WHEN Meera Rajan first heard of Southville City in "KL South", an image of a quaint township with shady trees, parks and neighbourhood mall popped up in her mind.

The young executive with an accounting firm in Kuala Lumpur, who has been hunting for an apartment, was drawn to the housing project that she said had a name with “Little House on the Prairie” connotation.

“I was searching for an affordable place to finally call my own and was drawn to this particular development that claimed to be the “Soul of KL South”.

“I was ecstatic that I could afford it. It sounded romantic and I was delighted that it was in Kuala Lumpur,’’ she said.

When she checked out the area, she discovered the development was everything she had hoped for, except for one tiny detail.

“It was not in Kuala Lumpur, not even close!’’ she said, adding the housing project was actually located in Bangi, Selangor.

What's in a name?: The popular food street Jalan Alor was renamed Jalan Kejora, but was reinstated to Jalan Alor following public outcry.

“In fact, the area is called Lembah Selatan and bordering Dengkil,’’ she added.

“I don’t know why it was marketed as KL South as it was very misleading.”

Although a little disappointed, Meera eventually did buy a unit in the township and is quite happy with her purchase, despite it being a daily 25km commute to work.

“I wished developers were more forthright about the address,’’ she said, adding that location was more important than whimsical names to her.

Yoga instructor Malani G, who works in Mont Kiara, was similarly unimpressed when she found out that an apartment she wanted to buy was marketed as KL North, when it was actually in Batu Caves, Selangor.

Many projects bordering Segambut and Kepong also tend to flaunt a Kiara address.

The phenomenon of project developers marketing their properties using sophisticated names in order to connote exclusivity and wealth, and elicit an emotional attachment with buyers is widespread.

Some folk in Brickfields feel the township’s older charm is losing out to its modern buildings.

However, buyers are often more annoyed that the actual location of these projects are often misrepresented.

Bangsar South back to Kampung Kerinchi

Most people would have heard about the Kampung Kerinchi and Bangsar South saga by now.

The move to reinstate the Kampung Kerinchi name from Bangsar South is considered a morale boost, particularly for the people of Kampung Kerinchi, who consist of the families of the early settlers of the area.

Kampung Kerinchi, located at Pantai Dalam in Kuala Lumpur, is an urban settlement with a history that dates back to early 1800s.

Following massive gentrification of the city over a decade ago, the squatter populace was changed and repackaged as Bangsar South.

The once rustic but squalid village has been transformed into a cosmopolitan township featuring modern buildings with posh facilities and elegant offices and residences.

Some felt the “kampung” name was no longer suitable for the area and there was a desire to rebrand Kampung Kerinchi into a happening vibrant neighbourhood, while others say maintaining the old name gives them a sense of belonging.

“When I bought a condo in Pantai Dalam Kuala Lumpur several years ago, it was still called Pantai Dalam,’’ said Sarah Sin.

“However, with gentrification and development, the name Kampung Kerinci and Pantai Dalam became a distant memory,” Sin said.

“Frankly, the name of the area didn’t matter. For me, it has always been about the location,’’ she added.

Name of the game

Names are crucial, said Dr Christopher Nicholas, a Kuala Lumpur resident who was born and bred in Brickfields.

“When I was a child, there was a road called Jalan Brickfields. Today, there is no such road in the township as it was changed to Jalan Tun Sambanthan in the 1990s.

A temple in Brickfields being dwarfed by the newer taller and stark-looking buildings behind which carry the KL Sentral brand.

“The only proof we have of Brickfields is the La Salle school and the police station which still bear the name,’’ he said.

“However, people still talk about it and the postal address still refers to Brickfields, even though everything else now touts names affiliated to the KL Sentral brand.

“This is sad, because there is so much history here and the younger generation won’t know about it,’’ said Dr Nicholas.

“We must preserve the old names of townships because it is a reflection of who we are and how far we have come; it is our heritage and something to be proud of,’’ said Kampung Malaysia Raya Residents Association chairman Mohd Zainuddin Amran.

Kampung Malaysia Raya, a township in Sungei Besi with a population of 2,000, was established in the 1970s.

Spreading over 10.1ha, the small neighbourhood only has about 70 lots with 300 houses.

