Families For Life | How Well Do You Know Singapore?

Singapore’s 56th birthday is around the corner, and what better way to mark the occasion with the family than with a trivia quiz? Write down your answers and then scroll down for the big reveal and see who emerges as the winner!
Ready with your pen and paper? Here goes!

  1. What is Singapore’s national language?

  2. On which banknote can you find the lyrics to the Singapore anthem?

  3. Where can you find Singapore’s last known kampong?

  4. Which island just off Singapore’s coast is said to have been formed by an elephant and a pig turning to stone?

  5. What is the highest point in Singapore?

  6. Which part of the Singapore flag symbolises “universal brotherhood and equality of man”?

  7. What’s another name for Singapore’s Peranakan community?

  8. What does the name "Singapura", the original name of Singapore, mean?


Answers

  1. English may be the common language taught in schools and commonly spoken by the majority of Singaporeans, but Malay language is our national language and one of the official languages.

  2. The entire national anthem is printed on the back of the $1000 note in microprint. Learn more fun facts about the Singapore dollar notes.

  3. Kampong Lorong Buangkok is Singapore’s last surviving kampong (Malay term for village) on Singapore’s mainland, with about 25 houses. The other kampongs are mostly on islands surrounding Singapore.

  4. Pulau Ubin. The story goes that an elephant, a pig and a frog challenged each other to race from Singapore to Johor across the Straits, and they failed. As a result, pig and elephant failed and turned into Pulau Ubin. The frog also failed and turned into Pulau Sekudu.

  5. The Bukit Timah summit is the highest point in Singapore. With a height of about 176m, Bukit Timah Hill is a hill located near the geographical centre of Singapore.

  6. The red part of the flag symbolises universal brotherhood and equality of man. As for the rest of the flag, the white symbolises pervading and everlasting purity and virtue. The crescent moon represents a young nation on the ascendant, and the five stars depict Singapore's ideals of democracy, peace, progress, justice and equality.

  7. Baba-Nyonya or Straits-born Chinese.

  8. Singapura means "Lion City" in Sanskrit. According to Malay legend, a Sumatran prince, Sang Nila Utama, was visiting the island and spotted a lion. Viewing it as a good omen, he founded a city where the lion had been and called it “Singapura”. Find out more about Singapore’s rich history.