Indians in Singapore
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Indians in Singapore - defined as residents of South Asian ancestry - form about 9% of the national population. While they are the smallest of the city-state’s three main 'races', among cities, Singapore has the world's second largest overseas Indian population.
Indian settlement on the island began with British rule in 1819. As a result of migration patterns, Singapore Indians are linguistically and religiously diverse, albeit with small majorities of Tamils and Hindus. Like the culture of the Chinese and Malays, Indian culture has endured yet evolved in response to local conditions over almost 200 years, becomming distinct from its cultural homelands. Indian elements are also diffused within a shared Singaporean culture.
Singapore’s Indian population is notable for its class stratification, with disproportionately large elite and lower income groups. Although stratification has long existed in the Indian community, it has grown more visible since the 1990s with an influx of professionals from India. As a result, Indians now enjoy higher monthly average incomes, and are much more likely to hold a university degree, than the Chinese or Malays. However, the success of recently arrived Indian expatriates also masks the socio-economic problems faced by longer-settled Indian Singapore citizens.
Prominent Indian individuals have always made a mark in Singapore as leaders of various fields in national life. At the same time, Indians are collectively well represented, and often over-represented, in areas such as politics, education, diplomacy and the law.
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[edit] Definitions
In Singapore, the term ‘Indian’ refers broadly to ethnic South Asians, or people who trace their ancestry to the Indian subcontinent. The Singapore Department of Statistics defines ‘Indians’ as a ’race’, comprising “persons of Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi or Sri Lankan origin, such as Tamils, Malayalis, Punjabis, Bengalis, Singhalese, etc.” [1] While the department reveals the size of Indian ethnic groups (e.g. Sikhs or Tamils), data like income, education or residence type is given in terms of ‘race’ rather than language or religion.
‘Indians in Singapore' may be further defined in terms of nationality and residency status. Most ethnic Indians are Singapore citizens, known as ‘Indian Singaporeans’, or simply ‘local Indians’. They are the second, third, fourth and even fifth generation descendants of immigrants. In addition, many ethnic Indian expatriate professionals and unskilled foreign workers live in Singapore. Most are citizens of South Asian countries, although some are part of the Indian diaspora from countries like Malaysia. Several foreign Indian professionals and their families have acquired Singapore Permanent Residency (PR), and are known as ‘Indian PRs’. A few have even taken up Singapore citizenship, becomming Indian Singaporeans. However, most reside on short-term work, study or dependants passes. They are often referred to by their nationality, e.g. ‘Bangladeshis’ or ‘Sri Lankans’. Citizens of the Republic of India are called ‘Indian nationals’, or even ‘Indian Indians’, to distinguish them from Indian Singaporeans.[2] In general, the Department of Statistics only reveals data about 'Singapore Residents', defined as Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents, and who form 80% of the total population. There is little hard data about the size and demography of Singapore's 'non-resident' Indian population.
[edit] Indian contact, migration and settlement
[edit] Ancient cultural influences
Ancient India exerted a profound influence over Southeast Asia through trade, religious missions, wars and other forms of contact. Pre-colonial Singapore was territorially part of 'Indianized Kingdoms' like Srivijaya and the Majapahit, which formed part of a cultural region previously called Greater India or the Indosphere. [3]
Prior to the spread of Islam in the region, Singapore society and culture, like the rest of the Malay World, was Hindu-Buddhist. Indian influnces in traditional Malay culture can be seen in the retelling of the Hindu Ramayana epic through Wayang Kulit (shadow puppetry), or in the format of the Malay wedding ceremony. Perhaps, the most extensive and enduring ancient Indian influence in contemporary Malay culture is the vast number of Indian loan words in the Malay language.
Indian influence can also be seen in the mythology surrounding ancient Singapore. The Sejarah Melayu or Malay Annals, describe the Malay prince who founded Singapore - Sang Nila Utama - as descended from Alexander the Great and an Indian Princess.[4] Meanwhile, Singapore's name is derived from a Sanskrit term meaning 'Lion City'.
More tangibly, archaeological evidence points to Hindu or Buddhist cultural artefacts in pre-colonial Singapore. In 1822, John Crawfurd noted what appeared to be the ruins of a Hindu or Buddhist temple on Fort Canning Hill.[5] Indeed, the royal and sacred associations of Fort Canning Hill are related to the Hindu Mount Meru concept.[6] Also found on the hill and in the adjacent Singapore River were a number of artefacts which point to a Hindu-Buddhist cultural context. These include the splendid gold ornaments, including earings and armlet bearing the motif of a Javanese Hindu 'kala' head. [7]
[edit] Communities and occupations
Indian contact was rekindled from the late 18th century to World War II, when both India and Malaya (including Singapore) were under British colonial rule. Unlike earlier forms of contact, this led to mass migration and the formation of a large, settled and distinct Indian population in Singapore.
Given the diversity of migrants, their experiences were very different. Most were transient unskilled labourers, who worked in Singapore for several years before returning to their homelands. Returning workers were continually replaced by new migrants. It was only from the late 19th and early 20th centuries that Indians began to settle permanently in Singapore in large numbers. This has resulted in the paradox that, while the history of the Indian community is Singapore is nearly 200 years old, most Indian Singaporean families have only lived here for less than a century. This is also seen in the historical age and gender profile of the Indian community. In the 19th century, the community was disproportionately composed of adult men. It was only from the early to mid 20th century that the number of children and women began to grow.
