• The Mandarin term “打火厝前” originated from the Hokkien dialect term “拍火厝前” (pa her chu zeng).
• In Hokkien, “拍火厝” refers to a fire station.
• In this road name, “打火厝” refers to the Central Fire Station on Hill Street, also known as Hill Street Fire Station. The term “打火厝前” means “in front of the fire station”.
• Built in 1909, the Central Fire Station is the oldest fire station in Singapore. It serves the Central Business District and Chinatown.
• The road’s official English name may have come from its proximity to Fort Canning Hill. In the Chinese translation of the road’s name, “禧街”, “禧”is a dialect transliteration of “hill”.

Roxy Record Co. was a large record company located at 107 Hill Street. It was particularly known for its Teochew opera records under the Precious Urn label, which were highly esteemed by fans of Teochew opera. The company often invited Hong Kong’s Xin Tian Cai Teochew Opera Troupe for recordings. (Nanyang Siang Pau, 8/12/1974)

From the mouth of the Singapore River, Hill Street was the second street in the “水仙门” area, and was thus colloquially known as “水仙门二街” (literally, “second street in 水仙门”).