Yang di-Pertua Negeri
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Yang di-Pertua Negeri, literally the "head of state" in Malay, is the official title of the (largely symbolic) State Governors of the Malaysian states of Penang, Malacca, Sabah and Sarawak, who are appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong or King of Malaysia.
Before 1976, the heads of state of Penang, Malacca and Sarawak were titled "Governor" in English and Yang di-Pertua Negeri in Malay, whereas the head of state of Sabah was titled Yang di-Pertua Negara in both languages. Singapore had a Yang di-Pertuan Negara when it gained self-government under British sovereignty in 1959. The title was used by the state governor while Singapore was a part of Malaysia until 1965, when it left Malaysia to become an independent republic. Since 1976 the heads of state of Penang, Malacca, Sabah and Sarawak have been titled Yang di-Pertua Negeri in both languages.
In present day usage negeri and negara mean "state (sub-national)" and "state (country)" respectively, though the word negeri was formerly used indiscriminately. The distinction between Yang di-Pertua and Yang di-Pertuan is finer, but present usage is somewhat like the English words "head" and "ruler".
