Archaeology in Singapore

Who was Sang Nila Utama? What was life like in early, pre-colonial Singapore? It seems archaeology seems to attempt to answer some of these questions.

The Southeast Asian Archeology site is one of only a few that tracks archeological digs around Singapore. The sites explored include Fort Canning, Istana Kampong Glam, Fort Tanjong Katong, Palmer Road, Padang and St Andrew's Cathedral with the respective site reports found on each of these pages. Also appended is Miksic's "Recent archaeological excavations in Singapore" for a survey of what some of these digs have revealed about early Singapore. John Miksic is the patron saint of archaeology in Singapore. Hear what he has to say about local archeology, his own calling to this profession and his experiences. Or read more about the findings from some of the digs.

Another website by MA student Noel Tan - Southeast Asian Archaeology - updates readers on both local and other Southeast Asian archaeological excavations. His primer (Part 1 and Part 2) on the Srivijaya Kingdom lists an overview of the Buddhist empire that stretched from Java to Thailand spanning 600 years of rule. Consider his fascinating 3-part story - the many places of Singapore - of how Singapore (Simhapura) could have been a reference to other places besides this fine island. SheilaX gives an informative and articulate overview of the ancient history of the region and the comments that follow after her article are just as interesting.

We return to Sabrizain's Sejarah Melayu for a visual tapestry of this historical period, including the Buddhist and Hindu eras of the Malaya Archipelago.

The Srivijaya and Majapahit Kingdoms were centred in Sumatra and Java respectively and thus more detailed information of these early histories are generally found in websites concerning the early history of Indonesia. For example Indahnesia has a good number of articles covering these early kingdoms and more.

Ancient Singapore is invariably linked with the Singapore Stone of which little is left. For a detailed insight to this mysterious slab, check out the Wikipedia article on the Singapore Stone, the bulk of it written by Jack Lee.

However, Lim Chen Sian dispels the common perception that archaeology is about the distant past. He gives some insights to life as an archaeologist in his interview with RSI. But for the real deal, watch Invisible City, Tan Pin Pin's incredible documentary on Singapore's hidden side where Lim gives viewers a visual tour of his "office" and the work done there.

Keen to study more about Singapore's history and archaeology? Check out what NUS offers in its History and Culture section or visit the KaalaChakra exhibition on Indian influences in Southeast Asia, on at the National Library from 17 November to 16 May 2008.

Void Decks

There is nothing void about void decks - the open spaces on the ground floor of public housing apartments, or HDB flats. Better known as the venues for mega events such as Chinese New Year parties, weddings and funerals, they have also served as locations for the simpler birthday parties (watch the cake!)

When there isn't an occassion, the place is *lepak land. Here vagrants lounge, people just wait or **relak (even though they are haunted by other thoughts). Furniture is abandoned as are cats (Vegancat has more pix).

But residents put the place to more creative use than we can imagine. A popular spot for jams, with or without guitars, prancing and other table-top (or chair) dancing or simply a game of counterstrike, flying or biking. Sporting activities include fancy footwork with a football (check how he keeps the ball on his back while he takes off his t-shirt), skateboarding, and acrobatics (you must see this to believe it!)

It inspires poetry, academic musings, and political propaganda. There is a famed political website going by the same name

Turner, David captures the excitement and treasures at void decks in his NewPaper article "I want void-deck membership too" (10 July 2006) but to taste the real flavour of life in the void, you have to view the videos in this blog. They are proof that Singapore is more exciting than it seems.

*lepak = "to **relak in one corner" (ex-policeman quote) although the various online Singlish dictionaries seem to realate this term to sissy behaviour
**relak = to releax

Of Pratas, Plasters and Dinosaurs

Craving for the local flavours of Singapore, i came across this fascinating video of prata at Bukit Timah. Here you get a dizzying view of local favourites - Milo Dinosaur, Teh Tarik and of course the humble Prata! Catch the sideline sights of the Indian man pushing a heavy garbage bin across the room and the pretty Singapore lasses feeding on this feast.

