Lee Kuan Yew, (born September 16, 1923, Singapore—died March 23, 2015, Singapore), politician and lawyer who was prime minister of Singapore from 1959 to 1990. During his long rule, Singapore became the most-prosperous country in Southeast Asia.
Lee was born into a Chinese family that had been established in Singapore since the 19th century. His first language was English, and only upon entering politics did he acquire a command of Chinese as well as Malay and Tamil. After attending school in Singapore, Lee briefly enrolled at the London School of Economics and Political Science before earning a law degree (1949) at Fitzwilliam ... (100 of 1,180 words)