Wang Dayuan
The origin of the name Temasek is uncertain, but it has been proposed that it was derived from the Malay word "tasik" meaning "lake" or "sea", and may mean here "place surrounded by the sea", or Sea Town. Another suggestion is that it may be a reference to a king of Srivijaya, Maharaja "Tan ma sa na ho". The name appears as "Tumasik" in the Old Javanese epic poem written in 1365, Nagarakretagama. The name is also mentioned twice in the "Malay Annals", and referred to in the Javanese work "Pararaton". Temasek is described in the account by the Chinese traveller Wang Dayuan who visited the island around 1330 and wrote about a Malay settlement called "Danmaxi", a transcription of the name Temasek. In a version of Marco Polo's account of his travel, a place named "Chiamassie" that could be Temasik was mentioned in relation to the island kingdom of "Malayur". Temasek may have also been mentioned in Vietnamese records as "Sach Ma Tich" in the 14th century.