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Last month, we shared the top tourist sights for tourists visiting Singapore in 1890. But if cemeteries, asylums and ponderious government buildings are a little too heavy-going for your taste, why not check out the local food and shopping instead? Read more »

The thought of taking photographs of recently departed loved ones as a keepsake may be considered a tad gruesome for many of us.

However, taking photographs of the dead was a common practice in the 19^th and early 20^th centuries.

Unlike current times, photographic technologies were at its infancy in the 19th century and having one’s photograph taken while alive was considered a luxury because it was a very costly procedure.

Read more »

Far Eastern Tourist Agency (1911). Information for Travellers Landing at Singapore

Long before Lonely Planet guides, tourist agencies and enterprising local residents already began publishing travel guides and handbooks for visitors to Singapore. Even in the absence of the Merlion, Integrated Resorts or even our beloved Zoo, there was plenty for visitors to see and do! Read more »

According to Philip Ardagh’s book of absolutely useless lists for absolutely every day of the year:
1. The Titanic                 

On her first voyage on 14 April 1912, the White Star liner hit an iceberg which ripped a 75 m hole in her hull. 1503 people died as there weren’t enough lifeboats. The wreck of it was only discovered on 1 September 1985, 2.5 miles below the surface, 323 nautical miles off Newfoundland.

2. The Lusitania

The finest ship in the Cunard fleet, it sunk when sailing from New York to Liverpool on 7 May 1915 when a torpedo hit it. The torpedo was fired from a U-boat, a German submarine off Ireland. The ship sank in just 18 minutes, leaving 1201 dead. The site of the wreck was discovered in 1935 and one of it’s huge quadruple screws can be seen on the quayside at the Merseyside Maritime Museum today.

3. The Bismarck

The German navy and Britain’s wartime prime minister Winston Churchill, had admired the Bismarck greatly. However on the warship’s first voyage on May 1941, she sank. It was chased across the Atlantic in battle and the torpedo fires caused it to sink, leaving 2085 people dead and 115 survivors. The wreckage was found 380 miles south of Cork in Ireland. The site wreck has been officially transformed to a German war grave today.

4. The Belgrano

This Argentinian warship suffered two torpedos on 2 May 1982, fired from a British nuclear submarine during the Falklands War. 323 men were killed while the rescue operation saved 770 crew members. Despite a joint expedition done in 2003 by the Argentinian navy and the National Geographic Society to locate the wreck of Belgrano, the wreck is yet to be found.

5. The Mary Rose

Built between 1509 and 1511, Henry VIII described the Mary Rose’s unique design as ‘the fairest flower of all the ships that ever sailed’. On 19 July 1545, the Mary Rose set sail at Southsea in the king’s presence. The overladen ship capsized, its lower gun ports which are the open portholes that canons fire through, had taken in too much water. 660 men are thought to have drowned, with less than 40 survivors. The wreck was investigatd closely in 1960 and raised in 1882. The raising was broadcasted on televsion, with an estimated 60 million people watching live. Today the wreck is displayed behind glass screens at Portsmouth’s Historic Dockyard, where it is constantly kept moist using a  special preservative spray.

Reference:
1. Ardagh, P. (2008). Philip ardagh’s book of absolutely useless lists for absolutely every day of the year. . London : Macmillan Children’s:

If you want to read more on the topic, here are books that you can check out at our library.

 All Rights Reserved,Random House, 2002.

Titanic : a nonfiction companion to Tonight on the Titanic  by Will Osborne and Mary Pope Osborne       
Publisher: New York : Random House, 2002..
Call No.: J 910 OSB  
Click here to check for item availability

All Rights Reserved,Minn. : Capstone Press, c2010.

Exploring Titanic : an Isabel Soto history adventure by Agnieszka Biskup 
Publisher: Mankato, Minn. : Capstone Press, c2010.
Call No.: J 910.91 BIS
Click here to check for item availability

All Rights Reserved,Scholastic, c2010.

The sinking of the Titanic, 1912 by Lauren Tarshis 
Publisher: New York : Scholastic, c2010.
Call No.: JS TAR
Click here to check for item availability

All websites are last accessed on June 2011. Please refer to the terms and conditions on the homepages for use.
For the availability of the above book titles, please check the library catalogue.

Originally Answered by Ms Judy Kong Siew Choo
Children’s Librarian
Children’s Services

The dates of Chinese festivals are calculated according to the Chinese lunar calendar, which comprises 12 lunar months of either 29 or 30 days. Each lunar year therefore lasts no longer than 355 days, ten days less than the Gregorian year. To keep the two calendars in synchrony with one another, it became necessary to ‘add’ an extra month every two or three years, in a manner similar to the convention of creating leap years. Known as ‘intercellary months’, these additional months ensure that the Lunar New Year continues to be celebrated at approximately the same time year after year.

