• In 1822, Sir Stamford Raffles developed a town plan for Singapore. He allotted the northern bank of the Singapore River to European settlements. This area, centred around North Bridge Road (north of Elgin Bridge), became known to the Chinese as “小坡”.
• The “坡” in “大坡” does not refer to an actual slope. Rather, the Hokkien term “埠” was miswritten as “坡”. In Hokkien, “埠” refers to a “coastal city”. In Mandarin, however, it refers to a “quay” or “harbour”.
• The Mandarin term “小坡” is used in relation to the term “大坡”, which refers to the area along the southern bank of the Singapore River. Traditional Chinese culture prescribes a sequence of ordering from big (“大”) to small (“小”). Hence, the southern bank of the Singapore River was named “大坡 ” because it was the first area for the early Chinese settlers in Singapore. The northern bank came to be known as “小坡” as it was the second settlement for the early Chinese.
• The North Bridge Road area was originally meant for European settlements. However, as the Europeans started moving out and more Chinese settlers arrived in Singapore, the area gradually became a Chinese settlement.
• According to the records found in A Description of Singapore in 1887 (《新加坡风土记》) written by the Qing-dynasty court official Li Chung Chu, “Although there were markets located in ‘小坡’, there were no large and established shops within. Instead, the wares offered comprised only produce and food for the indigenous people.” It is clear that, at the time, the North Bridge Road area was not as prosperous as the South Bridge Road area.

In the later years, the population in the North Bridge Road area increased exponentially. However, the area was poorly connected. Hence, the shop owners there established the Sian Chay Medical Institution on Second Street in the North Bridge Road area (Victoria Street today) in 1901, in the mould of the Thong Chai Medical Institution. (Lianhe Zaobao, 7/9/2015)

• In the early 19th century, the people living in the South Bridge Road area were mainly from the Hokkien, Teochew, and Cantonese dialect groups. By the end of the 19th century, there were also settlers from the provinces of Hainan and Guangxi, as well as other parts of Fujian province. The South Bridge Road area had become very densely populated as a result. Hence, the new settlers moved into the North Bridge Road area.
• In the early days, Singaporean Chinese used the term “落坡” or “下坡” to mean “going to town”. The North and South Bridge Road areas were also collectively referred to as “坡底”.