Kelawai Road, George Town

Kelawai Road or Jalan Kelawei is a major road out of George Town. Until as late as the 1930's, Kelawai Road was still the main road that extended beyond Northam Road (now Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah). At that time, nothing stood between Kelawai Road and the shoreline. Cantonment Road ended at Kelawai Road, which was already near the shore. It was during the 1930's that Gurney Drive was built, allowing Cantonment Road to be extended. The extension is now called Jalan Pemenang.

Kelawai Road (2 September 2008)
© Timothy Tye using this photo

Kelawai Road is an example of the result of having no standard way to spell local names. The name Kelawai is actually the British transliteration of "Kuala Awal", the local name for the first northern estuary from George Town. This name comes from the original Malay settlement located along Kelawei Road, a remnant of which is still found around Masjid Jamek Al-Munauwar Kelawei, between Edgecumbe Road and Jones Road.

At the start of Kelawai Road was the extravagant home of Chung Thye Phin, the last Kapitan China of Perak. The mansion, long demolished, stood on the grounds of where the twin condominiums called 1 Persiaran Gurney are located today. Farther west along Kelawai Road takes us to the Burmese and Thai settlements, leaving behind their temples such as the Dhammikarama Temple, Wat Chaiyamangkalaram and Wat Buppharam. Beyond lay the Eurasian village or Kampung Serani, at and around what is known today as College Square. The Church of the Immaculate Conception is a reminder of the Eurasian legacy on Kelawai Road. Along the road is the Catholic Cemetery that belongs to the church.

Today Kelawai Road is prime real estate and location for numerous skyscrapers and upmarket condominiums that take advantage of its proximity to the city centre as well as the glorious views the location affords.