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.

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, 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 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 GDP per capita (PPP) in the world. 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 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 common language, with 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 is a 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 political dominance. The PAP has governed the country continuously since full internal self-government was achieved in 1959, and holds a supermajority 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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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: Sengkang (23 October 2005)

The Jurong BirdPark (Chinese: 裕廊飞禽公园; Malay: Taman Burung Jurong), is a tourist attraction in Singapore managed by Widlife Reserves Singapore. It is a landscaped park, built on the western slope of Jurong Hill. It is located within the Boon Lay Planning Area of the Jurong district and has an area of 202,000 square metres. Read more...

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General images

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

Image 1Old Supreme Court of Singapore (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 2Shophouses in Singapore (from Singaporeans)
Image 3Centre square of Raffles Place (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 4Enlargeable, detailed map of Singapore (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 5Lieutenant-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 6Mass Rapid Transit (from History of Singapore)
Image 7Men of various ethnicities - Chinese, Malay, and Indian gather at a street corner in Singapore, circa 1900. (from Singaporeans)
Image 81888 German map of Singapore (from History of Singapore)
Image 9Sign board with warnings in Singapore's four main languages: English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 10Chinese 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 111955 stamp with the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II (from History of Singapore)
Image 12Japanese POWs are taken to work where they were made to clear up the city during the British reoccupation in September 1945
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 14Jurong Industrial Estate, Singapore, with Jurong Island in the background (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 15A fragment of the Singapore Stone, inscribed with an Indic script, c. 10th to 13th century. (from History of Singapore)
Image 16Restored 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 17The 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 18A busy Victoria Dock, Tanjong Pagar, in the 1890s. (from History of Singapore)
Image 19St Andrew's Cathedral (from Singaporeans)
Image 20The Marina Bay Sands integrated resort. Opened in 2010, it has become a key feature of Singapore's modern skyline. (from History of Singapore)
Image 21The Supertree Grove at Gardens by the Bay (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 22Singapore's urban geography is often characterised by extensive use of HDB flats, which the majority of citizens reside in. (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 23Upper Seletar Reservoir (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 24Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum (from Singaporeans)
Image 25A hawker centre in Lavender, Singapore (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 26Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 27A statue of Raffles by Thomas Woolner now stands in Singapore, near Raffles's landing site in 1819. (from History of Singapore)
Image 28Deepavali decorations in Singapore. (from Culture of Singapore)
Image 29Fireworks over the Marina Bay skyline following the conclusion of the 2015 National Day Parade on 9 August 2015. (from History of Singapore)
Image 30The old and the new Singapore as seen from an alley behind Boat Quay (2023) (from History of Singapore)
Image 31Afternoon thunderstorms are a frequent occurrence in Singapore, which has an equatorial climate. (from Geography of Singapore)
Image 32The Jurong Industrial Estate was developed in the 1960s to industrialise the economy. (from History of Singapore)
Image 33The Plan of the Town of Singapore, or more commonly known as the Jackson Plan or Raffles Town Plan. (from History of Singapore)
Image 34Baedeker map of the city and environs, c. 1914
Image 35View of Bukit Batok Estate. Large scale public housing development has created high housing ownership among the population. (from History of Singapore)
Image 36The country celebrates its National Day on 9 August each year. (from History of Singapore)
Image 37Engraving of Sir Stamford Raffles by James Thomson
Image 38Traffic 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 39Hainanese chicken rice (from Singaporeans)
Image 40The Thian Hock Keng, completed in 1842, served as a place of worship for early immigrants. (from History of Singapore)
Image 41Quadrilingual sign (from Singaporeans)

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Walter Woon Cheong Ming SC (born 12 September 1956) is a Singaporean lawyer who served as the fifth attorney-general of Singapore between 2008 and 2010. He is currently an Emeritus Professor at the National University of Singapore Faculty of Law, Lee Kong Chian Visiting professor at the Singapore Management University Yong Pung How School of Law, and the dean of the RHT Legal Training Institute.

A lawyer by profession, Woon specialises in company law and securities regulation. Having graduated from the National University of Singapore and St. John's College, Cambridge, Woon joined the teaching staff of the National University of Singapore Faculty of Law in 1981 and subsequently served as Sub-Dean and Vice-Dean. He was appointed Professor of Law in 1999. He had also served as the legal adviser to the president of Singapore and the Council of Presidential Advisers between 1995 and 1997. (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 Yip Pin Xiu Neila Sathyalingam Han Sai Por Rex Shelley Feng Tianwei Lee Choon Seng Balaji Sadasivan Choor Singh Kelvin Tan Xiaxue

Did you know (auto-generated)

... that Louis Vuitton helped to develop the visual arts programme for the School of the Arts, Singapore?
... that Singaporean broadcaster Lee Fook Hong legally changed his name to Lee Dai Sor (literally 'Lee Big Fool' in Cantonese) after being accused of tax evasion?
... that Alan Choe was tasked with developing Queenstown, Singapore's first satellite town, after its British architects left the country in the mid-1950s?
... that a number of bus drivers who participated in a strike were unaware that it was illegally held?
... that artwork at Shenton Way MRT station depicts everyday people running after an old banknote?
... that S. Iswaran was the first Singaporean cabinet minister to be investigated by the country's Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau since 1986?

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In this month

7 November 1987: The first section of Singapore's MRT system on the North South MRT Line opens.
22 November 1990: Singapore Changi Airport Terminal 2 begins operation.
28 November 1990: Goh Chok Tong becomes the second Prime Minister of Singapore, marking the first handover of power since Singapore's independence.

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More did you know - show different entries

... 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 (11 May 2012)

A night time view of Bishan Park after its renovation under the Active, Beautiful, Clean Waters (ABC Waters) Programme.

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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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