Names of Singapore

Etymology of Singapore

The English language name Singapore comes from its Malay name Singapura, which is derived from Sanskrit meaning "Lion City". Singa comes from the Sanskrit word siṃha (सिंह), which means "lion", and pūra (पुर) means "city" in Sanskrit and is a common suffix in many Indian place names. Sanskrit was used as it was considered for a long period the prestigious international language of the region. Sang Nila Utama, said to be the founder of Singapura in late 13th century who gave the city its name, also acquired a Sanskrit name Sri Tri Buana. The name Singapura or its related form was fairly common in early South East Asia, with a few cities given the same name – the earliest one known is Simhapura in what is now Vietnam established by the Cham people in the fifth century, others were found in Thailand and Java. The name also appears in Buddhist jataka tales and in the Ramayana.

According to the Malay Annals, Singapore was named after a strange beast seen by Sri Tri Buana while hunting in Temasek, and he was informed that the beast must have been a lion. He then decided to stay in Temasek and named the city he founded Singapura or "Lion City". However, scholars have pointed out that lions are not native to Singapore or South East Asia, and the "lion" therefore would have been an error in identification. The Malay Annals describes the beast seen by Sri Tri Buana as a powerful, fast-moving and fine-looking animal with a "red body, black head, and white breast", and size "slightly bigger than a goat." Some have suggested that it may have been a tiger or some other big cat that he saw and was misidentified. However, since tigers were native to the region, some thought it unlikely that Sri Tri Buana or his followers would not recognise a tiger to mistake it for a lion. It has also been suggested that the description of the beast in the Malay Annals fits a mythical beast called janggi told in Minangkabau legends as a guardian of gold mines.

Some also thought that the person Sri Tri Buana and the story of the founding of Singapura to be fictional, and a number of alternative suggestions for the origin of the name of Singapore have been given. For example, it has been proposed that the name was adopted by Parameswara as an indication that he was re-establishing in Singapore the lion throne that he had originally set up in Palembang as a challenge to the Javanese Majapahit Empire. In this version of events, the Javanese drove Parameswara out of Palembang as a consequence of this defiance, and he then fled to Singapore, whereupon he assassinated the local ruler and usurped the throne. The change of name may therefore serve to strengthen his claim over the island. Others linked the name to the Javanese kingdom Singhasari as well as a Majapahit Buddhist sect whose adherents were referred to as lions. Although it is believed that the name Singapura replaced Temasek some time in the 14th century, the origin of the name cannot be determined with certainty.

Early records

The first possible written records of Singapore possibly date to the 2nd century, when the island was identified as a trading post in the maps of the Greek astronomer, Ptolemy. The map located a place called Sabara or Sabana in the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula (named the Golden Khersonese) where Singapore lies. However, identification of Sabana or Sabara varies according to different authors.

A 3rd century Chinese written record describes the island of Puluozhong (Chinese: 蒲羅中; pinyin: Púluōzhōng), probably a transcription of the Malay Pulau Ujong, "island at the end" (of the Malay peninsula). Ninth century Arab sailors recorded a place called the island of Ma'it, which could be Singapore. Arab sources also refer to a place called Betumah that some have argued may refer to Bukit Timah (meaning "tin hill") of Singapore, or was sited at or near Singapore, although it has also been linked to other locations.

It was recorded that in 1320, the Mongol Yuan Dynasty sent a mission to obtain elephants from a place called Longyamen (Chinese: 龍牙門; pinyin: Lóngyámén; literally: "Dragon's Teeth Gate"), known locally as Batu Berlayar in Malay, which is believed to be Keppel Harbour.

Singapore is referred to in old Javanese and Malay literature as Temasek. The Nagarakretagama, a Javanese epic poem written in 1365, names a settlement on the island as Tumasik. The name appears twice in the Malay Annals. Temasek may have been derived from Tasik, the Malay word for "lake" or "sea", perhaps meaning "Sea Town". The Chinese traveller Wang Dayuan, visiting the island around 1330, mentioned Danmaxi (Chinese: 單馬錫; pinyin: Dānmǎxí, written as 淡馬錫 in the Mao Kun map), which is a transcription of the Malay name Temasek. Wang described two settlements in Danmaxi: Long Ya Men and Ban Zu (班卒, Malay: pancur). In a version of Marco Polo's account of his travel, a place named Chiamassie that could be Temasik was mentioned in relation to the island kingdom of Malayur. Temasik may have also been mentioned in Vietnamese records as Sach Ma Tich in the 14th century. Chinese records continued to use the name Temasik for some time afterwards (for example in the Mao Kun map) even though its name had been changed to Singapura in the 14th century. Although the name was mentioned in Malay literature, the name Temasek had become obsolete and did not appear in European maps and documents from 1500 to 1800. In colonial and more modern times, this early name for Singapore was revived and is now used by modern institutions and for national honours in Singapore.

