• Bugis was situated near the coast in the early days, and its Mandarin name “白沙浮” was named after the white sandy beaches around the area. In the Hokkien (Minnan) and Teochew dialects, the term “浦” and “浮” have similar pronunciations. “浦” refers to “the edge of the water” or “the place where the river flows into the sea”
• The Cantonese refer to Bugis Street as “黑街” (Dark Street) because Bugis Street was just a back alley with no streetlights in the 1950s.
• By the 1960s, Bugis was a nightspot with many food and drinks stalls, and was the most bustling spot in the North Bridge Road area.
• Bugis Street was named after the Bugis people, who are part of the larger Malay community. Shortly after the arrival of Sir Stamford Raffles in Singapore, a group of 500 Bugis arrived in Singapore to engage in trade. They mainly settled in Kampong Bugis, an area extending from Kampong Glam to the Rochor River. This was also where Bugis Street was located.
• By the end of the 1980s, Bugis Street was demolished as part of the Urban Renewal Plan. During the mid-1990s, in consideration of the social and cultural significance of the original Bugis Street, the Singapore Tourist Promotion Board developed a pedestrian mall and recreated the facade of Bugis Street across the road from where it once stood. This pedestrian mall was also named Bugis Street.
• In 1996, the construction of Bugis Junction, Singapore’s largest air-conditioned pedestrian shopping street, was completed. There are four pedestrian streets within the complex, one of which is where the old Bugis Street used to be.

Real estate analysts have expected that the site will attract a considerable number of bids as it is a site in Bugis that is hard to come by. Not only is it located next to an MRT station, it is also right in the heart of the Bugis area. (Lianhe Zaobao, 5/9/2019)