"Kota Kinabalu" a Kota Kinabalu Travel Page by Trillian2005

...is the capital of Sabah. It's the largest city in Sabah and the sixth largest in Malaysia (for those of you who are interested in statistics).

I saw Kota Kinabalu only briefly, on a stop-over from Kuala Lumpur to Manila, but I was impressed with its scenic location and would like to return for a longer, more extensive visit.

...was the city's former name when it was still a town, and there are many rumors about the meaning of its current name. One of them says that it means "Town of the Chinese Widow". This seems the most logical explanation to me as Mr. Jessel, a British colonialist who founded Jesselton, was married to a Chinese lady named Maisie Wong. Supposedly, the spirits told him to name the newly-founded town after his wife since that was the tradition, but he ignored the advice for egocentric and self-promoting reasons. Shortly thereafter, he simply disappeared and was never heard of nor seen again anywhere on the island of Borneo, or perhaps on the face of the earth. Despite of his selfishness, Maisie forgave him and grieved for her loss because he had always been kind to her and had given her lots gold jewelry and precious stones for no particular reason. Because of this loss, Maisie's 9 sisters suggested that the town's name be Kota Kinabalu henceforth and so it has been until today.