1887 and her Diamond Jubilee in 1897 — so there was no coronation in 1888.

This is not a reason to dismiss the whole account. It simply shows that the date and occasion in this story need deeper archival scrutiny, and a careful reader deserves to know that discrepancy exists.

What Happened on 5 August 1957

This is where the official record is at its strongest. The National Archives of Malaysia records the details of the selection ceremony in detail.

Detail	Official record
Date of ceremony	5 August 1957
Venue	Depot Police Hall, Kuala Lumpur
Committee chairman	YTM Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra
Number of songs performed	Four
Performers	Federation of Malaya Police Band
Reason the Perak song was chosen	”Having Malay characteristics”
First public performance	Night of 31 August 1957, Selangor Club Padang

The committee members recorded by the National Archives were Ya’acob Abdul Latiff, A.T. Reid, Ong Yoke Lin, Haji Mustapha Al-Bakri, Halimathon, Dato’ Abdul Razak Hussein and W. Crops.

The Official Portal of the Government of Malaysia adds that a song competition was held in 1957 but did not produce a suitable choice, so Tunku Abdul Rahman proposed the Perak state song as the basis. The portal also records that the musical score was completed by Alfonso Soliano, D.S.P Croff, Captain Lenthall and A.T Reed, while the lyrics were drafted by a special committee chaired by Tunku Abdul Rahman with the consent of the Malay Rulers.

A few hours later, on the night of Merdeka, 31 August 1957, the Union Jack was lowered and the flag of the Federation of Malaya was raised — accompanied by that same melody.

What Cannot Be Confirmed

The most frequently repeated story about Negaraku is that its melody originates from the French song “La Rosalie”, composed by Pierre-Jean de Béranger, which was popular on the island of Mahé, Seychelles, in the 19th century.

That link is not found in any official Malaysian source checked for this article — not on the Official Portal of the Government of Malaysia, not in the National Archives, and not on the official website of the Perak Royal House.

Official sources mention the Seychelles. Official sources mention “Terang Bulan”. But none of them name that French song or its composer.

The same applies to the frequently cited figure that 514 songs were received from around the world. The National Archives records that four songs were performed at the selection ceremony, and does not mention the number of competition entries.

Because of that, neither detail is stated as fact here. They may be true — but they have not been confirmed against an official source, and the difference between “may be true” and “on record” is what matters in a national record.

The Law That Protects It

The melody is now protected by statute. The National Anthem Act 1968, now reissued as Act 808 (Revised 2018), was first enacted as Act of Parliament No. 20 of 1968 and is dated [4 April 1968].

Section 2 defines the National Anthem as the composition comprising the words and music set out in the Schedule — so the definitive text of Negaraku is the Schedule to the Act itself, not any recording.

The Schedule sets out three versions:

• Full version (or Royal version) — played from beginning to end
• Abridged version — from the beginning to mark B, continuing from C to the end
• Short version — from C to the end

Section 8(1) requires everyone present to stand at attention as a mark of respect, except when the anthem is played as part of a broadcast or newsreel. Section 8(3) provides for a fine not exceeding RM100 or imprisonment not exceeding one month for disrespect in a public place, and Section 9 allows a police officer to arrest without warrant in certain circumstances.

The tempo of the anthem has been changed three times by order, as listed in the Act:

Order	Effective
P.U. (A) 230/1993	27 August 1993
P.U. (A) 313/2003	31 August 2003
P.U. (A) 268/2006	14 July 2006

Common Mistakes

Assuming Negaraku was composed in 1957. What happened in 1957 was the selection and the writing of the lyrics, not the creation of the melody.

Citing “La Rosalie” as official fact. It may be accurate, but it is a claim from popular writing — not the official Malaysian record.

Confusing the national anthem with a state anthem. Perak still has its own state anthem, with official lyrics beginning “Dilanjutkan Allah usianya Sultan” as published on the website of the Government of the State of Perak. The melody is shared; the lyrics and function differ.

Assuming any popular recording is the official version. The definitive version is the one set out in the Schedule to Act 808.

What’s Next

This melody remained unchanged when the Federation of Malaya expanded into Malaysia — that context is explained in the formation of Malaysia in 1963.

For readers who want to check for themselves, two documents are worth opening directly: the full text of Act 808 on the Ceremonials Division’s website, and the record of the selection ceremony at the National Archives’ Pustaka Ilmu. Both are short, and both are more accurate than most of what circulates online.

The gap that remains open is the chain of evidence between the Seychelles and Perak. Until an official source or sourced archival study closes that gap, that part of the story deserves to be read as an incomplete record — not as settled fact.