Analysis of the Main Aspects of Singaporean Culture

Singapore is an island country located in southeast Asia, which is famous for its small size, complete infrastructure, and developed economies. In this paper, I will introduce Singapore from the main cultural aspects including language, history, religion and culture.

Language

There are four official languages in Singapore: English, Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil. The main language used in business, government, law, and education. Most elementary schools teach students mainly in English and set up mandatory Mandarin courses. Therefore, most Singaporeans are bilingual. Because of the language advantages, global organization is much easier to come to the market in Singapore.

Religion

It is not surprising the most widely accepted religion in Singapore is Buddhism because most Singaporeans descent is Chinese. The next-most practiced religion is Christianity, followed by Islam, Taoism, and Hinduism. 17% of the population did not have a religious affiliation. Generally speaking, the religion in Singapore consists of several most popular religions in the Asia area. Therefore, as a Human Resource specialist in Singapore, one may need to be familiar with the culture in the whole Asia area.

History

Singapore has gained independence as the Republic of Singapore since 9 August 1965 with Lee Kuan Yew and Yusof bin Ishak as the first prime minister and president respectively. Before that, Singapore has been governed by several polities as a colony from the pre-7th century. The British have huge impacts on today’s Singapore as the British Empire has governed Singapore for near 100 years in the most recent history before its independence. For example, the education system in Singapore follows the education system in the U.K., its legal system adopts the English common law system, and the official language in Singapore is English.

Culture

Singapore's culture is a combination of Asian culture and western culture. The ancestor of Singaporean mostly come from China, Malaysia, and other countries in the southeastern Asian area. The British Empire also has great impacts on Singaporean. Racial harmony is regarded by Singaporeans as a crucial part of Singapore's success. As a foreign traveler, one may need to know that Singapore is a fine city. There are strict restrictions on smoking, eating, even having chew gums in the public area. Violators may be faced with fines up to 5,000 Singapore dollars. No wonder Singapore is famous for its cleanness though located at such a crow place.

Conclusion

To sum up, in this paper I have covered and investigated several cultural aspects of the unique city-state Singapore. With rich history and culture as well as only around 6 million people, Singaporeans speak four major languages including English, Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil, and follow various religions including Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Taoism, and Hinduism.