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Encyclopedia > Kusu Island
Kusu Island

Kusu Island highlighted in red
English Kusu Island
Chinese 龟屿
(Pinyin guīyǔ)
Malay Pulau Tembakul
Tamil fill in

Kusu Island is located to the south of the main island of Singapore, off the Straits of Singapore. The name means "Tortoise Island" or "Turtle Island" in Chinese; the island is also known as Peak Island or Pulau Tembakul in Malay. From 2 tiny outcrops on a reef, the island was enlarged and transformed into an island holiday resort of 85,000 square metres. The island is 5.6 km south of the main island of Singapore. Image File history File links Kusu_Island_locator_map. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: 汉语拼音; Traditional Chinese: 漢語拼音; Hanyu Pinyin: , lit. ... Not to be confused with the Malayalam language, spoken in Kerala, India. ... Tamil (தமிழ் ) is a classical language and one of the major languages of the Dravidian language family. ... The Singapore Strait is a 105 kilometer long, 16 kilometer wide strait between the Strait of Malacca in the west and the South China Sea in the east. ... Genera Chersina Dipsochelys Furculachelys Geochelone Gopherus Homopus Indotestudo Kinixys Malacochersus Manouria Psammobates Pyxis Testudo The tortoise is a land-dwelling reptile which is of the order Testudines. ... Suborders Cryptodira Pleurodira See text for families. ... Not to be confused with the Malayalam language, spoken in Kerala, India. ... A reef surrounding an islet. ...

An aerial view of Kusu Island.
An aerial view of Kusu Island.

Legend has it that a magical tortoise turned itself into an island to save two shipwrecked sailors - a Malay and a Chinese. The two men gave thanks according to his belief system, the former by building a Muslim kramat (keramat) (shrine), and the latter by establishing the a Taoist shrine. Each year during the ninth lunar month (which falls between Sep and Nov according to the Lunar Calendar), thousands of devotees flock to the island for their annual Kusu Pilgrimage to pay homage for good health, peace, happiness, good luck and prosperity. Image File history File links An aerial view of Kusu Island. ... Image File history File links An aerial view of Kusu Island. ... Eastern Orthodox shrine Buddhist shrine just outside Wat Phnom. ... For other uses of the words tao and dao, see Dao (disambiguation). ... In lunar calendars, a lunar month is the time between two successive similar syzygies (new moons or full moons). ... A lunar calendar is a calendar whose date indicates the moon phase. ... Pilgrim at Mecca For other uses of the word pilgrimage, see Pilgrimage (disambiguation). ...


Located on Kusu island is the popular Chinese temple - Da Bo Gong or Tua Pek Kong (The Merchant God or God of Prosperity). Built in 1923 by a wealthy businessman, the temple houses two main deities - the Da Bo Gong and Guan Yin (Goddess of Mercy). The former is highly regarded as having the power to confer prosperity, cure diseases, calm the sea and avert danger, while Guan Yin is known as the 'giver of sons'. Kuan Yin (Pinyin: Guanyin; also written Kwan Yin or in other variants which hyphenate or remove the space between the two words) is the bodhisattva of compassion as venerated by East Asian Buddhists. ...


At the top of the rugged hillock on Kusu Island stands three kramats (or holy shrines of Malay saints) to commemorate a pious man (Syed Abdul Rahman), his mother (Nenek Ghalib) and sister (Puteri Fatimah) who lived in the 19th century. Many devotees will climb the 152 steps leading to the kramats to pray for wealth, good marriage, good health and harmony. The shrines are also popular with childless couples who would pray for children. Despite misconceptions, they do not pray to the kramats. Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ...


It is a popular for its blue lagoons, pristine beaches and tranquil settings. Visits are often made to the wishing well and Tortoise Sanctuary. Overnight stay is not permitted on the island. See lagoon (disambiguation) for other possible meanings. ... Look up Wishing well in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...



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  Results from FactBites:
 
Kusu Island - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (398 words)
Kusu Island is located to the south of the main island of Singapore, off the Straits of Singapore.
The island is 5.6 km south of the main island of Singapore.
At the top of the rugged hillock on Kusu Island stands three kramats (or holy shrines of Malay saints) to commemorate a pious man (Syed Abdul Rahman), his mother (Nenek Ghalib) and sister (Puteri Fatimah) who lived in the 19th century.
Kusu Island (previously called Pulau Tembakul) used to be a burial site of immigrants who died in quarantine on St (728 words)
Kusu Island (previously called Pulau Tembakul) used to be a burial site of immigrants who died in quarantine on St. John's and Lazarus Islands.
Kusu after the legend of a magic turtle, which transformed itself into an island to save two shipwrecked sailors, a Malay and a Chinese.
Kusu Island was initially two small islands and a reef, but in 1975, reclaimed land merged it into a (very) little getaway island.
  More results at FactBites »

 

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