Big Island, Johor

This article is about an island in Johor. For an island in Malacca with similar name, see Big Island, Malaysia.

Big Island (Pulau Besar)
Island
Country	Malaysia
State	Johor
Location	South China Sea
- coordinates

Big Island (Malay: Pulau Besar), formerly known as Babi Besar Island, is an island off the east coast of Johor, Malaysia. It is accessible by boat from Mersing town (approximately 30 minutes). The island's highest point rises some 845 feet (258 m) above the sea level.

The island, which is surrounded by Rawa, Sibu and Tinggi Island, is characterised by quiet, clean beaches of powdery white sand and crystal-clear azure waters. To preserve the unspoiled marine life, the Government has gazetted it as a marine park to protect around 60 species of marine life from any activities that can harm their natural habitats within 2 nautical miles (3.7 km) around the island.

Rich hues of wild vegetations are dappled throughout with the lush greens of the coconut palms and tropical jungles. There are about 7 - 8 small villages that are still populated by around 100 friendly dwellers who are mostly fishermen.

Legends

A local myth was about a fisherman couple who transformed into mermaids. This legend is so popular among the local folks that they believed at one time, a pregnant fisherman's wife was craving for a kind of seaweed, that is plentiful in the Mersing waters. After eating, she turned into a mermaid and the heartbroken husband became one too after eating the same seaweed. Until today, it is claimed that mermaids floating in couples can sometimes be spotted eating seaweed around the island.

It is said that this island got its former name, Babi Besar Island from the numerous wild boars that roamed the island before man inhabited the place. Nowadays, there is not a single boar on the island and thus, the island was renamed as Besar Island.

See also

• List of islands of Malaysia

External links

• Malaysia Travel Guide: Locally known as Pulau Besar or Big Island