The earliest Indians to arrive in Singapore were 120 sepoys in the Bengal Native Infantry - and their 'bazaar contingent' of washermen, milkmen and servants - who accompanied Stamford Raffles on his first trip to Singapore in January 1819. The military continued to be an important source of both direct and indirect employment for the Indian community throughout the period or British colonial rule in Singapore.
Another major group of Indians in early Singapore were convicts, as British colonial administrators sought to reduce overcrowding in Indian jails. Convicts in Singapore were used as labour for public works, and many important early public buildings and roads in Singapore were built using convict labour. Convicts sometimes chose to live on in Singapore after serving their sentences.
A large number of migrants from India were unskilled transient workers, who were often employed as port and dock coolies. Many of these were lower caste South Indian Hindus, especially Tamils, but also Telugus. They came to form a substantial number of the Singapore Indian community in colonial times.
Skilled workers and craftsmen performed a range of ‘traditional’ occupations, from goldsmiths to priests to sculptors. Some tended to cattle, and late went on to establish Singapore’s dairy farms. Meanwhile, Chettiars made their mark, and fortune, as moneylenders and currency traders. Again, South Indian Hindus, this time of various middle and upper castes, tended to perform these jobs.
English educated Sri Lankan Tamils and Malayalees, both Hindu and Christian, often came to work as civil servants, clerks, teachers, journalists and even as professionals like doctors and lawyers. They went on to form the core of the educated middle and upper classes of the Indian community.
Another important group were mercantile communities, like Hindu and Muslim Sindhis and Gujeratis, as well as Tamil Muslims, who were traders, dealing in a variety of products. They tended to run family businesses, some of which grew to become large and successful firms in the modern Singapore economy.
Sikh men found their niche working in the army, police force or as private security guards. Their appearance – being bigger built than most other Asians in Singapore, as well as having impressive turbans and beards – made them especially valued in this respect. In the colonial period, Chinese businessmen often decorated their buildings and even graves with sculptures of Sikh guards at the entrance, alongside more traditional lions and dragons.
The Indian community was socially divided along lines of language, religion, caste, etc. However, as India went through a process of internal social reform and political awakening in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Indian communities in Singapore were likewise affected, which helped to consolidated their shared identity as ‘Indians’.
[edit] Recent migration trends
Following Singapore independence in 1965, migration from India and other countries dwindled, and the Singapore population gradually acquired a more settled character. However, in the 1980s, a significant number of Indian Singaporeans began to migrate to Australia and other English-speaking developed countries. This was part of a a minor brain drain from Singapore. Most emigrating families were middle class but culturally marginalised English-speaking minorities like the Peranakans, Eurasians, and gays.
The loss of more successful Indian families in the 1980s has been somewhat balanced by the arrival of highly qualified professionals from India since the 1990s. From the 1990s, Singapore's policy has been actively to attract highly skilled migrants from around the world and this has produced a fairly large expatriate Indian community of well-educated and wealthy professional and business people. It remains to be seen how permanent this migration is. Most have retained their Indian citizenship, although some have been granted Permanent Residence status. Interaction between the local and expatriate Indian community remains ambivalent rather than easy and natural.
Transient foreign workers who come to work in Singapore on short-stay work permits (two years validity, renewable) as unskilled or semi-skilled workers working in the as domestic workers and construction workers form a third Indian community. There is little interaction between this group and either the expatiate or local Indian communities.
[edit] Historical demographics
The long term proportion of Indians in the Singapore population has generally hovered between 6% and 10%, consolidating Indians as an enduring Singaporean community, and the second largest minority group after the Malays. Notwithstanding these long term trends, Indians have experienced the greatest fluctuation in their numbers, as compared to the Chinese and Malay communities. A study of the annual rates of population growth for Singapore's three main 'races' from 1824 to 1978 shows that Indians had both the greatest increase (rising by 16.7% from 1824 to 1830) and decrease (being the only group to shrink - by 1.5% from 1860 to 1871).[8]
As early as Singapore's first census in 1824, Indians formed roughly 7% of the population, or 756 out of nearly 11,000 residents.[9] In 1845 they constituted under 10% of the population. By 1860, they had grown to around 16%. During this time, Indians briefly ovetook the indigenous Malays, for the first and only time, to become Singapore's second largest communtiy.[10] This significant rise in the relative size of the Indian cummunity was matched only by its fall. In absolute terms, their numbers shrank from 13,000 in 1860 to slightly more than 12,000 twenty years later.[11] Based on Singapore's population of 137,722 in 1881, this meant Indians formed about 9% of the total population.[12]
In 20th century Singapore, the size of the Indian community ranged from 9.4% in 1931 to 7.7% in 1947. Following independence, the Indian population reached a low of 6.2% in the 1980 census, but then proceeded to grow steadily from that point, especially in the 1990s, with a new influx of workers from the Indian subcontinent.
