Chapter 3.2: The Bugis Traders

Question 1

Who else did Singapore’s status as a free port attract?

Answer 1

Many traders from Riau Islands as well as other trade centres in the Malay Archipelago.

Question 2

Name one of the earliest and most prominent group of traders who traded in the region long before the Europeans arrived.

Answer 2

The Bugis traders.

Question 3

What did the Dutch do when they took control of the East Indies and its trade routes?

Answer 3

Impose taxes on traders which affected the spice route of the Bugis, who traditionally used the trade route between Celebes and Java.

Question 4

What did news of Singapore’s free port status cause?

Answer 4

Huge numbers of Bugis ships to sail to Singapore. By the beginning / start of the 20th century, several hundred Bugis traders and their families had moved to Singapore.

Question 5

What did the presence of Bugis traders in Singapore also attract?

Answer 5

Arab and Indian traders as well as Jawi Peranakans to come to Singapore.

Question 6

Where did the Jawi Peranakans live in previously?

Answer 6

Penang, Melak, Riau and Sumatra.

Question 7

Why did the Arab and Indian traders move to Singapore?

Answer 7

Because their trade networks in Southeast Asia had close ties with the Bugis traders