Culture of Singapore

Singapore history dates back to the third century. It was a vassal state of various empires before being reestablished and renamed by Sang Nila Utama. The island was ruled by various sultanates until 1819, when the British came to the island and set up a port and colony. During British rule, the port of Singapore flourished and attracted many migrants. Singapore was under Japanese occupation during the World War II. After the war concluded, Singapore was self-governed before joining the Federation of Malaysia. Singapore became an independent republic on 9 August 1965.

It has a diverse populace of over 5.47 million people[2] which is made up of Chinese, Malays, Indians, and Eurasians (plus other mixed groups) and Asians of different origins, such as the Peranakan people, descendants of Chinese immigrants with Malay or Indonesian heritage.[3]

Singapore has several distinct ethnic neighbourhoods, including Katong, Kampong Glam, Geylang Serai, Chinatown and Little India.

Both Geylang Serai and Kampong Glam are the focal points of the Malays in Singapore.[9] A Malay Heritage Centre in Kampung Glam showcases the history and cultural exposure of the Malays,[10] who are indigenous to the land.[11] Both areas feature an annual month long Hari Raya Bazaar, during the fasting month of Ramadan. This is patronized by Malays and also other races.[12]

Katong is home of the Peranakans, and the neighbourhood's identity is shaped by its unique architecture – colourful two storey shophouses, colonial bungalows, intricate motifs and ceramic tiles. It was designated as a national heritage conservation area by the Singapore Government in 1993.

Little India is known and patronised by all races within the population for its thalis – South Indian "buffets" that are vegetarian and served on the traditional banana leaves. These neighbourhoods are accessible by public transport, especially by Mass Rapid Transit (MRT).

Singapore's Chinatown is an ethnic neighbourhood featuring distinctly Chinese cultural elements and a historically concentrated ethnic Chinese population. Chinatown is located within the larger district of Outram.

Ethnic enclaves from the British colonial era, akin to those seen in major cities in many Western countries, are largely non-existent. The remnant "enclaves" such as Little India, Chinatown and Kampong Glam are now mainly business hubs for their respective ethnic groups and preserved for historic and cultural reasons. The Housing Development Board enforces the Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) to "preserve Singapore’s multi-cultural identity and promote racial integration and harmony" and sets proportions for each ethnic group in each housing estate.[13]

Orchids in the Botanic Gardens

Founded in 1859 by an agri-horticultural society, the Singapore Botanic Gardens played a pivotal role in the country rubber trade boom in the early twentieth century, when its first scientific director headed research into the plant's cultivation. By perfecting the technique of rubber extraction which are still in use today as well as promoting its economic value to planters in the region, rubber output expanded rapidly. At its height in the 1920s, Singapore cornered half of the global latex production. Today, the Singapore Botanic Gardens is one of three gardens, and the only tropical garden in the world, to be honored as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Singaporean cuisine is also a prime example of diversity and cultural diffusion in Singapore. In Singapore's hawker centres, for example, traditionally Malay hawker stalls also sell Tamil food. Chinese stalls may introduce Malay ingredients, cooking techniques or entire dishes into their range of catering. This continues to make the cuisine of Singapore significantly rich and a cultural attraction. Singaporeans also enjoy a wide variety of seafood including crabs, clams, squid, and oysters. One favorite dish is the stingray barbecued and served on banana leaf and with sambal (chilli).

A hawker centre in Lavender, Singapore

Hainanese chicken rice

The major public holidays reflect the mentioned racial diversity, including Chinese New Year, Buddhist Vesak Day, Muslim Eid ul-Fitr (known locally by its Malay name Hari Raya Puasa), and Hindu Diwali (known locally by its Tamil name Deepavali). Christians constitute a large and rapidly growing minority, and Christmas Day, Good Friday, and New Year's Day are also public holidays.

On August 9, Singapore celebrates the anniversary of its independence with a series of events, including the National Day Parade which is the main ceremony. The first National Day Parade, which was held in 1966, was held at the Padang in the city centre.

In 2003, the Esplanade – "Theatres on the Bay", a centre for performing arts, was opened. The Esplanade is also known as "The Durian", due to its resemblance to the fruit. The Arts House at Old Parliament Lane has also been supportive of local performing arts in recent years. Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA) and LASALLE College of the Arts are the two main arts institutions offering full-time programmes for the performing arts in Singapore.

