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 Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is 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.

In its early history, Singapore was 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, 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 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 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.

As a highly developed country, it has one of the highest PPP-adjusted GDP per capita. It is also 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. It has the third highest population density of any country, 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 common language, with exclusive use in numerous public services. Multi-racialism is enshrined in the constitution and continues to shape national policies.

Singapore is a parliamentary republic 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 political dominance. 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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The flag of Singapore was adopted in 1959, the year Singapore became self-governing within the British Empire. It remained the national flag upon the country's independence from Malaysia on 9 August 1965. The design is a horizontal bicolour of red above white, overlaid in the canton (upper-left quadrant) by a white crescent moon facing a pentagon of five small white five-pointed stars. The elements of the flag denote a young nation on the ascendant, universal brotherhood and equality, and national ideals.

Vessels at sea do not use the national flag as an ensign. Merchant vessels and pleasure craft fly a civil ensign of red charged in white with a variant of the crescent and stars emblem in the centre. Non-military government vessels such as coast guard ships fly a state ensign of blue with the national flag in the canton, charged with an eight-pointed red and white compass rose in the lower fly. Naval ships patrol a naval ensign similar to the state ensign, but in white with a red compass rose emblem. (Full article...)

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Credit: Terence (30 May 2006)

The Merlion (Chinese: 鱼尾狮; pinyin: Yúwěishī; Tamil:கடல்சிங்கம் ) is a statue with the head of a lion and the body of a fish. Its name comes from a portmanteau of mermaid and lion. The merlion was designed by Mr. Fraser Brunner for the Singapore Tourism Board in 1964 and was used as its logo up to 1997. Read more...

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General images

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

Image 1Hainanese chicken rice (from Singaporeans)
Image 2Chinese 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 3The country celebrates its National Day on 9 August each year. (from History of Singapore)
Image 4Baedeker map of the city and environs, c. 1914
Image 5Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 6Jurong Industrial Estate, Singapore, with Jurong Island in the background (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 7Mass Rapid Transit (from History of Singapore)
Image 8Upper Seletar Reservoir (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 9Enlargeable, detailed map of Singapore (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 10Traffic 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 11The 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 12A fragment of the Singapore Stone, inscribed with an Indic script, c. 10th to 13th century. (from History of Singapore)
Image 13The Sultan Mosque, built in 1826 in the Kampong Glam district, is the oldest and one of the largest mosque in Singapore. (from Singaporeans)
Image 14Shophouses in Singapore (from Singaporeans)
Image 15Old Supreme Court of Singapore (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 16The Thian Hock Keng, completed in 1842, served as a place of worship for early immigrants. (from History of Singapore)
Image 17A statue of Raffles by Thomas Woolner now stands in Singapore, near Raffles's landing site in 1819. (from History of Singapore)
Image 18Restored 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 19A busy Victoria Dock, Tanjong Pagar, in the 1890s. (from History of Singapore)
Image 20Quadrilingual sign (from Singaporeans)
Image 21The Marina Bay Sands integrated resort. Opened in 2010, it has become a key feature of Singapore's modern skyline. (from History of Singapore)
Image 22Japanese POWs are taken to work where they were made to clear up the city during the British reoccupation in September 1945
Image 23Afternoon thunderstorms are a frequent occurrence in Singapore, which has an equatorial climate. (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 24St Andrew's Cathedral (from Singaporeans)
Image 25The old and the new Singapore as seen from an alley behind Boat Quay (2023) (from History of Singapore)
Image 26Singapore's urban geography is often characterised by extensive use of HDB flats, which the majority of citizens reside in. (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 271888 German map of Singapore (from History of Singapore)
Image 28A hawker centre in Lavender, Singapore (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 29The Jurong Industrial Estate was developed in the 1960s to industrialise the economy. (from History of Singapore)
Image 30Portrait of Stamford Raffles by George Francis Joseph, 1817 (from History of Singapore)
Image 31View of Bukit Batok Estate. Large scale public housing development has created high housing ownership among the population. (from History of Singapore)
Image 32Lieutenant-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)
Image 33Deepavali decorations in Singapore. (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 34Sign board with warnings in Singapore's four main languages: English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 351955 stamp with the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II (from History of Singapore)
Image 36The Supertree Grove at Gardens by the Bay (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 37Men of various ethnicities - Chinese, Malay, and Indian gather at a street corner in Singapore, circa 1900. (from Singaporeans)
Image 38Centre square of Raffles Place (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 39The Plan of the Town of Singapore, or more commonly known as the Jackson Plan or Raffles Town Plan. (from History of Singapore)
Image 40Fireworks over the Marina Bay skyline following the conclusion of the 2015 National Day Parade on 9 August 2015. (from History of Singapore)
Image 41Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum (from Singaporeans)

