Mention “Dhoby Ghaut” to anyone and most will think of Plaza Singapura, Cathay cinema, and the nearby Orchard area.

Dhoby Ghaut has entered the colloquial tongue, and the area is so popular that few would wonder why it has such a funny name.

So, what does “Dhoby Ghaut” mean and why is the area called that?

Stamford Canal, historically known as Sungei Brass Bassa (Bras Basah River), flows through the Dhoby Ghaut area. During the 1800s, people would head to this part of Stamford Canal to wash the clothes of those living around the area. They would then dry the laundry at the field beside the canal.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="750"] View of Dhoby Ghaut from Mount Sophia. Drying laundry can be seen in the field to the right of the middle foreground. Picture from nas.gov.sg[/caption]

Most of these people were women of Indian origin.

“Dhoby” is the Hindi term for laundry and the people who did this work in the area came to be known as “Dhobies”.

“Ghaut” is derived from the Hindi word “ghat”, which refers to the flight of steps leading down to the river.

Hence, “Dhoby Ghaut” loosely translates as “laundry by the steps of a river” in reference to these laundry washing people of the past.

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Top photo from Wikimedia

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