born Feb. 8, 1903, Alor Star, Kedah, Malaya
died Dec. 6, 1990, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
First prime minister of independent Malaya (195763) and then of Malaysia (196370).
He was educated in England and served in the Malayan Federal Legal Department (194951) before pursuing a career in politics. As president of the United Malays National Organization, Abdul Rahman brought Chinese and Indian political groups into the Alliance Party, which won an overwhelming majority in the 1955 election. He negotiated for Malayan independence from Britain (achieved in 1957); the federation of Malaysia was formed in 1963.