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Fandi playing in a charity friendly match with the Singapore Masters in 2017

Fandi bin Ahmad PBM (born 29 May 1962) is a Singaporean professional football manager and former player. He is the current technical advisor and head coach of Malaysia Super League club Sri Pahang. During his professional career, he played mainly as a striker, but also occasionally as a midfielder. Along with the Singapore FA, he also played for Malaysia Cup state sides Kuala Lumpur FA and Pahang FA, and won titles with all three, including two doubles in 1992 and 1994, as well as the Golden Boot in 1988. Fandi also played for Indonesia's Niac Mitra, Netherlands' Groningen as well as local Singaporean clubs Geylang United and SAFFC.

Internationally with the Singapore national team, Fandi earned 101 caps and scored 55 goals, a record he holds today, as well as winning three Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games) silver medals while being captain from 1993 to 1997. After his retirement, he began his managerial career in 2000 by helming his former playing club SAFFC, before moving on to Indonesia's Pelita Raya and Malaysia's Johor Darul Takzim, while also serving as the assistant national coach on numerous occasions while and running his own Fandi Ahmad Academy. (Full article...)

List of selected biographies
Ho Yuen Hoe Gan Eng Seng Hugh Hickling Zubir Said Tang Da Wu Edwin Thumboo Teresa Hsu Denise Phua 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 eight cardboard white elephants were put up as a form of public protest to lobby for the opening of Buangkok MRT station in Singapore?
... that COVID-19 lockdown restrictions caused a 37-percent increase in infections of dengue fever in Singapore's 2020 outbreak?
... that the United Ukrainian Ballet Company, consisting of exiled dancers based in The Hague, has toured the UK, Singapore, Australia and the US?
... that Ambo Sooloh pledged allegiance to the British government on behalf of all Malays in Singapore?
... that S. Iswaran was the first Singaporean cabinet minister to be investigated by the country's Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau since 1986?
... that Singaporean performance artist Josef Ng was fined S$1,000 for partially exposing his buttocks and snipping his pubic hair during a public performance?

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In this month

29 January 1819: Sir Stamford Raffles arrives in Singapore.
29 January 1983: The Singapore Cable Car disaster occurs, killing 7 people and trapping another 13 people in the cable car cabins.
31 January 1974: The Japanese Red Army bombs petroleum tanks at Pulau Bukom and hijacks a ferry boat in what is known as the Laju incident.

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... that the National Art Gallery of Singapore will incorporate two national monuments — the Old Supreme Court Building and the City Hall (both pictured)?

... that Chia Thye Poh, formerly detained under Singapore's Internal Security Act, has been called "the world's second longest serving prisoner-of-conscience after South Africa's Nelson Mandela"?

... that former chef Aziza Ali is credited with establishing Singapore's first Malay restaurant?

... that animator Nickson Fong is the first Singaporean to receive an Academy Award?

... that the Singapore Constitution that came into force on 9 August 1965 was not drafted as a single document but was made up of provisions from three separate statutes?

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Selected panorama

Credit: Sengkang (8 July 2006)

The Changi Beach Park (Chinese: 樟宜海滨公园) is a beach park located at the northeastern tip of Singapore. The 28-hectare Changi Beach Park is one of the oldest coastal parks in Singapore. The park is 3.2 km long with stretches of sandy beaches between Changi Point and Changi Ferry Road.

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Southeast Asia

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Check for latest announcements and updates at the WikiProject Singapore
Make yourself known as a Singaporean Wikipedian
Create or improve on the articles listed in the to do list
Share with us your level of proficiency in Singlish by putting one of the 4 Singlish Babel tags (1 2 3 4) onto your user page
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