Singaporeans of Chinese descent are generally the descendants of non-indentured and indentured immigrants from southern China during the 19th and first half of the 20th century. The 1990s and early 21st century saw Singapore experience a third wave of immigration from different parts of China.

Are natives of Singapore Chinese?

Most Eurasians in Singapore can trace the European part of their ancestry to the Portuguese, Dutch or British, while their Asian ancestry can be traced to the Chinese, Malays or Indians. The first Eurasians arrived a few years after the British founded Singapore in 1819, and hailed mainly from Penang and Malacca.

Why is Chinese spoken in Singapore?

Singaporean Mandarin only became widely spoken by the Chinese community in Singapore after the Speak Mandarin Campaign in 1979. Due to its widespread usage, Singaporean Mandarin has replaced Singaporean Hokkien as the lingua franca of the Chinese community in Singapore today.