Christmas in Singapore: between consumerism and Christian celebrations
In 2011 Singapore was listed by The Lonely Planet as one of the top 10 Christmas Market destinations of the world and the only Asian country mentioned on the list. Since 1988 the annual ‘Christmas Light Up’ at Orchard Road – Singapore’s premier shopping locale with malls, department, and flagship stores – marks the beginning of the end of year celebrations on the island. Dr Katja Rakow (Assistant Professor of Religious Studies) studies Christmas in Orchard Road as part of her larger research on the intersection of public, religious and consumer spheres in Singapore. In this article she tells about the meaning of Christmas in Singapore’s main shopping street.
Supported by private and public stakeholders, such as Orchard Road Business Association and Singapore Tourism Board, the ‘Christmas Light Up’ is considered to be one of the signature events of Orchard Road and every year, it draws millions of shoppers and tourists to the location.
The obvious business intentions, the locality among consumer temples and the event character of ‘Christmas on Orchard Road’ could be read as an example in support of the thesis that Christmas is the first global consumption holiday. At the same time, the entrenchment of Christmas festivities in consumer culture opens a space for religious activities and representations within the public sphere, which would be quite impossible at other times.
Government regulation of celebrations
The small Southeast Asian city-state with a total population of 5,53 million is characterised by great ethnic, cultural and religious diversity carefully managed by the state to avoid tensions and conflicts between different groups. Therefore, the Singaporean government circumscribes possibilities for festivities and religious celebrations in the public sphere.
A Christian festival
Since 2004 a group of Christian organisations (CCIS, Celebrating Christmas in Singapore) has come together and gained permission to celebrate Christmas as a distinctly Christian festival on Orchard Road. With stage performances, dancing, singing Christmas carols, creative storytelling and displays, they share the message and meaning of Christmas while entertaining shoppers, tourists, and passers-by.
This creates a kind of win-win situation for all parties involved as it adds to the attraction of Christmas on Orchard road, draws tourists and shoppers alike while giving Christians the opportunity to present their understanding of Christmas in the public space of Singapore’s signature lifestyle precinct.
Research project
The study of ‘Christmas Light Up’ is part of the research project ‘Transcultural Dynamics of Pentecostalism in Singapore’. It is funded by the Cluster of Excellence ‘Asia and Europe in a Global Context’ at Heidelberg University (Germany) as part of the German Excellence Initiative. The research group comprises one postdoc researcher (Katja Rakow, who works at Utrecht University since September 2015) and two PhD candidates. The official end of the project is in April 2016.
