Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling
Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling, or Pitt Street, is one of the four major streets in the Original Grid of George Town laid out by Captain Francis Light when he established his trading settlement. It is said that the choice of name for this street came as an afterthought. After naming the first street of his settlement after himself, the town after the British monarch King George III, the island after the future King George IV, Light realised that he may have offended the prime minister for not naming anything after him. Hence, he decided to name Pitt Street after then then prime minister, William Pitt the Younger.
Pitt Street was already shown in the earliest existing map of George Town, the Popham map of 1798. During Light's time, Pitt Street was at the very edge of his town, which was bordered by Light Street, Beach Street and subsequently Chulia Street. Today the street, name called Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling, after the Indian Muslim mosque along it, is one of the major streets within the George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site core zone.
Pitt Street provides a cross section view of the cosmopolitan nature of George Town. At its outermost section, or rather easternmost, Pitt Street wears a European character. This was where the earliest British officers had their homes, centred upon their house of worship, the St George's Anglican Church.
By the middle part of the 18th century, as the Europeans moved into the suburbs (to North Beach and then later on to Western Road), the properties along the coast were bought over by wealthy Chinese tycoons. People like Koh Seang Tat, Foo Tye Sin and Goh Ban Bee ownest the choicest lots.
As you leave the European section of Pitt Street, you enter the working-class Chinese precinct. This is anchored by the Kuan Yin Teng Temple, which once had an uninterrupted view of the sea down China Street, which was a predominantly Chinese enclave.
You will notice that the space after the Kuan Yin Temple broadens. In the old days, there used to be a police station here, on the site where today you can see kiosks selling flowers. For that reason, this section of Pitt Street was known as Tua Ba Lai in Hokkien, meaning "big police station".
Continuing down Pitt Street, we come upon the rear entrance of the Sri Mariamman Temple, an indication that we are skirting the predominantly Hindu part of Light's town. The next junction is with Chulia Street, a thoroughfare populated mostly by communities from the Indian subcontinent. In the old days, the junction was known as Simpang Lelong in Malay, or Aru Muchanti in Tamil, both meaning "auctioneer's junction," for the auctions being carried out under the Neem trees.
Upon crossing Chulia Street, the character of Pitt Street changes again. On the left side are rows of Muslim jewellery shops, while on the right is their main place of worship, the Kapitan Keling Mosque. This is the Indian Muslim part of town. The numerous Muslim eateries are located here. A largely forgotten piece of Muslim heritage is the Madrasah Hamid Arabi, an old Muslim religious school.
The right side of Pitt Street, at the junction with Buckingham Street and Kampung Kolam, was once known as Tua Chooi T'ee in Hokkien, meaning "big water tank". This refers to the water tank used by the Muslims of the community for ablution.
The section of Pitt Street between Kampung Kolam and Armenian Street used to be known as Yah K'ah, meaning "under the coconut grove". You can well imagine the rural nature of Pitt Street back then.
The junction of Armenian Street signals another character change for Pitt Street. This is where Pitt Street ends, and the street following is Cannon Street, named to commemorate the cannons fired during the Penang Riots of 1867.
The only thing Armenian about Armenian Street today is its name. Of course there once were Armenians in George Town, but they have long packed up and left. The appearance of town here is decidedly Chinese, although in the old days, there used to be Malay and Sumatran kampungs in the vicinity. Remnants of this can be seen in the Acheen Street Mosque.
As you walk down Pitt Street, I hope you in your mind's eye you will be able to envision how it was like in those bustling early days.
Getting there
Rapid Penang Bus 10, 103, 301, 401 and 401A pass through Pitt Street.
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In Other Words ...
Different parts of Pitt Street goes by different names. Please refer to my description on the left for the details.
Malay: Simpang Lelong (Auctioneer's Junction)
Tamil: Aru Muchanti (Auctioneer's Junction)
Hokkien: Tua Ba Lai (big police station), Tua Chooi T'ee (big water tank), Yah K'ah (under the coconut grove)
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Pitt Street Location Map
Pitt Street signboard (12 November 2008)
© Timothy Tye using this photo
Pitt Street plaque (12 November 2008)
© Timothy Tye using this photo
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