[edit] Contemporary population size
According to official figures, there were 319,100 ethnic Indian Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents (collectively termed 'Residents'), out of 3,608,500 Singapore Residents in June 2006.[13] This works out to 8.8%. However, this figure does not take into account the 875,400 foreign citizens on short-term passes in Singapore, who formed about 18% of Singapore's total population of 4.48 million in 2006.[14] [15] Scholars have noted that "(o)fficial figures for workers on temporary contracts are difficult to obtain because the Ministry of Manpower in Singapore considers the information sensitive."[16]
Dr Rajesh Rai from the National University of Singapore writes that "(I)ndependent surveys approximate the number of South Asians on work permits to be between 30-35 per cent of the total 'Indian' population in Singapore, or approximately 90,000-100,000."[17] However, this number excludes students, professionals and dependants on different passes. [18] The number of South Asians in Singapore on other passes would likely run into the thousands, if not tens of thousands. The estimated 90,000 to 100,000 South Asians on work permits was for 2004/2005. In 2004, Singapore had a total population of 4,238,300, a Resident population of 3,484,900 (including 293,100 Indians) and a non-Resident population of 753,400. Taking the most conservative figures, non-Resident South Asians would have formed more than 12% of the non-Resident population. Adding Resident and non-Resident South Asian populations together, there would have easily been more than 400,000 ethnic Indians living in Singapore in 2004, or at least 9.4% of the country’s 4.24 million population that year. Based on this, Singapore ranks second to London in having the world's largest overseas urban Indian community outside South Asia.
[edit] Socio-economic profile
More than other ethnic groups, Indians are highly stratified in terms of class with little upward mobility. Although a fairly large group occupies the middle and higher sectors of Singaporean society, the community is disproportionately represented at the bottom of the social ladder. This imbalance has been accentuated by the emigration of a number of middle class Indian Singaporeans in the 1980s. This loss has been somewhat balanced by the arrival of highly qualified professionals from India since the 1990s. However, they tend to become Permanent Residents rather than Singapore Citizens, and their long term settlement in Singapore remains to be seen.
With the influx of highly qualified Indian Permanent Residents, the socio-economic indicators of the Indian community have improved, arguably masking the under-achievement of Indian Singaporeans. In 2005, both the average and median monthly income for Indian Residents (S$3,660 and $2,480 respectively) overtook those for all Residents (S$3,500 and S$2,410 respectively), possibly for the first time. Similarly, in the same year, 25% of Indian Residents had a university degree as their highest qualification attained. In contrast the national average was only 17%. [19]
Educations statistics for the Indian community, however, are less positive. In 2004, only 73% of Indians among the Primary One cohort were admitted to a post-secondary institution, the lowest of the three main ethnic groups (the figures was 86% for the Chinese, and 75% for the Malays).[20] In the same year, 73.5% of Indian students received 5 or more passes in the Singaporean GCE 'O' Level examinations, compared to 86.5% of Chinese students, and a national average of 82.7%. [21] Given their performance in the 'O' level examinations, it would appear Indians would have been under represented among students who sat for the 'A' level examination. However, those Indians who did reach the 'A' level and sit for this exam marginally outperformed the national average. 93% of Indians received 2 'A' and 2 'AO' level passes, compared with 92.6% among Chinese students, and 92.3% nationally.[22]
The socio-economic problems, and especially educational underperformance, facing Singapore Indians is addressed by the community and the government through Singapore Indian Development Association (SINDA), the national ethnic-based 'self-help' group for the Indian community.
[edit] Language communities
The 2000 census categorised the Resident Indian population of 257,791 into a number of so-called 'dialect' groups. This term may be more appropriate for describing the linguistic makeup of the Chinese, rather than the Indians, whose main languages are quite distinct, each with its own literature, grammar and script. More significantly, the statistical categories include some that are religious, rather than strictly linguistic. For example, virtually all Sikhs are Punjabis, yet these are presented separately. Likewise, the members of the 'Hindustani', 'Hindi' and 'Urdu' communities share a mutually intelligible language. Given their relatively small absolute and relative numbers, the following table adapts the census data by combining the 'Sikh' (13,188) and 'Punjabi' (4,711) category under 'Punjabi', while 'Hinustani' (5,064), 'Hindi' (3,971) and 'Urdu' (2,989) are combined as 'Hindi' (figures in brackets refer to the size of these groups according to the census). The percentages in the table refer to the proportion of each language group within the larger Resident Indian community in Singapore.
| Language | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Tamil | 150,184 | 58.25% |
| Malayalam | 21,736 | 8.43% |
| Punjabi | 17,899 | 6.9% |
| Hindi | 12,024 | 4.7% |
| Sindhi | 4,071 | 1.58% |
| Gujerati | 3,260 | 1.26% |
| Sinhalese | 2,427 | 0.94% |
| Other Indians | 46,244 | 17.94% |
The sizeable Tamil community includes both Sri Lankan Tamils (locally referred to as 'Ceylonese') and Tamils from India. Tamil and Malayalam, the two main South Indian Dravidian language communities in Singapore, formed two-thirds, or 66.7% of the Resident Indian community. The four main North Indian Indo-European languages in Singapore - Punjabi, Hindi, Sindhi and Gujerati - constituted 14.5% of all Resident Indians. The remaining 19% comprised smaller language groups from both South India (e.g. Telugu and Kannada) and North India (e.g. Bengali and Kashmiri).
