Why it's the capital
The city grew from a Malay village built on stilts over the Brunei River. After 1906 a new town was developed on land, and in 1920 the area was officially made Brunei's capital.
Bandar Seri Begawan
Capital of BruneiBrunei's capital stands on the Brunei River, close to where it flows into Brunei Bay, in the Brunei–Muara District in the western part of the country, on the north coast of Borneo.
Fun facts
- Until 1970 the city was called Brunei Town, and it was renamed after Seri Begawan, the title Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien III took when he gave up the throne to his son in 1967.
- Kampong Ayer, a water village of houses on stilts, stretches about 8 km along the Brunei River.
- The Limbang area, once the city's natural hinterland, was handed over to Sarawak in 1890 and now divides Brunei into two parts.
Finding it on the globe
Find the big island of Borneo and look along its north coast for the small country of Brunei: the capital is in its western part, near Brunei Bay.