Because the lunar year ‘ends’ before the Gregorian year, the subsequent lunar year ‘starts’ before the old Gregorian has come to an end. This has the effect of causing the New Year to fall on progressively earlier days. If this continued indefinitely, unfortunate Chinese would find themselves celebrating the New Year earlier and earlier. If the difference between the two calendars was allowed to grow, there would be years when the Lunar New Year would fall during the December of the previous year, or even earlier.

However, every three years, the difference between the two calendars is compensated for by the addition of a intercellary month. After every ‘leap’ year, Lunar New Year would once again occur later in February, before falling on earlier dates in subsequent years.

Calculations for the dates of the New Year from 1864 to 2043 have been made and are available in the book The Comparative Solar and Lunar Calender. Within this time period, the earliest CNY recorded falls on 22 January (1879, 1898, 1909, 2004) while the latest is on 20 February (1920, 1985)

Reference:

All Rights Reserved. Singapore: Landmark, 1997

Title: The comparative solar and lunar calendar (864-2043)
Author: Goh, Kee Seah 
Call No.: RSING English 529.3 GOH

 
As Chap Goh Meh literally means ‘15^th night’, it is likely that it shares historical roots with yuan xiao jie, the 15th and final day of the lunar new year . Historically, in Chinese tradition, the 15^th day of the first lunar month has been a joyful day of festivity and celebration, with families gathering in the streets to enjoy elaborate lantern displays. The day’s festivities provided one of the few chances for young singles to meet one another face to face, a situation not unconducive to the creation of romance. This aspect of the celebration seems to have been amplified in the Southeast Asian version of the festival

During the time of dynastic rule in China, curfews were regularly imposed to safeguard the populace. The Lantern Festival, or yuanxiaojie, was one of the few days in a year during when members of the public could be outdoors after dark. This privilege was even extended to unmarried girls, who were traditionally prevented from leaving their family compound on other day. As time passed, social conventions became less stringent; however, the festival retained its social aspect. Young people were chaperoned in the streets in hopes of finding love, while matchmakers acted busily in hopes of pairing couples.

Today, chap goh meh is popularly thought of as an auspicious time to find a life partner. Observed in Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore, the occasion is considered to be a night of courtship akin to Valentine’s Day, a day celebrating love and affection between lovers. The emblematic ritual of tossing oranges into the river began in Penang; however, its origins are shrouded in mystery. The only reference that I could locate suggests that it started off as a sacrificial ritual. The book Through the Bamboo Window describes unmarried young ladies desiring marriage “throwing oranges, groundnuts…and pebbles into the water as they wish for their heart’s desire” (14).

References:

Title: Through the bamboo window
Author: Comber, Leon
Call No.: English 390.08995105951 COM

 ‘Thomas Nast was the first artist to depict Santa Claus in the red suit that became  his traditional garb’

Image and quote retrieved from:
Nast, Thomas: “Merry Old Santa Claus.” [Photograph]. In Encyclopaedia Britannica Online Library Edition. Retrieved from: http://library.ebonline.com/comptons/art-100703

[Ho ho ho! As a child, I always wondered how Santa Claus would be able to leave his presents in our HDB flats since there were no chimneys! The only other way would be the garbage chute, but then poor Santa might stink! Or he could always pull a 'Spiderman' .] 

According to Encyclopedia Britannica Online Library Edition: “The legend of jolly old Santa Claus, or St. Nick, began with a real person: St. Nicholas. Although he is one of the most popular saints honored by Christians, very little is actually known about him. He lived during the 4th century in Lycia, a province on the southwest coast of Asia Minor. Tradition says he was born in Patara, a seaport, and traveled to Egypt and Palestine as a young man. Eventually he became bishop of the church at Myra. During the period of persecution of Christians by the Roman emperor Diocletian, he was imprisoned, but he was released by Diocletian’s successor, Constantine the Great. 

St. Nicholas was credited with many miracles. In one story, he saved three officers from death by appearing to Constantine in a dream. Another tale had him bringing three murdered children back to life. St. Nicholas also developed a reputation as a great helper of the poor. One legend tells of him providing bags of gold to a poor man as dowries for his three daughters. Through such stories, St. Nicholas became associated with children and gift giving. His feast day, December 6, was marked in many European countries by children receiving presents. 

Santa Claus emerged in the United States from the traditions and beliefs of a variety of cultures. The name Santa Claus is derived from Sinterklaas, a Dutch word for St. Nicholas. The color of Santa’s outfit is thought to be based on the red bishop’s robe commonly worn by St. Nicholas. In Germany and early German communities in America, tradition held that the Christkindle (Christ Child) brought gifts on Christmas Eve. Children would leave goodies for him to eat during his visit and would set out straw for his mule. The word Christkindle eventually turned into Kriss Kringle, an alternative name for Santa Claus. Some of his other names include Father Christmas (Britain) and Pere Noel  (France).” 

