Located in maritime Southeast Asia, Singapore, formally known as the Republic of Singapore, is a city-state and island nation. Situated off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, it is approximately one degree latitude (137 kilometers or 85 miles) north of the equator. It shares borders with the State of Johor in Malaysia to the north, the Straits of Johor and the Strait of Malacca to the west, the Singapore Strait and the Riau Islands in Indonesia to the south, and the South China Sea to the east. One main island, sixty-three satellite islands and islets, and one offshore islet make up the nation’s territory; as a result of massive land reclamation efforts, the aggregate size of these has grown by about 25% since the nation’s independence. It possesses the third-highest population density of any nation in the world, despite the fact that urban planning has produced a large number of green and recreational areas. English, Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil are the four official languages of Singapore, a country with a diverse population that honors the unique identities of its major ethnic communities. The common tongue is English.