While the information above captures information about the ancestral languages of Residents, it does not necessarily reflect the actual use of these languages in the community. According to the 2000 census, Tamil was the language most spoken at home for 42.9% of Indian Residents, in contrast to the 58.3% of Indians who are deemed to be ethnic Tamils. The disparity was greater for other Indian languages. Only 9.3% of Indian Residents mostly spoke a non-Tamil Indian language at home, in contrast to the 41.7% who are deemed to be non-Tamil ethnic Indians. On the national scale, 3.2% of all Singapore Residents used mainly Tamil at home, which is an increase from 2.9% in 1990. Meanwhile, 35.6% of Indians spoke mainly English at home, in contrast to 23% nationally.
[edit] Tamil language in Singapore
Tamil is the only Indian language afforded official language status in Singapore. As part of the Singapore government's bilingual education policy, Tamil is taught as a second language in almost all public schools in Singapore, alongside Mandarin and Malay, despite the fact that some classes many contain very few students. Similarly, as part of the policy of the National Library Board, community lending libraries in Singapore, as well as the national-level Lee Kong Chian Reference Library, maintain sections of books in all four official languages, including Tamil.
Likewise, as part of a policy to supports minority language television programming, the government subsidises a free-to-air Tamil public television channel, (Vasantham Central). This is because the Malay and Tamil communities lack the size to commercially sustain free-to-air channels. The Tamil community also has its own daily national newspaper, the (Tamil Murasu). Although it was started as an independant and private newspaper, it has since become part of the Singapore Press Holdings group, which includes the Straits Times as part of its stable. It is believed that although the Tamil Murasu has difficulty surviving commercially, there is a political commitment to retaining a national daily Tamil newspaper in Singapore, although technically the paper remains a commercial enterprise, and is not known to receive any state subsidy.
Other Tamil media include a Tamil radio station, (Oli 96.8FM), run by the state-owned MediaCorp broadcasting company. Meanwhile, the main cable television operator in Singapore, StarHub, offers the (Sun TV) Tamil channel to its subscribers. The (Yishun 10) branch of the Golden Village cinema chain in Singapore dedicates at least one of its screens to Tamil movies. Tamil movies are also occasionally screened in other cinemas around the island. Singapore also has a Tamil theatre scene, in the form of groups like Agni Koothu and the Ravindran Drama Group.
Tamil is also used widely in Tamil Hindu temples, mosques and churches in Singapore as well as among the shops, restaurants and other businesses in Little India, Singapore. Apart from these public policies and facilities as well as commercial services, there are a large number of Tamil community, business, religious, education, arts and culture non-government organisations in Singapore.
[edit] Other Indian languages
The use and prominence of the other Indian languages depends on the size of the community using them, and the corresponding practical and commercial viability of offering media and other services in these languages. With the economic resurgence of India and the influx of Indian professionals into Singapore, as well as the growing popularity of Bollywood, Hindi and, to some extent, other Indian languages are growing in popularity among both Indians and even some non-Indians in Singapore. Non-Tamil Indian students, for example, are now able to offer some of their native languages as a second language or 'mother tongue' in the Singapore education system. As with the Tamil community, the other Indian communities also support a number of community groups for the promotion of social and cultural activities catering to each community.
[edit] Influence on non-Indian languages
Given the long period of contact between India and the region, as well as the multifarious contact over the centuries between Britain, India, Malaya and China (especially Hong Kong), Indian influences have crept into a variety on non-Indian Singapore languages through a number of paths -
- Ancient Indian loan words in the Malay language (during the 'Indianisation' of ancient Southeast Asia). There are a very large number of such words, but a few examples include 'bumi' (or 'earth', from the Sanskrit 'bhumi'), 'kapal' (or 'ship', from the Tamil 'kappal') and 'katil' (or 'bed', from the Tamil 'kattil'). Also, some Malay words that have entered into Singlish (and sometimes Singapore Hokkien and Mandarin), are terms which were originally Indian loan words. These include 'suka' (or 'happiness'), 'sama' (or 'same') and 'roti' (or 'bread'). In addition, there are words in the English that are derived from Malay, but which in turn are derived from Sanskrit originals. These include such words as camphor and mandarin.
- Ancient and colonial-era Indian loan words in Standard English. Examples include candy, cash, shampoo, bungalow and pyjama. More contemporary Indian loan words in the English language derive from the late 20th century encounter of the Anglophone world with diasporic Indian communities. Examples include 'Bollywood' and 'tandoori'.
- 19th and early 20th century Indian loan words in English, Singlish, Malay and/or Chinese languages. These words emerged in a colonial context, and may be considered archaic in Standard English today. These include congee, godown, amah, karang guni / gunny sack, coolie. Other Indian loan words in Singlish include 'goondu' (or 'idiot', from the Tamil word for 'fat'), 'mamak' - as in 'mamak shop' (or 'uncle', from the Tamil word 'maama' for maternal uncle), and 'dey', a common Tamil term for hailing another man, similar to 'hey', or 'man'.
