Sang Nila Utama

Sang Nila Utama is a Srivijayan prince from Palembang who founded the Kingdom of Singapura in 1299. His official title adopted upon his coronation, was Sri Maharaja Sang Utama Parameswara Batara Sri Tri Buana, which can be translated as "Central Lord King of the Three Worlds". The "Three Worlds" may refer to the three realms of the universe – the heaven of the gods, the world of humans, and the underworld of demons. A few early kings in South East Asia had used the title Sri Tri Buana or "Lord of the Three Worlds". Sang Nila Utama strengthened his position by establishing powerful relationships with China, and an envoy of the Chinese emperor officially recognised him as the ruler of Singapore in 1320. He died in 1347; his son, Paduka Seri Wikrama Wira succeeded him. Some however believe that Sang Nila Utama may be a mythical person.

While the earliest known historical records of Singapore are shrouded, a 3rd-century Chinese account describes it as the "island at the end of a peninsula" or Pulau Ujung. Later, the city was known as Temasek ("Sea Town"), when the first settlements were established in the 12th to 13th centuries.

The founding of the city of Singapore began with Sang Nila Utama who was a prince of Palembang, which was then the capital of the Srivijaya Empire. He and his men were on Bintan island on a hunting trip.

While hunting, he spotted a stag and started chasing it up a small hill but, when he reached the top, the stag vanished. He then came to a very large rock and decided to climb it. When he stood on top of the rock, he looked across the sea and saw another island with a white sandy beach which had the appearance of a white sheet of cloth.

Asking his chief minister what land it was, he was told that it was the island of Temasek. He then decided to visit Temasek. However, when his ship was out on the sea, a great storm erupted and the ship was tossed about in the huge waves. The ship began to take in water.

To prevent it from sinking, his men threw all the heavy things on board into the sea to lighten the ship. But still water kept entering the ship. On the advice of the ship's captain, he threw his crown overboard as a gift to the sea. At once, the storm died down and he reached Temasek safely. (Another version of the legend states that his crown was too heavy for his ship.)

He landed at present-day Telok Blangah, then went to hunt wild animals at Kuala Temasek on a patch of open ground now referred to as the Padang. Suddenly, he saw a strange animal with a red body, black head and a white breast. It was a fine-looking animal and moved with great speed as it disappeared into the jungle.

He asked his chief minister Demang Lebar Duan what animal it was and was told that it was a lion. He was pleased with this as he believed it to be a good omen—a sign of good fortune coming his way. Thus, he decided to build his new city in Temasek. He and his men stayed on the island and founded a city in 1323, and renamed this city Singapura, which in Sanskrit means "Lion City".

He established diplomatic ties with China and was officially recognised as the ruler of Singapore by an envoy of the Chinese emperor in 1366. Sang Nila Utama ruled Singapura for 48 years and was buried at the foot of Bukit Larangan (present-day Fort Canning Hill). It is said that he was buried beside his wife, but the tombs and remains of him and his wife have not been located.

The events in the tale of Sang Nila Utama contain symbolisms and meanings behind them as well. For example, the throwing of the crown into the sea could represent the shift of power from Palembang to Singapura. During that period of time, the Srivijaya Empire was nearing its end and as Palembang had been the capital of the Malay World at that time, the throwing of the crown could meant to say that Palembang had been denounced from its role as the gathering place of the Malay people and that Temasek would then be the new centre of power for the Malay kings.

It has been pointed out that lions have never lived in Singapore (not even Asiatic lions), and the beast seen by Sang Nila Utama was therefore suggested to be a tiger, most likely to be the Malayan tiger. However, it was also argued by some that since tigers were found in Southeast Asia, Sang Nila Utama and his men would have easily known a tiger to mistake it for a lion, therefore the idea that it was a tiger may not be plausible. An alternative view is given by zoologist John Harrison who speculated that the animal was the golden cat.

It has been suggested that beast mentioned in the Malay Annals fits the description of a mythical beast called janggi told in Minangkabau legends as a guardian of gold mines. Dark red hair called rambut janggi, said to be of this mythical beast but probably actually from urangutan, adorn lances that were kept by the Minangkabaus as heirlooms.

There are however a number of other theories about the origin of the name Singapura as some believe Sang Nila Utama to be mythical. For example, it has been suggested that the "lion" refers to the lion throne originally set up by Parameswara in Palembang as a challenge to the Majapahit Empire, while others believed that the "lion" refers to a Majapahit Buddhist sect.