Multiethnic elites and the management of tropical heat in colonial Malaya, circa 1870s–1930s

This article considers the responses of multiethnic urban elites to living with tropical heat in colonial Malaya by analysing attitudes towards the meteorological study of temperature, commercial cold storage and hill stations. A transcolonial and transimperial approach is used to illustrate that in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of colonialism & colonial history 2024, Vol.25 (1)
Main Authors: Lowrie, Claire, Tarulevicz, Nicole, Williamson, Fiona, Lam, Charmaine H
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
19th century
Architecture
Asian history
Attitudes
Civil service
Cold storage
Colonialism
Determinism
Domestic service
Heat
Meteorology
Race
Temperature
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Summary:This article considers the responses of multiethnic urban elites to living with tropical heat in colonial Malaya by analysing attitudes towards the meteorological study of temperature, commercial cold storage and hill stations. A transcolonial and transimperial approach is used to illustrate that interest in managing and monitoring temperature was slower to develop in Malaya compared with other tropical colonies. The article also considers how access to methods of ameliorating heat was shaped by colonial hierarchies based on ideas of race and class.
ISSN:1532-5768
1532-5768
DOI:10.1353/cch.2024.a928069