Raj of North Borneo
Raj of North Borneo Kerajaan Borneo Utara | |
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 Flag
 Coat of arms
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| Motto: Una Nos Prosperi Together We Prosper | |
| Anthem: Gone Forth Beyond The Sea | |
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| Capital | Kuching |
| Largest city | Kota Kinabalu |
| Official languages | English, Sarawak & Sabah Malay, Chinese, Iban, Melanau, Bidayuh, Kadazan-Dusun, Bajau, Murut |
| Ethnic groups |
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| Religion |
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| Demonym(s) | Bornean |
| Government | Unitary parliamentary semi-constitutional monarchy |
• Rajah | William Brooke |
| Ismail Burhan | |
| Legislature | National Assembly |
| Establishment | |
| 1841 | |
| 1882 | |
| 1942 | |
| 1953 | |
| 1954 | |
| Area | |
• | 198,446 km2 (76,620 sq mi) (86th) |
| Population | |
• Estimate | 7,315,500 (104th) |
| GDP (PPP) | estimate |
• Total | $587.311 billion (40th) |
• Per capita | $80,283 (6th) |
| GDP (nominal) | estimate |
• Total | $293.555 billion (46th) |
• Per capita | $40,127 (25th) |
| Gini | 43.4 medium |
| HDI |  0.874very high (36th) |
| Currency | Bornean dollar (BND) |
| Time zone | UTC+8 (UTC) |
| Date format | dd-mm-yyyy |
| Driving side | left |
| Calling code | +60 |
| Internet TLD | .bn |
The Raj of North Borneo, commonly known as North Borneo is a sovereign country in Southeast Asia, situated on the northern half of the island of Borneo. Bordered to the west by Brunei and the South China Sea, and by the Philippines in the north, North Borneo also shares a land border with Indonesia to the east and south.
A unitary parliamentary democracy with a semi-constitutional monarchy, the Raj's governance is generally handled by an elected Prime Minister, although its monarch, known as the Rajah, retains substantial powers while acting as the country's head of state. The capital is the former Sarawakian capital of Kuching, while its biggest city is Kota Kinabalu, situated in the former British protectorate of North Borneo.
Originally, the Raj is made up of two particular states, namely the Raj of Sarawak, founded by the British soldier and adventurer, James Brooke in 1842, and North Borneo, a British protectorate founded in 1877. Following the end of the Second World War, during which both states were subjected to a brief period of Japanese occupation, they were later united into contemporary North Borneo in 1953, before achieving full independence from Britain in 1960. In 1954, the Crown Colony of Labuan was incorporated into the new kingdom, thus giving North Borneo its modern borders. While the country has since remained mostly free of armed conflicts itself, it was notably involved in the Indo-North Bornean War, in which North Borneo, with the help of both its Commonwealth and Western allies, was able to successfully resist an Indonesian attempt of forced subjugation, done in response to its attempt on incorporating the British Crown Colony of North Borneo.
Known for its varying diversity in both culture and ethnicity, the kingdom officially recognises seven different ethnic groups and approximately ten different languages, while Islam, Christianity, and Buddhism are the dominant religions. Despite its large Muslim population, the kingdom is officially a secular state, with equal rights and freedom being granted to all religions practiced in the country. Its government is modelled considerably on the Westminster parliamentary system while its legal system is based on common law.
With a vast amount of natural resources, the country has seen a generally high rate of economic growth since its foundation, allowing it to achieve the status of a developed country in the mid-1990s, making it one of the Five Asian Tigers during the late 20th century. While it is ranked 36th on the UN Human Development Index, it otherwise has the sixth highest GDP per capita (PPP) in the world.
Since its inception, it has been a founding member of ASEAN, SEATO, EAS, PECC, and APEC. It is also a member of the United Nations, World Trade Organization, East Asia Summit, Non-Aligned Movement, and the British Commonwealth.