The sunny island of Singapore which is found just one degree of latitude above the Equator gained her independence from Malaysia on 9th August 1965. In a blink of an eye, she is celebrating her big 60th this year, 2025! As a true ‘red’ Singaporean, what does this day mean to me? Let me share my very own fun facts of Singapore National Day!
Nicknames
The common nicknames that she is known by are Lion City, Garden City and Little Red Dot.
Lion City derived from the Sanskrit words “Singa pura” meaning “Lion City”. Interestingly there have never been any lions in Singapore despite being known as Lion City! We are often referred to as the lions in a social/casual context.
Garden City is due to the abundance of trees which cover almost half of Singapore. This is the initiative of the late Lee Kwan Yew who wanted to incorporate green spaces in the urban city. It creates a ‘jungle’ city, lush and serene in the mist of the concrete skyscrapers.
“Little Red Dot” was popularised by the third Indonesian president, B.J. Habibie who referred to Singapore as that red dot in an article in 1998. In short, “Little Red Dot” sums up Singapore’s pride in its accomplishments and its recognition on the world stage while staying geographically modest.
Sea of Red
Whether you are a fan of the colour red or not, you will find yourself digging into your wardrobe for that one piece of red outfit to wear just for that very one day, 9th August out of the 365 days of the year. It has become a ritual, a tradition to wear red on National Day. Why red? Well, red is one of the two colours of Singapore’s national flag. Red symbolises unity, patriotism, and wearing the colour reflects the national pride of being a Singaporean! It is also an auspicious colour, anything auspicious we Singaporeans love! The whole island turns red on this day. It is quite an amazing sight and that never fails to bring a smile to my face!
National Day Gathering
It is a day where families and friends gather, young and old to celebrate the nation’s birthday. Chatter over yet another good excuse for another ‘Makan’ session! Mostly it is having potluck, BBQ or nowadays food delivery! We will be watching the same old parade, it really does not matter how good or bad the programme content is, we still feel proud and patriotic when the national anthem, ‘Majulah Singapura’ is sung together with the choir at the parade ground.
Many may brave the humidity, heat and human traffic to find a good spot to catch the fireworks finale. I, however, prefer the comfort of my home with the cool air conditioning to fully enjoy the expensive fireworks display!
Home
Every year since 1985 an Executive Committee names one song as the National Day Parade theme song. This song is usually blasted over the airwaves, broadcast on radio and television a month before 9th August.
“Home” is the theme song for 1998 and 2004. It was composed by Dick Lee and performed by Kit Chan in both years. It is the most popular and my favourite of all the 36 theme songs. It resonates with many fellow Singaporeans far and near who feel a strong connection to their homeland. A safe place that they can come back to and call ‘Home’.
Whenever I am feeling low
I look around me and I know
There’s a place that will stay within me
Wherever I may choose to go
I will always recall the city
Know every street and shore
Sail down that river which brings us life
Winding through my Singapore
Chorus:
This is home, truly
Where I know I must be
Where my dreams wait for me
Where that river always flows
This is home, surely
As my senses tell me
This is where I won’t be alone
For this is where I know it’s home
When there are troubles to go through
I look around and start anew
For there’s comfort in the knowledge
That home’s about its people too
So, we’ll build our dreams together
Just like we’ve done before
Just like that river which brings us life
There’ll always be Singapore
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