Dato' Zakiah was born on 15 September 1937 in Jalan Langgar, Alor Setar, Kedah. She received her early education at the Kampong Baru Girl's School which today is known as the Sultanah Asma School, Alor Setar from 1947 until 1955. Later in 1956, she continued her secondary education at the Methodist Boys School, Penang until 1957, where she completed her Form Six. Upon concluding her schooling, she received an offer to further her studies at the University of Malaya in 1957 and obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in Malay Studies in 1961. At the age of 23, after completing her studies at the University of Malaya, she started to work as Assistant Keeper of Archives at the National Archives in 1961. In1962, she was sent to the National Archives, New Delhi, India to further her studies in the area of Archives Administration and later obtained her Diploma.

Career

• Assistant Keeper of Archives at the National Archives (1961)
  
• Head, Department of Archives (1961-1970)
  
• Assistant Director, National Archives until 1977
  
• Acting Director, National Archives (1977-1980)
  
• The First Director-General of National Archives at the age of 40 and became the first woman to head a Federal Department (1980-1995)

As an expert in the archival field, Dato' Zakiah Hanum concentrated her efforts, initiatives and creativity to develop the National Archives to be at par with foreign institutes. In line with her appointment as the Director-General of the National Archives of Malaysia, various plans, ideas and programmes were implemented, among her inspirations was the RTM Programme, 'Hari Ini Dalam Sejarah' (Today in History) which started its production in 1980 in Bahasa Malaysia, English and Tamil.

To complement all information on nation's history, Dato' Zakiah Hanum inspired the 'Discourse on History Series'. The paper presenters or personalities who contributed our national history were invited to relate their experiences. Among the themes of this series were the history of Malaysian administration, women in Malaysian history, history of the Armed Forces and important events in national history. The National Archives of Malaysia had become the pioneer in the 'Discourse on History Series' at international level. The establishment of the Tun Abdul Razak Memorial, Tunku Abdul Rahman Memorial, P. Ramlee Memorial and the Declaration of Independence Memorial in Melaka were inspired by Dato' Zakiah Hanum as institutions for rememberance, documentation as well as exhibition to the public of the contributions made by personalities and our nation's leaders.

Involvements in Social and Professional Organisations

• Recognition by the International Council of Archivists her expertise in the Archival field. Until today she had successfully positioned Malaysia as the headquarters and organiser for the South East Asia Region Branch of the International Council of Archives (SERBICA).
• Chairman, Association of Commonwealth Archivists and Records Managers (ACARM) with its headquarters in London and she became the first person from the Asian region to head this association since 1988.
• Chairman, the South East Asia Region Branch of the International Council of Archivists (SERBICA) from 1990 until 1993.
• Honorary Editor, the International Journal for Oral History that was published in America.
• Member, Indian Records Commission, located in New Delhi from 1986 until 1989.
• President, Satu Pertiwi.

Among the books that she had published were the Sembang Mak Alang (1986), Tercabarnya Maruah Bangsa (1987), Tradisi dan Budaya (1987), Asal-usul Negeri-negeri di Malaysia (1989), Senda Sindir Sengat (1990), books on cooking such as the Masakan Tradisional Utara (1991), Kuih-muih Utara (1992), Family Delights of the North (1993), Northern Traditional Cuisine and Northern Cookies, Biscuits, etc. Through the efforts of Pertiwi, among the projects that she had executed were the publication of books i.e. Biografi Wanita Malaysia, Wanita Seiring Jalan (Pandangan Tun Abdul Razak) and Bingkisan Pertiwi. Among the drama scripts that she produced was Bahang (1988) and others, including stage dramas. Besides that, she also wrote articles for newspapers, local and international magazines on matters related to archival matters, history and society. On retirement from the National Archives, she managed an enterprise besides continuing her services in volunteer activities.

To honour her contributions and services, she was awarded the Johan Setia Mahkota (J.S.M.) on Jun 1976, the Johan Mahkota Selangor (S.M.S.) on 8th March 1981 and the Darjah Kebesaran Dato' Setia DiRaja Kedah (D.S.D.K.) which carries the title Dato' on 22nd January 1989. Whereas at the international level, she received the Ramon Magsaysay award in 1989 for her services to the government and became the first Malaysian woman to receive this award.