- The influence of Indian teachers of English in Singapore schools, who brought elements of Indian English pronunciation, syntax, etc into Singapore English. Dr Adam Brown, a professor of phonetics and liguistics, writes "It may surprise many readers to think that Singapore English is heavily influenced by Indian English. However, English had been spoken in India for at least a century before Raffles established Singapore for the East India Company in 1819, and Singapore was administered as part of India for most of the 19th century. Also, as Ho & Platt (1993) and Gupta (1994) note, many teachers in Singapore were of Indian origin. Between 1920 and 1940, for example, there were similar numbers of Indian and European teachers in English-medium schools in Singapore, and Indians have always been well represented in the teaching profession." [23]
[edit] Religious communities
Indian Singaporeans are a religiously heterogeneous group. According to the 2000 census, 179,187 Indian Residents aged 15 years and above belonged to the following religious groups:
| Religion | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Hinduism | 99,328 | 55.4% |
| Islam | 45,927 | 25.6% |
| Christianity | 21,702 | 12.1% |
| Sikhism | 9,626 | 5.4% |
| Buddhism | 1,166 | 0.7% |
| No religion | 987 | 0.6% |
| Other religions | 453 | 0.3% |
[edit] Hinduism in Singapore
In the year 2000, 99,904 people, or 4% of the Singapore Resident population aged above 15 years, were Hindu. Almost all Hindus in Singapore were ethnic Indians. The small numbers of non-Indian Hindus refer to mainly Chinese women who were adopted by or married into Hindu families.
As part of its promotion of a multi-cultural society, the secular Singapore State recognises the Hindu festival of Deepavali as a national public holiday, alongside the religious holidays of other communities. Another form of ‘official’ recognition or acknowledgement of the Hindu community in Singapore is the fact that two Hindu temples have been gazetted as National Monuments of Singapore. These are the Sri Mariamman Temple and the Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple. Like many Hindu temples in Singapore, these were built in the South Indian Dravidian style and serve a broad South Indian Tamil community.
Other Hindu communities have also established their own temples. For instance, the Sri Lankan Tamil community established the Sri Senpaga Vinayagar Temple at Ceylon Road and the Chettiar community set up the Sri Thandayuthapani Temple at Tank Road. The North Indian community also established the Sri Lakshminarayan Temple, built in the North Indian style.
A unique feature of Hinduism in Singapore is the fact that a noticeable number of non-Indians, usually Buddhist Chinese, do participate in a variety of Hindu activities, including praying to Hindu deities, donating money to the temple funds and participating in Hindu festivals like the fire-walking ceremony, and Thaipusam. Certain temples, such as the Sri Krishnan Temple in Waterloo Street, or some Hindu temples in Yishun have also built up substantial followers among the Chinese community, who often visit these temples on their way to or from visiting nearby Chinese temples.
[edit] Other religions communities
Singapore’s 9,733 Sikhs formed 0.4% of the Resident population aged above 15 years. As a long-established community in Singapore, Sikhs have also been given special space by the state, in the form of special exemptions from having to wear motorcycle helmets or standard military headgear (including caps, berets and helmets), due to their religious requirement to wear turbans. Likewise, Sikh schoolboys are allowed to wear turbans in national public schools, which otherwise maintain a strict policy of standardised uniforms. Like other religions communities, Sikhs have built several places of worship in Singapore, the oldest of which is the Central Sikh Temple, founded in 1912.
Among Muslims Singapore Residents, 12.4% were Indian, with most of the remainder being Malay. Among Christian Singapore Residents, 6.0% were Indian, with most of the remainder being Chinese. Within the Christian community, Indians formed 10.3% of Roman Catholics, and 3.9% of Non-Catholic Christians (mainly Protestants).
Within the wider Muslim and Christian communities, Indians have established their own places of worship, where sermons, services and prayers are conducted in Indian languages. Consequently, there are a substantial number of 'Indian' churches, mosques and Buddhist temples in Singapore. For example, the Masjid Jamae, built in 1826, is the oldest Tamil mosque in Singapore, and a National Monument. In 1888, the Tamil Catholic community set up the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes, Singapore's oldest Tamil Catholic Church, as well as a National Monument. The Sakyamuni Buddha Gaya Temple is a Theravada temple, built in a mix of Chinese, Indian and Thai styles, and is quite differeent from most Chinese Buddhist Mahayana temples in Singapore. The small Indian Buddhist community in Singapore often frequents this temple, which is located in Litte India.
[edit] National festivals
The most visible Indian festivals in Singapore are mainly Hindu religious festivals such as Deepavali and Thaipusam. More minor celebrations include the Fire walking festival, Holi and Hindu temple chariot processions.
For about one month before the Deepavali festival, the Little India heritage district will be decorated. Its public streets will be festooned with colourful ornamental lights, often depicting Indian motifs, such as elephants, peacocks and oil lamps. At least two different Deepavali bazaars are held in different parts of the district, one at Little India Arcade, and another in an open field opposite Mustafa Centre. These markets are busy in the days leading up to the festival, and they contain small stalls selling Deepavali greeting cards, traditional foods and drinks, Indian-themed decorations for the home, traditional Indian costumes as well as more modern clothes, Indian music and video discs, sparklers and toys for children, oil lamps, incense, deities and other paraphenilia for family altars, etc. The districts becomes especially lively and colourful during this period, and many people, including non-Hindus residents and tourists will visit the area to enjoy the atmosphere.