Early European names

Early European visitors to the region gave Singapore a number of different names. Portuguese and Spanish sources may use the name Viontana that may be a corruption of Ujong Tanah that may also refer to the lower part of the Malay Peninsula. Dutch maps of the 1600s and 1700s named the island as 't Lange Eyland or 't Lang Eiland ("The Long Island"), or the Malay equivalent Pulau Panjang, as well as Iatana for Ujong Tanah. A Flemish merchant named the island as Ysla de la Sabandaria Vieja, or "Island of the Old Shahbandar's House" (the Shahbandar or Portmaster's house was marked on some early maps near the mouth of Singapore River).

The name Singapura and its variants were used from 1500 to 1800, however, that up to the late 1700s, the name Singapura was more commonly used in relation to a strait rather than the island itself. The Portuguese general Afonso de Albuquerque who conquered Malacca in fact claimed that Singapura was named after the strait. The Strait of Singapore in the early period may refer to the southern portion of the Strait of Malacca or other stretches of water. Before 1800, the use of the term Singapore was inexact with many variant spellings, for example, the name can be written as Cingaporla, Cincapula, and many other variations, and can refer to a number of geographical areas or entities, including the various straits and the southern portion of the Malay peninsula. After the 1780s, the name Sinkapoor began to be commonly used on Dutch maps. In English sources, Sincapore, Sincapure, Singahpura and other variants of Singapore were used in the 17th to 19th century, and although a few variants such as Singapoor and Singapure continue to appear for some time, Singapore would become the standard form in English in the 19th century.

Local Chinese names

A number of names for Singapore were used by local Hokkien-speaking ethnic Chinese in early modern Singapore. In addition to the now standard Sin-ka-pho (新加坡), other names include Seng-ka-pho (星嘉坡 or 星加坡) and the derived short forms Seng-chiu (星洲; "Singapore Island") and Seng-kok (星國 "Singapore State").

Another name, Sit-la̍t (石叻) derived from the Malay word selat meaning "strait" (from Sit-la̍t-mn̂g [石叻門] another name for Longyamen) and the derivatives or variants Sit-la̍t-po· (石叻埠), 'Si̍t-la̍t-po· (實叻埠), and La̍t-po· (叻埠) were also used.

World War II

The Japanese renamed Singapore Shōnantō (昭南島), from Japanese "Shōwa no jidai ni eta minami no shima" ("昭和の時代に得た南の島"), or "southern island obtained in the age of Shōwa", and occupied it until the British repossessed the island on 12 September 1945, a month after the Japanese surrender. The name Shōnantō was, at the time, romanised as Syonan-to or Syonan, where the characters 昭南 literally translate to "Light of the South".

Chinese

In written Chinese characters, the country's official name, "Republic of Singapore" is rendered as 新加坡共和国 in simplified Chinese and 新加坡共和國 in traditional Chinese. The full name of Singapore in different varieties of Chinese is:

A nickname for the city is Shīchéng (Mandarin)/Sai-siâⁿ (Hokkien) (狮城), literally "Lion City." Modern historical names are retained as poetic or shorthand names for the island or country and include Xīngzhōu/Seng-chiu (星洲) and Xīngguó/Seng-kok (星國). Xīng, literally "star," is used as a homophone for the first syllable of "Singapore." Zhōu is a term for "island" while guó means "country" or "state." Xīngzhōu is used in names such as the Sin Chew Jit Poh (星洲日报), a newspaper in Singapore until the 1980s.

Malay

The official name of the country in Malay is Republik Singapura and the Malay name is used for the country's motto and its national anthem of the same name, "Majulah Singapura".

Tamil

In Tamil, the country's name is Ciṅkappūr (சிங்கப்பூர்) and its official name is Ciṅkappūr Kuṭiyaracu (சிங்கப்பூர் குடியரசு, /siŋɡəppuːr kuɽijərəsɯ/).

Other languages

Nearly every language currently uses a name for Singapore derived from "Singapore" or "Singapura."

Khmer

In the Khmer language, the country's name is Sernghakborey (សិង្ហបុរី) from the word សិង្ហ meaning "lion" and បុរី meaning "city". The official name of the country is ស឵ធ឵រណៈរដ្ឋសិង្ហបុរី, literally "Republic of Singapore". The French word "Singapour" is commonly spoken.

Vietnamese

Vietnamese usually uses the word Singapore for the country (and Cộng hòa Singapore for "Republic of Singapore") but has traditionally used versions taken from the hán tự 新加坡, namely Tân Gia Pha or Tân Gia Ba (and Tân Gia Ba Cộng hòa quốc for "Republic of Singapore" [新加坡共和國]). It has also used such hán tự-derived names other for historical names including Chiêu Nam for Shōnan (昭南) and Hạ Châu.

Korean

Likewise, Korea formerly used a Hanja-derived name for Singapore, Singapa (신가파), but now uses Singgaporeu (싱가포르).