Singapore

The Republic of Singapore (Simplified Chinese: ??????; Pinyin: X?nji?p? Gònghéguó, Malay: Republik Singapura; Tamil: ??????????? ????????), is an island city-state in Southeast Asia, situated on the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, south of the Malaysian state of Johor and north of the Indonesian Riau Islands. Its coordinates are {{coor dm|1|17.583|N|103|51.333|E|region:SG_type:city(4425720)}}, just 137 km north of the Equator. The name Singapore was derived from Malay word singa (lion), which itself is derived from the Sanskrit word ???? siMha of the same meaning, and the Sanskrit word ??? pura (city) {{ref|sanskrit}}.

History

The first records of Singapore were in Chinese texts dating back to the 3rd century. The island served as an outpost of the Sumatran Srivijaya empire and originally bore the Javanese name Temasek. Temasek rose to become a significant trading city, but subsequently declined in significance. Most of the remnants of old Temasek no longer exist in Singapore other than archaeological evidence.

Related Topics:
Chinese - 3rd century - Sumatra - Srivijaya - Javanese - Temasek - Archaeological

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In the 15th and 16th century, Singapore was a part of the Sultanate of Johore. During the Malay-Portugal wars in 1617, Singapore was set ablaze by Portuguese troops.

Related Topics:
15th - 16th century - Sultanate of Johore - Malay - Portugal - 1617

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In 1819, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, a British East India Company official, made a treaty with the Sultan of Johore and established Singapore as a trading post and settlement. Singapore was later made a crown colony in 1867 after a series of territorial expansions. It soon grew as an entrepot town due to its strategic location along the busy shipping routes connecting Europe to China.

Related Topics:
1819 - Thomas Stamford Raffles - British East India Company - Crown colony - 1867 - Entrepot

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During World War II, Japanese forces invaded Malaya and the surrounding region in the Battle of Malaya, culminating in the Battle of Singapore. The unprepared British were defeated despite having numerical superiority, surrendering in February 15th 1942 to the Japanese. The Japanese renamed Singapore as Syonan-to ("Light of the South") and held it until the Japanese defeat in September 1945. In 1959, Singapore became a self-governing crown colony with Lee Kuan Yew from the People's Action Party (PAP) as the first Prime Minister of Singapore following the 1959 elections. After a national referendum in 1962, Singapore was admitted into the Federation of Malaysia along with Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak as a state with autonomous powers in September 1963. After heated ideological conflict developed between the state government formed by PAP and the Federal government in Kuala Lumpur, Singapore was expelled from the federation on August 7 1965. It gained official sovereignty two days later on August 9 1965 with Malaysia the first country to recognise it as an independent nation, the date becoming Singapore's National Day. Singapore's National Days are celebrated with annual parades and other festivities.

Related Topics:
World War II - Japanese forces - Invaded - Malaya - Battle of Malaya - Battle of Singapore - 1942 - 1945 - 1959 - Lee Kuan Yew - People's Action Party - Prime Minister of Singapore - After a national referendum in 1962 - Federation of Malaysia - Sabah - Sarawak - Autonomous - September - 1963 - Heated ideological conflict - August 7 - 1965 - August 9 - National Day

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The fledgling nation had to struggle for self-sufficiency, and faced problems including mass unemployment, housing shortages and the lack of land and natural resources, like oil. During Lee Kuan Yew's term as prime minister from 1959 to 1990, his administration curbed unemployment, raised the standard of living, developed Singapore's economic infrastructure and overcame problems such as lack of housing, social stability and an independent national defence. This elevated Singapore into developing nation and subsequently to developed status.

Related Topics:
Unemployment - 1959 - 1990 - Developing nation - Developed

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On 26 November 1990 Goh Chok Tong assumed the office of prime minister. Under his tenure the country tackled the 1997 Asian economic crisis, the SARS outbreak in 2003 as well as terrorist threats posed by the Jemaah Islamiah (JI). Lee Hsien Loong, the eldest son of Lee Kuan Yew, became the third prime minister on 12 August 2004 after securing the confidence of a majority of Parliament, which is still dominated by the PAP.

Related Topics:
26 November - 1990 - Goh Chok Tong - 1997 - Asian economic crisis - SARS - 2003 - Terrorist threats - Jemaah Islamiah - Lee Hsien Loong - 12 August - 2004 - Confidence

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