The Government of Singapore has four official languages: English, Malay, Chinese, and Tamil. Apart from these dialects, the various other languages spoken here represent the diverse ethnic, cultural and linguistic peoples of Singapore. In 2009 it was discovered that more than 20 languages were spoken in Singapore. The fact that Singapore was a business hub during the colonization period and is now the hub of the primary business / service sector has attracted people from Asia and the peninsula. The languages they speak have greatly affected the languages of Singapore.