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Semporna is a town located in Tawau Division, in the east coast of Sabah, Malaysia on the island of Borneo. Its population was estimated to be around 133,000 in 2006.

The population is mainly Bajau, many of whom live in sprawling stilt villages over the water on the outskirts of town. Semporna is located at the tip of Semporna Peninsula around Lahad Datu Bay, and is visited by tourists as a base for scuba diving or snorkeling trips to Pulau Sipadan, some 36 kilometers southeast of town. Semporna is also known for the Regatta Lepa traditional boat races which occur annually in April. Semporna was also the location of the finish line of Eco-Challenge: Borneo, held in 2000. Off the coast is a marine park called Tun Sakaran Marine Park also known as Semporna Islands Park. It was gazetted by Sabah Parks in 2004.

Semporna was founded soon after the British North Borneo Company established Sandakan, and initially settled by Chinese traders. The name Semporna, means place of rest, and was given after the British quelled resistance from the local Bajaus in the mid-1880s.

Marine products are still the mainstay of the local economy. Pearl culturing is a major component of this industry.

Semporna boasts of the only Chabacano-speaking community in Malaysia, a language whose speakers can today only be found virtually in the neighboring Philippine island of Mindanao.

References

1. "Basic population characteristics by administrative districts - 2006", Department of Statistics, Malaysia.

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