is named after them, is known to be the earliest inhabitants along the Kanowit River. Few of the "Kanowit" people still staying in Kampung Bedil today. The Kampung Bedil has about 40 houses with a population of 200 in the year 2015. Languages In the 1970s, there were seven widely spoken languages in Kanowit: English, Malay, Iban, Mandarin, Hokkien, Fuzhounese, and Cantonese. About 30% of the population at that time speak English. 90% of the population in Kanowit can speak Iban, including 70 to 80% of the Chinese. Meanwhile, 18% of the Kanowit people spoke Malay. Hokkien was the most widely spoken Chinese dialect in Kanowit during the 1970s. At that time, 48.8% of the Chinese spoke Hokkien, 40 to 50% of the Chinese spoke Fuzhounese, and 90% of the Chinese spoke Mandarin. Most of the Kanowit population was able to converse in more than one languages. Religions In the 1970s, 21% of the Kanowit bazaar population was Christians while 19% of the population was Muslims. Meanwhile, 60% of the population was devoted to other religions. Economy Kanowit acts as a middleman of trade between the town of Sibu and people from the interior of the Rajang River. Kanowit exports rural agricultural products to the outside world. At the same time, manufactured goods from the outside world are imported for daily use by the Kanowit residents. Among the items available for trade in the Kanowit bazaar are: hill rice, vegetables, chicken, pigs, fish, and fresh-water shrimp. Rubber and pepper are also cultivated in Kanowit. Kanowit also produces rubber and black pepper. Before 1970s, Kanowit acted as a transshipment centre for timbers coming from the Rajang upriver. After the freeze of new timber licenses in the 1970s, the effect of timber on the local economy has been reducing. Majority of the businesses in Kanowit were retail grocery businesses. Other business were: tailors, coffeshops, hairdressers, and food stalls. Transport Local Bus Fee of local bus is only RM1, but bus service is not frequently. Bus Express Water Express boats from Kanowit can reach Sibu in one and a half hours. Other utilities Education The town has two primary schools: Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan St. Francis Xavier (the earliest primary school in Sarawak, founded in 1883) Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan Yee Ting, a Chinese-run government school and three secondary schools: Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Kanowit Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Datuk Haji Abdul Rahman Yakub Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan