Raja ofPerlis
Raja Perlis راج ڤرليس‎
State
Incumbent
Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Jamalullail, 7th Raja of Perlis since 17 April 2000
installation 7 May 2001
Details
Style	His Royal Highness
Heir apparent	Tuanku Syed Faizuddin Putra Jamalullail, 11th Crown Prince of Perlis
First monarch	Raja Syed Hussain Jamalullail, 1st Raja of Perlis
House	Jamalullail Perlis
Formation	May 13, 1843; 181 years ago (1843-05-13)
Residence	Istana Arau,Arau,Perlis,Malaysia

TheRaja of Perlis (Malay:Raja Perlis,Jawi:راج ڤرليس) is the constitutional monarch and head of state of the Malaysian state ofPerlis. The royal house, known as theHouse of Jamalullail, has been the ruling house of Perlis since 1843. The current ruler,Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin, has been the Raja of Perlis since 2000.

It was founded in 1843 together with the formation of the state ofPerlis as a monarchy, after theSultan of Kedah,Ahmad Tajuddin Halim Shah II gave his endorsement to the Jamalullail family for the secession of Perlis fromKedah with the Jamalullail family as its hereditary rulers.

Before the House of Jamalullail ascended to rule as the Rajas of Perlis, the most prominent title in Perlis was the Raja Muda or Yang di-Pertuan Muda of Perlis and Kedah (crown prince of Perlis and Kedah), a title comparable toPrince of Wales within the United Kingdom.Sultan Dhiauddin II of Kedah who built Kota Indera Kayangan as his capital was honorifically titled as Raja Muda of Perlis and Kedah.^[1][2] He was titled as such in a treaty to cedeProvince Wellesley.^[3]

The hereditary ruler of Perlis is also the head of its royal household.^[4] Unlike most of the other Malaysian states with their own hereditary rulers which are accorded with the title of "sultan", the hereditary rulers of Perlis are accorded with the title of "raja".^[5] As with other rulers from other states in Malaysia, the Raja of Perlis participate in the election of theYang di-Pertuan Agong and is qualified to serve a five-year term as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong if elected.^[6]

The Jamalullail (جمل الليل‎; also pronouncedJamal Al-Layl inArabic)^[7] clan was ofHadhramiArab origin and founded as an offshoot from the greaterAlawi lineage in the 15th century. The name "Jamal Al-Layl" is loosely translated into English as "Camel of the night";^[8][9] a legend claims that its clan founder, Muhammad Jamal Al-Layl had a habit of wandering around at night to fill the wells and fountains of mosques. Members of the Jamal Al-Layl clan migrated toMadagascar,Zanzibar,India,Aceh,Comoros andMalaysia, where descendants of these migrants either rose to influential political positions or established ruling houses.^[10]

The ancestor of the Jamalullail clan of Perlis, Sayyid Ahmad bin Husayn Jamal Al-Layl, migrated toKedah fromHadhramaut sometime in 1735 and married the daughter from anArab-Malay family, Sharifah Aminah Al-Qadri. He settled in Chana village, which was on the border of Siam and Kedah at that time. He earned his living as a trader and was reportedly a well-respected figure in the state. Sayyid Ahmad's son with Sharifah Aminah, Sayyid Harun followed his father's footsteps as a trader, in addition to being a well-known religious scholar. He was later admitted into the Kedahan royal court and became a close aide of the Sultan of Kedah,Ahmad Tajuddin Halim Shah II.^{[citation needed]} He later married a princess from the Kedah royal family, Tengku Safiah, and was later made thePenghulu (district chief) ofArau in 1797.^[11]

WhenSiam invaded and occupied Kedah between 1821 and 1842, local Arab families supported the Sultan's efforts to lead resistance efforts against Siamese rule. Arab leaders employed a two-pronged approach of religious militancy and diplomacy to free Kedah from Siamese rule, among which the Jamal Al-Layl family played a leading role in these efforts and often carried out negotiations to persuade Siam to restore the state's independence. Siam later agreed to restore the Sultan of Kedah to his throne in 1842. The following year, Sayyid Hussein Jamal Al-Layl from Chana (now in Songkhla, Thailand) was installed by Siam as the first Raja of Perlis, after the Sultan of Kedah gave his endorsement of the formation of Perlis.^[12]

In 1933, the fourth Raja of Perlis, Syed Alwi Jamalullail looked to the State Council to elect an heir presumptive to the royal throne of Perlis. The State Council chose Syed Hassan among several possible contenders as the heir-presumptive. Syed Hassan was a nephew by his older half-brother Syed Mahmud. An illness struck Syed Hassan the following year; he died shortly after that.

