Sabah, officially named the Republic of Sabah, is a country in Southeast Asia located on the island of Borneo. It shares land borders with Sarawak to the west and Indonesia to the south. As of 2026, Sabah is home to 3,418,785 residents. The capital of Sabah is the city of Kinabalu, which is also its largest city and economic center. The country has a tropical climate and is very mountainous. The highest point in Sabah is Mount Kinabalu, which is also the highest point on the island of Borneo.
History
In 1872, the Sultanate of Sulu, originally established in 1703, went to war with the Spanish-controlled Philippines. After this war ended in 1878, Sabah was now controlled by a German businessman named Gustav von Overbeck. Overbeck attempted to sell the Sultanate of Sulu to Germany, Italy, and Austria, but all of these offers were rejected.
In 1882, Overbeck finally sold the sultanate to the British Empire. As a result, the Protectorate of North Borneo was established, but the Sultanate of Sulu continued to ceremonially exist until 1915. Spain continued to claim North Borneo until 1886, when a treaty was signed that renounced all Spanish claims to the enitre island of Borneo.
In 1898, the capital of North Borneo was moved to the settlement of Jesselton.
During World War Two, North Borneo, alongside Sarawak and Brunei, was occupied by the Japanese Empire from 1941 to 1945. The country was liberated by Australian troops in March 1945. The last Japanese troops in North Borneo surrendered on September 2, 1945 following the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima.
Just like neighboring Sarawak, North Borneo’s status was changed from a protectorate to a Crown Colony. That same year, when the Philippines gained independence from the United States, the Turtle Islands were sold by the British to the newly-independent Philippines.
On August 31, 1963, North Borneo officially gained independence from the British Empire, Upon independence, the country changed its named to Sabah, but it remained part of the British Commonwealth. Just like Sarawak, Sabah initially wanted to join Malaysia, but due to opposition from neighboring Indonesia, this proposal died in 1966.
During its early years of independence, many political leaders in Sabah wanted religious tolerance for the people who did not adhere to the religion of Islam, which was the majority religion of the country. An agreement was made in 1964 that promised freedom of religion to all citizens of Sabah.
In 1967, the city of Jesselton was renamed to Kinabalu in order to erase British influence from the name of the country’s capital.
In 1988, Sabah changed its flag to the current designed, Up until this point, Sabah still used the same British colonial flag since 1948. The current flag features a silhouette of Mount Kinabalu on a tricolored flag of blue, white, and red. Sabah remained in the British Commonwealth until a republic was declared on August 31, 2000.
Sabah Today
Today, Sabah is a developing country that is home to a Muslim majority. The country’s economy is reliant on ecotourism and the exportation of palm oil and timber.