Orders, decorations, and medals of Brunei

The orders, decorations, and medals of Brunei consist of Bintang-Bintang Kebesaran (translatable as 'state decorations') and Pingat-Pingat Kehormatan (literally 'medals of honour'). Both are awarded by the Sultan of Brunei on the basis of merit, especially on the contributions to the country. The investiture of some of the state decorations also include the conferment of titles, whereby they become part of the awardees' personal names in official correspondence or when mentioned in formal media in the country. The decorations and medals are under the responsibility of Jabatan Adat Istiadat Negara, a government department under the Prime Minister's Office, which also oversees Bruneian royal traditions and protocol.

Orders, decorations, and medals on a military officer's ceremonial dress in 2024

The insignia are displayed in the Royal Regalia Museum located in the capital.

Investiture

Lapau building in Bandar Seri Begawan's city centre

The actual investiture involves awardees being given badges in a ceremony by the Sultan or sometimes the Crown Prince upon the Sultan's discretion. The ceremony is traditionally held in Lapau which is a type of ceremonial hall for royal ceremonies in the Bruneian culture. At present, the state decorations to the third class are always conferred by Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah in a royal ceremony held annually on the day of the Sultan's birthday on 15 July at Balai Singgahsana Indera Buana, a ceremonial hall within Istana Nurul Iman, the Sultan's palace. Meanwhile, the state decorations of lower classes as well as medals of honour are conferred by the Sultan or the Crown Prince Al-Muhtadee Billah in other ceremonies on other days, although commonly held in conjunction with the said birthday celebration. They had been traditionally held at the Lapau building in Bandar Seri Begawan's city centre but in recent years they have been held at the Lapau hall within the palace instead to accommodate the growing number of awardees.^[1]

Decorations and medals

The following are the lists of state decorations and medals of honour of Brunei.^[2] All of their names are styled in the Malay language, nevertheless many of the names have also been officially given the equivalents in English, that is by the Department of Adat Istiadat.

State decorations

List of state decorations (Bintang-Bintang Kebesaran)

Name in Malay	Official English translation	Class	Ribbon	Title	Post-nominal letters
Darjah Kerabat Mahkota Brunei	The Royal Family Order of the Crown of Brunei	–		–	DKMB
Darjah Kerabat Laila Utama Yang Amat Dihormati	The Most Esteemed Family Order of Laila Utama	–		Dato Laila Utama	DK
Darjah Kerabat Seri Utama Yang Amat Dihormati	The Most Esteemed Family Order of Seri Utama	–		Dato Seri Utama	DK
Darjah Seri Ugama Islam Negara Brunei Yang Amat Bersinar	The Most Eminent Order of Islam Brunei	First Class		Dato Paduka Seri Setia	PSSUB
		Second Class		Dato Seri Setia	DSSUB
		Third Class		–	SSUB
		Fourth Class			SUB
		Fifth Class			PUB
Darjah Paduka Laila Jasa Keberanian Gemilang Yang Amat Cemerlang	The Most Illustrious Order of Paduka Laila Jasa Keberanian Gemilang	First Class		Dato Paduka Seri	DPKG
		Second Class		Dato Laila	DLKG
		Third Class		–	DKG
Darjah Paduka Keberanian Laila Terbilang Yang Amat Gemilang	The Most Exalted Order of Paduka Keberanian Laila Terbilang	First Class		Dato Paduka Seri	DPKT
		Second Class		Dato Laila	DKLT
		Third Class		–	DKT
Darjah Pahlawan Negara Brunei Yang Amat Perkasa	The Most Gallant Order of Pahlawan Negara Brunei	First Class		Dato Seri Pahlawan	PSPNB
		Second Class		Dato Hamzah Pahlawan	DHPNB
		Third Class		–	PNB
		Fourth Class			PJB
Darjah Setia Negara Brunei Yang Amat Bahagia	The Most Blessed Order of Setia Negara Brunei	First Class		Dato Seri Setia	PSNB
		Second Class		Dato Setia	DSNB
		Third Class		–	SNB
		Fourth Class			PSB
Darjah Paduka Seri Laila Jasa Yang Amat Berjasa	The Most Distinguished Order of Paduka Seri Laila Jasa	First Class		Dato Paduka Seri Laila Jasa	PSLJ
		Second Class		Dato Seri Laila Jasa	DSLJ
		Third Class		–	SLJ
Darjah Seri Paduka Mahkota Brunei Yang Amat Mulia	The Most Honourable Order of Seri Paduka Mahkota Brunei	First Class		Dato Seri Paduka	SPMB
		Second Class		Dato Paduka	DPMB
		Third Class		–	SMB
Darjah Perwira Agong Negara Brunei Yang Amat Setia	The Most Faithful Order of Perwira Agong Negara Brunei	First Class		–	PANB
		Second Class			PaNB

