Portal:Singapore

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Welcome to the Singapore Portal

Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It is located about one degree of latitude (137 kilometres or 85 miles) north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bordering the Strait of Malacca to the west, the Singapore Strait to the south along with the Riau Islands in Indonesia, the South China Sea to the east, and the Straits of Johor along with the State of Johor in Malaysia to the north. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet; the combined area of these has increased by approximately 25% since the country's independence as a result of extensive land reclamation projects. It has the second highest population density of any country in the world, although there are numerous green and recreational spaces as a result of urban planning. With a multicultural population and in recognition of the cultural identities of the major ethnic groups within the nation, Singapore has four official languages: English, Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil. English is the lingua franca, with its exclusive use in numerous public services. Multi-racialism is enshrined in the constitution and continues to shape national policies in education, housing, and politics.

Singapore's history dates back at least eight hundred years, having been a maritime emporium known as Temasek and subsequently a major constituent part of several successive thalassocratic empires. Its contemporary era began in 1819, when Stamford Raffles established Singapore as an entrepôt trading post of the British Empire. In 1867, the colonies in Southeast Asia were reorganised, and Singapore came under the direct control of Britain as part of the Straits Settlements. During World War II, Singapore was occupied by Japan in 1942 and returned to British control as a separate Crown colony following Japan's surrender in 1945. Singapore gained self-governance in 1959 and, in 1963, became part of the new federation of Malaysia, alongside Malaya, North Borneo, and Sarawak. Ideological differences, most notably the perceived encroachment of the egalitarian "Malaysian Malaysia" political ideology led by Lee Kuan Yew into the other constituent entities of Malaysia—at the perceived expense of the bumiputera and the policies of Ketuanan Melayu—eventually led to Singapore's expulsion from the federation two years later; Singapore became an independent sovereign country in 1965.

After early years of turbulence and despite lacking natural resources and a hinterland, the nation rapidly developed to become one of the Four Asian Tigers. With its growth based on international trade and economic globalisation, it integrated itself with the world economy through free trade with minimal-to-no trade barriers or tariffs, export-oriented industrialisation, and the large accumulation of received foreign direct investments, foreign exchange reserves, and assets held by sovereign wealth funds. As a highly developed country, it has one of the highest GDP per capita (PPP) in the world. Identified as a tax haven, Singapore is the only country in Asia with a AAA sovereign credit rating from all major rating agencies. It is a major aviation, financial, and maritime shipping hub and has consistently been ranked as one of the most expensive cities to live in for expatriates and foreign workers. Singapore ranks highly in key social indicators: education, healthcare, quality of life, personal safety, infrastructure, and housing, with a home-ownership rate of 88 percent. Singaporeans enjoy one of the longest life expectancies, fastest Internet connection speeds, lowest infant mortality rates, and lowest levels of corruption in the world.

Singapore is a unitary parliamentary republic in the Westminster tradition of unicameral parliamentary government, and its legal system is based on common law. While the country is de jure a multi-party democracy with free elections, the government under the People's Action Party (PAP) wields widespread control and dominance over politics and society without much electoral competition. The PAP has governed the country continuously since full internal self-government was achieved in 1959, and currently holds a supermajority with 79 out of 93 elected seats in Parliament. One of the five founding members of ASEAN, Singapore is also the headquarters of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Secretariat, the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council Secretariat, and is the host city of many international conferences and events. Singapore is also a member of the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, the East Asia Summit, the Non-Aligned Movement, and the Commonwealth of Nations. (Full article...)

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Exit E of Dhoby Ghaut MRT station

Dhoby Ghaut MRT station is an underground Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) interchange station on the North South, North East and Circle lines in Singapore. Located beneath the eastern end of Orchard Road shopping belt in Dhoby Ghaut, Museum Planning Area, the station is integrated with the commercial development The Atrium@Orchard. The station is near landmarks such as The Istana, the MacDonald House, Plaza Singapura and Dhoby Ghaut Green.

