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Singapore's indigenous culture originates primarily from the Austronesian people that arrived from the island of Taiwan, settling between 1500 and 1000 BCE.It was then influenced during the Middle Ages primarily by multiple Chinese dynasties such as the Ming and Qing, as well as by other Asian countries such as the Majapahit Empire, Tokugawa shogunate, and the Ryukyu Kingdom.
The languages of Singapore are English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil, with the lingua franca between Singaporeans being English, the de facto main language. Among themselves, Singaporeans often speak Singlish, an English creole arising from centuries of contact between Singapore's internationalised society and its legacy of being a British colony.
Usage of four official languages is an element of policy designed to promote racial harmony, as is bilingualism in accordance with the belief that the ethnic language is the "carrier of culture" while English is the "language of commerce", a choice motivated by the fact that English had historically been the language of the colonial ...
In 1819, the port of Singapore was established by Sir Stamford Raffles, who opened it to free trade and free immigration on the island's south coast. Many immigrants from the region settled in Singapore. By 1827, the population of the island was composed of people from various ethnic groups². [7] Singapore is a multilingual and multicultural ...
The English name of "Singapore" is an anglicisation of the native Malay name for the country, Singapura (pronounced), which was in turn derived from the Sanskrit word for 'lion city' (Sanskrit: सिंहपुर; romanised: Siṃhapura; Brahmi: 𑀲𑀺𑀁𑀳𑀧𑀼𑀭; literally "lion city"; siṃha means 'lion', pura means 'city' or 'fortress'). [9]
Singapore's main territory looks like a diamond-shaped island, although its territory includes surrounding smaller islands. The farthest outlying island is Pedra Branca. Of Singapore's dozens of smaller islands, Jurong Island, Pulau Tekong, Pulau Ubin and Sentosa are the larger ones. Most of Singapore is no more than 15 meters above sea level.
Chinatown [a] is a subzone and ethnic enclave located within the Outram district in the Central Area of Singapore.Featuring distinctly Chinese cultural elements, Chinatown has had a historically concentrated ethnic Chinese population.
This migration has enriched the cultural heritage of the Malay community in Singapore. These groups share the same culture, customs, language, and religion with the broader Singaporean society. They are active in all areas of Singaporean culture and society, with independent representation in fields such as media, politics, and sports.