History of the Chinese in West Malaysia and Singapore

[@zenlu7488]

We very much appreciate your efforts, Mr Timothy Tye. There is so much that we do not know about our history. You have opened our eyes to our rich story. Thank you

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Kam1siah33 lu4 ce33-ce33!

[@kamwengloh]

Thank you, pretty informative, mine is a small group, a minority both in Penang & Singapore the Taishanese, Siyip that headed to 金山 America that era of railway & 金山 fortunes ... 😉

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Oh, although I do extensive research into Hokkien, my father is Taishanese! I mentioned it in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/o6vLZaiGeayIr6M In fact, I listened to this video again, and realised I mentioned it in this video too, at minute 6:10. I said that I am Sinning. Sinning is another word for Taishanese.

[@bringbackmy90s]

Seiyap / Hoisan is also something that fascinates me. A pity there is almost no information or material on Hoisan in the world.

[@beejintan1815]

Very interesting. Thank you so much for the passionate research, Timothy 😍

[@learnpenanghokkien]

You are most welcome. Of course this is not the end of the research. It will continue on and on. Meanwhile, there will be more videos touching on different aspects of Chinese history as it relates to the history of the Chinese in West Malaysia and Singapore.

[@jeffreykhoo1525]

“Kamsiah very much” for sharing this colourful history. A big long winded but interesting for me to know where my roots came from. Would be good if you could do a video-topic on tin mining. For example - Yap Ah Loy started tin mining in Lukut before migrating to Kuala Lumpur and becoming a prominent Kapitan. I found this out from my reading of the Chinese miners. Again Kamsiah!

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Maybe one day sir. Right now, there are a lot of other historical things I want to write about, based on the research that is still fresh. I will get those out first, before I embark on new research, into the tin mining history. I have however visited Lukut twice, but during that time, was unprepared for the amount of information to delve deep into it. Aside from that, I will also be sharing about the archaeological excavations in Lenggong and Lembah Bujang, but these will not be on the Learn Penang Hokkien channel, since it is not about Chinese history, but rather on my Discover With Timothy channel.

[@SupremeMaster-he4rc]

​@@learnpenanghokkien Sir, I have a question for you. I'm considering learning Penang Hokkien as it has the most available instruction (great videos like yours, books, dictionaries etc) but I hear it may not be mutually intelligible with the Hokkien spoken outside of north Malaysia (like in Singapore, the Philippines, China and Taiwan) As you might know, Alice Guo is on trial in the Philippines for allegedly Spying for China but she has also gotten much attention for her ability to speak Hokkien among other languages too. This put this language in the international spotlight. Guo used her Hokkien ability to translate for another witness in her trial. How much of what she says in Hokkien can you understand? I have a link to the video below: kzbin.info/www/bejne/g6iUZWOjZbeUiKcsi=PEEK8h5n7nNNjFWA

[@ronho883]

Like your explanation. Thank you. Please provide the beginnings and history of the Chinese clans and major surnames in Penang.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Will try to do that, for a few major clans, in future videos, after I have covered other main topics which I like people to understand first.

[@simonballoonist]

Thank you so much to do this and share with us. I have learned so much about my history as I am the second generation born in this peninsula. That puts my grandfather in the last group of migrant that came here.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

In the grand scheme of things, that put you within the Sinkhek group, which the majority of us are.

[@paulinegc4571]

greatly appreciate your research. now i can understand which segment in time my ancestors arrived being a Peranakan.Once again Thank you.

[@NAIPENGTEY]

Great job, very informative! Please put these in writing and publish for wider circulation, and for reference by the future generation.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Nowadays, KZbin is the swiftest way to reach out to people, and takes less effort on the part of the recipient of the information, as no reading is needed. More videos covering other aspects of our history will be produced.

[@JosephTin]

Good work. This gives an all round coverage of this history of Chinese in Malaysia and Singapore particularly. It also laid a good framework for the understanding of Chinese history in Southeast Asia in general. Thank you. I learned a lot. Much appreciated.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Kam1siah33 lu4 ce33-ce33.

[@qkchia1593]

Fascinating and educational talk..! Puts many of us in context of our early history . I am a 3rd generation Singapore hokkien.. Kum sia! Chia

[@bantinlau9838]

Fantastic. Please continue to do more research. Thank you.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

I definitely will, and considering this is something on-going, in future, I may uncover new details which might help to shed further light, or even modify my present understanding. In my earlier documentation, some years back, I split them into 3 "waves". That's because I lumped the Peranakans with the Baba Nyonyas. Now, I am splitting them into two separate groups based on their station in history and their characteristics.

[@leechinhuat72]

Thank you very much for sharing with us so much of history concerning us.

