- Esplanade, Singapore
The Esplanade is a waterfront location just north of the mouth of the
Singapore River in downtownSingapore . It is primarily occupied by theEsplanade Park , and was the venue where one of Singapore's largest congregation ofsatay outlets until their relocation toClarke Quay as a result of the construction of a major performance arts venue, theEsplanade - Theatres on the Bay , which took its name from this location.Etymology and history
In the 1850s, the Esplanade referred to what is now the Padang, previously known as The Plain, in front of City Hall. It is best captured in
John Turnbull Thomson 's 1851painting , "The Esplanade from Scandal Point".With
land reclamation in 1943, the term Esplanade then referred to the area of the presentQueen Elizabeth Walk . Both the Esplanade Park and Queen Elizabeth Walk were built on the reclaimed land. In the park are severalmemorial s, including The Cenotaph (completed in 1922), theFormer Indian National Army Monument , theTan Kim Seng Fountain (moved here in 1925 fromFullerton Square ), and theLim Bo Seng Memorial (which was unveiled in 1954).Queen Elizabeth Walk covers an area of approximately convert|9.5|acre|m2. The walk was substantially completed in 1953 and was named in honour of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth's
coronation in the same year. It was declared open onCoronation Day ,30 May 1953 by T.P.F. McNiece. There was an open airbandstand near the Lim Bo Seng Memorial.The Tamils call the Esplanade "January "thidal" or "January place" because of the former
sports activities held there onNew Year's Day , the first of January. The Chinese called the place "tua kok cheng chau po" or "thegrass field in front of the greatcourt ", referring to the Padang in front of the Supreme Court.References
*Victor R Savage, Brenda S A Yeoh (2004), "Toponymics - A Study of Singapore Street Names", Eastern University Press, ISBN 981-210-364-3
External links
* [http://www.esplanade.com/ The Esplanade]
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