This common breakfast fare which comes from South India has propogated an uncommon variety of mutations and accompanying drinks when sleepless Singaporeans began frequenting 24hr prata shops across the island.

PRATAS, MURTABAKS AND SUCH

The receipe for a prata seems simple enough but making one is an art. Watch the marvelous prata show online to see how these eastern pizzas are truly made. This is only outdone by the craftmanship that went into this bomb prata (a prata made of honey and butter, slurp!). UrbanWire, last month, wrote about Mr Prata, an outlet at Clementi. The article gives details of unique creations such as Tissue Prata, Italian Prata and Tuna and Mayonnaise Murtabak.

And what's a plaster?? Check Jim's Journal.

But should Roti Prata (Singaporean version) be merged with Roti Canai (Malaysian version)? Or do we truly have a distinct flavour?

DINOSAURS, T-REX & GODZILLA

It seems the Milo Dinosaur is now THE drink to accompany a good prata where once the simple teh-tarik or its later innovation, teh cino and kopi cino would have been prefered. AsiaOne's Wine and Dine's January 15, 2006 entry gives the history of teh tarik and claims that teh cino was invented by A&A Restaurant off Sembawang Road whilst Milo Godzilla was the fruit of Al-Azhar off Upper Bukit Timah. The Milo Dinosaur itself is a Malaysian invention. Basically a glass of iced Milo with a layer of Milo powder topping it, it sells for a hefty S$2. Options for a Horlicks variant, milk version (Milo Eruption)or more healthy fruity versions have been made available in other outlets. Check AsiaOne's Wine and Dine's July 3, 2006 entry for these new inventions.Summer Punch (May 31, 2006) describes the Milo Dinosaur and its gargantuan sister drinks, Milo Godzilla and Milo King Kong at Al-Ameen (T-Rex is common too but not profiled here). They progress in power and calories with each added scoop of whipped-cream and ice-cream.

Yes, Al-Ameen seems to be the oft cited site in blogs for these delicacies. Check out Recent Rune's entry on the outlet's infamous history and its other 24hr offerings.

Singapore online discoveries

My kind blog mentor (a rambler of some sorts) has adviced to make my entries more informal. So here it goes.

Being far from Singapore makes me long for all things Singaporean. The only way i can get near her is -- virtually. Thus i throw my net wide (onto the Internet that is) and through random successes i pull up whatever the day's catch may bring. Sometimes i will get leads from Singapore Heritage discussion list (this site is for members or join by emailing singaporeheritage-subscribe@yahoogroups.com), Yesterday.sg or even Tommorrow.sg. Sometimes i am just lucky. Maybe this blog should just be called Today.sg

Here are some of today's discoveries
* Intelligent Singapore or (IS) for short aggregates from some of the best social critics in our blogsphere. Seems to have only recently started as its archives is dated July

* My Sketchbook , a political cartoonist capturing recent issues such as the brownout of Mr Brown! The cartoonist was first highlighted by Singabloodypore, another site not to be missed. The later has his own bloody eshopfront!

Singlish

Singapore English has its own following. Jack Lee's Dictionary of Singlish and Singapore English includes not only explanations and samples of usage but also phonemes and the Chinese script where relevant. Many of the words defined are derived from the local papers. Talking Cock's Coxford Singlish Dictionary was an earlier online dictionary which also has print parallel.

Although i don't usually cite Wikipedia, its entry on Singlish presents an indepth linguistic analysis. From Jack Lee's Dictionary, several online sources which provide valuable academic analysis include Anthea Gupta's Singapore English and David Deterding's Singapore English : An Annotated Bibliography.

Join the Speak Good English Movement continues its attempts at inculcating good English amongst Singaporeans.