[@ronng6378]

Thank you so much for sharing your research. Very encouraging for all asians in south east asia. I am from singapore.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

You are most welcome! As you know, there is a Peranakan Museum in Singapore, housed in the former Tao Nan School building at Armenian Street. When the British systematically attempted to erase Malacca, many of the Peranakans relocated to either Singapore or Penang. But when I say "Peranakan" here, I mean the group that includes the Baba Nyonya, but together, they are referred to generally as Peranakan. Today, they are like "coffee" having mixed with "sugar", but still called "coffee".

[@callebchuan5813]

Recently got to know that the old royal thai kingdom in Ayuthaya had many Chinese residents too . However the Ayuthaya kingdom was destroyed by Burmese invasion in the middle of 18th century . If i remember , it was the Bagan kingdom that destroyed the Ayuthaya kingdom . Then their famous young general came down to the south to get help and managed to restore law and order . He was the famous Chakri founder .

[@joymah9270]

Thank you for an enriching history of Chinese in West Malaya

[@YoonLeeKok]

Thank you for this. Very informative.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Kam1siah33 lu4 ce33-ce33!

[@engboontan3148]

Thank you for such important part of Chinese history

[@Utube1024]

Thank you for the wonderful history, Sir. Learn a lot.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Kam1siah33 lu4 ce33-ce33!

[@christinaannekarl1800]

Thank you Timothh Tye

[@bringbackmy90s]

I'm learning Hokkien here in Germany, which was the sino-chinese Standard for reading chinese in German universities in the 19th century. I don't care about Mandarin.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

How lovely to learn that you are learning Hokkien. Are you German? Please feel free to ask me for help, if you have any questions. This whole channel was created to help people learn Penang Hokkien. Okay, it's Penang Hokkien, but if that helps, feel free to ask me.

[@bringbackmy90s]

​@@learnpenanghokkienYes thank you for your help Sir, your channel introduced me to Penang Hokkien. Before, I had only contact to speakers of Taiwanese Hokkien. Since I am interested in Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore and the Bahasa Melayu I am fully convinced that Hokkien is very important. I lived all my life in Western Germany (Federal Republic, FRG) an I'm myself a German citizen with slavic migration background. I have studied linguistics and the Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian languages. Now I am collecting books for Hokkien, which are hard to come buy in Germany or too expensive to buy from Ebay. Local german-chinese people unfortunately don't care about Hokkien and Cantonese any more. So I have to self-study Hokkien and Cantonese.

[@malcolmwong8983]

Thank you. Very interesting. Would be even better if you included a few maps and photos in your post. 😊

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Yeah, I am such a lazy person LOL, only sit there and talk!

[@KimChin-g9w]

Thank you for your excellent work Mr. Tye. Would you be doing the same thing with the Chinese of Borneo ?

[@jennylee1802]

"xie xie" Timonthy Tye for teaching us our lost overseas chinese history in Malaysia and Singapore. Could you please in future show the locations which you mentioned by showing the maps so that we could better grasp the places. With warmest regards from Singapore 🇸🇬 .

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Thanks very much. So far, I have described the distribution of the Hokkiens in words rather than by using map, to avoid generalizing the distribution by map. It is often not the most accurate to show on map because there is no way to be pinpoint accurate, but by showing on map, I might introduce generalization to the information.

[@callebchuan5813]

My grandma wears Malay dressing but speaks Hokkien . Her family name is Ang .

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Many of our grandparents and great grandparents wear such attire. We would see them dressed as such in those very old photographs that hang at our parents' house. But unless we have actual documentation (in most cases we don't), we can't say for sure whether they are Sinkhek (or Sin3khaek3 in Taiji Romanisation), Laukhek, Baba Nyonya or Peranakan.

[@Brisamars-q1c]

Please search for a video on the Peranakan in Medan and their relationship to the big five families in Penang : Khoo etc It’s equally fascinating and I’m sure you can team up with the author. Medan Hokkien by Bernard Lokman.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Bernie Lokman is one of the members of my Learn Penang Hokkien Facebook Group. The group has close to 19 thousand members who are either Hokkien enthusiasts or learners, over here: facebook.com/groups/learnpenanghokkien I welcome you and all Hokkien enthusiasts to join this group. Mr Lokman has created many excellent videos on the history of the Chinese in Indonesia, and I learned tremendously from his research too.

[@muhammadadzimlanau9621]

Good historical timeline of the chinese in west msia. If only the peranakans and baba nyonya knew how to read and write. But less is also known about sabahan chinese. Any info on them?