Medals of honour

Below is a list of the current medals of honour (Pingat-Pingat Kehormatan):

Name in Malay	Official English translation	Class	Ribbon	Post-nominal letters
Pingat Omar Ali Saifuddin	Omar Ali Saifuddin Medal	First Class		POAS
		Second Class
Pingat Hassanal Bolkiah Sultan	Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Medal	First Class		PHBS
		Second Class
Pingat Bakti Laila Ikhlas	–	–		PBLI
Pingat Jasa Kebaktian	Meritorious Service Medal[3][4]	–		PJK
Pingat Tabah Kerja Laila Lutanan	Government Office Medal	–		PTKL
Pingat Indah Kerja Baik	Excellent Service Medal[3][4]	–		PIKB
Pingat Pengisytiharan Kemerdekaan	Proclamation of Independence of Brunei Medal	–		-
Pingat Kerja Lama	Long Service Medal[3]	–		PKL
Pingat Perjuangan	Campaign Medal	First Class		-
		Second Class
Pahlawan Periwara	Star of Supreme Gallantry[4]	–		PP
Asgar Pahlawan	Distinguished Warrior Star[4]	–		AP
Penglima Lasgar	Distinguished Soldier Star[4]	–		PL

Medals related to national events

There are also several medals which are awarded in conjunction with certain national events:

Name in Malay	Official English translation	Class	Ribbon
Pingat Pertalaban Ahmad Tajuddin	Ahmad Tajuddin Coronation Medal	–
Pingat Pertalaban Omar Ali Saifuddin	Omar Ali Saifuddin Coronation Medal	–
Pingat Puspa	Coronation Medal	Gold
		Silver
Pingat Jubli Menaiki Takhta - Pingat Jubli Emas - Pingat Jubli Perak	Jubilee Medal Ascension to the Throne - Golden Jubilee Medal - Silver Jubilee Medal	Gold
		Silver
		Bronze
Pingat Jubli Hari Kebangsaan - Pingat Jubli Perak	National Day Jubilee Medal - Silver Jubilee Medal	–

Medals for armed forces of Brunei

The following are the medals of honour specifically for the armed forces of Brunei:

Medals of the Royal Brunei Police Force

Name in Malay	Official English translation	Ribbon	Post-nominal letters
Pingat Laila Tugas	General Service Medal		–
Pingat Perkhidmatan Polis	Police Service Medal		–
Pingat Kerja Lama Polis	Police Long Service Medal		PKLP
Pingat Polis Diraja Brunei 1965	Royal Police Medal 1965		–
Pingat Polis 50 Tahun	Police 50 Years Medal		–
Pingat Polis 75 Tahun	Police 75 Years Medal		–
Pingat Polis 100 Tahun	Police 100 Years Medal		–

Medals of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces

Name in Malay	Official English translation	Ribbon	Post-nominal letters
Pingat Mulia Gelaran Resemi	Inauguration Medal[5]		–
Pingat Laila Tugas	General Service Medal		GSM
Pingat Kerja Lama dan Perangai Baik	Long Service Medal and Good Conduct[6]		PKLPB
Pingat Jubli Perak 25 Tahun Angkatan Bersenjata Diraja Brunei	Royal Brunei Armed Forces Silver Jubilee Medal		–
Pingat Jubli Emas 50 Tahun Angkatan Bersenjata Diraja Brunei	Royal Brunei Armed Forces Golden Jubilee Medal[7]		–
Pingat Jubli Intan 60 Tahun Angkatan Bersenjata Diraja Brunei	Royal Brunei Armed Forces Diamond Jubilee Medal		–

Medals of the Gurkha Reserve Unit

Name in Malay	Official English translation	Ribbon
Pingat Pasukan Simpanan Gurkha	Gurkha Reserve Unit Medal
Pingat Kerja Lama dan Perangai Baik	Long Service Medal and Good Conduct
Pingat Jubli Emas Pasukan Simpanan Gurkha	Gurkha Reserve Unit Golden Jubilee Medal

See also

• List of honours of Brunei awarded to heads of state and royalty