The prize, set up in 2014 with an endowment fund funded by an anonymous donor, is awarded to the best book written about Singapore history. It was founded by former diplomat Kishore Mahbubani, who is also the chairman of the prize’s jury panel. He said the prize was important because the biggest challenge for Singapore now is not just economic growth, but building a national identity through a strong sense of shared history.

The 2024 winners of the prize – including the first-ever English comic or graphic novel winner – were announced on 18 June at an award ceremony during the Singapore International Water Week. The award includes a cash prize of S$300,000 and an award certificate. Previous winners include poet Marylyn Tan, historian Wang Gungwu and writer-historian Jeremy Tiang. This year, the competition added a new category for books that explore Singapore’s past, as well as a prize for debut authors and the best translation from Chinese into English. The Readers’ Favourite, which was based on public votes, is not being given this year.

In a televised interview with the Straits Times, Prof Miksic said that the idea for the prize was inspired by an opinion column that he wrote in April 2014. It called on Singaporeans to become philanthropists and fund a book prize. “A very generous reader responded with an offer,” he said.

Prof Miksic, a professor with the NUS Department of History, started excavation work in Singapore in 1984, and his book Singapore and the Silk Road of the Sea, 1300-1800 was based on his research. “The purpose of the prize is to encourage an engagement with Singapore’s history broadly understood, and to make it more accessible to the non-academic community,” he said.

NUS professor Cyril Wong, who won the 2024 Prize for Literature, is an award-winning author and poet. His latest book, Beachlight, is published by Seagull Books. He also received the National Arts Council’s Young Artist Award in Poetry.

Professor Miksic was among the five members of the prize’s jury panel, along with Mr Mahbubani; Foo Hai Fellow in Buddhist Studies and Associate Professor Jack Meng-Tat Chia; Senior Curator Dr Seng Yu Jin of the National Gallery Singapore; and economist Lam San Ling. The other members were historians from the NUS Department of History; art and literary figures; museum curators; and history teachers and curriculum developers.

The students’ prize returned after a five-year hiatus, with artworks by the 20 finalists being on display at ART SG in January.

The finalists are nominated by their teachers, and the artists must be Singapore citizens aged 13 to 18. The students’ works will go on display at ART SG from 17 to 19 January. The judges will select one student to receive the Judges’ Prize of S$1,400, and their school will be rewarded S$3,500. Click here for more information.