. Singaporeans are group dependent and rely on facial expression, tone of voice and posture to tell them what someone feels. . They often trust non-verbal messages more than the spoken word. . They tend to be subtle, indirect and implicit in their communications. . They hint at a point rather than making a direct statement, since that might cause the other person to lose face. . Rather than say 'no', they might say, 'I will try', or 'I'll see what I can do'. This allows the person making the request and the person turning it down to save face and maintain harmony in their relationship. . Silence is an important element of Singaporean communication. . Pausing before responding to a question indicates that they have given the question appropriate thought and considered their response carefully. . They do not understand western cultures ability to respond to a question hastily and think this indicates thoughtlessness and rude behaviour.
· Etiquette and Customs in Singapore
· Meeting and Greeting
. Greetings will follow a strict protocol often based on both the ethnic origin and age of the person. . Younger people or those who work in multi-national companies may have adopted the western concept of shaking hands with everyone, but this is not the case with older or more reserved Singaporeans. . Ethnic Chinese shake hands. Their grasp is rather light although the handshake itself can be rather prolonged. . Men and women may shake hands, although the woman must extend her hand first. Introductions are always done in order of age or status. . Between men, ethnic Malays shake hands. . Men and women do not traditionally shake hands, since Muslim men do not touch women in public. . Younger Malays may shake hands with foreign women, but it is more appropriate to use the 'salaam' (bowing the head) greeting. . This is also the greeting to be used when two women meet. . Ethnic Indians shake hands with members of the same sex. . When being introduced to someone of the opposite sex, nodding the head and smiling is usually sufficient. . As with the other groups, the elderly or the person with the most status is introduced first.
Titles/Names
Chinese
. Chinese traditionally have 3 names. The surname or family name is first and is followed by two personal names. . Address the person by an honorific title and their surname. If they want to move to a first name basis, they will advise you which of their two personal names to use. . Some Chinese adopt more western names in business and may ask you to call them that.
Malay
. Many Malays do not have surnames. Instead, men add the father's name to their own name with the connector bin. So Noor bin Isa, would be Noor, the son of Isa. Women use the connector binti, so Zarina binti Isa would be Zarina the daughter of Isa. . The title Haji (male) or Hajjah (female) before the name indicates the person has made their pilgrimage to Mecca. . The name Sayyed (male) or Sharifah (female) indicates that the person is considered to be a descendent of the prophet Mohammed.
Indian
. Many Indians in Singapore do not use surnames. Instead, they place the initial of their father's name in front of their own name. The man's formal name is their name 's/o' (son of) and the father's name. Women use 'd/o' to refer to themselves as the daughter of their father. . Since many Indian names are extremely long, they commonly use a shortened version of their name as a sort of nickname. . At marriage, women drop their father's name and use their first name with their husband's first name as a sort of surname. . Sikh Indians all use the name Singh to denote themselves as Sikhs.
