Sultan of Kedah's Birthday

Every third Sunday in June is a public holiday in Kedah to celebrate the Sultan of Kedah’s birthday. The current reigning Sultan is Sultan Mahmudd Sallehuddin al-Mu’azzam Shah I. In 2026, Sultan of Kedah’s Birthday falls on Sunday 21 June. The holiday will be on Sunday 20 June in 2027. Sultan Badlishah was the father of both Mahmud Sallehuddin and Abdul Halim. When his half-brother’s long reign (1958 to 2017) ended upon his death on 11 September, 2017, Mahmud Sallehuddin became Sultan of Kedah. He is the twenty-ninth Sultan that Kedah has had. Born on 30 April, 1942, Sultan Mahmud Sallehuddin was one of 14 siblings. He became a military man, and rose to the rank of colonel in the 12th Battalion of the Royal Malay Regiment. For a time, he was stationed at the Thai border. The Sultan is married and has two sons. Sultan of Kedah’s Birthday is an off-work day in Kedah and is a time to stay home and relax or to get out and about. The Sultan himself will have an elaborate royal birthday party.