Pulau Dayang Bunting, Langkawi, Kedah

Pulau Dayang Bunting (GPS: 6.20711, 99.80116) is the second biggest island of the Langkawi Archipelago. It is located to the south of Pulau Langkawi. The island is famous for Tasik Dayang Bunting, a lake that was formed due to the collapse of a subterranean cavern.

The name Pulau Dayang Bunting means "Island of the Pregnant Maiden". This is because the shape of the island, as seen from the sea, resembles the profile of the reclining pregnant woman. There is - of course there is- a legend linked to the name.

The legend goes something like this. Once upon a time, a brawny young man (other versions of the tale place him as a prince and even a genie) by the name of Mat Teja arrived at the island and decided to explore it. At the centre of the island, he saw a beautiful lake of green waters.

As he climbed down to the lake, he discovered fairy nymphs bathing by the lakeside. The nymphs all scurried away when they saw him, except for one, named Mambang Sari, who was also the leader of the nymphs and guardian of the island. She saw the handsome young man and they promptly fell in love. The beautiful couple was soon married, and in time, Mambang Sari was with child.

Unfortunately, the child was still born (another version says it died after 7 days). Mambang Sari underwent what amounted to post-natal depression. She recovered only after she and her husband returned to the serenity of the lake, and she laid her baby to rest in the green waters (some versions says she "threw" or "toss" the baby into the lake, but that seems too violent for me). Thankful to the lake for helping her through her trauma, she blessed the lake to bestow fertility on all childless women who bathe there. Thereafter Mambang Sari returned to the heavenly realm and was never seen again.

The people of Langkawi remember Mambang Sari. The island itself transformed to take on the shape of a pregnant woman in memory of her, and became known as Pulau Dayang Bunting.

Today Pulau Dayang Bunting is recognised as part of the Langkawi Geopark. The forest on the island is the Dayang Bunting Marble Geoforest Park. The mountains on the island comprise Permian marble that was pushed up by the Setul Formation limestone plate below it. On the southwest part of the island is Tasik Dayang Bunting, the largest freshwater lake in the Langkawi Archipelago. Click on Tasik Dayang Bunting for more details about the island.

Getting there

Pulau Dayang Bunting is usually the first stop of an island-hopping tour of the Langkawi Archipelago. Such excursions can be booked with any travel agents on Langkawi at the cost of approximately RM50 per person. You can also book a whole boat for 8 persons at around RM300.

Pulau Dayang Bunting

Apart from Tasik Dayang Bunting, the other attraction on Pulau Dayang Bunting is Gua Langsir. The island itself is one of the few outside Pulau Langkawi itself that is inhabited. However the villages are all located on the northside of the island, away from the tourist areas. There are three villages on the island, namely Kampung Selat Bagan Nyior, Kampung Bagan Tok Safar, both facing Selat Bagan Nyior on the east side, and Kampung Batu Uban on the northwestern side. There is a jetty at Kampung Selat Bagan Nyior, which is the most developed settlement. It even has a few Homestays for visitors. You can get in touch with Barakutunishah Bt Karim at 012 584 6157.

The northenmost part of Pulau Dayang Bunting is Tanjung Jerang Belanga. There are a few marble quarries here. In this area are a few bays including Teluk Belanga, Teluk Durian, Teluk Penaga and Teluk Ayer.

Selat Bagan Nyior is a strait separating Pulau Dayang Bunting from Pulau Tuba. At the mouth of the strait is Tanjung Kepiah. Most of the rivers on Pulau Dayang Bunting flows eastwards, including Sungai Buloh Betong, Sungai Chaliau, Sungai Madu, Sungai Lanim and Sungai Kemuning.

The southernmost part of Pulau Dayang Bunting is Tanjong Pinang. There are a few bays here as well, including Teluk Nangka Kecil, Teluk Nangka Besar, Teluk Chawi and Teluk Ayer Tuan. There is a cluster of islets on this side of Pulau Dayang Bunting including Pulau Selat Riang Riang, Pulau Ujong Buloh, Pulau Batang, Pulau Balar, Pulau Tajai, Pulau Ketumbu, Pulau Puchong, Pulau Gubang Laut and Pulau Gubang Darat. Pulau Ujong Buloh is a crescent-shaped islet with Teluk Ujong Buloh taking up a better part of the island. Selat Tajai separates Pulau Tajai from Pulau Dayang Bunting.

On the eastern part of Pulau Dayang Bunting are a few more islets located on Selat Dayang Bunting which separates it from Pulau Singa Besar, among them Pulau Simpang Tiga Besar, Pulau Simpang Tiga Kecil, Pulau Batu Merah and Pulau Kukus. Tasik Dayang Bunting is located on this part of the island, approached from Teluk Dayang Bunting.

Finally, the west coast of Pulau Dayang Bunting is devoid of immediate islets except for Pulau Jerkom Kecil and Pulau Jerkom Besar. There are a few bays on this side of the island including Teluk Lawak and Teluk Lang Siar, punctuating promontories such as Tanjung Gertang, Tanjung Titin and Tanjung Pantai Ok.

Pulau Dayang Bunting is on the Map of Islands of Langkawi

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Hello and thanks for reading this page. My name is Timothy and my hobby is in describing places so that I can share the information with the general public. My website has become the go to site for a lot of people including students, teachers, journalists, etc. whenever they seek information on places, particularly those in Malaysia and Singapore. I have been doing this since 5 January 2003, for over twenty years already. You can read about me at Discover Timothy. By now I have compiled information on thousands of places, mostly in Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, and I continue to add more almost every day. My goal is to describe every street in every town in Malaysia and Singapore.

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