Newcomers to the country may soon have to clear a test on Singapore before they are allowed to become citizens.

But how well do citizens and foreigners here know the Republic?

Armed with 10 questions ranging from Singapore's colonial history to its public holidays, The Sunday Times put 50 locals and foreigners to the test.

The verdict? Not very well, in fact, with an average score of just five out of 10. None got all 10 answers right.

For most, that is 47 respondents, naming the four official languages here - English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil - was a breeze.

This was also the case for the 45 who could list three food items found in hawker centres here.

But only two could say what all of these seven acronyms stand for: ERP, CPF, GRC, LUP, MM, AYE and Mica.

To their credit, many recognised GRC, or Group Representation Constituency, but could not say what the letters stood for.

Among the wild guesses were self-created phrases such as "grass root constituency" and "government residents' committee".

Few could say what Singapore's land area is, but almost everyone named Sir Stamford Raffles as the founder of colonial Singapore.

And it also seems that the Singapore Tourism Board has done such a good job promoting the Merlion that some - locals as well as foreigners - believe the imaginary creature is included in the national coat of arms.

Overall, the scores of the 36 Singaporeans aged between 13 and 64 who were polled hovered around the six-point mark.

They fared better than the 14 foreigners, whose length of stay varied between two days and 14 years.

These non-Singaporeans scored anywhere between zero and a respectable seven.

The idea of a pre-citizenship test was raised by Jurong GRC MP Halimah Yacob in Parliament last Monday.

Concerned about the rate of integration among new citizens - numbering more than 20,500 last year alone - she argued that a test on Singapore history and culture will ensure that newcomers know about the basics of the country.

"What is Hari Raya Puasa? What is Seventh Month Festival? They have to know these things," she told The Sunday Times.

Agreeing, most who were polled felt it is fair to expect this of aspiring citizens.

"If people want to migrate and live here for a long time, they should know about these things," said Mr Zhou Fang, 24, a Chinese citizen who has been studying here for eight years.

He plans to apply for permanent residency when he starts work next year.

Singaporean sales promoter Noraini Nenawi, 25, put it this way: "If permanent residents can carry blue identity cards, collect CPF, are allowed to buy houses and enjoy the privileges of our home, but don't understand it, how can they be allowed to become Singaporeans?"

Some suggested induction courses, national education campaigns for newcomers, or a required essay as alternatives to the test.

"If they really want to be citizens, they should write something about why they feel they belong in Singapore," suggested Singaporean businessman Steve Ang, 32.

Others like Mr Vijay Badami, 51, a new citizen from India, felt that questions could be broad-based.

He suggested that prospective citizens be asked about the Singapore flag, the parliamentary system here, the rationale for national service, the country's racial and religious composition, and the benefits of becoming a citizen.

However, salesman Roy Tan, 24, felt that knowledge tests are inadequate barometers of someone's commitment to the country.

Said the Singapore permanent resident, who is from Malaysia and has lived here for 15 years: "I think these questions are irrelevant. Whether a new citizen wants to contribute and commit to Singapore is more important."

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This article was first published in The Straits Times.