Panaromic Singapore

Chanced upon Panaromic Singapore whilst doing a search for Singlish. It vividly captures the visual language of being Singaporean. The images are displayed in panaromic style, against a black backdrop giving it a cinema-effect. The colours, angles and peoples portrayed show Singapore in a new light. Pictures are taken from all over Singapore, mainly of people in earthy, non-tourist locations such as Geylang and Bedok. The website is Tay Kay Chin's, a photojournalist who had served as the Straits Times Picture Editor in 1999 and has several international credits to his name.

An associated website National Day Babies, has 40 profiles of Singaporeans who's birthday falls on the same day as the Nation's. Each black and white photo has a short quote, and a poster-sized picture which can be downloaded.

Tay's Eastpix has a broader spectrum of images from Asia and the rest of the world. For Singapore, catch his vignettes of Little India and Colours of Singapore, his Requiems for Grandma and Grandpa and the Esplanade: Behind the Scenes for an insight to the true Singaporean.

Singapore's General Elections (2006) - Alternative Opinions

Although podcasting has been banned, there have been a number of blogs set up solely on this subject.

These include Sg Election'06 which offers Singlish/English opinions, links to sites and quotable quotes (started in Feb 06). It is a collaborative effort by bloggers from Singapore Ink, The Void Deck and From a Singapore Angle.

SGRally offers the archiving of rally speeches and activities. However, Singapore Election Watch offers a wider range of rally videos and broadcast interviews from the opposition parties. Although visually poor, you can catch the actual messages from the various parties. The comments on the site also give good insights to sentiments from the ground.

Politician's have also revamped or updated their personal websites. Check out James Gomez's site.

Existing blogs which highlight some measure of opinions and details about elections include Singabloodypore and Singaporegovt. Others such as Little Speck's offer insightful articles including quotes from rallies and Yawning Bread's which has photo essays on rallies and Nomination Day.

Discussions from the ground can be read on Sammyboy.com Alfresco Coffeeshop.

Singapore's General Elections (2006) - Political Parties

Party news and updates can be found in their respective party websites.

The ruling party, the People's Action Party (PAP), has a summary of campaign activities by constituencies and a listing of new candidates. Check the main page for news and upcoming rallies.

The Singapore Democrat (SDP) currently has suspended its letters section and its podcast. News of latest developments can be obtained from its homepage.

The Singapore People's Party (SPP/SDA) is a component party of the Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA) and comprises four other political parties, namely the Pertubohan Kebangsaan Melayu Singapore (PKMS), the National Solidarity Party (NSP), the Singapore People's Party, and the Singapore Justice Party (SJP). Check the Press Release for party responses and strategies. Check the main page for rally updates. Their candidates are profiled on the Channel NewsAsia site.

The Workers' Party (WP)has visual representation of the constituencies they are contesting in and a listing of candidates and their profiles with more personal details found in the Channel NewsAsia site. Check the main page for news and notices.

Party manifestos have been compiled by Channel NewsAsia but only for PAP and WP. Also available are a listing of rally sites,

Singapore's General Elections (2006) - News & Information

On 27 April 2006, "for the first time in 18 years, the PAP has not returned to power on Nomination Day" (CNA). For more on the elections, the Elections Department offers a map of the electoral divisions, results of past parliamentary elections, a register of voters (access only to personal records), instructions on voting and on overseas voting

Get media updates from the Straits Times' General Elections page (subscription required and Channel News Asia's GE 2006 webpage. A special section on Yahoo!Singapore News on the General Elections wraps up news from various media agencies. The site also presents the contestants for the various constituencies.

For succinct background information, Wikipedia has an article on this, the most recent General Elections in Singapore.

The Eurasians in Singapore

The Eurasians in Singapore are families made up of a mix of European and Asian cultures. These include an intertwining of Portuguese, Dutch, British, Chinese, Malay and Indian pedigree. These families have lived in Singapore for many generations.

Updates on the current Eurasian community can be found in the Eurasian Association, particularly their Eurasian Newsletter, Cuisine page and Forum which covers topics ranging from geneaology search to receipes. The Malacca Portuguese Eurasian Association has more information and colour.