Thaipusam is a major Hindu religious festival that is only celebrated in Singapore and Malaysia, since it was banned in India. As part of a penance to Lord Murugan, participants carry 'kavadis' along a processional route. Some of the adult male participants carry kavadis that are attached to their bodies via metal hooks and small spears that pierce their skin. This annual festival is the only time in contemporary Singapore when major roads in the city, including the parts of the prime Orchard Road area, are closed for a religious procession. The procession starts at the Sri Srinivasa Permal Temple in Sernagoon Road, and winds through Orchard Road and Penang Road before ending at the Sri Thandayuthapani Temple at Tank Road, off Clemenceau Avenue. The festival is a major religious and urban event, which draws large numbers of participants, devotees, supportive family and friends as well as curious onlookers, photography enthusiasts and tourists.
[edit] Indian culture in Singapore
The history, culture and traditions of the Indian community in Singapore are recognised as an important part of Singapore's national heritage, alongside those of the Chinese, Malays and European/Eurasian communities. Despite the relatively small size and cultural diversity and fragmentation of the Indian community, this principle is especially observed at the official level, due to the fact that multi-culturalism is central to Singapore's national identity and ideology. Singapore takes pains to ensure minority profiling in a variety of arenas, from national campaigns to minority race representation and rotation in high profile institutions, like the Presidency. Consequently, Indians are positioned as a major Singapore community in public representations and perceptions.
Indians are a long-settled and distinct minority community in Singapore. Apart from official enshrinement of the Indian community as a founding race of modern, multi-racial Singapore, Indian culture has also seeped into and mixed with other local cultures in a more organic way over a long period of time. As such, they have played a part in helping to shape several aspects of the nation's social and cultural landscape. Just as importantly, Singapore and its other communities have also shaped the life of the Indian community, whose own culture is fairly distinct from that practiced in India, or by members of the diaspora in other parts of the world.
[edit] Food
Singaporeans take great pride in their national cuisine, which is found in the ubiquitous hawker centre, kopi tiam (a local coffeeshop) and food court. The great variety of Singapore food includes Indian food, which tends to be Tamil cuisine and especially local Tamil Muslim cuisine, although North Indian food has become more visible recently.
Indian dishes have become modified to different degrees, after years of contact with other Singapore cultures, and in response to locally available ingredients as well as changing local tastes. The local forms of Indian food may be seen as localised or even regional variations of Indian food, or in some cases, a form of hybrid Indian-Singaporean cuisine. Popular 'Indian' dishes and elements of Indian cuisine (although sometimes prepared and sold by non-Indians) include:
- Achar - Indian pickle of mixed vegetables. Now also served by Chinese and Malays with their traditional food.
- Biryani - Popular dish of saffron rice and meat. It is sold by both Indians and Malays, and is essential at Malay weddings.
- Curry - The basic Indian vegetable or meat gravy. It is now ubiquitous in local Chinese and Malay 'traditional' cuisine.
- Fish head curry - Iconic Singapore dish, very popular with the Chinese, and not found in India.
- Indian Rojak - Salad of dough fritters, potatoes, eggs, seafood, tofu and other items. Served with a hot and sweet chilli sauce.
- Indian Mee goreng - Chinese yellow noodles, prepared 'Indian style' and fried with minced mutton, green peas and potatos.
- Murtabak - A hearty pan-fried pastry stuffed chicken, mutton and sardines.
- Roti john - A split, panfried baguette topped with egg, minced mutton and onions, and served with ketchup.
- Roti Prata - 'Singapore's answer to the croissant'. A popular supper after leaving nightclubs. Variations include durian and cheese prata.
- Teh tarik - Literally 'pulled tea', named after its preparation technique. Compared to the cappuccino because of its frothy top.
There are also many other Indian foods that are less widely available foods, but which can still be found in several areas serving a more specifically Indian clientel, especially in and around Little India, Singapore. These include appam, bhatura, chutney, sambar, idli, muruku, putu mayam, samosa, tandoori, thosai, upma and various sweets, including jalebi, halva, laddu, paayasam and gulab jamun.
[edit] Places
The Indian imprint on Singapore's urban landscape can be seen most prominently in the form of the Little India neighbourhood. On 7 July 1989, at the start of architectural conservation in Singapore, this area was gazetted for conservation, which makes its buildings legally protected from unauthorised modifications and demolition. Bounded by Serangoon Road, Sungei Road and Jalan Besar, the area is recognised as the hub of the Indian community in Singapore. It contains mainly two-storey shophouses of the Early, Transitional, Late and Art Deco Shophouse Styles, as well as several places of worship for different faiths.[24] Apart from serving the social, cultural and commercial needs of the Indian community, the area is established as one of the more historic urban districts in Singapore, with a colourful personality that makes it an indelible part of the national landscape and identity. In 2004, it was also Singapore's third most most popular free-access tourist attraction, after Orchard Road and Chinatown.[25]
[edit] Naming conventions
Because of their linguistic and religious diversity, Indian Singaporeans use a variety of naming conventions. Some North Indian groups, such as the Gujaratis and Bengalis, use family surnames, although the Gujaratis may choose whether to merge their father's name with the surname. Sikh men invariably adopt 'Singh' as their surname, while Sikh women adopt 'Kaur', as is their traditional practice. However, some Sikhs have also re-introduced supplementary family or clan names, thus instead of simply 'Charanjit Singh', an individual might adopt the name 'Charanjit Singh Siddhu' for himself or his son. Meanwhile, some Tamils and other South Indians (e.g. Telugus or Malayalees) use their clan or caste-derived names as surnames in the Western mode, e.g. Iyer, Nair, Naidu, etc.
