Yap Ah Loy

Yap Ah Loy (Chinese: 葉亞來, Hakka: Ya̍p Â-lòi, Pinyin: Yè Yălái, Yale: Yip A-loi - 14 March 1837-15 April 1885), also known as Yap Tet Loy and Yap Mao Lan. He is regarded as the founding father of modern Kuala Lumpur, he developed Kuala Lumpur as a commercial and mining centre during the mid-19th century. Yap Ah Loy became a Kapitan Cina (Chinese Kapitan) and the headman of a settlement of Chinese inhabitants. After the independence of Federation of Malaya (Persekutuan Tanah Melayu) from the British Empire on August 31, 1957 (Malay Peninsula only) and later the Formation of Malaysia (that includes Sabah and Sarawak) in 1963, Kuala Lumpur became the capital of Malaysia. Today, there is a street named after him in the heart of Chinatown in Kuala Lumpur, known as 'Jalan Yap Ah Loy' (Yap Ah Loy Road).