Newton is the name of an urban planning area

Urban planning areas in Singapore

Singapore is currently divided into 55 urban planning areas by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, organised into five regions. A Development Guide Plan is then drawn up for each planning area, providing for detailed planning guidelines for every individual plot of land throughout the country.The...

 within the Central Region

Central Region, Singapore

The Central Region of Singapore is one of the five regions in the city-state. Comprising 13,150 hectares of land area, it includes 11 Planning Areas within the Central Area which is the immediate vicinity of the Singapore's central business district, as well as another 11 more outside it.Although...

 in Singapore

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

.

The Newton Planning Area is defined by the region bounded by Bukit Timah Road

Bukit Timah Road

Bukit Timah Road is a major road in Singapore extending from the city centre to Woodlands Road on the way to Johor Bahru in Malaysia. The road has a distance of 25km , which is one of the longest roads in Singapore, and the road takes its name from the hill...

 to the north, Balmoral Road, Anderson Road, Orange Grove Road, Tanglin Road and Grange Road

Grange Road

Grange Road may be:* Grange Road, Cambridge, England* Grange Road railway station, a former railway station in Tunbridge Wells, England* Grange Road, Adelaide, Australia* Grange Road, Singapore, Singapore- See also :* La Grange Road, Chicago, USA...

 to the west, Claymore Road, Claymore Hill, Scotts Road

Scotts Road

Scotts Road is a road in Singapore. The Goodwood Park Hotel lies on the road.It is located in the Orchard Planning Area, within the Central Area in Singapore's central business district....

, Mount Elizabeth

Mount Elizabeth

Mount Elizabeth is a massive ice-free mountain, 4,480 m, standing 6 nautical miles south of Mount Anne in Queen Alexandra Range. Discovered by the British Antarctic Expedition and named for Elizabeth Dawson-Lambton, a supporter of the expedition....

, Nutmeg Road, Cairnhill Road, Central Expressway

Central Expressway, Singapore

The Central Expressway in Singapore is the major highway connecting the city centre of Singapore with the northern residential parts of the island, including Toa Payoh, Bishan and Ang Mo Kio and further onwards to the Seletar Expressway and the Tampines Expressway.-History:The first stage of the...

 and Orchard Road

Orchard Road

Orchard Road is a road in Singapore that is the retail and entertainment hub of the city-state. It is regularly frequented by the local population as well as being a major tourist attraction...

 to the south, and Sophia Road, Upper Wilkie Road and Mackenzie Road to the east. Its namesake Newton Road, however, is located within the Novena Planning Area

Novena, Singapore

Novena is a town in Singapore, and is within the Central Region. The area falls under the Novena Planning Area, an urban planning zone under the Urban Redevelopment Authority.It is served by the North South MRT Line at the Novena MRT Station....

, and starts at Newton Circus in the south and ends at the junction with Thomson Road

Thomson Road, Singapore

Thomson Road is a major trunk road linking Singapore's central business district with the northern suburban areas. Taking its name from John Turnbull Thomson, a Scotsman who was the Government Surveyor and Chief Engineer of the Straits Settlements from 1841 to 1853 and who helped build many roads...

 in the north.

Etymology and history

Originally Syed Ali Road, Newton Road was renamed in 1914 after Howard Newton

Howard Newton

Howard Ross Newton is a Guyanese international footballer who plays as a winger.-Early and personal life:Born in Hammersmith, England, Newton is the older brother of fellow footballer Jake Newton.-Club career:...

 (died 1897), the Assistant Municipal Engineer

Engineer

An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...

 in late nineteenth century Singapore, in order to avoid confusion with Syed Alwi Road.

In 1933, Newton Circus, a 40 feet (12.2 m) wide circular carriage

Carriage

A carriage is a wheeled vehicle for people, usually horse-drawn; litters and sedan chairs are excluded, since they are wheelless vehicles. The carriage is especially designed for private passenger use and for comfort or elegance, though some are also used to transport goods. It may be light,...

 way, was constructed for gyratory traffic

Traffic

Traffic on roads may consist of pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles, streetcars and other conveyances, either singly or together, while using the public way for purposes of travel...

 according to a Singapore Improvement Trust

Singapore Improvement Trust

-History:The Singapore Improvement Trust was a government organisation set up in 1927 by the British colonial government in Singapore in response to the housing needs of the population of Singapore. At that time, many people resided in overcrowded shophouses and squatter settlements, resulting in...

 layout at the focus

Focus (geometry)

In geometry, the foci are a pair of special points with reference to which any of a variety of curves is constructed. For example, foci can be used in defining conic sections, the four types of which are the circle, ellipse, parabola, and hyperbola...

 of a number of converging roads, including Bukit Timah Road (to Johor

Johor

Johor is a Malaysian state, located in the southern portion of Peninsular Malaysia. It is one of the most developed states in Malaysia. The state capital city and royal city of Johor is Johor Bahru, formerly known as Tanjung Puteri...

), Dunearn Road, Newton Road, Keng Lee Road, Kampong Java Road, Bukit Timah Road (from town), Clemenceau Avenue and Scotts Road. As eight roads converge on the Circus, the Tamil

Tamil people

Tamil people , also called Tamils or Tamilians, are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, India and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. Historic and post 15th century emigrant communities are also found across the world, notably Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, South Africa, Australia, Canada,...

s used to call Newton ethumuchandi, or "the eight junction

Junction (traffic)

A junction, when discussed in the context of transport, is a location where traffic can change between different routes, directions, or sometimes modes, of travel.-Historical significance:...

 place".

Newton Circus has become the site of a major hawker centre

Hawker centre

A hawker centre or cooked food centre is the name given to open-air complexes in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Riau Islands housing many stalls that sell a variety of inexpensive food...

, Newton Hawker Centre (now the Newton Food Centre

Newton Food Centre

Newton Food Centre is a major food centre located in Newton, Singapore. The food centre was promoted by the Singapore Tourism Board as a tourist attraction for sampling Singaporean cuisine. It was first opened in 1971 and it closed down in 2005 as the government wanted to revamp the food centre...

), which attracts many Singaporean

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

s and tourists alike in the evenings.