The following is the list of firsts in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...

Architecture

The following are the first buildings of their type: *First philatelic museum in Southeast Asia -

Singapore Philatelic Museum The Singapore Philatelic Museum (Chinese: 新加坡集邮博物馆; ta, சிங்கப்பூர் அஞ்சல்தலை அருங்காட்சியகம்) is a museum about the postal history of Singapore and its stamps ...

(, 19 August 1995)

Education

Main Bulding of the University of Santo Tomas

* First university in Asia -

University of Santo Tomas The University of Santo Tomas (also known as UST and officially as the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, Manila) is a private, Catholic research university in Manila, Philippines. Founded on April 28, 1611, by Spanish friar Migue ...

(, 1611) * First English medium school in Southeast Asia -

Penang Free School , motto_translation = Strong and Faithful , streetaddress = Green Lane, , city = George Town , state = Penang , postcode = 11600 , country = Malaysi ...

(, 1816) *First Asian and Southeast Asian to be admitted to

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...

Fe del Mundo Fe Villanueva del Mundo, , (born Fé Primitiva del Mundo y Villanueva; 27 November 1911 – 6 August 2011) was a Filipina pediatrician. She founded the first pediatric hospital in the Philippines and is known for shaping the modern child healt ...

(, 1936)

Energy

* First wind power farm in the region -

Bangui Wind Farm Bangui Wind Farm is a wind farm in Bangui, Ilocos Norte, Philippines. The wind farm uses 20 units of high Vestas V82 1.65 MW wind turbines, arranged in a single row stretching along a shoreline off Bangui Bay, facing the South China Sea ...

(, 20 June 2005) * First

nuclear power plant A nuclear power plant (NPP) is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical of thermal power stations, heat is used to generate steam that drives a steam turbine connected to a generator that produces ...

in the region -

Bataan Nuclear Power Plant The Bataan Nuclear Power Plant is a nuclear power plant on the Bataan Peninsula, west of Manila, Philippines. Completed but never fueled, it is located on a government reservation at Napot Point in Morong, Bataan. It was the Philippines' onl ...

(,1976)

Exploration

* First Southeast Asian in space -

Phạm Tuân Phạm Tuân ( born 14 February 1947) is a retired Vietnam Air Force aviator and cosmonaut. He became the first Vietnamese citizen and the first person from an Asian country to fly in space when he launched aboard the Soyuz 37 mission as an I ...

(, 6 June 1980)

Entertainment and Media

Film

Awards

* First Southeast Asian film to win

Palme d'Or The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...

Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. The ...

- ''

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives ''Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives'' ( th, ลุงบุญมีระลึกชาติ; ) is a 2010 Thai drama film written, produced, and directed by Apichatpong Weerasethakul. The film, which explores themes of reincarnation, ...

'' (, 2013) * First Southeast Asian to win

Best Actress Best Actress is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organisations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actresses in a film, television series, television film or play. The first Best Actress aw ...

Jaclyn Jose Mary Jane Santa Ana Guck (born October 21, 1964), better known by her stage name Jaclyn Jose, is a Filipino cinema and television actress who has earned international critical acclaim. She is best known for her roles in the films ''Private Sh ...

(, 2016) * First Southeast Asian to win Best Director at

Brillante Mendoza Brillante "Dante" Mendoza (born 30 July 1960) is a Filipino independent filmmaker. Mendoza is known one of the key members associated with the Filipino New Wave. Career He was born and raised in San Fernando, Pampanga. He took advertising ...

(, 2009) * First Southeast Asian to win

Volpi Cup for Best Actor The Volpi Cup for Best Actor ( it, Coppa Volpi per la migliore interpretazione maschile) is the principal award given to actors at the Venice Film Festival and is named in honor of Count Giuseppe Volpi di Misurata, the founder of the Venice Film ...

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...

John Arcilla Romeo Gonzales Arcilla (born June 24 1966), professionally known as John Arcilla, is a Filipino actor and environmentalist. He won Best Actor at the 78th Venice International Film Festival for his performance in '' On the Job: The Missing 8 ...

(, 2021)

Journalism

* First newspaper published in Southeast Asia - The Prince of Wales Island Gazette (, 1806) * First commercial television broadcast -

Alto Broadcasting System ABS-CBN Corporation is a Filipino media company based in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines. It is the largest entertainment and media conglomerate in the Philippines. It is a subsidiary of Lopez Holdings Corporation which is owned by ...

(, 23 October 1953) * First Southeast Asian to win a

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made ...