Kerry Reutens has attempted to develop a portal on local Eurasians and has an interesting short article on who the Eurasians are. More details are available in the Wikipedia article about Eurasians although even this is yet to be completed. The Cristao article on the language of Portuguese Eurasians has great depth however.

The Eurasian Company of the Singapore Volunteer Corps gives invaluable insight to the contributions of this voluntary team of military men. It displays photos, a muster roll, articles and a detailed bibliography.

Fernandis'article describes the challenges of identity facing Portuguese Malaysians.

Eurasians often have complex geneologies but this hasn't stopped them from working out their family tree. Families like the Shepherdsons, Theseira have put up their own websites.

Collections in Singapore about Asia (II)

The National University of Singapore has a wealth of information in its libraries and faculties on Singapore and Asia. The Singapore-Malaysia collection in the NUS Central Library offers unique academic resources such as the newspaper clippings and a strong theses collection on the region. It also has unique print and non-print (ranging from databases to microfilms) in its holdings. It has a range of online bibliographies on Singapore covering aspects of history(including a Chinese version), statistics, literature and related topics. The Singapore National University Press has recently posted free online publications and serials - the Singapore E-Press focused on Singapore - and its own blog! Of course updates of new titles are also made available. Within the History Department of the Arts Faculty is an informative History Society with its journal available online since 2001. Check out the seminars and talks for special invited speakers. Beyond their zingy Flash introduction, the Geography Department also has interesting lists of research areas and publications. Unfortunately, none seem accessible online.

The University ground is also the location of several institutions with rich collections on Asia. The Institute of Southeast Asian Studies has revamped its website and offers access to working papers (back issues), journals and monographs, besides its library's catalogue and bookshop. The Institute of Policy Studies "is a think-tank dedicated to fostering good governance in Singapore through strategic policy research and discussion" with research areas extending to various Asian countries. It has online working papers which is freely accessible. The Asia Research Institute offers a large number of online papers along with insightful workshops and seminars conducted all year round.

Collections in Singapore about Asia (I)

With the new National Library opening (Lee Kong Chian Reference Library), I thought it would be appropriate to begin a series on Collections about Asia in various libraries and institutions. We begin with the LKCRL Collections and its main collection highlight - the Singapore and Southeast Asia Collections. Besides books, the collection also has unique non-print materials released for the first time for public viewing. These include maps, and ephemera such as brochures and posters. The rare books have been consolidated with resources previously in the warehouse and these are easily accessible through microfilms. Unique collections such as the Gibson-Hill Collection , the Ya Yin Kwan Collection and the Asian Children's Collection profile specific subject studies such as natural history, the overseas Chinese and illustrated Asian folktales respectively.

Useful online services include our Enquiry service which offers a 1-day turn around delivery for simple reference enquiries, free-of-charge with limited listing of resources.

Sikhism in Singapore

Sikh organisations in Singapore that represent their interests include the Sikh Advisory Board and the Central Sikh Gurudwara Board. The latter provides an insightful history of how the organisation arose and the early history of Sikhism in Singapore although AllAboutSikh provides more details to this story and a list of key Sikh temples and their addresses. A list of Sikh temples with pictures and short histories can be found at Singapore Mirror

This marks the end of a survey of websites on Singapore religions. The list of religions cited here are not exhaustive. However, if new information can be found, this will be added.

Hinduism in Singapore

The Hindu Endowment Board's website offers links to Hindu temples in Singapore, the Singapore Hindu - HEB's newsletter available online, festival dates and other hindu activities. The website of the Sri Thenduyathani Temple provides similar details such as images and links to local Hindu temples, festivals and the history of Chettiars in Singapore.

There are several online papers and analysis that provide a useful overview of Hinduism and its practices in Singapore. The Murugan Bhakti website has articles on Thaipusam and on Murugan temples in Singapore. Masakazu Tanaka has an online paper on Hinduism in Singapore.

