Bintang

Bintang, an island to the S. of the Straits of Malacca. It has an area of 440 square miles, and is swampy, but produces pepper, spices, and gambier, a plant used in dyeing. Though nominally a possession of the Sultan of Johore, it is practically under the control of the Dutch, who have built Riauw as a rival to Singapore on a neighbouring islet.