The country Singapore is located in Southeast Asia, in the Pacific Ocean, on the southern tip of the Malacca Peninsula. The country consists of the main island of Singapore and about 50 smaller islands. This is a city-state that is considered the smallest country in Southeast Asia. The country is said to have been named after a prince from Palembang who is said to have seen an animal on the island. He was apparently so far away that he could not really tell what kind of animal it was, but he was sure that it was a lion so the island was named Singapura, which means the lion city in Sanskrit. Now, however, it is the case that there should never have been any lions on this island so he must have seen something else…
Thousands of international companies have offices on the island and when the island served as a trading center for the British Empire, many Chinese came here. Today, it is estimated that about 77% of the country’s inhabitants are of Chinese origin. Singapore initially became part of the country Malaysia when it became independent from the United Kingdom in 1963, but since 1965 Singapore is a separate country, and today it is considered Southeast Asia’s financial center with one of the world’s most active container ports.
Geography and climate
According to Bridgat, Singapore is a tropical island located right at the mouth of the Strait of Malacca, which is the shortest sea route between the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea. The country borders Malaysia and is surrounded by the Singapore Strait. Via the sea you have a border with Indonesia. Singapore consists of 63 different islands and it includes the main island which is simply called Singapore Island or Pulau Ujong in the Malay language. Of the smaller islands, Jurong, Pulau Tekong, Sentosa and Pulau Ubin are the largest. The highest point is the Bukit Timah hill which has a peak of 166 meters. In the 1960s, the country’s area was stated as 581.5 square kilometers, but today that figure is larger. Namely, they have succeeded in cultivating land with projects where, for example, smaller islands are brought together to get larger areas with better function. This has been done, for example, on Jurong Island.
A large part of Singapore’s land resources are set aside as nature reserves and they work diligently to preserve nature as it is by investing in public transport and reducing emissions. This means that you also experience nature in the urban landscape when there are plenty of parks and when you make room for trees and other vegetation.
The climate in Singapore is tropical and there are no specific seasons. The temperatures are at the same levels all year round and the humidity is high. The warmest months are April and May while the rainiest time is between November and January when there is a monsoon season in the area.