The State Council held another vote, and elected Syed Hassan's son,Syed Putra as the new heir presumptive. Another contender, Syed Hamzah, a younger half-brother of Syed Alwi and the Vice-President of the state council, dissented on the outcome of the choice as it went againstIslamic inheritance laws. Raja Syed Alwi and the British maintained their support for Syed Putra, but as Syed Alwi fell ill at the outbreak ofPacific War in 1941, Syed Hamzah seized the opportunity to exert influence over the political affairs of the state. Following the death of Syed Alwi in 1943, Syed Hamzah was installed as the Raja of Perlis, with the support of the Japanese. When the British returned in 1945, Syed Hamzah abdicated under pressure from the British and moved in to install Syed Putra as the Raja of Perlis.^[13]

The Raja of Perlis took part in the firstConference of Rulers and the first election of theYang di-Pertuan Agong and his deputy in 1948 and 1957 respectively, both of which were also participated by the eight other Malayan states with hereditary rulers. In 1960, Syed Putra became the third Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia and served a five-year term from 1960 to 1965.^[14]

1. Tuan Syed Abu Bakar Harun Jamalullail (1797–1825)^[15]
2. Raja Syed Hussein Jamalullail (1825–1873) (independent Raja of Perlisc. 1843)
3. Raja Syed Ahmad Jamalullail (1873–1887)
4. Raja Syed Saffi Jamalullail (1887–1905)
5. Raja Syed Alwi Jamalullail (1905–1943)
6. Raja Syed Hamzah Jamalullail (1943–1945) (abdicated)
7. Tuanku Syed Harun Putra Jamalullail (1945–2000)
8. Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Jamalullail (2000–present)

• Monarchies of Malaysia
• Family tree of Perlis monarchs
• Family tree of Malaysian monarchs

• Anne K. Bang,Sufis and Scholars of the Sea: Family Networks in East Africa, 1860-1925, Routledge, 2003,ISBN 0-415-31763-0
• Central Office of Information. Reference Division,Commonwealth survey, Published for the Central Office of Information by H.M.S.O., 1960
• Europa Publications Staff,The Far East and Australasia 2003,Routledge, 2002,ISBN 1-85743-133-2
• Gulrose Karim, D J M Tate,Information Malaysia, Berita publications, 2005
• Institut Tadbiran Awam Negara,Malaysia kita, 1991,ISBN 967-9933-12-1
• J. M. Gullick,Rulers and Residents: Influence and Power in the Malay States, 1870-1920,Oxford University Press, 1992,ISBN 0-19-588567-8
• Mahani Musa,Kongsi Gelap Melayu di Negeri-Negeri Utara Pantai Barat Semenanjung Tanah Melayu, 1821 hingga 1940-an, Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, 2003,ISBN 967-9948-30-7
• Ruth Barnes,Ships and the Development of Maritime Technology on the Indian Ocean, Routledge, 2002,ISBN 0-7007-1235-6
• Ulrike Freitag, W. G. Clarence-Smith,Hadhrami Traders, Scholars, and Statesmen in the Indian Ocean, 1750s-1960s: 1750s- 1960s, BRILL, 1997,ISBN 90-04-10771-1

• Official Web Portal of the royal family of Perlis (in Malay and English)

• House of Jamalullail of Perlis
• Rajas of Perlis
• History of Perlis
• Perlis
• Hadhrami people
• Malaysian people of Yemeni descent
• 1843 establishments in Asia
• 1840s establishments in British Malaya
• 1843 establishments in the British Empire

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• Articles with unsourced statements from July 2024