Siti Hasmah: key obituary facts
Is Siti Hasmah dead? Yes. Siti Hasmah died on September 28, 2026, at age 100.
Cause of death: Siti Hasmah's cause of death was reported as Heart failure.
What was Siti Hasmah known for?
She was a spouse of the Prime Minister of Malaysia (1981–2003, 2018–2020).
More about Siti Hasmah
Born: 12 July 1926.
Place of birth: Klang.
Place of death: National Heart Institute of Malaysia.
Gender: female.
Occupation: physician, autobiographer.
Nationality: Malaysia.
Education: Universiti Malaya, University of Michigan, National University of Singapore, St. Mary's School, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine.
Notable work: My Name is Hasmah.
Awards: Grand Commander of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia, Asia's Most Influential Malaysia, Order of the Star of Hornbill Sarawak, Order of Kinabalu, Order of Loyalty to the Royal House of Kedah.
Father: Mohd Ali bin Mohd Taib.
Spouse: Mahathir Mohamad.
Children: Marina Mahathir, Mokhzani Mahathir, Mukhriz Mahathir, Mirzan Mahathir, Melinda Mahathir, Mazhar Mahathir, Maizura Mahathir.
Also known as: Tun Siti, Tun Dr Hasmah, Hasmah Mohamad Ali.
Siti Hasmah, a Malaysian civil servant, physician and public-health advocate who served as the prime minister’s spouse, died of heart failure on September 28, 2026, aged 100.
Born Hasmah binti Mohamad Ali in Klang, she graduated from King Edward VII College of Medicine in 1955 with a degree in medicine and surgery, then worked in the government health service. She was among the first women doctors in the Federation of Malaya and, in 1965, became the first woman appointed as a medical officer in the Maternal and Child Health Department.
Hasmah married Mahathir Mohamad in 1956; they had seven children. She was the spouse of the deputy prime minister from 1976 to 1981, then served as the spouse of the prime minister from 1981 to 2003 and again from 2018 to 2020. During her husband’s premierships, she advocated for maternal and child health, rural women’s development, drug-abuse prevention and mental-health awareness. She also served as chancellor of Multimedia University from 1997 to 2012. Known publicly as Siti Hasmah, she wrote the autobiography My Name is Hasmah. She was accorded a state funeral in Putrajaya.