Most other Tamils placed their father's name after their given name, linked by 's/o' (son of) or 'd/o' (daughter of), e.g. 'Ravi s/o Govindasamy'. Similarly, Tamil Muslims would have names in the form 'Abdul s/o Rahman' (in contrast to Malay Muslims, who use the connector 'bin' (son of) or 'binte / bte' (daughter of) instead). On occasion, the father's name may be reduced to an initial, hence 'G. Ravi'. In contemporary Singapore, most Indians now omit this connector. i.e. simply using 'Ravi Govindasamy'. Although the name now looks more like a Western name format, Govindasamy technically remains the father's name, not the family surname. As such, the individual should properly be addressed as 'Mr Ravi', rather than 'Mr Govindasamy'. However, some people do use their father's name as a surrogate surname (in the Western style), i.e. Ravi calls himself 'Mr Govindasamy' and uses it as a surname for his children, instead of, for example, calling his so 'Arun (s/o) Ravi', he might name him 'Arun Govindasamy' (or even 'Arun Govind').
[edit] Indian participation in national life
Indian Singaporeans have made their mark nationally and even internationally in a variety of arenas.
[edit] Politics
Indian Singaporeans have generally been well represented, if not over-represented, in the nation's political leadership, including both the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) as well as opposition parties. Indians have served as two out of six Presidents of the nation, one out of three Senior Ministers, two Deputy Prime Ministers and Ministers of several key ministries, including Foreign Affairs, Trade and Industry, National Development, Education and Home Affairs. Indians are currently over-represented in Cabinet (21% of Ministries) as well as in Parliament among both elected (10.7%) and unelected MPs (20%).
[edit] The law
Indians have historically been heavily over-represented in the legal profession, including the judiciary. In 2007, 12 out of 45 persons listed in the Singapore Academy of Law's senior counsel directory, or 26.7%, were Indian. The current President of the Law Society of Singapore is Eurasian, with an Indian father.
In the Subordinate Courts of Singapore, 9.8% of all District Judges was ethnic Indian. Meanwhile, in the Supreme Court of Singapore, about 14%, or two of the 14 Supreme Court Judges and Judicial Commissioners, are Indian.[26]
[edit] Diplomacy
The Singapore Diplomatic Service is another area in which Indians have traditionally served the nation in numbers out of proportion to their population share. The Second Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr Bilahari Kausikan, is Indian, as have been three of its Ministers in the past.
In March 2007, a survey of the Singapore Government Directory Interactive website showed about 27% of the heads of Singaporean diplomatic missions - Ambassadors, High Commissioners and Permanent Representatives to the United Nations (UN) - were Indian, including missions to the following key positions: Permanent Representatives to the UN in New York and Geneva, High Commissioners to Malaysia and South Africa as well as Ambassadors to Belgium (de facto representative to the European Union) Germany, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia.[27]
[edit] Education
Since the colonial period, teaching has been one of the jobs that Indians have traditionally been involved in. In 2006, Indians remained fairly well represented in the Singapore teaching service. A survey of the Singapore Government Directory Interactive website in March 2007 showed that amongst primary school principals, 13.3% were Indian, while 10.3% of all secondary school principals were Indian. [28]
At tertiary institutions, Indians also head several prominent schools and think tanks, including the NUS Faculty of Engineering, Institute of Policy Studies, Institute of South Asian Studies, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies and Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.
[edit] Civil Service
In addition to the foreign, legal and education services, Indians have also traditionally entered the Singapore Civil Service. Several individuals have risen to prominence in various government ministries and statutory boards. 9.4% of the heads of Singapore's 64 statutory boards are Indian - these are the National Library Board, Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority, Hindu Endowments Board, Hindu Advisory Board and Sikh Advisory Board. [29]
[edit] The arts
Indian Singaporeans have distinguished themselves in a number of cultural fields, including contemporary forms of art targeted at a broad national and international audience, as well as more traditional Indian art forms. From 1979 to 2006, Indian Singaporeans have won 10, or 11.4%, of the 88 Cultural Medallions conferred, the highest honour to artists given by the Singapore government.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Leow, p.16.
