When looking at the future and considering where Singapore will be in the decades to come, the question of the location of Singapore – as with other countries of the Asean region – arises.

“Location” in this case does not apply simply to geography or pinpointing the precise coordinates of Singapore per se, but also involves locating the idea of Singapore on a broader epistemic register.

If we are to speak of Singapore as a South-east Asian nation-state, then surely being South-east Asian cannot simply be an outcome of a geographical accident: Being physically located in the region of South-east Asia does not necessarily make a nation or a people South-east Asian, unless they feel they are South-east Asian and regard South-east Asia as their home.

… Farish A. Noor is an associate professor at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University. He has written extensively on the history of South-east Asia and lectured at universities across the region.