Tun Syed Nasir bin Syed Ismail ( ; 7 March 1921– 16 March 1982) was a Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat, the lower house of the Parliament of Malaysia. During his lifetime, he was known as a nationalist who sought to fight for the primacy of the national language in Malaysia as a means to create a national identity through the closing down of public-funded Mandarin and Tamil vernacular schools. Tun Syed Nasir sees a common education system for all as a solution to this dilemma. A prominent politician from the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) – the leading party of the governing Barisan Nasional coalition – he served as the 5th Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat from 1978 till his death in 1982. He was born in Batu Pahat, Johor, Malaysia, and is of Hadhrami Arab descent. Awards and recognitions Honours of Malaysia : Companion of the Order of the Defender of the Realm (JMN) (1961) : Recipient of the Malaysian Commemorative Medal (Silver) (PPM) (1965) Commander of the Order of the Defender of the Realm (PMN) – Tan Sri (1971) Grand Commander of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia (SSM) – Tun (1982) : Recipient of the Star of Sultan Ismail (BSI) Recipient of the Sultan Ibrahim Medal (PIS) Knight Grand Companion of the Order of Loyalty of Sultan Ismail of Johor (SSIJ) – Dato' Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Crown of Johor (SPMJ) – Dato' : Grand Knight of the Order of the Crown of Pahang (SIMP) – formerly Dato', now Dato' Indera (1980) : Knight Commander of the Order of the Crown of Perlis (DPMP) – Dato' Places named after him Several places were named after him, including: Kolej Tun Syed Nasir, a residential college at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi, Selangor Kolej Tun Syed Nasir, a residential college at Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, Batu Pahat, Johor Politeknik Tun Syed Nasir Syed Ismail in Muar, Johor Taman Tun Syed Nasir, a residential area in Muar, Johor Kampung Kenangan Tun Syed Nasir in Muar, Johor Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Tun Syed Nasir Ismail , Johor Bahru (SMKTSNI) References 1921 births 1982 deaths Speakers of the Dewan Rakyat Malaysian people of Yemeni descent People from Batu Pahat Hadhrami people People from Johor Malaysian people of Malay descent Malaysian Muslims United Malays National Organisation politicians Grand Commanders of the Order of Loyalty to the