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The government adopted Mandarin Chinese as one of the four official languages in Singapore and it is mandatory that the Chinese population in Singapore learn Mandarin Chinese as their mother tongue in schools. In addition, the government launched the Speak Mandarin Campaign to promote the prestige of Mandarin Chinese against other Chinese ...
Singapore is a racially and linguistically diverse city-state, with four official languages: English, Mandarin Chinese, Malay and Tamil. [4] During British colonial rule (1819-1942), [5] a variety of school systems were in place and most schools taught exclusively in one of the above four languages.
The Government promotes Mandarin among Singaporean Chinese people, since it views the language as a bridge between Singapore's diverse non-Mandarin speaking groups, and as a tool for forging a common Chinese cultural identity. [8] China's economic rise in the 21st century has also encouraged a greater use of Mandarin.
Just like any languages in Singapore, Singaporean Mandarin is subjected to influences from other languages spoken in Singapore. Singaporean Hokkien is the largest non-Mandarin Chinese variety spoken in Singapore. The natural tendency of Hokkien-speakers to use the Hokkien way to speak Mandarin has influenced to a large degree the colloquial ...
During the Vietnam War, Singapore became one of the main transit points for Vietnamese refugees, hosting 32,457 Vietnamese refugees from 1978 to 1996 alone. [1] [2] [3] 5,000 settled during the first set of waves throughout the late 1970s.
The four official languages (English, Mandarin, Malay, Tamil) are recognised in Article 153 of the Singapore Constitution. [10] English is the language of administration, [1] and is also seen as a common language for the different races to communicate with one another.
Singapore has an ethnic Chinese majority population, with Mandarin recognized as one of its official languages. The Singaporean Chinese community do not consider themselves as 'overseas Chinese' but rather as 'Singaporean Chinese', with an emphasis on their national identification and distinct culture.
Tamil is the most spoken Indian language in Singapore and the only Indian language among Singapore's four official languages, alongside Mandarin, Malay and English, [3] and 3.1% of Singapore residents speak Tamil at home. [4] Singapore is one of the three countries in the world to make Tamil an official language, the others being India and Sri ...