Interesting facts about Singapore you never knew Singapore Facts Singapore consists only of one main island and 63 other tiny islands. Most of these islands are uninhabited. Singapore is among the 20 smallest countries in the world, with a total land area of only 682.7 square kilometres. The USA is about 15,000 times bigger. Apart from Monaco, Singapore is the most densely populated country in the world, with 6,430 people per square kilometre. Singapore became the 117th member of the United Nations on 21 September 1965. Symbolism of the National Flag: Red symbolises universal brotherhood and equality of man while white signifies purity and virtue. The crescent moon represents a young nation on the rise and the five stars signify the ideals of democracy, peace, progress, justice and equality. The national flower of Singapore: Vanda Miss Joaquim, was first discovered in 1893 by Agnes Joaquim, an Armenian. The orchid is a natural hybrid between V. teres and V. hookeriana. The Merlion, a half-fish, half-lion beast, is a fitting symbol of Singapore. The “Singa” or lion represents the animal that a Sumatran prince saw which resembled a lion, and the fish is a tribute to Singapore’s history as “Temasek”, the ancient sea town. Singlish, a Singaporean patois mixing English with the odd phrase of Chinese, Malay and even Tamil, has two entries – lah and sinseh – in the online version of the Oxford English Dictionary. Although English is the official working language and the most widely used language in Singapore, The national anthem ‘Majulah Singapura’ is actually sung in Malay. The flying fox, the world’s largest bat with a wingspan of up to 1.5 metres, can be found on Pulau Ubin, one of the islands off mainland Singapore. Singapore is a stopover point for thousands of migratory birds travelling the East Asian Flyway. The world’s first night zoo, The Night Safari, is located in Singapore. Despite being largely urbanised, Singapore is the largest exporter of ornamental fish (25% of the world market). The Bukit Timah Nature Reserve in Singapore contains more species of trees than the entire North American continent. The highest natural point in Singapore is Bukit Timah Hill, which is only 164 metres high (Singapore has a very flat terrain). Buildings in Singapore cannot be higher than 280 metres. There are presently three buildings of that height: OUB Centre, UOB Plaza and Republic Plaza. The world’s highest man-made waterfall, standing at 30 metres, is located at the Jurong BirdPark. The largest fountain in the world is located in Singapore at Suntec City. Made of cast bronze, it cost an estimated US$6 million to build in 1997. The buildings of Suntec City have been built in the shape of a palm of a hand symbolising good “feng shui”. In 2003, Singapore’s Changi Airport won the award for “Best Airport Worldwide” for the 16th consecutive year from the UK/Europe edition of the Business Traveller magazine. The Guinness book record for the longest human domino chain was set in Singapore on 30th September 2000. Formed by 9,234 students, it measured 4.2km.
Posted on: Sat, 24 Jan 2015 11:25:57 +0000