Singapore from Temasek to the 21st Century: Reinventing the Global City

Description

In this volume, a group of international scholars examines the history of Singapore as a series of discontinuous and varied attempts by a shifting array of local and foreign elites to optimize advantages arising from the island's strategic location and overcome its lack of natural resources. Part I sets the scene by considering different ways of looking at the island's long-term history and evaluating Singapore as a global city. Part II provides a series of snapshots of Singapore between 14th and 21st centuries, positioning the island as a major node in regional and world history, and evaluating the local political and social structures that have underpinned the city's ability to function as a major urban centre and ensured its long-term survival. Cover Page Title Page, Copyright Contents List of Illustrations Abbreviations Preface 1. Singapore: Reinventing the Global City 2. Singapore between Cosmopolis and Nation 3. Casting Singapore’s History in the Longue Durée 4. Singapore’s Strategy of Regionalisation 5. Temasik to Singapura: Singapore in the 14th to 15th Centuries 6. Singapura as a Central Place in Malay History and Identity 7. Imagined Centrality: Sir Stamford Raffles and the Birth of Modern Singapore 8. Singapore: A Model for Indochina? (1860–1920s) 9. Singapore as a Central Place between the West, Asia and China: From the 19th to 21st Centuries 10. The Malayan Trajectory in Singapore’s History 11. The People’s Action Party Blueprint for Singapore, 1959–1965 12. Singapore’s Changing International Orientations, 1960–1990 13. Remaking Singapore, 1990–2004: From Disciplinarian Development to Bureaucratic Proxy Democracy 14. Singapore’s Holistic Approach to Urban Planning: Centrality, Singularity, Innovation and Reinvention Bibliography Contributors Index