Spelling out inconsistent names

Is it “Melaka ” or “Malacca ”,“Penang ” or “Pinang ”?A lively exchange addressing this conundrum is going on via an Internetdiscussion list. While no direct answers have been offered,there are eye-opening suggestions,writes AGATHA MATAYUN. 

IT began when Dr Margaret Sarkissian, an associate professor with the Music Department of Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, posted a query to an academic counterpart, Dr Paul Kratoska, associate professor with the Department of History at the National University of Singapore.