History Of Tamparuli Town
Tamparuli is a small town and a sub-district of Tuaran on the west coast of Sabah,Malaysia. It is populated mainly by native Dusuns, while a sizeable Chinese community runs most of the shops in the town proper. As with many other small towns in Sabah and indeed Malaysia as a whole, the town itself consists of both newer concrete shoplots as well as old wooden ones, which are particularly prone to destruction by fire as evidenced in the destruction of one of the wooden shoplots in recent years.
This place already exist more than 200 years ago, but Tamparuli name was not exist yet untill the late 1940s whereby it was being used by the Japanese army as their parking place for their lorry or truck to attack Kota Belud, Ranau and to meet their other group of army in Sandakan. The local who live around Tamparuli gave Tamparuli name base on the words " Tempat Lori " that being used by the Japanese army. " Other folks story and a comedy told that a son with his mother was being quarrellings for some time because of her son wanted to buy an ice cream but his mother did not have enough money to buy the Ice cream. The mother feel fade up with her son behavior and trying to slap him but her hand hit the Japanese lorry. This so-called story being translated to Lotud and " Slap a Lorry" translate to their language sound like this " Tampar ruli " when this words combined together become "Tamparuli" and that was the story that create Tamparuli origin name. ( This is a joke but below is the real story about Tamparuli )
The tribe that originally live in Tamparuli area is the Dusun Lotud people. The Lotud people live from Kg Tambalugu, Panjut, Lakang, Telibong, Tomui, Sungai Damit, Bantayan and Kg Nohirot in present time. During that time this village was not exist yet but they just call the Village of the Pangait or " Village Of The Head Hunters". Many of this "Head Hunter" have survived and their generation is still continuing these habit but not inside Tuaran district. Usually they will find others village to get a head to display at their house. This barbaric habit was already extinct these day.
I live in Tamparuli for the past 33 years and I still gathering all document and other sources to create a book of history refer to Tamparuli origin and history. If we can go to National Museum of London I think that we can at least get information for Tamparuli in 200 years back. Recently I got new info about Tamparuli Town in the late 1950s. Someone from the web had send me a picture of " Jambatan Tamparuli " in 1960s during the big flood. These picture showing that a Policeman in British Uniform was inspecting the Suspension bridge during the flood. The story about the suspension bridge of Tamparuli are not being told by this guy, He just send me an e-mail that he was in the British Army Engineer who being given a task to develop and built Kota Belud Camp Paradise. Thdey use to bypass Tamparuli town to deliver their material to Kota Belud. If you visited Tamparuli town you will find a memorial plaque at Tamparuli town beside the "Pasar Tamparuli" whereby it comomerate the lost of two British Army lives in trying to save a women from Kota Belud. Please Visit Tamparuli to get more information.
The stories about the British Engineer building the suspension bridge was a good story and become a legend for me. This story was being told again and again by my mother, grandmother and other elders living in my village Kg Kionsom Baru was the nearest village to Tamparuli Town. Other story related to this suspension bridge tell about a young women that being captured by the "Head Hunter" and hand over to the British to be scarified for the "Tambuakar" living inside Tuaran River (Myth). That why once a year there will always be one live die drowning here at Tuaran River. The British already try many times to build the bridge but it was wash away by the river again and again. So they scarified this beautiful women for the " Tambuakar " to clam down the devil will. My grandmother said that, the beautiful lady being crushed by concrete pillar, she keep on crying again and again and swear that a white man must also be scarified to died with her. If you swim under the bridge you will find a plaque mention the name of " Solungkoi " who being sacrificed for the good of the bridge. The exact location will be keep in secret but many Tamparuli citizen knows about it including me.This history of Tamparuli not ends yet because I will continue it soon after I got more story to be published in Tamparuli History Pages. Please send your comment if your are not satisfies with this story.....
Written By: Harry George
Sources: Wikipedia, Guduh Gurindau and word of mouth
Picture: Ben Godomon.
RIP: Guduh Gurindou Gompus (1920-2011) 22.11.1920 -29.11.2011