Dhoby Ghaut station was part of the early plans for the original MRT network since 1982. It was constructed as part of Phase I of the MRT network which was completed in 1987. Following the network's operational split, the station has been served by the North South line since 1989. To construct the North East line platforms, which were completed in 2003, the Stamford Canal had to be diverted while excavating through part of Mount Sophia. The Circle line platforms opened in 2010 along with Stages 1 and 2 of the line. (Full article...)

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Credit: TteckK (5 October 2002)

The Parliament House of Singapore. Thid building was designed to represent a contemporary architectural expression of stateliness and authority. Its prism-shaped top was designed by former president Ong Teng Cheong. Read more...

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General images

The following are images from various Singapore-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Afternoon thunderstorms are a frequent occurrence in Singapore, which has an equatorial climate. (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 21888 German map of Singapore (from History of Singapore)
Image 3The Marina Bay Sands integrated resort. Opened in 2010, it has become a key feature of Singapore's modern skyline. (from History of Singapore)
Image 41955 stamp with the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II (from History of Singapore)
Image 5Baedeker map of the city and environs, c. 1914
Image 6The Sultan Mosque, built in 1826 in the Kampong Glam district, is the oldest and one of the largest mosque in Singapore. (from Singaporeans)
Image 7Engraving of Sir Stamford Raffles by James Thomson
Image 8Traffic in Singapore, 1981. Prior to the introduction of the Certificate of Entitlement (COE) in 1990, vehicles per capita in Singapore was the highest in ASEAN. (from History of Singapore)
Image 9Fireworks over the Marina Bay skyline following the conclusion of the 2015 National Day Parade on 9 August 2015. (from History of Singapore)
Image 10The old and the new Singapore as seen from an alley behind Boat Quay (2023) (from History of Singapore)
Image 11Quadrilingual sign (from Singaporeans)
Image 12Enlargeable, detailed map of Singapore (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 13The Mao Kun map from Wubei Zhi which is based on the early 15th century maps of Zheng He showing Temasek (淡馬錫) at the top left, and Long Ya Men (龍牙門) on the right panel. (from History of Singapore)
Image 14A fragment of the Singapore Stone, inscribed with an Indic script, c. 10th to 13th century. (from History of Singapore)
Image 15St Andrew's Cathedral (from Singaporeans)
Image 16A statue of Raffles by Thomas Woolner now stands in Singapore, near Raffles's landing site in 1819. (from History of Singapore)
Image 17A hawker centre in Lavender, Singapore (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 18The Plan of the Town of Singapore, or more commonly known as the Jackson Plan or Raffles Town Plan. (from History of Singapore)
Image 19Centre square of Raffles Place (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 20Jurong Industrial Estate, Singapore, with Jurong Island in the background (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 21Shophouses in Singapore (from Singaporeans)
Image 22Deepavali decorations in Singapore. (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 23Upper Seletar Reservoir (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 24A busy Victoria Dock, Tanjong Pagar, in the 1890s. (from History of Singapore)
Image 25Sign board with warnings in Singapore's four main languages: English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 26Japanese POWs are taken to work where they were made to clear up the city during the British reoccupation in September 1945
Image 27The Thian Hock Keng, completed in 1842, served as a place of worship for early immigrants. (from History of Singapore)
Image 28The country celebrates its National Day on 9 August each year. (from History of Singapore)
Image 29Singapore's urban geography is often characterised by extensive use of HDB flats, which the majority of citizens reside in. (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 30The Supertree Grove at Gardens by the Bay (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 31Top view of Bukit Batok West. Large scale public housing development has created high housing ownership among the population. (from History of Singapore)
Image 32Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum (from Singaporeans)
Image 33Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 34Old Supreme Court of Singapore (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 35Men of various ethnicities - Chinese, Malay, and Indian gather at a street corner in Singapore, circa 1900. (from Singaporeans)
Image 36Restored shophouses running along a street in Chinatown, which reflects the Victorian architecture of buildings built in Singapore during the earlier colonial period, with styles such as the painted ladies. (from History of Singapore)
Image 37Chinese community in Singapore carrying the Flag of the Republic of China (written Long live the motherland) to celebrate the victory, also reflected the Chinese identity issues at that time. (from History of Singapore)
Image 38The Jurong Industrial Estate was developed in the 1960s to industrialise the economy. (from History of Singapore)
Image 39Hainanese chicken rice (from Singaporeans)
Image 40Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival, led by a Japanese officer, marches under a flag of truce to negotiate the capitulation of Allied forces in Singapore, on 15 February 1942. It was the largest surrender of British-led forces in history. (from History of Singapore)

