Abstract

Since the founding of colonial Singapore, the Swiss have been active on the island, whether as traders, naturalists, or tourists fascinated by the exoticism of the East. Discover the stories of Swiss-made sarongs, of Swiss Nobel laureate Hermann Hesse’s time in Singapore and of the evolution of the longstanding Swiss Club from its early days as the Swiss Rifle Shooting Club. Historian Andreas Zangger also provides the background to the close economic and diplomatic relationship between the two countries today. This fascinating history is accompanied by an assortment of contemporary and archival images, photographs and documents. The Swiss in Singapore is the perfect guide to the past, present and potential of the small but important Swiss community in the country that is often described as the 'Switzerland of the East'.