- ^ In his 2006 National Day Rally, Singapore's Prime Minister said "A Chinese Chinese is different from a Singapore Chinese. An Indian Indian is different from a Singapore Indian. In fact, when I met Mr. Koizumi last year and I told him, you know, we are bringing in Chinese Chinese, Indian Indians, he looked at me, he said, "Chinese Chinese?" I had to explain, "Ya, indeed, they come from China. Singapore Chinese come from Singapore. We are different." http://www.singaporeangle.com/2006/08/transcript-of-pms-rally-speech-in.html
- ^ Hall, pp. 12-24
- ^ Low, Cheryl-Ann Mei Gek, 'Singapore from the 14th to 19th Century' in Miksic & Low (2004) p.14
- ^ Low, Cheryl-Ann Mei Gek, 'Singapore from the 14th to 19th Century' in Miksic & Low (2004) p.16
- ^ Low, Cheryl-Ann Mei Gek, 'Singapore from the 14th to 19th Century' in Miksic & Low (2004) p.15
- ^ Low, Cheryl-Ann Mei Gek, 'Singapore from the 14th to 19th Century' in Miksic & Low (2004) p.17
- ^ Saw, Swee-Hock, 'Population Growth and Control' in Chew & Lee (1991) p.224.
- ^ Turnbull, p.27.
- ^ Turnbull, pp.36-37.
- ^ Turnbull, p.96.
- ^ Saw, Swee-Hock, 'Population Growth and Control' in Chew & Lee (1991) p.221.
- ^ http://www.singstat.gov.sg/keystats/mqstats/mds/mds22.pdf
- ^ http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pdtsvc/pubn/softcopy/population2006.pdf
- ^ http://www.singstat.gov.sg/keystats/annual/ghs/r1/chap1.pdf
- ^ Lal, p. 176.
- ^ Lal, p. 176.
- ^ http://www.mom.gov.sg/publish/momportal/en/communities/work_pass.html
- ^ http://www.singstat.gov.sg/keystats/annual/ghs/r2/indicators.pdf
- ^ http://www.moe.gov.sg/esd/ESD%20Interactive/Table%2035%20(2005).pdf
- ^ http://www.moe.gov.sg/esd/ESD%20Interactive/Table%2033%20(2005).pdf
- ^ http://www.moe.gov.sg/esd/ESD%20Interactive/Table%2034%20(2005).pdf
- ^ Brown, p.viii
- ^ http://www.ura.gov.sg/conservation/india.htm
- ^ http://www.stb.com.sg/doc/sarts2004.pdf
- ^ http://www.sgdi.gov.sg/
- ^ http://www.sgdi.gov.sg/
- ^ http://www.sgdi.gov.sg
- ^ http://www.sgdi.gov.sg/
[edit] References
- Brown, Adam (1999). Singapore English in a Nutshell: An Alphabetical Description of its Features. Singapore: Federal Publications. ISBN 981012435X (pbk.).
- Chew, Ernest C.T.; Edwin Lee (eds.) (1991). A History of Singapore. Singapore: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195885651 (pbk.).
- Hall, D.G.E. (1994 (pbk.)). A History of South-East Asia, 4th ed., London: Macmillan Press.
- Lal, Brij V. (gen. ed.); Peter Reeves (exec. ed.) & Rajesh Rai (asst. ed.) (2006). The Encyclopedia of the Indian Diaspora. Singapore: Editions Didier Millet in association with National University of Singapore. ISBN 9814155659 (hbk.).
- Leow, Bee Geok (2001). Census of Population 2000: Demographic Characteristics. Singapore: Singapore Department of Statistics. ISBN 9810444486 (pbk.).
- Leow, Bee Geok (2001). Census of Population 2000: Education, Language and Religion. Singapore: Singapore Department of Statistics. ISBN 9810444591 (pbk.).
- Miksic, John N.; Cheryl-Ann Low Mei Gek (gen. eds.) (2004 (pbk.)). Early Singapore 1300s-1819: Evidence in Maps, Texts and Artefacts. Singapore: Singapore History Museum.
- Turnbull, C.M. (Mary) (1989). A History of Singapore, 1819–1988, 2nd ed., Singapore: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195889436 (pbk.).
[edit] Further reading
- Madan, Madhu; Yamini Vasudevan & Rita Raman (2004). Dreams to Reality : Singapore Indian Entrepreneurs. Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SICCI).
- Netto, Leslie (ed.) (2003). Passage of Indians : 1923–2003. Singapore: Singapore Indian Association. ISBN 981048531X.
- Rai, Raghu (photographer) (1994). Arpanam : A Dedication : Facets of Singapore Indians. ISBN 9813002824.
- Sandhu, K.S.; A. Mani (eds.) (1993). Indian Communities in Southeast Asia. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) & Times Academic Press. ISBN 9812100172. ISBN 9812100121 (pbk.).
- Siddique, Sharon; Nirmala Puru Shotam (1990). Singapore's Little India : Past, Present, and Future, 2nd ed., Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. ISBN 9971902311.
- Sinnappah, Arasaratnam (1979). Indians in Malaysia and Singapore, Rev. ed., Kuala Lumpur ; New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195804279 (pbk.).
- Soundar, Chitra (2003). Gateway to Indian Culture, 2nd ed., Singapore: Asiapac. ISBN 9812293272 (pbk.).
- Walker, Anthony R. (ed.) (1994). New Place, Old Ways : Essays on Indian Society and Culture in Modern Singapore. Delhi: Hindustan Pub. Corp. ISBN 817075027X.
[edit] See also
- Ceylonese diaspora
- Chindian
- Chitty
- Deepavali
- Desi
- Hinduism in Singapore
- Hinduism in South East Asia
- Indian Malaysian
- Little India, Singapore
- Person of Indian origin
- Tamil diaspora
- Thaipusam
