The Yan District is a district in Kedah, Malaysia. It is bordered by Kota Setar District to the north, Pendang District to the northeast and Kuala Muda District to the south. Yan District is along the coast of the Straits of Malacca. It is the smallest municipality in Kedah. "Yan Besar" is the administrative town of Yan district, complete with administrative facilities such like Police Stations, magistrate court, district and land office. Its lifestyle is laid-back and slow-paced, with weekend attractions of natural waterfalls nearby. It also attract most pensioners to build their dream house for pleasant retirement or nurture some local fruit orchards. The waterfalls derived from the Mount Jerai are known as Seri Perigi, Tangga Kenari/Titi Hayun, Batu Hampar and Puteri Mandi. It is also famous for Mount Jerai, which is the tallest peak in Kedah at 1242 metres (3,235 ft) and is easily accessible from the town. Visitors can climb by stairs to the peak of Mount Jerai via Titi Hayun. Pulau Bunting Bridge is a bridge that connects Pulau Bunting to Yan district. It is the only bridge connecting an island in Kedah.

Etymology

The name of the district is said to come from the Siamese language which means hentam or pukul ("to hit, to strike") in Malay. There is also a source, handed down by the original inhabitants of the district, which states that the name Yan comes from the end of the word "Sendayan", a type of plant that was abundant here in the past.

History

Yan District was officially opened in 1904 and was administered by a nobleman named Syed Othman Al-Qadri. The Sultan of Kedah granted him the Yan district to carry out the duties of collecting taxes and administering the district. When British rule began in 1909, Yan District was officially created and the first District Officer was appointed, Tengku Mansor ibni Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah. The main duties of the District Officer at that time were to manage the administration, act as magistrates for minor offences and collect taxes.

Administrative divisions

Yan is divided into 5 mukims, which are:

Demographics

Attractions

People from Yan

Federal Parliament and State Assembly seats

List of Yan district representatives in the Federal Parliament (Dewan Rakyat) List of Yan district representatives in the State Legislative Assembly (Dewan Undangan Negeri)