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BiblioAsia

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Discover stories from across our collection

1210 articles

Jul–Sep 2026

22 May 2026

Jul-Sep 2026

The forgotten terracotta warriors of Jurong and other stories in BiblioAsia Volume 22, Issue 2

Issue

Director's Note (July 2026)

22 May 2026

Director's Note (July 2026)

Volume 22, Issue 2

Article

Teawares and tea accessories at Tea Chapter, 2026. Photo by Ng Yun Ling.

18 May 2026

The Perfect Brew: Singapore’s Chinese Tea Culture

Topics

Culture

Food

Singapore’s Chinese tea heritage tells a story where traditional practices, community and adaptive innovation have shaped an evolving yet enduring cultural legacy.

Article

The coat of arms of the Colony of Singapore in the Colony of Singapore Annual Report 1952. Image reproduced from Flags and Coats of Arms of Singapore (n.p.: n.p., 1933–65). Collection of the National Library Singapore (Accession no. B34448861E; call no. RRARE 959.5703 BLA).

18 May 2026

The Lions of the Lion City: How Heraldry Shaped Singapore’s Identity

Topics

History

In Singapore, a creature that never lived on the island became one of its most recognisable symbols – moving from legend and empire into national identity. This paradox opens a complex symbolic history in which heraldry is not mere ornament, but a visual archive of power.

Article

Kindred Waters: Stories of the Jinjiang Coolie Community in Singapore. By Toh Lam Huat, Peng Lee Er and Lim Jen Erh. Singapore Chin Kang Huay Kuan (2025), 173 pages Call no. RSING 305.895105957 KIN.

8 May 2026

New Books on Singapore History (July 2026)

Topics

Collection Highlights

Check out the new books in National Library Singapore.

Article

Otters in Singapore. Photo by Max Khoo.

6 May 2026

Should Otters Get a Singapore Passport?

Topics

Nature

In a BiblioAsia Podcast episode, editor-in-chief Jimmy Yap interviews environmental historian Timothy P. Barnard, who tells us how migrant animals such as otters came to be in Singapore and what makes them Singaporean.

Article

Sketch of Changi Prison titled “From the End of DIII Corridor the Outer World Was Visible” by William Haxworth, 1942. Haxworth was the Chief Investigator of the War Risks Insurance Department of the Singapore Treasury when war broke out. He was interned first in Changi Prison and then in Sime Road Internment Camp. W.R.M. Haxworth Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore (Media - Image No. 20060000330 - 0094).

29 April 2026

Musical Evenings in Changi Internment Camp

Topics

Arts

Places and Buildings

In the early months of the Japanese Occupation, a music-loving Japanese camp commander played a supporting role in musical activities that became a source of comfort and solace for the civilian internees.

Article

Replicas such as the Wild Goose Pagoda and Zhao Zhou Bridge were central to the park’s efforts to recreate the aesthetic of Chang’an, 1994. Ministry of Information and the Arts Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore (Media - Image no. 19990001380 - 0059).

22 April 2026

An Ancient Chinese City in Jurong

Topics

History

Places and Buildings

Flying swordsmen, terracotta warriors and famous TV stars once captivated visitors at the former Tang Dynasty City.

Article

Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Kuan Yew (second from right) holding a television press conference to announce the separation of Singapore from Malaysia on 9 August 1965. Tearing up, Lee called it a “moment of anguish”. Ministry of Information and the Arts Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore (Media - Image No. 19980002854 - 0006).

18 April 2026

The Days Leading to Separation in Lee Kuan Yew’s Own Words

Topics

History

People

The final agreement that separated Singapore from Malaysia had to be negotiated with great secrecy. After it was signed, senior leaders in Singapore had to be persuaded that there was no other solution.

Article

Total number of “amok” cases reported in Singapore

17 April 2026

An “Oriental Phase of Crime”: Representations of Amok in Singapore’s English Newspapers (1880s–1940s)

Topics

History

This article seeks to explore how Singapore’s English-language newspapers represented amok in the colony from the 1880s to 1940s. In doing so, it reveals how British colonials may have perceived and contended with amok in this era.

Article