Ungku Abdul Aziz | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 3rd Vice-Chancellor ofUniversity of Malaya | |
| In office October 1968 – February 1988 | |
| Preceded by | J. H. E. Griffiths |
| Succeeded by | Syed Hussein Alatas |
| 1st Director ofDewan Bahasa dan Pustaka | |
| In office 1956–1957 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Syed Nasir Ismail |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Ungku Abdul Aziz bin Ungku Abdul Hamid (1922-01-28)28 January 1922 London, England |
| Died | 15 December 2020(2020-12-15) (aged 98) Prince Court Hospital,Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
| Resting place | Bukit Kiara Muslim Cemetery, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
| Nationality | British, Malaysian |
| Spouses | |
| Children | Zeti Akhtar Aziz |
| Education | English College Johore Bahru |
| Alma mater | University of Malaya (DipArts,BA in Economics) Waseda University (PhD) |
| Occupation | Economist, lecturer |
| Known for | The first person to hold the title ofRoyal Professor in Malaysia |
Ungku Abdul Aziz bin Ungku Abdul Hamid (28 January 1922 – 15 December 2020) was a Malaysian economist and university professor. He was the 3rd Vice-Chancellor of theUniversity of Malaya from 1968 to 1988 and the 1st General Director of theCouncil on Language and Literature of Malaysia from 1956 until 1957. He was the first to be awarded the title of Royal Professor (Profesor Diraja) in 1978.[2]
He was born into theJohor Royal Family. His father, Ungku Abdul Hamid Ungku Abdul Majid was a Malayan prince and military officer. He was a cousin ofSyed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas andSyed Hussein Alatas as well asSultan Ibrahim of Johor on his father's side. His father was of Malay andTurkish-(Circassian) descent,[3][4] while his mother was English.[5]
He graduated from the English college atJohore Bahru and the Malay school inBatu Pahat. He received Diploma in Arts from Raffles College, Singapore (nowUniversity of Malaya) and Bachelor of Arts in economics at University of Malaya, Singapore (nowUniversity of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur) in 1951. He then defended his doctoral dissertation inWaseda University (Tokyo, Japan) in 1964.
His daughter,Zeti Akhtar Aziz, was the former governor ofBank Negara Malaysia, Malaysia'scentral bank.
He worked in the state administration ofJohore, in 1952–1961 as a lecturer at the University of Malaya (Singapore), with a one-year break, when he headed the Council on Language and Literature of Malaysia.
In the years 1962–1965, he was a professor and dean of the Faculty of Economics of the University of Malaya (Kuala Lumpur), while in 1968–1988, he was promoted to vice-chancellor of this university. He was the first Malaysian to become the vice-chancellor ofUniversity of Malaya. On his initiative, the university created the Botanical Garden, the Museum of Asian Art, the cooperative bookstore.[6]He is the author of the economic justification of a number of industrial projects, more than 50 books and monographs on social and economic problems of Malaysia, consultant to UN specialized organizations (ILO,UNESCO, UN Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East).[7]
On 17 June 1978, he was awarded the rank and title of Royal Professor (Profesor Diraja) by theYang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia and he was the only person in Malaysia to hold that rank.
Ungku Aziz died in Prince Court Medical Centre,Kuala Lumpur at 4:30 in the evening due to old age. He was 98 and was survived by his wife, Rahaiah Baheran and his only daughter,Zeti Akhtar Aziz.[13][14][15][16] He was laid to rest at theBukit Kiara Muslim Cemetery, Kuala Lumpur.[17][18][19]
Several places were named after him, including:
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