PK
Perak's registration code before 1948
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Key Facts
- Issue Date
- pre-1948
- Issuance Range
- PK + number, used before 1948
- Rarity
- Legacy format (pre-1948 Perak registration)
- Transfer Rules
- Historic code; later PK plates belong to Penang's ordinary sequence.
Issuing State
Key Points
- Perak's code before the 1948 rationalisation.
- Perak became A in 1948.
- Later PK plates are Penang registrations.
Series Overview
PK was Perak's registration code in the Federated Malay States before 1948. When the Federation of Malaya was formed that year, the two-letter state codes were rationalised into single letters, and Perak became A. Some Malaysian accounts, including The Star, date Perak's switch to A slightly earlier, to the British Military Administration that followed the war in 1945.
The letters PK later came back in a different role: as part of Penang's ordinary P sequence. A modern PK plate is therefore a Penang registration, not a pre-war Perak one.
Sources
Sources checked for the PK entry.
- Vehicle Registration Plates Of MalaysiaWikipediaOpen citation: Vehicle Registration Plates Of Malaysia
- Malaya The First Single Letter Plates TrialEuroplate BlogOpen citation: Malaya The First Single Letter Plates Trial
- History Of Number PlatesThe StarOpen citation: History Of Number Plates
- Featured Malaysia Number PlateAutomachiOpen citation: Featured Malaysia Number Plate
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is Perak A and not PK?
In 1948 the Federation of Malaya replaced two-letter codes such as PK with single letters, and Perak became A.
Is a PK plate today from Perak?
No. PK was later issued as part of Penang's P sequence.
For normal state series (V, B, J, etc.), see the Series Index. For broader JPJ plate-index context, visit the Plate Index.
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