The majority of the residents of Kampung Ulu Bakai are Malays and still practising Malay customs and way of life. It was believed that Kampung Ulu Bakai was founded by Tok Dotan who hailed from Pattani, Thailand. Tok Dotan had incurred the king’s wrath and was hunted by the king’s dignitaries and warlords but never found. Out of anger, the village was burnt to the ground. The Malay word for burn, ‘bakar,’ was changed to ‘bakai,’ while the word ‘ulu’ was added later by the villagers.