Portal:Singapore

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 Battle of Kranji was the second stage of the Empire of Japan's plan for the invasion of Singapore during the Second World War. On 9 February 1942 the Imperial Japanese Army assaulted the north-western front of Singapore, capital of the Straits Settlements.

Their primary objective was to secure a second beachhead after their successful assault at Sarimbun Beach on 8 February, in order to breach the Jurong-Kranji defence line as part of their southward thrust towards the heart of Singapore City. Defending the shoreline between the Kranji River and the Johor–Singapore Causeway was the Australian 27th Brigade, led by Brigadier Duncan Maxwell, and one irregular company. (Full article...)

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Credit: Henry Leong Him Woh (12 July 2008)

Biopolis, a research and development centre for biomedical sciences located at one-north in Buona Vista, Singapore. Read more...

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General images

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

Image 1Sign board with warnings in Singapore's four main languages: English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 2The Supertree Grove at Gardens by the Bay (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 3The Sultan Mosque, built in 1826 in the Kampong Glam district, is the oldest and one of the largest mosque in Singapore. (from Singaporeans)
Image 41888 German map of Singapore (from History of Singapore)
Image 51955 stamp with the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II (from History of Singapore)
Image 6The Plan of the Town of Singapore, or more commonly known as the Jackson Plan or Raffles Town Plan. (from History of Singapore)
Image 7Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 8Singapore's urban geography is often characterised by extensive use of HDB flats, which the majority of citizens reside in. (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 9Hainanese chicken rice (from Singaporeans)
Image 10Deepavali decorations in Singapore. (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 11Shophouses in Singapore (from Singaporeans)
Image 12Lieutenant-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 13Centre square of Raffles Place (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 14Portrait of Stamford Raffles by George Francis Joseph, 1817 (from History of Singapore)
Image 15Upper Seletar Reservoir (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 16Baedeker map of the city and environs, c. 1914
Image 17The Jurong Industrial Estate was developed in the 1960s to industrialise the economy. (from History of Singapore)
Image 18The Marina Bay Sands integrated resort. Opened in 2010, it has become a key feature of Singapore's modern skyline. (from History of Singapore)
Image 19A hawker centre in Lavender, Singapore (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 20St Andrew's Cathedral (from Singaporeans)
Image 21View of Bukit Batok Estate. Large scale public housing development has created high housing ownership among the population. (from History of Singapore)
Image 22Old Supreme Court of Singapore (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 23Japanese POWs are taken to work where they were made to clear up the city during the British reoccupation in September 1945
Image 24The country celebrates its National Day on 9 August each year. (from History of Singapore)
Image 25Jurong Industrial Estate, Singapore, with Jurong Island in the background (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 26Quadrilingual sign (from Singaporeans)
Image 27The old and the new Singapore as seen from an alley behind Boat Quay (2023) (from History of Singapore)
Image 28Restored 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 29The 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 30Chinese 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 31The Thian Hock Keng, completed in 1842, served as a place of worship for early immigrants. (from History of Singapore)
Image 32Traffic 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 33Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum (from Singaporeans)
Image 34A statue of Raffles by Thomas Woolner now stands in Singapore, near Raffles's landing site in 1819. (from History of Singapore)
Image 35A busy Victoria Dock, Tanjong Pagar, in the 1890s. (from History of Singapore)
Image 36Fireworks over the Marina Bay skyline following the conclusion of the 2015 National Day Parade on 9 August 2015. (from History of Singapore)
Image 37A fragment of the Singapore Stone, inscribed with an Indic script, c. 10th to 13th century. (from History of Singapore)
Image 38Enlargeable, detailed map of Singapore (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 39Afternoon thunderstorms are a frequent occurrence in Singapore, which has an equatorial climate. (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 40Men of various ethnicities - Chinese, Malay, and Indian gather at a street corner in Singapore, circa 1900. (from Singaporeans)
Image 41Mass Rapid Transit (from History of Singapore)

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Yip as the flag bearer for Singapore at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Parade of Nations

Yip Pin Xiu PJG PLY (born 10 January 1992) is a Singaporean backstroke swimmer. She is a six-time Paralympic gold medalist and four-time World Champion, with two world records in the 50 m backstroke S2 and the 100 m backstroke S2. Yip is Singapore's most decorated Paralympian and Southeast Asia's most decorated swimming Paralympian.

Yip has Charcot-Marie-Tooth syndrome and competes in the S2 category for the physically impaired. Since 2005, she has won medals in international competitions such as the World Wheelchair and Amputee Games, Japan Paralympic Swimming Championships and International German Paralympic Swimming Championships. At the 2008 Summer Paralympics, she won a gold medal in the 50 metres backstroke and a silver medal in the 50 metres freestyle, setting world records in both events. At the 2016 Summer Paralympics, she won a gold medal in the 100 metres S2 backstroke, setting a world record for that event, and another for her 50 m split. She retained her gold medals for these two events in 2020 and 2024 in a historic three-peat. (Full article...)

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Ho Yuen Hoe Gan Eng Seng Hugh Hickling Zubir Said Tang Da Wu Edwin Thumboo Teresa Hsu Fandi Ahmad Denise Phua Li Jiawei Glenn Knight Laurentia Tan Tao Li 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 gynaecologist Oon Chiew Seng, who was diagnosed with dementia in 2013, was the founding chairperson of the first dementia home in Singapore?
... that Louis Vuitton helped to develop the visual arts programme for the School of the Arts, Singapore?
... that Singapore's first R-rated play was performed despite the police finding parts of it "offensive"?
... that a train station in Singapore repeatedly had issues with the design of its stairs?
... that the annual energy cost of a single fume hood in Singapore can be up to US$9,300?
... that Singaporean swimmer Marc Tay served in the Gulf War as an eye surgeon?

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In this month

10 March 1964: The MacDonald House bombing is carried out by Indonesian saboteurs, killing three people.
14 March 1967: The National Service bill is passed though the parliament, making it compulsory for all able-bodied Singaporean males above 18 to serve National Service.
15 March 1986: The Hotel New World collapses, killing 33 people.
20 March 1948: Singapore's first election takes place.
26 March 1991: Singapore Airlines Flight 117 is hijacked by four Pakistanis.
23 March 2015: Former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew passed away at the age of 91

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... that the architecture of the Singapore Power Building (pictured) was influenced by Gerhad M. Kallmann's Boston City Hall and Le Corbusier's Sainte Marie de La Tourette?

... that Liang Wern Fook, a pioneer of Singapore's xinyao movement, has composed over 200 songs?

... that Singaporean citizenship was first granted in 1957 when Singapore was a self-governing colony of the United Kingdom?

... that the first Director of Singapore's Commercial Affairs Department, Glenn Knight, was also the first legal officer in the country to be charged for corruption?

... that Dragon's Teeth Gate, an ancient navigational landmark, was documented in one of the earliest historic records of Singapore?

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Selected panorama

Credit: Chensiyuan (10 February 2012)

A view of the Marina Bay area from the Singapore Flyer.

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Southeast Asia

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Tasks

Things you can do

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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