page_title: Tanah Merah, Singapore
section_title: Etymology
hierarchical_section_title: Tanah Merah, Singapore / Etymology
caption_attribution_description: English: Map of Singapura by Portuguese cartographer Manuel Godinho de Eredias, first drawn in 1604. Marked on the map are Blakang Mati or Sentosa (Blacan mati), New Strait (Estreito Novo, Singapore Strait), Old Strait (Estreito Velho, through Keppel Harbour), Xabandaria, Tanjong Rhu (Tanjon Rû), Sungei Bedok (Sunebodo), Tanah Merah (Tanamera), Tanjong Rusa (Tanjon Ruça), Terusan (Turuçan), Selat Tebrau (Salat Tubro), Pulau Merambong (Pulo Ulas), and Johor or the Malay Peninsula (Ujontana)
context_page_description: Tanah Merah, is a geographical region located along the south-eastern coast of the East Region of Singapore. Although its boundaries aren't exactly clear, it is often widely accepted that term "Tanah Merah", is used to refer to the southern coast of present-day Bedok, Tampines, Changi and Changi Bay.
context_section_description: The name "Tanah Merah" appears in the seventeenth century (1604) map by Manuel Godinho de Erédia on Singapore, written as Tana Mera. This place name is likely to have been an important reference point for the orang laut (sea people) in their activities in the region.
  The Malay name for this area is derived from the red lateritic cliffs along the coast that were visible from the sea, hence the name Tanah Merah or "red land". The earliest written reference comes from James Horsburgh's 1806 chart of "Singapore and Malacca", which has the name "Red Cliffs". Later, two sets of red cliffs were identified in Franklin and Jackson's 1830 map: "Large Red Cliff" (Tanah Merah area) and "Small Red Cliff" (present Bedok area) and "2nd Red Cliffs" (Tanah Merah area). J.E. Tassin's 1836 Map of Singapore refers to the area as "1st Red Cliffs" (Bedok area) and "2nd Red Cliffs" (Tanah Merah area).
  Old maps also show the existence of Tanah Merah Road as early as the 1840s, which stretched from Kallang River to Changi Point. Now, the road ran mostly along the original route but was renamed Geylang Road, Changi Road and Upper Changi Road, with a section between Siglap Road and Tanah Merah Kechil Road lost after the hills of Chai Chee and Bedok were levelled, and another short section lost under Changi Airport. Later, the road leading to "Large Red Cliff" was named "Tanah Merah Besar Road" while the other was named "Tanah Merah Kechil Road". Besar means "large" while Kechil means "little" in Malay.
  The presence of weathered lateritic soil provided the red-orange colouring of the area that led to its name even before Raffles' founding of Singapore. The exposed red lateritic soils were probably visible to many passing boats and hence the "landmark" was captured in early maps of Singapore.
caption: Tanamera (bottom left) marked in this 1604 map of Singapore by Godinho de Erédia. The map is orientated with the South towards the top left.
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