Christianity in Singapore

The Catholics in Singapore comprise a large majority. Amongst the Protestants, the Anglicans, the Methodists, the Lutherans, the Presbyterians and the Baptists have been established in Singapore for about 50 years to at least a century. Independent churches such as Faith Community Baptist, New Creation and City Harvest have also large followings. A non-denominational site with a searchable directory for churches can be found at Antioch. An NZ site, Across, also hosts a browsable listing of Churches, Ministries and Christian Schools. Institutions that offer degrees in theology and have good research resources include the Trinity Theological College, known to have one of the best academic Christian libraries in Asia. Associated with it is the Centre for the Study of Christianity in Asia. Roxborough's Bibliography of Christianity in Malaysia covers detailed listing of resources by Denominations, Missionary Societies, Ethnic Studies, Regions including Singapore, Periods, Themes and Theses

Buddhism in Singapore

The Singapore Directory of BuddhaNet provides useful weblinks and/or addresses of Buddhist organisations in Singapore. Different veins of Buddhism including Mahayana and Theravada and even non-sectarian forms are listed and their categories reflected accordingly. The claims to being the largest Mahayana Buddhist temple in Singapore goes to the Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery. There are strains of Buddhism that traces its beliefs from Tibet (Nyingma Kathok Buddhist Centre - Singapore), others from Myanmar (Burmese Buddhist Temple), Sri Lanka (Buddha Vhara Society), Japan (Singapore Soka Association)and reflecting the syncretism of various Chinese dialect groups. The Singapore DharmaNet offers an A-to-Z directory of local organisations and pictures of a selected few. eSangha offers discussion forums for various aspects of Buddhism.

Taoism in Singapore

There is limited information about Taoism in Singapore, partly because there is no unifying organisation that links the Taoist temples together. The Taoist Mission (Singapore) offers insights to the religion with details on the development of Taoism in Singapore although this is mainly in Chinese. Taoism-Singapore is a very active discussion group that keeps track of events at various temples and the significance of these festivities. These are graphically illustrated through Tan Wee Cheng's online photographs at his website Tanki and elaborated further in the section Encounters.

Islamic Education in Singapore

The Darul-Arqam has a subsidiary, the Centre of Islamic Management Studies, set up in 1999 with the which aim to "develop and provide Islam-based training on various aspects of personal and professional development." Some unique courses offered are Islamic Banking and Shari'ah for Legal Practitioners. For religious education, there is a website reflecting all six full-time Madrasahs in Singapore. In 1999, the old Kampong Siglap Mosque was used as a centre for the memorisation of the Quran, Tahfiz Al-Quran Centre of Singapore. For critical thinking and discussions on Islam, the Centre for Islamic Studies provides such a platform. In the same vein, the Centre for Research on Islamic and Malay Affairs (RIMA), was also set up by the Association of Muslim Professionals.

Muslims in Singapore

Muslim Converts Association (Darul-Arqam)provides a good introduction to Islam. In Singapore, the administration of Muslim affairs is mainly managed by the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS or Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura). The MUIS portal provides links to services such as Hajj Services, Halal Certification including a listing of certified halal food establishments in Singapore, and various eResources such as sermons and online publications. MUIS was established in 1968 as a result of the Administration of Muslim Law Act. An amendment of the act in 1975 saw the Mosque Building Fund (MBF) being set up. " The fecundity of the MBF can only be due to the Singapore Muslim way of doing things - the self-help way. Under the scheme, working Muslims are presently asked to donate a minimum of $2 to $5 each month to the Fund according to their salary, deducted through a government agency". In Mosque.org.sg, discover where mosques are located in Singapore and how they are managed.

Inter-religious Organisation, Singapore

In the next few weeks, i will attempt to cover the varied religious and communal activities in Singapore. As a start, the Inter-religious Organisation (IRO) offers an overview of key religions in Singapore. This includes Hinduism, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Taoism, Christianity, Islam, Sikhism and Bahai faith. Key religions such as Islam, Christianity, Hinduism and the various Chinese religions will be explored as these reflect the four key races and languages recognised in Singapore.