Reference:                                                                           
—Santa Claus. (2010). In Britannica Student Encyclopedia. Retrieved December 24, 2010, from Encyclopedia Britannica Online Library Edition: http://library.ebonline.com/kids/comptons/article-9276889 
If you want to read more on the topic, here are books that you can check out at our libraries. 

All Rights Reserved, Phyllis Fogelman Books, c2001. 

The real Santa Claus by Marianna Mayer
Publisher: New York : Phyllis Fogelman Books, c2001.
Call No.: JP 394.2663 MAY
Click here to check for item availability 

 
All Rights Reserved, Jeremy P. Tarcher/Putnam, 2006. 

The autobiography of Santa Claus as told to Jeff Guinn
Publisher: New York : Jeremy P. Tarcher/Putnam, 2006.
Call No.: English GUI
Click here to check for item availability

All Rights Reserved, PPP Co., 2003.
The true history of Santa Claus by Nury Vittachi
Publisher: Hong Kong : PPP Co., 2003.
Call No: J VIT
Click here to check for item availability 

All Rights Reserved, Margaret K. McElderry Books, c2003.
The legend of Saint Nicholas by Demi.
Publisher: New York : Margaret K. McElderry Books, c2003.
Call No.: J 270.2 DEM
Click here to check for item availability 
All websites are last accessed on 24 Dec 2010. Please refer to the terms and conditions on the homepages for use.
For the availability of the above book titles, please check the library catalogue. 

Ms Isabel Tan
Librarian, Children’s Services

Below are some reading recommendations:

Fiction titles:
1. An innocent soldier / by Josef Holub ; translated by Michael Hofmann.
Summary: A sixteen-year-old farmhand is tricked into fighting in the Napoleonic Wars by the farmer for whom he works, who secretly substitutes him for the farmer’s own son.
Call No.:  Y English HOL

2. Kipling’s choice / written by Geert Spillebeen ; translated by Terese Edelstein.
Summary: In 1915, mortally wounded in Loos, France, eighteen-year-old John Kipling, son of writer Rudyard Kipling, remembers his boyhood and the events leading to what is to be his first and last World War I battle.
Call No.: Y English SPI

3. Sunrise over Fallujah / Walter Dean Myers.
Summary: Robin Perry, from Harlem, is sent to Iraq in 2003 as a member of the Civilian Affairs Battalion, and his time there profoundly changes him.

Call No.: Y English MYE

4. The burning bridge / John Flanagan.
Summary: Will is forced to overcome his fear of Wargals, the foot soldiers of rebel warlord Morgarath, as Araluen’s army prepares to battle Morgarath’s forces.
Call No.: Y English FLA

5. Search and destroy / Dean Hughes.

Summary: Recent high school graduate Rick Ward, undecided about his future and eager to escape his unhappy home life, joins the army and experiences the horrors of the war in Vietnam.
Call No.: Y English HUG

Non-fiction titles:
1. The war in Iraq / Tom Lansford, book editor.
Call No.: Y English 956.70443 WAR

2. The hundred days offensive : the Allies’ push to win World War I / by Andrew Langley.
Call No.: Y English 940.434 LAN

3. The Vietnam War / Hal Marcovitz.
Call No.: Y English 959.7043 MAR

4. Living through the Korean War / Charles W. Carey Jr., book editor.
Call No.: Y English 951.9042 LIV

5. World War II / Nathaniel Harris.
Call No.: Y English 940.54 HAR

If you intend to check the availability of any title before visiting our public libraries, you may do so via the online catalogue at: http://searchplus.pl.sg/

Posted by Yen Yen Toh, Associate Librarian, Adult and Young People’s Services

Found this question interesting? What do you think? Post your comments.
If you have a different question, please email to ask@nlb.gov.sg instead of sending a comment

Deepavali, otherwise known as the “festival of lights”, marks the triumph of good over evil for Hindus as it commemorates the victory of Lord Krishna, the ruler of Madura over the demon Narakasura, whose evil rule in the kingdom of  Pradyoshapuram was much feared by the villagers. 

Upon Lord Krishna’s return, the city of Madura was in complete darkness as it was the night of a new moon. Therefore, to celebrate the victory and welcome Lord Krishna, the people lit lamps to pave the way for Lord Krishna, hence Deepavali is also known as the “”festival of lights”.

Another legend associated with Deepavali would be the return of Lord Rama from unjust exile by his stepmother after fourteen years and his defeat of  the demon king, Ravana. Therefore, Deepavali is also celebrated to honour Lord Rama and to mark his triumph of  good over evil.

During Deepavali, Hindu homes are decorated with fresh mango leaves and kolams (Indian floor art). It is also celebrated with the feasting on traditional sweets and snacks, visiting relatives and friends and lighting of oil lamps around the home. The  oil lamps placed in the homes are believed to usher in good fortune.

