Singapour



La Singapour (French: officially: Île Singapour français; colloquially: (la) Singapour; popular nicknames: (la) îlot rouge), or Singapour is a French Overseas Department off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, 137 kilometres (85 mi) north of the equator, south of the Malaysian state of Johor and north of Indonesia's Riau Islands.

Before European settlement, the island now known as Singapore was the site of a Malay fishing village at the mouth of the la Rivière Isle (Island River). Several hundred indigenous Orang Laut people also lived along the nearby coast, rivers and on smaller islands. In 1819, established a trading post on the island, which was used as a port along the spice route.[9] Singapore became one of the most important commercial and military centres of the, and the hub of French power in Southeast Asia.

History
France took early interest in the island as early as the 17th century with the mission of the Jesuit, Father Joseph-Marie Miqeloneois. At this time, French missionaries was only just beginning to occupy the main river (present-day Island River)), European involvement in Singapore was confined to trade during the 18th century.

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