The Straits Times, 11 Nov 2013.
"Former President S R Nathan was conferred the Order of Temasek (First Class) for exemplary service to the nation at last night's National Day Awards Investiture.
Mr Nathan, now 89, is only the seventh person in history to receive the honour, which was awarded in recognition of his service to the nation spanning the history of post-independence Singapore.
He received his sash and medal from President Tony Tan Keng Yam, who presided over the ceremony, which was attended by 421 award recipients and about 1,000 guests, at the National University of Singapore."
The other Singaporean recipient can be found in the S'pore The Encyclopedia. They are:
The Darjah Utama Temasek was instituted in 1975 and revised in 1996. There are 3 classes of award: First, Second and Third Class. The number of recipients admitted to the First Class is limited to 12 persons. There is no limit to the number of persons admitted to the Second and Third Class.
Brief History of United Kingdom Honour System
The Singapore National Day Award system was adapted from the UK system. The practice of awarding Order has its origin from Knighthood.
Extracted from Wikipedia:
"Although the Anglo-Saxon monarchs are known to have rewarded their loyal subjects with rings and other symbols of favour, it was the Normans who introduced knighthoods as part of their feudal government. The first English order of chivalry, the Order of the Garter, was created in 1348 by Edward III. Since then the system has evolved to address the changing need to recognise other forms of service to the United Kingdom."
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry and the most prestigious honour in England and of the United Kingdom, and is dedicated to the image and arms of St. George as England's patron saint. It is awarded at the Sovereign's pleasure as his personal gift, on recipients from the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth realms. Membership of the order is limited to the Sovereign, the Prince of Wales, and no more than twenty-four members, or Companions. The order also includes supernumerary knights and ladies (e.g., members of the British Royal Family and foreign monarchs).
The order's emblem, depicted on insignia, is a garter with the motto Honi soit qui mal y pense (Middle French: "shame upon him who thinks evil upon it") in gold lettering. Members of the order wear such a garter on ceremonial occasions.
The concept was followed over the next century or so with other European monarchs founding their own prestigious orders of chivalry.
Knight
A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a monarch or other political leader for service to the monarch or country, especially in a military capacity. Historically, in Europe, knighthood has been conferred upon mounted warriors.[1] During the High Middle Ages, knighthood was considered a class of lower nobility. By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior. Since the Early Modern period, the title of knight is purely honorific, usually bestowed by a monarch, as in the British honours system, often for non-military service to the country.
Some orders of knighthood, such as the Knights Templar, have become the subject of legend; others have disappeared into obscurity. Today, a number of orders of knighthood continue to exist in several countries, such as the English Order of the Garter, the Swedish Royal Order of the Seraphim, and the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav. Each of these orders has its own criteria for eligibility, but knighthood is generally granted by a head of state to selected persons to recognise some meritorious achievement.
