Project: Singapore/Country

The Republic of Singapore
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SINGAPORE

Geography

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, the South China Sea to the east, and the Straits of Johor 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.

The administrative divisions of Singapore comprise 5 Community Development Councils (managed by a Council, which in turn is headed by an appointed mayor) and 17 Town Councils.

Five Community Development Councils of Singapore:

See Also: Geography of Singapore

History

The history of the modern state of Singapore dates back to its founding in the early 19th century; however, evidence suggests that a significant trading settlement existed on the island in the 14th century. The last ruler of the Kingdom of Singapura, Parameswara, was expelled by the Majapahit or the Siamese before he founded Malacca. Singapore then came under the Malacca Sultanate and subsequently the Johor Sultanate. In 1819, British statesman Stamford Raffles negotiated a treaty whereby Johor would allow the British to locate a trading port on the island, ultimately leading to the establishment of the Crown colony of Singapore in 1867. Important reasons for the rise of Singapore were its nodal position at the tip of the Malay Peninsula flanked by the Pacific and Indian Oceans, the presence of a natural sheltered harbour, as well as its status as a free port.

During World War II, Singapore was invaded and occupied by the Japanese Empire from 1942 to 1945. When the Japanese surrendered, Singapore reverted to British control, with increasing levels of self-government being granted, resulting in Singapore's merger with the Federation of Malaya to form Malaysia in 1963. However, social unrest, racial tensions, and political differences between Singapore's governing People's Action Party (PAP) and Malaysia's Alliance Party resulted in Singapore's expulsion from Malaysia. Singapore became an independent republic on 9 August 1965.

By the 1990s, the country had become one of the world's most prosperous nations, with a highly developed free market economy and strong international trading links.

See also: History of Singapore

Historical Timeline

  • 1299 Kingdom of Singapura
  • 1400 Malacca Sultanate
  • 1528 Johor Sultanate
  • 1819 British East India Company granted the right to establish a trading post on Singapore
  • 1826 Singapore in the Straits Settlements
  • 1942 Japanese Occupation
  • 1946 Singapore became a separate Crown Colony
  • 1963 Federation of Malaysia
  • 1965 Republic of Singapore

Demographics

See Also: Singaporeans

See Also: Demographics of Singapore

Ethnicities: In the post-independence period, the population of Singapore has been categorised into four main groups: Chinese, Malays, Indians, and Others. The CMIO system was first proposed in 1956 to organise the education system of Singapore by four national languages.

Language: Singapore has four official languages: English, Malay, Mandarin and Tamil.

Malay is the national language of the country, although English is the official language used in the educational system and by the government. The colloquial English-based creole used in everyday life is often referred to as Singlish, spoken by all races of Singapore.

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Religion: The main religions of Singapore are Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Christianity, and Hinduism, with a significant number who profess no religion.

Singapore has freedom of religion, although the government restricts some religions such as Jehovah's Witnesses, due to their opposition to conscription. The majority of Malays are Muslim, while the plurality of Chinese practise Buddhism and syncretic Chinese folk traditions. Christianity is growing in the country. Taoism was overtaken as the second-most important religion in the 2000 census among the Chinese as more have increasingly described themselves as Buddhists rather than Taoist. Indians are mostly Hindus though many are Muslims, Sikhs, and Christians. People who practise no religion form the third-largest group in Singapore.

Singaporean Naming Conventions

Naming practices in Singapore generally differ between ethnicities. The various practices followed by ethnic Chinese, Malay and Indian Singaporeans are outlined below.

  • Chinese naming conventions arrange names as follows: [FAMILY NAME] [given name]. For example, LEE Zhi Hao (male) and TAN Mei Ling (female).
    • Chinese Singaporean names are written in the Roman alphabet on their passport and birth certificate. National Registration Identity Cards will show this Romanised version as well as the version written in Chinese characters. However, the Romanised version is the official spelling of a person’s name in Singapore.
    • Many Chinese Singaporeans have an ‘English name’ that they use on a regular basis, as well as in international and English-speaking contexts. For example, TAN Mei Ling may be known as “Emily”. The name order promoted by the Singapore government is [SURNAME] [Chinese given name] [English given name] (e.g. TAN Mei Ling Emily). This tends to be the mostly commonly used arrangement.
  • Malay naming conventions structure names as follows: [Given name(s)] [Patronymic noun] [Father’s given name]. For example, Razak bin Osman (male) and Aisyah binte Musa (female).
    • Most people with Malay names do not list a surname on public records. However, some may have a family name that they add to the end of their name.
  • Indian Singaporean names are generally arranged as follows: [Given name] [Patronymic phrase] [Father’s given name]. For example, Nagaratnam s/o Suppiah (male) or Priya d/o Anandarajah (female). The given name (or ‘personal name’) is chosen at birth as the individual’s personal identifier.
    • Most Indian Singaporeans do not have family names. Children inherit their father’s given name at birth. For example, in the name ‘Priya d/o Anandarajah, ‘Anandarajah’ is her father’s personal name.
    • Indian Singaporeans Sikhs have a religious name that comes after their given name, i.e. ‘Singh’ for men and ‘Kaur’ for women. This is not a family name. For example, Manjit Singh s/o Karamjit Singh.
    • Some Indian Singaporeans Christians may add an English name (or an Arabic-derived Christian name) before their Indian given name, e.g. Michael Nagaratnam s/o Suppiah.


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