Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island city and state in maritime Southeast Asia. The country's territory is composed of one main island and 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. With a multicultural population and recognising the need to respect cultural identities, Singapore has four official languages; English, Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil. Modern Singapore was founded in 1819 by Sir Stamford Raffles as a trading post of the British Empire. In 1867, the colonies in Southeast Asia were reorganised and Singapore came under the direct control of Britain as part of the Straits Settlements. During the Second World War, Singapore was occupied by Japan in 1942, and returned to British control as a separate crown colony following Japan's surrender in 1945. Singapore gained self-governance in 1959 and in 1963 became part of the new federation of Malaysia, alongside Malaya, North Borneo, and Sarawak. Ideological differences led to Singapore being expelled from the federation two years later and it became an independent country.
6 мар 2022