Many Singaporeans are bilingual. Most speak Singaporean English and another language, most commonly Mandarin, Malay, Tamil or Singapore Colloquial English (Singlish). Singapore Standard English is virtually the same as British English in most aspects of grammar and spelling, though there are some differences in vocabulary as well as minor ones in spelling due to Americanisation; for example, the word 'swap' is commonly spelled 'swop', as is standard in The Straits Times.[14]

All Singaporeans study English as their first language in schools, under the compulsory local education system, and their mother-tongue language as their second language. Thus, most Singaporeans are effectively bilingual, especially the youths in today's society. There are four main languages in usage in Singapore. The 'national' language of Singapore is Malay. This is in recognition of the Malay people as the indigenous community in Singapore even though a majority of Singaporeans today do not speak Malay. Malay is used in the national anthem, national motto and military parade drill commands. Tamil is an official language as the majority of South Asians in Singapore are ethnic Tamils from South India and Sri Lanka. While most Chinese Singaporeans are descendants of southern Chinese migrants who spoke a variety of regional languages, it is the northern Chinese language of Mandarin that is official in Singapore, though dialects such as Hokkien and Cantonese are still prevalent in the older generation of Chinese.

The Supertree Grove at Gardens by the Bay

Gardens and gardening have a special place in Singaporean culture as well as in politics. Historically this is all officially attributed to Lee Kuan Yew who apparently spearheaded this philosophy in 1963.[15] In a rare interview with Monty Don shown in the TV series Around the World in 80 Gardens, Lee Kuan Yew reveals that after visits to other big Asian cities such as Hong Kong and Bangkok he feared that Singapore would turn into another concrete jungle, and he decided that gardens and parks should be established everywhere and made this a priority of the government.

Singapore Sports Hub

Singaporeans participate in a wide variety of sports for recreation as well as for competition. Popular sports include football, basketball, cricket, rugby union, swimming, badminton, and cycling. Many public residential areas provide amenities like swimming pools, outdoor spaces (football, basketball courts, running tracks)[25] and indoor sport centres, with facilities for badminton, squash, table tennis, gymnastics, indoor basketball and volleyball, among others.

Since Singapore is an island, Singaporeans also enjoy many water activities including sailing, kayaking and waterskiing. There is also a number of avid recreational scuba divers, a prominent diving spot being the southern island of Pulau Hantu, famous for its coral reefs.

Football is arguably the most popular spectator sport. Singapore has its own professional football league, known as the Singapore Premier League. Launched in 1996, it consists of 10 teams competing against one another. Each team has its own home stadium, which are mostly located in heartland towns. In 1998, 2004, 2007 and 2012, the Singapore national football team were champions in the AFF Championship, the premier football competition in Southeast Asia.

Singapore's athletes have performed well in regional and international competitions, especially in table tennis, badminton, sepak takraw, bowling, sailing, silat, swimming and water polo. To date, Singapore has won a total of one gold, two silver and two bronze Olympic medals. Singapore has also amassed a total of 41 gold, 59 silver and 117 bronze medals at the Asian Games.

At the 2016 Summer Olympic Games, Singaporean swimmer Joseph Schooling was the gold medalist in the 100m butterfly, gaining Singapore's first-ever Olympic medal in swimming.[26] His winning time of 50.39 seconds is a National, Southeast Asian, Asian record and broke Michael Phelps' record of 50.58 seconds at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games.

Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum

Sri Mariamman Temple

Religion in Singapore is characterized by a diversity of religious beliefs and practices due to its diverse ethnic mix of peoples originating from various countries.

The most followed religion in Singapore is Buddhism, with 33.2% of the resident population declaring themselves as adherents at the most recent census (2015). A large majority of Buddhists in Singapore are Chinese, with 42.29% of the ethnic Chinese population in Singapore declaring themselves as Buddhists at the most recent census (2015). However, there are also sizeable numbers of non-Chinese ethnic groups in Singapore that practise Buddhism, such as the Japanese, Sinhalese, Burmese and Thais.

As of 2015, 18.5% of Singaporeans had no religious affiliation. Non-religious Singaporeans are found in various ethnic groups and all walks of life in the diverse, multicultural city state. The Singapore non-religious community itself is very diverse, with many calling themselves atheists, agnostics, free thinkers, humanists, secularist, theists or sceptics. In addition, there some people who decline religious labels but still practice traditional rituals like ancestral worship. The number of non-religious people in Singapore has risen gradually over the decades. Census reports show that those who said they have no religion rose from 13.0% in 1980 to 17.0% in 2010. In recent years, social gatherings of non-religious people are getting popular in Singapore. The Singapore Humanism Meetup is a major network of 400 over secular Humanists, freethinkers, atheists, and agnostics. In October 2010, the Humanist Society (Singapore) became the first humanist group to be gazetted as a society.[27]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Category:Murals in Singapore.

• Architecture of Singapore
• Non-denominational
• National Courtesy Campaign (Singapore)
• Chinese culture
• Japanese culture
• Hokkien culture