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Denise Phua Lay Peng (Chinese: 潘丽萍; pinyin: Pān Lìpíng; born 9 December 1959) is a Singaporean politician who has been serving as Mayor of Central Singapore District since 2014. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), she has been the Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Kampong Glam division of Jalan Besar GRC since 2015.

Prior to entering politics, she is a full-time special needs volunteer after working in the private sector for two decades. She became the president of the Autism Resource Centre and co-founded Pathlight School. (Full article...)

List of selected biographies
Ho Yuen Hoe Gan Eng Seng Hugh Hickling Zubir Said Tang Da Wu Edwin Thumboo Teresa Hsu Fandi Ahmad Li Jiawei Glenn Knight Laurentia Tan Tao Li Yip Pin Xiu Neila Sathyalingam Walter Woon Han Sai Por Rex Shelley Feng Tianwei Lee Choon Seng Balaji Sadasivan Choor Singh Kelvin Tan Xiaxue

Did you know (auto-generated)

... that Ng Yu Zhi owned the only Pagani Huayra in Singapore?
... that the United Ukrainian Ballet Company, consisting of exiled dancers based in The Hague, has toured the UK, Singapore, Australia and the US?
... that a temporary two-lane viaduct was built along Cross Street to replace the closed lanes during the construction of Singapore's Telok Ayer MRT station?
... that the Hainanese chicken rice at the Singaporean restaurant Chatterbox was developed by a German chef?
... that Tropicana was reportedly the first building in Singapore to contain nightclubs, restaurants, and a theatre?
... that Singapore's founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew and his son Lee Hsien Loong donated the "unsolicited discounts" from their controversial purchase of condominium units to charity?

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In this month

1 April 1867: The Straits Settlements becomes a crown colony of the British Empire.
2 April 1955: David Saul Marshall becomes the first Chief Minister of Singapore.
18 April 2005: Casino-gambling is legalised and the construction of two Integrated Resorts is approved by the government.
19 April 1968: The People's Action Party won all seats in Singapore's first general election after independence.
20 April 2004: A section of Nicoll Highway collapses, killing 4 people.

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...that the Singapore Government has introduced the "Punggol 21-plus" plan to re-vitalise Punggol New Town (pictured), after an unsuccessful attempt in the late 1990s?

... that Catherine Lim's 1994 essay The PAP and the people - A Great Affective Divide invoked such a strong response from the Singapore government, its then-PM Goh Chok Tong outlined which topics were permissible for public discussion?

... that Tang Choon Keng, who established Tangs and built the former Dynasty Hotel, was also known as the "Tin Trunk Man" in Singapore for his rags to riches legacy?

... that four Japanese War Memorials found in the Japanese Cemetery Park were built without knowledge of the British colonial government of Singapore?

... that the Former Singapore Badminton Hall was marked as a historical site by Singapore's National Heritage Board in 1999, as it held two Thomas Cup tournaments and was the vote counting station for a landmark 1962 referendum?

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Selected panorama

Credit: Sengkang (22 July 2006)

Bukit Ho Swee is a place in Singapore which is located near Jalan Bukit Ho Swee. It was once an unplanned self-built township of about 20,000, though this was destroyed by the Bukit Ho Swee Fire, which broke out on 25 May 1961. It is now a residential area with little remains of its chaotic past.

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Check for latest announcements and updates at the WikiProject Singapore
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