Tengku Bariah was born on 31 August 1933 in Klang, Selangor, to Tengku Alam Shah of Selangor (later Sultan Hisamuddin) and his second wife, Cik Puan Kalsum binti Mahmud.[1] She was educated at Malay School, Klang, Malay Girls' College (now known as Kolej Tunku Kurshiah), Kuala Lumpur, and then Cuckfield Park College, Sussex.[citation needed]