Tanah Merah, Singapore

Tanah Merah (IPA: , Jawi: تانه ميره, Chinese: 丹那美拉, Tamil: தானா மேரா), is a geographical region located along the south-eastern coast of the East Region of Singapore. Although its boundaries are not exactly clear, it is widely accepted that the term refers to the southern coast of present-day planning areas of Bedok, Tampines, Changi and Changi Bay.

Etymology

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.