Malang

Heraldry of the World Civic heraldry of Indonesia

MALANG

Province : Jawa Timur

Origin/meaning

I have no information on the origin or meaning of these arms. Any information is welcome.

Colonial arms
During the colonial times, Malang used several arms, see images below. The first arms were adopted on June 17, 1921 the second around 1930.

The arms are mainly derived from the town of Singosari, as this was historically the main town in the region, and it belonged to the Malang municipality. The old arms show a lotus flower (sari) and a lion (singa), making it canting arms for Singoisari. The lion went through the lotus flower, which is a canting element for Malang (meaning diagonal or going through).

The municipality used two lions as supporters and a 'mural crown in Hindu style' as well as the motto Malang nominor sursum moveor (They call me diagonal, but I move upwards). The Dutch Court of Arms (Hooge Raad van Adel) rejected the mural crown and the composition. The very unconventional crown was not acceptable, as all cities should have a similar crown. The composition as a whole was considered non-heraldic and a new design was proposed, with the lotus flower in a free canton. The local council finally adopted the new design, but still used the old crown for a long time.

The full colonial arms from 1921	The full colonial arms from 1930
The arms in the Koffie Hag albums +/- 1930

Literature : Rühl, 1933; Koffie Hag albums, 1920s and http://tlvima.leidenuniv.nl