Abu Siti Lane was originally Aboo Sittee Lane, named after a person.
GEORGE TOWN: Penang island will have a standardised list of road names by next year, says exco member Zairil Khir Johari.
He said several road names in Penang would soon be reverted to their original gazetted version to stop the confusion caused by the current multiple spelling variations.
“For example, Jalan Air Itam will revert to its original gazetted spelling of Jalan Ayer Itam.
“Roads named after historical figures will also revert to the original spelling of their names,” he said at a press conference in Muntri Street last Thursday.
“For example, Ayer Itam is the gazetted name but in the early 1970s when the Government standardised Bahasa Malaysia, they changed some of the spelling.
“What we want now is to go back to the original names.
“I hope that by early next year, we can have standardised spelling for all our road names.”
Zairil said they were particularly looking at the historical significance of the road names.
“Since many road names in George Town are based on historical characters, we should follow the original name and not change it.
“This move will not cause major changes as most of the roads require only spelling changes.
Residents of Jalan Cheong Fatt Tze still call it by its former name, Hong Kong Street.
“For example, Abu Siti Lane was originally Aboo Sittee Lane, which is a person’s name.
“So it would be nice to have the original name reinstated,” he said.
Zairil said the whole process would take between six to nine months as it would involve both the Public Works Department and the Penang Island City Council.
“Any changes proposed for road names within the George Town heritage enclave requires consultation with the George Town World Heritage Incorporated and the state Heritage Department,” he added.
Zairil said there were also proposals from stakeholders for the current Cheong Fatt Tze Road (formerly known as Hong Kong Street) to revert to its original name.
“Residents there continue to call it Hong Kong Street despite the official change.
“The original name also has historical significance to that road,” he said.
Zairil also announced that Muntri Street has been reverted to Lebuh Muntri instead of Jalan Muntri.
“The spelling for Lorong Kucing was changed back to the original Lorong Kuching.
“Meanwhile, Lorong Lembah Permai 9 in Tanjung Bungah has been renamed Lebuh Lembah Permai 1 due to requests made by residents at three houses there.”
