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 Pedra Branca dispute was a territorial dispute between Singapore and Malaysia over several islets at the eastern entrance to the Singapore Strait, namely Pedra Branca (previously called Pulau Batu Puteh and now Batu Puteh by Malaysia), Middle Rocks and South Ledge. The dispute began in 1979 and was largely resolved by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 2008, which opined that Pedra Branca belonged to Singapore and Middle Rocks belonged to Malaysia. Sovereignty over South Ledge belongs to the state in the territorial waters of which it is located.

In early 1980, Singapore lodged a formal protest with Malaysia in response to a map published by Malaysia in 1979 claiming Pedra Branca. In 1989 Singapore proposed submitting the dispute to the ICJ. Malaysia agreed to this in 1994. In 1993, Singapore also claimed the nearby islets Middle Rocks and South Ledge. In 1998 the two countries agreed on the text of a Special Agreement that was needed to submit the dispute to the ICJ. The Special Agreement was signed in February 2003, and the ICJ formally notified of the Agreement in July that year. The hearing before the ICJ was held over three weeks in November 2007 under the name Sovereignty over Pedra Branca/Pulau Batu Puteh, Middle Rocks and South Ledge (Malaysia v. Singapore). (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 1Upper Seletar Reservoir (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 2Japanese POWs are taken to work where they were made to clear up the city during the British reoccupation in September 1945
Image 3Men of various ethnicities - Chinese, Malay, and Indian gather at a street corner in Singapore, circa 1900. (from Singaporeans)
Image 4A hawker centre in Lavender, Singapore (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 5Deepavali decorations in Singapore. (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 6Lieutenant-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 71955 stamp with the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II (from History of Singapore)
Image 8Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum (from Singaporeans)
Image 9Singapore's urban geography is often characterised by extensive use of HDB flats, which the majority of citizens reside in. (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 10Old Supreme Court of Singapore (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 11Afternoon thunderstorms are a frequent occurrence in Singapore, which has an equatorial climate. (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 12Centre square of Raffles Place (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 13The Thian Hock Keng, completed in 1842, served as a place of worship for early immigrants. (from History of Singapore)
Image 14Enlargeable, detailed map of Singapore (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 15Sign board with warnings in Singapore's four main languages: English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 16Traffic 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 17Portrait of Stamford Raffles by George Francis Joseph, 1817 (from History of Singapore)
Image 18St Andrew's Cathedral (from Singaporeans)
Image 19The Marina Bay Sands integrated resort. Opened in 2010, it has become a key feature of Singapore's modern skyline. (from History of Singapore)
Image 20Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 21Quadrilingual sign (from Singaporeans)
Image 22A busy Victoria Dock, Tanjong Pagar, in the 1890s. (from History of Singapore)
Image 23The Plan of the Town of Singapore, or more commonly known as the Jackson Plan or Raffles Town Plan. (from History of Singapore)
Image 24Baedeker map of the city and environs, c. 1914
Image 25Hainanese chicken rice (from Singaporeans)
Image 261888 German map of Singapore (from History of Singapore)
Image 27The Supertree Grove at Gardens by the Bay (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 28View of Bukit Batok Estate. Large scale public housing development has created high housing ownership among the population. (from History of Singapore)
Image 29The Sultan Mosque, built in 1826 in the Kampong Glam district, is the oldest and one of the largest mosque in Singapore. (from Singaporeans)
Image 30Jurong Industrial Estate, Singapore, with Jurong Island in the background (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 31Shophouses in Singapore (from Singaporeans)
Image 32The country celebrates its National Day on 9 August each year. (from History of Singapore)
Image 33The old and the new Singapore as seen from an alley behind Boat Quay (2023) (from History of Singapore)
Image 34Fireworks over the Marina Bay skyline following the conclusion of the 2015 National Day Parade on 9 August 2015. (from History of Singapore)
Image 35Mass Rapid Transit (from History of Singapore)
Image 36The 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 37The Jurong Industrial Estate was developed in the 1960s to industrialise the economy. (from History of Singapore)
Image 38A statue of Raffles by Thomas Woolner now stands in Singapore, near Raffles's landing site in 1819. (from History of Singapore)
Image 39Chinese 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 40A fragment of the Singapore Stone, inscribed with an Indic script, c. 10th to 13th century. (from History of Singapore)
Image 41Restored 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)

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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 Singaporean singer Dawn Gan played herself in a television drama about aspiring singers?
... that Cambodian architect Vann Molyvann declined a request from Lee Kuan Yew to help design Singapore?
... that an artwork in Singapore's Outram Park MRT station represents the state of mind of commuters through 69 engravings of surreal human forms?
... that the annual energy cost of a single fume hood in Singapore can be up to US$9,300?
... that Wee Toon Boon remained a member of the Parliament of Singapore even after he began serving a prison sentence for corruption?
... that a number of bus drivers who participated in a strike were unaware that it was illegally held?

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In this month

2 February 1963: Operation Coldstore takes place. At least 111 anti-government left-wing activists were arrested and detained, including key members of the Barisan Sosialis.
8 February 1819: Sir Stamford Raffles signs a treaty with Sultan Hussein of Johor, thus marking the founding of modern Singapore.
15–25 February 1915: The Singapore Mutiny occurs as British Indian sepoys rose up against the British.
15 February 1942: The Fall of Singapore to the Japanese during World War II. This was described by Winston Churchill as the "worst disaster" and "largest capitulation" in British history.
21 February 2008: The International Olympic Committee awards the hosting rights to the inaugural Youth Olympic Games to Singapore.

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... that the tower of Paul Rudolph's The Concourse (pictured) is octagonal in plan, as the number "8" is associated with prosperity in Chinese culture?

... that The Cenotaph is Singapore's first major war memorial built in memory of the people who gave their lives in World War I, and was unveiled by the young Prince Edward of Wales, later King Edward VIII?

... that to prepare for future examinations, Singapore students use the ten year series to practice on past years' examination papers, some of which date back to before they were born?

... that Cavenagh Bridge, the only suspension bridge in Singapore, was originally designed as a drawbridge but on its completion in 1869 was found to be suitable only as a fixed structure, and is now a pedestrian bridge?

... that Singapore's Police Coast Guard is a coast guard and water police service that is also responsible for maintenance of order on most of Singapore's off-shore islands?

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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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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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