“We named it after a ship called Malaysia Raya that used to take Malaysian pilgrims to Mecca to perform the haj,’’ said Mohd Zainuddin.

“Till today, this story is told over and over again by village folk to curious visitors and tourists. It is a story that we are proud of and reminds us of our roots.’’

The villagers are so proud of Kampung Malaysia Raya that the residents association has even built a welcome arch at the entrance of the village to commemorate the name.

Mohd Zainuddin said the younger generation must know about the history of where they come from, and DBKL must retain old names for that very purpose.

“DBKL must not allow developers to confuse people with misleading names or that which has no emotional connection or history,’ he said.

“That’s why we feel bringing back the name Kampung Kerinchi was the right thing to do and should be celebrated,’’ he added.

No appreciation for history

The Malaysian Historical Society fully agrees with the views of Mohd Zainuddin and Dr Nicholas on the matter, adding that local history is not appreciated in this country.

“In fact, nobody talks about it,’’ said Malaysian Historical Society executive committee chairman Tan Sri Dr Omar Mohd Hashim.

“Do you hear people talking about how townships got their names?” Dr Omar asked.

Omar feels the local community should fight for their history to be preserved.

“Why is Brickfields called Brickfields? Why is Kampung Kerinchi named as such? There are stories behind the names and how they came about. But the sad truth is, nobody cares,’’ he lamented.

He said it was the same for Kampung Congo in Cheras, a town everyone has forgotten about.

The small village in Cheras was named as such in the early 70s after a contingent of Malaysian soldiers were sent to the Democratic Republic of Congo to serve under the United Nations in the 60s.

When they returned, they cleared the land and built some 1,500 makeshift houses, got married and resettled there.

In 1977, the government, through the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL), redeveloped the area and built one-door houses for these families.

It was one of the first public housing schemes constructed for low-income earners in the city.

The box-like houses had a tiny hall, two rooms, a toilet and a kitchen within 600sq m and was sold for RM10,000 per unit.

The place has since been renamed Bandar Tun Razak after the country’s second prime minister Tun Abdul Razak Hussein in 1984.

Today, there isn’t a single road sign or structure which bears the name Kampung Congo.

“This is history, but no one wants to study it, because it is no longer relevant and developers are to be blamed,’’ said Omar.

“Local authorities don’t really put up a resistance, possibly due to the law not being enforced, or perhaps, the money (from the developers) contributed towards infrastructure is considered more important,’’ he said.

“This is hardly a local problem as it happens all over the globe,’’ Dr Omar added.

He believes it is the local community which should fight for their history to be preserved and not politicians, though he commends the work done by Lembah Pantai MP Fahmi Fadzil for Kampung Kerinchi.

Anywhere but Kuala Lumpur

Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) Planning executive director Datuk Mahadi Che Ngah said every local authority has its own set of guidelines when it comes to naming townships and “tamans”.

Kg Malaysia Raya folk are so proud of the name that they have built a welcome arch to commemorate it.

“In Kuala Lumpur, we have a committee which comes under the purview of the Federal Territories Ministry who has the final say on street names and townships in Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan,’’ he said.

Called the Federal Territories Committee on Geographical Names (JNNGWP), it is chaired by the FT Ministry’s secretary-general. “Developers must propose the names of the projects to us; it is a requirement under the DO (Development Order),’’ Mahadi said.

“As long as it does not overlap with another township or area with a similar name, and is recommended by the Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka which often prefers names in Bahasa Malaysia,’’ he said.

“Some also request for the name to be tied to the township’s history,’’ he said, adding that

DBKL has the final say.

“As for developers misleading buyers by marketing the KL name outside the city, well, it is not illegal to do so,’’ Mahadi said.

“While DBKL can control what’s happening in Kuala Lumpur, we can’t be overseeing other local authorities too,’’ he said.

On whether DBKL is sometimes pressured to bow down to developers’ requests on name changes, Mahadi said that sometimes there were “outside pressure” but it was not an easy thing to do.

“We have laws for that. Personally, I feel a city cannot stay static with no room for change. After all, many road names were in English before anyway.

“Who knows? Maybe even Kampung Baru in the future may become KLCC South or KLCC North, but that’s just my opinion,’’ Mahadi quipped.