04/10/2020
Singapore - China Town : Under Sir Raffles Stamford’s instructions for town planning in Singapore in its early days, different ethnic groups were assigned different areas on the island. Under his specific instructions, all of the land southwest of the Singapore River would be reserved for the Chinese. This resulted in the formation of Chinatown.
Within Chinatown, clan groups clustered together: The Teochew were mostly at along the Singapore River at Circular Road, River Valley Road, South Bridge Road, and Boat Quay; the Hokkiens at Telok Ayer and the waterfront, China Street, Havelock Road and Chulia Street; the Cantonese, being the dominant dialect group in Chinatown, were more spread out around South Bridge Road, Upper Cross Street, New Bridge Road and Bukit Pasoh Road.
The local Mandarin name for Chinatown, niu che shui, directly translates to the words ‘ox’, ‘cart’ and ‘water’. This name came about as the water supply for Chinatown was transported by bullock carts during the 19th century.
Today, Chinatown consists of streets lined with modern shops and restaurants, housed in the conserved shophouses. While much of the historical flavour has made way for a more modern vibe befitting the world-class city that Singapore is, if you look close enough, some remnants of its culture and heritage remains.
