| Titiwangsa Mountains | |
| Range | |
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Panorama of the Titiwangsa Mountains at the Ulu Bernam's PLUS Rest Area
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| Countries | Malaysia, Thailand |
|---|---|
| Part of | Tenasserim Hills |
| Highest point | Gunung Korbu |
| - elevation | 2,183 m (7,162 ft) |
The Titiwangsa Mountains (Malay; Banjaran Titiwangsa) are the main mountain range that forms the backbone of the Malay Peninsula.
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The Titiwangsa Mountains is part of suture zones that runs north-south, starting in Thailand (Nan-Uttaradit/Dien Bien Phu suture zone) and extending south towards peninsular Malaysia (Bentong-Raub suture zone). The western half of Titiwangsa Mountains in peninsular Malaysia is an amalgamation of continental terranes that is known as Cimmeria or Indochina, whereas the eastern half is an amalgamation of continental terranes Sinoburmalaya or Sibumasu. These two halves of terranes were separated by Paleo-Tethys Ocean.[1][2]
The Cimmeria was separated from Gondwana around 400mya during Devonian and rifted towards Laurasia, the northeastern arm of Pangea. It attached to Laurasia completely around 280mya during Late Permian
Sibumasu terranes on the other hand, only started to separate from Gondwana during Early Permian and rifted towards Indochina. The collision of Sibumasu terranes and Indochina terranes during 200mya Late Triassic resulted in the closure of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean and formation of the modern Titiwangsa Mountain belts.
This mountain range is a part of the Tenasserim Hills system. It forms the southernmost section of the central cordillera which runs from Tibet through the Kra Isthmus into the Malay peninsula.[3]
The Titiwangsa range starts in the north as a continuation of the Phuket mountain range in Southern Thailand, running approximately southeast and ends in the south near Jelebu, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. The highest elevation is the 2,183 m (7,162 ft) Gunung Korbu.
The range acts as a natural divider, dividing Peninsular Malaysia into East and West Coast regions. It is called the "Banjaran Titiwangsa" or "Banjaran Besar" (Main Range) by locals. The length of mountain range is about 480 km from north to south.
Several popular tourist destinations such as Royal Belum, Cameron Highlands, Genting Highlands and Fraser's Hill are located on the range.
A number of roads cut through the Titiwangsa Forest Complex.