- Carlos Rómulo (, 1942)

Theater Arts

* First Southeast Asian to win a Tony for Best Actress -

Lea Salonga Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga (; born February 22, 1971), known professionally as Lea Salonga, is a Filipino singer, actress, and columnist. Nicknamed "Pride of the Philippines," she is best known for her roles in musical theatre, for supplyi ...

(, 1991)

Music

* First Southeast Asian to win a

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

- Larry Ramos (, 1963) *First Southeast Asian act to be nominated at the

Billboard Music Awards The ''Billboard'' Music Awards are honors given out annually by ''Billboard'', a publication covering the music business and a music popularity chart. The ''Billboard'' Music Awards show has been held annually since 1990, with the exception of t ...

SB19 SB19 is a Filipino boy band that debuted in 2018, the pentad—consisting of members Pablo, Stell, Ken, Justin, and Josh. They were trained for 4 years by ShowBT Philippines, beginning in 2016. They are the first Filipino and Southeast Asia ...

(, 2021) *First Southeast Asian act to top a

Billboard Chart The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...

, Hot Trending Songs Chart (, 2021)

Finance & Commerce

* First bank in Southeast Asia - El Banco Español Filipino de Isabel II (now

Bank of the Philippine Islands Bank of the Philippine Islands ( fil, Bangko ng Kapuluang Pilipinas, es, Banco de las Islas Filipinas, commonly known as BPI; ) is a universal bank in the Philippines. It is the first bank in both the Philippines and Southeast Asia. It is t ...

) (, 1 August 1851) * First beer brewery in Southeast Asia - La Fabrica de Cerveza de San Miguel (, 29 September 1890)

Literature

* First Southeast Asian to win a Pulitzer Prize for Literature - Viet Thanh Nguyen (, 2016)

Medicine

Politics and Government

* First President of

UN General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...

from Asia and Southeast Asia - Carlos P. Rómulo (, 1949) * First elected female President in Asia and Southeast Asia -

Maria Corazon Aquino Maria Corazon "Cory" Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino (; ; January 25, 1933 – August 1, 2009) was a Filipina politician who served as the 11th president of the Philippines from 1986 to 1992. She was the most prominent figure of the 1986 People P ...

(, 1986) *First recipient of

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolo ...

from Southeast Asia - ''Technically:''

Lê Đức Thọ Lê Đức Thọ (; 14 October 1911 – 13 October 1990), born Phan Đình Khải in Nam Dinh Province, was a Vietnamese revolutionary, general, diplomat, and politician. He was the first Asian to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, jointly with ...

(, 1973), ''Officially:''

Aung San Suu Kyi Aung San Suu Kyi (; ; born 19 June 1945) is a Burmese politician, diplomat, author, and a 1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate who served as State Counsellor of Myanmar (equivalent to a prime minister) and Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2 ...

(, 1991)

Science and Technology

* First submarine assembled in Southeast Asia: KRI ''Alugoro'' (405) (, 2021)

Sports

Olympic Games

*First Southeast Asian to win a medal at the

Olympics The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a vari ...

Teófilo Yldefonso Teófilo E. Yldefonso (born Teófilo Yldefonso y de la Cruz; November 5, 1903 – June 19, 1942) was a Filipino breaststroke swimmer. He was the first Filipino and Southeast Asian to win an Olympic medal, and the first Filipino to win multiple ...

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

bronze (, 8 August 1928) * First Southeast Asian Olympic champion - Susi Susanti,

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players p ...

gold (, 4 August 1992) * First Southeast Asian country to participate at the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The ina ...

- , 5 July 1924 * First Southeast Asian country to participate at the

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...

- , 3 February 1972

World Championships

* First male Artistic Gymnastics World Champion from Southeast Asia -

Carlos Yulo Carlos Edriel Poquiz Yulo (born February 16, 2000) is a Filipino artistic gymnast who has won multiple medals at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. He is the first Filipino and the first male Southeast Asian gymnast to medal at the Wor ...

, floor exercise (, 2019)

Others

*First professional basketball league in Asia and Southeast Asia -

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines composed of twelve company-branded franchised teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia and is the se ...

(, 9 April 1975) * First Southeast Asian country to host the

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until t ...

- , 1 May 1954 *First Southeast Asian country to host the

Youth Olympic Games The Youth Olympic Games (YOG) is an international multi-sport event for athletes between 15 and 18 years old, organized by the International Olympic Committee. The games are held every four years in staggered summer and winter events consiste ...

- , 14 August 2010

Transportation

* First airport in Asia - Don Mueng International Airport (, 1914) *First

Rapid transit system Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT), also known as heavy rail or metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport generally found in urban areas. A rapid transit system that primarily or traditionally runs below the surface may be c ...

in Southeast Asia - Manila Light Rail Transit (, 1984)

References

{{reflist

Firsts First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...