1.1 Singapore facts

Singapore facts

Full country name

Republic of Singapore

History

The name Singapore is derived from the word “Singapura” or “Lion City” as legend has itthat a Sumatran prince sighted a beast that looked like a lion when he first set foot on the island in the 14th century. In the year1819, Sir Stamford Raffles established a British trading station on this island. Singapore gained its independence as a sovereign anddemocratic nation on 9 August 1965. It was admitted to both the United Nations and the Commonwealth of Nations in the sameyear.

Area

Singapore has a total land area of 692.7 sq km (267.45 sq mi), comprising one main island and a number of isletsscattered off its northeast and southern coasts.

Climate

Singapore is an equatorial country with relatively uniform temperature, high humidity all year round andabundant rainfall particularly during the Northeast Monsoon from November to January. It has relatively high temperatures with adaily average of 26.7°C and a high daily relative humidity of approximately 84.4%.

Population

4,35 million (July 2004 est.)

People

Singapore's people are largely descendants of immigrants from the Malay Peninsula, China and the Indiansub-continent. The population is comprised of 76.7% Chinese, 13.9% Malay, 7.9% Indian and 1.5% others.

Language

There are 4 official languages - Malay, Chinese (Mandarin), Tamil and English. Malay is the nationallanguage and English is the language of administration as well as the medium of instruction in schools and other educationalinstitutions. The National Anthem is sung in the Malay language.

Religion

31% Taoist, 28% Buddhist, 18% Muslim, 10% Christian, 4% Hindu

National symbols

For more information on Singapore’s national symbols, please visit Singapore Infomap .

Government

Singapore is a republic with a parliamentary system of government based on the Westminster model. The organs ofstate comprise:

The Executive : Head of State and Cabinet

• Head of State: President S R Nathan, elected on 1 Sep 1999 (The President is elected for a fixed term of 6 years.)
• Cabinet: Led by the Prime Minister, Mr Lee Hsien Loong (since 12 Aug 2004)

Parliament

Parliament is elected by general election every five years. The first sitting of Parliament was held on 8 Dec1965. The first general election for Parliament was held on 13 Apr 1968. There are 23 registered political parties. The currentParliament, elected on 3 Nov 2001 has 82 People's Action Party (PAP) Members of Parliament (MPs), 2 Opposition MPs and 1Non-Constituency MP. In addition there are 7 nominated MPs.