Sources:
1) Deepavali:http://www.hinduism.co.za
2) Hindu Festivals: Hindu Endowment Board:http://www.heb.gov.sg

To learn more about Deepavali, do check out these books!

All Rights Reserved, London : Franklin Watts, 2008
A year of Hindu festivals by Flora York
Call Number: J English 294.5 YOR
Publisher: London : Franklin Watts
View item availability here

All Rights Reserved, Mumbai : Vakils, Feffer & Simins, c2005
Festival of light : Deepavali legends from around India as told by Radhika Sekar
Call Number: J English 398.2360954 RAD -[FOL]
Publisher:Mumbai : Vakils, Feffer & Simins
View item availability here

All Rights Reserved, Singapore : Asiapac Books, 2005
Come To The Party!Celebrate Indian Hindu festivals by Suzanne Lauridsen
Call Number: J SING English 294.5 LAU
Publisher: Singapore : Asiapac Books
View item availability here

Posted By:

Ms Chen Wanying
Children’s Librarian
Children’s Services

Singapore mourns for Mrs Lee Kuan Yew who passed away at age 89 on 2nd October.  A confidante,  intellectual partner and pillar of strength to her husband Mr Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore’s first Prime Minister and current Minister Mentor (MM),  Mrs Lee was described as quiet, unassuming and brilliant.

Her achievements

Madam Kwa Geok Choo had a distinguished academic and professional career.  She topped the whole of Malaya in the Senior Cambridge Examinations in 1936 and later went to join her husband Mr Lee doing law at the Cambridge University under the Queen’s scholarship.  She achieved a First Class Honours in Law.  Upon her return, she jointly set up a legal firm with Mr Lee and her brother-in-law.  Mrs Lee was acknowledged as one of the best conveyancing legal minds in Malaya.

Personal insights on Mrs Lee

Accolades and tributes were heaped upon on Mrs Lee by those whom she  had come into contact with.  They came from all walks of life from heads of state, political figures as well as members of the public.  While Mrs Lee was an intensely private person, the compilation of quotes below gives us more insight into her character.

Her role as a mother and wife:

When asked if she (Mrs Lee) ever had disagreements with MM Lee in email interviews, she replied:
” Would you believe me if I say we never disagree or quarrel? Fortunately, these are over little matters. Kuan Yew leaves household decisions to me. Family matters have not been a problem.”

MM Lee in his memoirs, recounted his wife as the disciplinarian of the house:
“She brought them up well-mannered and self-disciplined”.

Mrs Lee, on a visit to Kuala Lumpur in 1976:
“I walk two steps behind my husband like a good Asian wife.”

Her stance on politics:

During a radio broadcast of Mrs Lee’s first and only political speech, which highlighted the PAP’s position on women:
“Our society is stilll built on the assumption that women are the social, political and economic inferiors of men. This myth has been made the excuse for the exploitation of female labour. Many women do the same kind of work as men but do not get the same pay… Let us show them (the other parties) that Singapore women are tired of their pantomime and buffoonery. I appeal to women to vote for PAP. It is the only party with the idealism, the honesty and ability to carry out its election programme.”
- Mrs Lee’s beliefs about how women should be empowered to contribute to society

In an interview with authors of Men In White:
“I felt it was unfair that I should be dropped (from PAP party meetings). I thought I could have made a contribution. But I did not take a strong stand about it.”
- Mrs Lee was one of the first women to join the PAP

For old newspaper reports on Mrs Lee, you may wish to use our Newspaper SG page and put in the search term “Kwa Geok Choo”. There are some articles dated as far back as 1947.

Unfortunately there are no books published about or written by Mrs Lee, but here are some books that you may wish to read about MM Lee:

1) Conversations with Lee Kuan Yew: citizen Singapore: how to build a nation
Author: Tom Plate
Publisher: Singapore : Marshall Cavendish Editions, c2010.
Call No.: SING 959.570 PLA

2) Lee Kuan Yew in his own words. Book 1. 1959-1970
edited by S.J.Rodringuez
Publisher: Singapore : SJ & Gavin International, c2003.
Call No.: SING 959.570 LEE -[HIS]

3) From third world to first: the Singapore story, 1965-2000: memoirs of Lee Kuan Yew
Author: Lee Kuan Yew
Publisher: Singapore : Times Editions : Singapore Press Holdings, c2000.
Call No.: SING 959.570 LEE – [HIS]

You may also wish to read Highbrowse Online  for their post on the late Mrs Lee.

 (Photo credit:  Channel NewsAsia.  Source: CBS News. Quotations above taken from the online article “A Personal account of Mrs Lee Kuan Yew“    dated 5 October 2010).

Posted by Kweh Soon Huat, Librarian, Adult and Young People’s Services