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Literacy has been the privilege of the elites for much of history, right up to the beginning of the 20th century. In the case of Penang, when the British established Penang Island, they did found schools, such as the Penang Free School, so that the locals have chance to education. But this represents only a small percentage of the population at that time, with the majority of the people remaining illiterate. The handicap presented by illiteracy prevented the Peranakans and Baba Nyonyas, and in fact, much of the local Chinese, from passing their history down to us. What we do know is based on what was left behind by the literate, that is to say, the elites who built clan associations. But these elites focused on their own history (but we couldn't blame them - they are merchants and priests, not journalists) so our documented history is skewed towards what they wrote down. Is there anybody in Sabah working to research and document the history of the Chinese in Sabah? That would make interesting exposition. Alas, my knowledge of it is scarce.

[@adrianloo1948]

Fantastic narration of on the subject matter. Bravo

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Thank you sir.

[@siew-hn4il]

Bravo. Love your information

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Kam1siah33 lu4 ce33-ce33.

[@siew-hn4il]

@@learnpenanghokkien WOW reply in Hokkien.

[@henrytan5588]

My grandfather from Sabak Bernam went to be a developer in SG. The road in his development in Holland Kampong. Under the British there was freedom of movement

[@andyneo6183]

Thanks for shedding more info and lights for us, descendants of sin kheak,,,,,

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Kam1siah33 lu4 ce33-ce33!

[@learnpenanghokkien]

The majority of us are descendants of the Sin3khaek3, unless we can truly prove otherwise.

[@MeLodiCarAma]

Borneo which include Kalimantan, Sarawak and Sabah have more Chinese than Peninsula, mostly Teo Chew and Hakka although there are Hokkien too. Those in Sarawak and Sabah were spillover from "mangkuk merah" incident around Singkawang and Samba.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

That's an area which I have not researched on. Interesting to know.

[@vfsk6259]

Hi Timothy... in your video u mentioned u are part Sinning/Toishan .... so am I. Perhaps you could do a video about Sinning people in Malaysia/Penang for our knowledge & understanding.. 😊thanks. Vincent Fong

[@learnpenanghokkien]

For now I don't have enough information on that.

[@kikichin]

Great work Timothy. Since you're a Xinning (Taishanese) like me, and born in Penang state, can you do research on tour Xinning people from Taishan in Penang (including Province Wellesley). Can you comment on the Taishanese Clan Association at King Street, Georgetown?

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Aside from this KZbin channel, the bulk of my documentation is on my website, Penang Travel Tips. All the sights along King Street is documented, with map, on this page: www.penang-traveltips.com/king-street.htm I list there the various sights, including the Chong San Wooi Koon/Heong San Hoay Kuan. The information on my website is all that I have for now, until I have chance research deeper.

[@beejintan1815]

I can trace back to the BabaNyonya Anglophile

[@tonykwok9763]

👍👍👍👍👍

[@rinang8858]

Thank You so much> Now I know how my grand dad who married a Peranakan and speak Hokkien while he is a Teochew

[@hweiii]

Thanks for this history ❤

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Kam1siah33 lu4 ce33-ce33.

[@henrytan5588]

Talking about the settlers in the Straits who embraced the English language one can cited the family of the late LKY. The father of the late LKY was so Anglophile that all his children have English names. LKY is Hakka and was forced to dropped his English name Harry once he entered in the politics of SG.

[@anniekhor9016]

Good explanation, explains why only melaka 'baba nyonya' speaks in malay and don't know hokkien.. great stuff

[@learnpenanghokkien]

The use of the term Peranakan and Baba Nyonya is used almost interchangeably, but if we want to be strict about it, then we will keep the term Peranakan for the exclusive use of Melaka. It is only during the Melaka period (when Melaka existed and no other present major towns of West Malaysia and Singapore existed) that the seafaring merchants of Fujian province visited. The merchants will head only to the entrepot, Melaka, to trade. So the history of the Chinese in Melaka is unique. The second wave (which created what I termed as Baba Nyonya) arrived and settled across the peninsula, including in Melaka. So, Melaka had one additional wave of Chinese migrants compared to elsewhere in the peninsula. Today, even if we find a Malaysian Peranakan Chinese anywhere in the country or elsewhere in the world, they would trace their roots to Melaka. However, we have to bear in mind that the same seafaring merchants also visited other places in the vast Malay archipelago, perhaps ports in Sumatra, Java and Borneo, where there would also be Indonesian Peranakans Chinese, who possibly speak the Indonesian language, which bears similarities to Malaysian Peranakan Chinese speaking Malay. I have not researched to there, and perhaps in future, will find out more about that.

[@callebchuan5813]

I met a real peranakan from Malacca while working in Singapore . His surname is Khoo . His command of Malay was fantastic . Like a local Malay speaking .

[@henrytan5588]

Mr Tye you have used the word Settlers instead of immigrants. This is the terminalogy uses by European historians. We are Settlers. The Malay refused to call us Malayan instead we are Chinese Indians and others for people in both Borneo countries . WE ARE SETTLERS.

