Singapore’s Melting Pot
Singapore is a small island nation situated at the tip of Malaysia. It was first established as a British trading post in South-East Asia when an English representative signed a treaty with the Malay sultan on behalf of the British East India Trading Company. It was shortly occupied by Japanese forces during the Second World War. After their surrender it was retaken by the British. Then, the country started aiming for complete independence from both British and Malay interference. This happened in 1965 when the Singapore prime minister Lee Kuan Yew signed the country’s independence.
Singapore has about five million people that makes in the world’s second most densely populated country after Monaco. The majority is Chinese 75%, then Malays 14%, Indians 9%, and the rest are Eurasians and Arabs. The country is considered a global melting pot because many different peoples melt together to form one basic cultural norm based on the most predominant one. Approximately 40% of the population is foreigners.
The first official language it the country is English, then come Malay, Mandarin Chinese and Tamil. Most Singaporeans are bilingual. This forms a culture that is mostly influenced by British, Chinese, Malay and Indian norms and mentality. A local phenomenon is Singlish- an English-based colloquial language that takes its vocabulary from many neighboring Asian languages and mixes them with English and American slang. The most popular religion in Singapore is Buddhism followed y Islam, Christianity, Taoism and Hinduism. About one-seventh of the population is atheistic.
Singapore leads the world’s rankings as the most globalized country. This entails technology, personal contacts, finance and goods and services. Nowhere else in the world is this variety so balanced. This is considered to be due to the country’s high levels of trade, heavy international phone traffic, and the great amount of international travelers.
What makes Singapore a captivating place to visit is the convergence of not only different cultures but of traditions and modernity as well. You can spend countless hours walking from the traditional Chine Town, Colonial District, and Little India to the modern sim-lim square, Raffles Hotel, Sun-tech City and the modern architecture.
When it comes to national pass times food and shopping are the two religions all Singaporeans share. The local cuisine is a bright example of the country’s diversity. It has significant influences from British, Chinese, Indian, Malay, Tamil and Indonesian cooking. Typical is considered the satay, nasi lemak, fish and chips and chicken rise. Singapore is considered a shopping paradise where you can find clothes from every corner of the world and all global brands.
The idea behind a melting pot is celebrating commonalities opposed to differences. As a result this new national culture will be stronger, more resilient, adaptive and peaceful. This model has worked quite successfully so far in this extraordinary nation. There have been many accusations about the prevailing influence of the Chinese minority. Moreover, there have been frequent moves towards multiculturism as opposed to melting pot ideas. Only time will tell if this truly globalized country will set the pace for the future world.