The Arabs are a small but significant community in Singapore. During colonial times, the Arabs played prominent economic roles in the regional, retail, wholesale and production trades, the Muslim pilgrimage industry and real estate development. They were also involved ...
The Sikh community is one of the smallest ethnic groups in Singapore and is usually considered part of the larger North Indian community. According to the 2010 census, there are about 12,952 Sikhs in Singapore. The Sikhs first came to Singapore in 1819 as sepoys, ...
Opened on 12 November 1960, the Central Community Library was located in the former National Library Building on Stamford Road. It used to be called the Central Lending Library until 1 September 1995 when the National Library became a statutory board and it was ...
The Parsis (or Parsees) are descendants of Zoroastrian Persians who settled in India in the 10th century. They first arrived in Singapore in the 19th century. As of 2017, an estimated 350 Parsis live in Singapore. Parsi Road and Parsi Cemetery are named after ...
The Tamils make up the largest segment of the South Indian community in Singapore. Originating from the present-day state of Tamil Nadu in South India as well as northern Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon), many Tamils came to Singapore during the 19th century as labourers ...
The Bugis were among the first groups of people to arrive in Singapore after the British established a trading settlement on the island in 1819. Many of the early Bugis settlers came as maritime traders and made significant contributions to the development of Singapore ...
The Javanese are one of the larger Indonesian ethnic groups that migrated to Singapore in various waves starting from the early 19th century. People of Javanese ancestry in Singapore are now regarded as part of the larger Malay/Muslim community.
The Eurasian community is a small but influential ethnic group that has been present in Singapore since the early 19th century. Eurasians are persons with mixed European and Asian lineage. Most Eurasians in Singapore can trace the European part of their ancestry ...
The term Peranakan generally refers to people of mixed Chinese and Malay/Indonesian heritage. Many Peranakans trace their origins to 15th-century Malacca where their ancestors were thought to be Chinese traders who married local women. Peranakan males are known ...
The People’s Association (PA) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) that was established on 1 July 1960 through the People’s Association Ordinance. Officially, the PA was formed to achieve two objectives: first, to develop ...
Ren Ci Community Hospital (RCCH) is one of the healthcare facilities under the voluntary welfare organisation, Ren Ci. The 15-storey hospital began operations in December 2008 and was officially declared opened on 11 January 2010. It provides rehabilitative and ...
Community Libraries are administered by the National Library Board to provide library services in the HDB heartland and town centres of Singapore. All the community libraries are situated close to the homes and offices of people so as to help them avail its services ...
Lee Wee Nam (b. 1881, Theng Hai, Guangdong, China–d. 24 January 1964, Singapore) was an eminent entrepreneur and community leader. Better known as Wee Nam Yia, a title given by the Teochews to a distinguished man of high position, Lee was the chairman and managing ...
Tan Beng Swee (b. 1828, Singapore–d. 4 November 1884, Singapore) was a wealthy Straits Chinese merchant and philanthropist. As the second-generation patriarch of the prominent Tan family, he served as a leader of the Chinese communities in both Malacca and Sin ...
Jacob Ballas (b. 21 January 1921, Iraq–d. 18 January 2000, Singapore) was a pillar of the Jewish community in Singapore, a successful stockbroker and well-known philanthropist. The Jacob Ballas Children’s Garden at the Singapore Botanic Gardens was named after ...
Lim Peng Siang (b. 1872, Fujian, China–d. 1944, Singapore) was a Chinese merchant who made significant contributions to Singapore’s economic and social developments in the early 1900s. He was a prominent leader of the Chinese community and held key positions in ...
The Teochew community is the second-largest Chinese dialect group in Singapore after the Hokkien. According to the 2010 Singapore census, Teochews make up about 20 percent of the Chinese resident population. The community, together with the Hakka, was singled out ...
Community Children’s Libraries (CCLs), targeted at children aged 10 and under, were located at the void decks of Housing and Development Board (HDB) estates. These libraries were set up jointly in 1993 by the People’s Action Party Community Foundation (PCF) and ...
The communal riots of 1964 refer to two separate series of race riots involving clashes between Malays and Chinese that occurred in Singapore when it was part of the Federation of Malaysia. The first series of riots started on 21 July during a Muslim procession ...
The Jawi Peranakan were an elite group in the Malay community active for half a century (1870s to 1920s). They are Straits-born Muslims of mixed Indian (especially Tamil) and Malay parentage who have assimilated into the Malay society. Their publication, the Jawi ...