List of Roads in Kuala Lumpur - Overview

Overview

The names of the majority of older roads in and around Kuala Lumpur were originally formed during British rule in Selangor, and as such, were in English and named after British figures of various fields, a handful of local dignitaries or royalties, districts, local populations, landmarks or geographical features. Other surrounding locales, such as Kampung Baru, Pudu, Imbi and Sentul have had roads known primarily in Malay since colonial rule.

Following Malaya's independence in 1957 and the formation of Malaysia in 1965, street names in Kuala Lumpur were translated into the Malay language, some of which were given more simplified descriptions (i.e. "Old Market Square" as "Medan Pasar Besar" and "Foch Avenue" as "Jalan Foch"), as Malay was officially adopted as the official language of Malaysia in 1957.

The vast majority of the street names was further renamed en masse in 1981, as part of post-independence decolonisation pushed by the then newly elected Prime Minister of Malaysia Mahathir Mohammad. Street names which previously featured semblances of English origins were replaced by those commemorating local Malay figures, Malay culture and key politicians in Malaya/Malaysia. The renaming included roads in the core of old Kuala Lumpur, as well as major thoroughfares in the city. Further renaming of old street names persists to date, with the latest round of revision conducted by the Kuala Lumpur City Hall in 2007 on streets in Pudu and in the fringe towns of Sungai Besi and Jinjang, where English and British-named street names were still in use. Minor roads, however, are typically spared from this form of renaming.

The accelerated development of the city after the country's independence also contributed to the widening of existing artery routes, creation of highways and new roadways, and extensive grade separation of roadways. This resulted in significant alterations of roadways in the city, with several roads merged, split, or modified, forming new roads or retiring old ones.