January 31, 2019

A public lecture, ‘Singapore’s Story: A Port City In Search Of Hinterlands’, by Professor Tan Tai Yong from the NUS Department of History was recently featured in The Straits Times. The lecture traces development of Singapore’s port and its hinterland over the past 700 years. It is also Prof Tan’s third public lecture in a series that examines Singapore’s 700-year history, as the country marks the bicentennial arrival of the British in 1819.

According to Prof Tan, the study of Singapore’s history as a port city can supplement colonial and nation-state narratives. He stresses that the functions of port cities often influence the composition, social structure, and development of mercantile groups and institution. During the colonial era, Singapore was “the great emporium and fulcrum” of the neighbouring seas trade. As trade expanded, the overlapping hinterlands and networks created a port city of immigrants from China, India, the Malay Archipelago, and other places. These different communities eventually constituted the plural and cosmopolitan society of Singapore – and from there a local experience began to emerge. Moreover, the 19^th Century saw Singapore as not just an economically successful port, but a dynamic force for social change as well. By then, its hinterlands had become indispensable to its survival.

Although the port continues to shape the fortunes of the country, Prof Tan suggests other ways forward, especially since the idea of a fixed economic hinterland has lost its meaning for Singapore, now a global city in a globalized world. He emphasizes that Singapore must always remain open, be flexible, and look out for opportunities in order to stay relevant.

Read the article here: https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/singapore-shaped-by-port-city-past-historian