Sultan of Perak’s Birthday in Malaysia Date in the current year: November 1, 2024

The Sultan of Perak is one of the oldest hereditary seats in Malaysia. The first Sultan of Perak was the eldest son of Mahmud Shah, the former Sultan of Malacca. When Malacca was conquered by the Portuguese in 1511, the Sultan’s family was forced into exile. One of his sons went on establish the Sultanate of Johor, and another became the first Sultan of Perak.

The Malacca Dynasty ruled Perak from 1528 to 1636. When Sultan Sallehuddin Riayat Shah died without leaving an heir, the Siak Dynasty took over after a period of uncertainty resulting from a succession crisis. When Perak jointed independent Malaysia as one of its states, the Sultan of Perak remained head of the state.

As of 2020, the incumbent Sultan of Perak is Nazrin Shah. He was born on November 27, 1956 to Azlan Shah, the eldest son of the then-Sultan of Perak, and his wife Tuanku Bainun. Nazrin Shah received secondary education in Malaysia and the United Kingdom. He then got a BA degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from Worcester College of the University of Oxford and moved to the United States to earn an MPA degree from the Harvard Kennedy School and a PhD in Political Economy and Government from Harvard University.

Nazrin Shah had a wide range of academic interests, which included political and economic development in Northeast and Southeast Asia, historical national income accounting in developing countries, economic development, ethnic relations, education, Islam, and the role of constitutional monarchy in Malaysia. He wrote a number of articles on the topics and participated in various conferences.

Nazrin Shah was proclaimed the crown prince (Raja Muda) of Perak in 1984, two weeks after his father had succeeded to the throne of Perak. Sultan Azlan Shah ruled Perak for thirty years until his death on May 28, 2014. The following day, Nazrin Shah was proclaimed the 35th Sultan of Perak. His formal coronation ceremony took place on May 6, 2015, following an appropriate mourning period.

In 2016, Nazrin Shah was elected the Deputy Yang Di-Pertuan Agong (the Supreme Head) of Malaysia. He served as acting head of state of Malaysia on two occasions: from November 2 to December 21, 2018, while Sultan Muhammad V was on medical leave, and from January 6 to 31, 2019, following Sultan Muhammad V’s sudden abdication.

From 2014 to 2017, Sultan of Perak’s birthday was celebrated on November 27 (Nazrin Shah’s actual birth date). From 2018 onward, it has been observed on the first Friday of November. The Sultan’s official birthday a non-working holiday in the state of Perak, but, obviously, it isn’t celebrated in the rest of Malaysia.