At a ceremony in Singapore on Tuesday evening, this year’s winners of the Singapore Prize were revealed – 10 titles were honored across four categories of fiction, non-fiction and poetry written in Malay, English, Tamil or Chinese were chosen by a jury consisting of Esplanade communications and content head Clarissa Oon for Malay fiction, Cultural Medallion recipient KTM Iqbal for Tamil poetry selection, and Dr Sa’eda Buang of Asian Languages and Cultures Academic Group’s Dr Sa’eda Buang for Chinese fiction selection.

The prize aims to encourage engagement with Singaporean history broadly defined, to make its complexity and subtleties accessible to non-academic audiences, and increase understanding among Singaporeans about their history. It was initiated by Kishore Mahbubani of NUS Asia Research Institute who chaired this year’s jury; then administered by Department of History at NUS.

This year’s NUS Singapore History Prize received an unprecedented global field of entries that included both books and digital media from around the globe. Prof Miksic’s book gave an interesting new angle on Singapore’s early history while establishing it as an important trade hub in Southeast Asia; furthermore he was recognized for helping lay a basis for fundamentally reinterpreting Singaporean history.

Hidayah Amin’s Leluhur: The Story of Kampong Gelam took second prize. This book provides a detailed account of how residents of Kampong Gelam village adapted to change over time, offering new insights into its heritage with photos, maps and sketches that bring these stories alive. Readers praised it for its profound insights into how its residents united together to overcome hardships as well as reveal information about its relationship to nature.

Dr Wang’s book won third prize, providing an insight into everyday Singaporeans during Japanese occupation between 1940 and 1950. His study underscores the significance of preserving historical sites for their social significance while showing how such stories can be told to give a more complete portrait of Singapore’s past.

On Tuesday evening in Singapore, Earthshot Prize 2023 winners were honored at an extravagant gala. The Grand Prize Winner received USD $1 Million to accelerate their efforts toward creating sustainable solutions to address health and sustainability challenges in our globalized society. Each other Grand Prize Winner received $250,000 as recognition of their work.

The Moonshot Prizes were inspired by US President John F Kennedy’s 1962 “moonshot” speech, in which he encouraged Americans to aim for the impossible. A jury consisting of senior leaders from government, academia and industry (including former Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong ) select winners each year who represent some of Singapore’s best and brightest scientists, engineers and technologists – supported by Temasek Trust, WildAid Marine Programme and Conservation International as partners – with more information about each prize available here.