• Singapore has been known by many Chinese names throughout its history, such as “星加坡” and “星岛”.
• The term “星洲” is believed to have been coined by the scholar and writer Khoo Seok Wan, whose alias was “星洲寓公” (literally, “rich person living abroad in Xingzhou”).
• In 1898, Khoo referred to Singapore using the abbreviation “星洲” in Thien Nan Shin Pao, the newspaper he co-founded with Lim Boon Keng and others. From then on, “星洲” became one of the many alternative names for Singapore.
• The name “星洲” is rather poetic: “星”, transliterated from the first syllable of “Singapore”, means “star”, while “洲” refers to Singapore’s geography as an island nation.

Singaporeans may not know that Mei Lanfang, the great Peking Opera artist, visited Singapore in 1935. Although it was only a short stopover, Mei visited many places on Singapore Island and was “deeply satisfied” with the visit. (Lianhe Zaobao, 16/11/2014)

In the early days, the term “星洲” was widely used in the press. Aw Boon Haw even used it for the name of the daily newspaper he founded on 15 January 1929. Today, Sin Chew Daily (“星洲日报”) still exists in Malaysia, whereas the Singapore edition merged with Nanyang Siang Pau in 1983 to form Lianhe Zaobao and Lianhe Wanbao, the latter of which was discontinued in December 2021.