[@lkhxlt7689]

What about the Chinese that came in the 10th and 11th century for digging silver and gold in this peninsula. ???? ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@learnpenanghokkien]

It is incredibly easy to get assimilated and naturalized with the native population. I have actually not heard of the Chinese who came in the 10th and 11th century. Can you provide me some academic references so that I can research this information?

[@iechuanlee9326]

There is a small discrepancy here, when did "Halal" come into local cuisine when the locals are all mixed religions.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Society in the 16th to 18th centuries were much more fluid than it is today. During that time, the Malays were in the process of embracing Islam, but the Muslim faith was not universal among them, or enforced yet. As for the Chinese, the concept of halal was totally foreign to them back then.

[@chinfamily4718]

How had the opium factor influenced the southern Chinese (Cantonese, the Hokkien, the Hakka, the Hainanese and the teochews) in the economic migration in the 19th and early 20th century. Why this opium factor did not result in the northern dialects in SEA?

[@learnpenanghokkien]

The only "opium factor" that I can think of for now is the China loss the First Opium War (1839-1842), which resulted in the opening of Xiamen as one of the treaty port, and because of that, an influx of Hokkien settlers left Fujian Province for the Malay peninsula.

[@Branch7ShuZhi]

Tim, can you produce diagrams to clarify what you are trying to present. 😇

[@learnpenanghokkien]

www.penang-traveltips.com/0-pics/2024/chinese-arrivals-to-the-malay-peninsula.jpg

[@overseaschinese2445]

What are the similarities and differences between the Hokkien migration & the waves of migration from Guangdong, Hainan & other Southern provinces & districts. For instance in Ipoh & KL there were many Guangdong & Hakka ppl. I understand Guangxi ppl also moved to distinct parts of the peninsula such as Bentong & Temerloh.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

KL and Ipoh are populated by the 4th wave (aka the Sin3khaek3), who are mostly from Guangdong, and are Hakka and Cantonese). The cities were established as a result of tin mining, which was from the mid 19th century onwards, whereas the cities where Hokkien is spoken were established earlier.

[@chinfamily4718]

I would appreciate if you could shed light into the common dialects spoken by these Chinese diaspora in not only SEA but also in the West. The most common ones are Hokkien, Hockchiew, Cantonese, Hakka, Teochew, Hainanese but hardly any Shanghainese, Hunanese, Beijing, Hebei and and Shantung. What is the history that led to this dichotomy and perculiarity of Chinese migration to these regions?

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Maybe one day I will expand my coverage to the migration of the Chinese to the West.

[@tytan9139]

There is a thread that you have missed - the East Coast Peranakan.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Yes indeed. I would need more information to shed light on their history, but I remain cautious about the use of the term "Peranakan" being applied liberally, as it masks away vital details.

[@tytan9139]

@@learnpenanghokkien I might not have accurate information, but what I know is my dad accounted that my first ancestors arrived in East Coast at around 1809. The first Chinese (Kao's clan) who settled in Kuala Terengganu were as early as 1780s. The East Coast Peranakan Association, if I am not wrong, is coming out with a book soon.

[@pohtintan1850]

Thank youfor yor imformation .lm 81 yrs old, born in Penang. My mother is Nonya and my father a Tan( Hokkien) from Bukit Tambun , P W. He claimed hisfather came from the same village in China as the Entrepreneur Tan Ka Kieh. Im keen to know the na.e of that place in southern China. Tks

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Kam1siah33 lu4 ce33-ce33!

[@weiyeongtan2695]

Admiral Zheng He first arrived in Malacca in the early 1400. Shouldn't it be that Chinese literacy would have reach Malacca soon after his arrival with his merchants to form the Peranakan. From what I hear here, Peranakan has not gain Chinese literacy until the lau33kheak arrivals. It's hard to imagine that Zheng He was accompanied by illiterate merchants whom he left behind in Malacca. Maybe some more research needs to be conducted to bring the more probably events in the timeline. Ming dynasty historical records may throw in some light.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Let me explain this. Admiral Zheng He would have in his entourage people who are able to read and write Literary Chinese. His scribes meticulously documented his imperial-sponsored voyages, which are separate from the sundry private trading enterprises conducted by the seafaring merchants. To be clear, the seafaring merchants were able to read and write Literary Chinese, but they did not pass on this knowledge to their families in Malacca, leaving their wives to raise their offsprings in the local language. Throughout history, right up to the 20th century, literacy among the Chinese was the privilege of the elites - there were no schools, nothing to give commoners access to literacy. Even by the turn of the 20th century, many Chinese fathers shunned the idea that their daughters should ever learn to read or write; they do not consider these congruent to women's role in homemaking. Due to limitation placed on literacy, confining it to men, documentation of local history depended on what was written down, and that only happened when the lau33khaek3 came and settled.

[@Utube1024]

How about lau hokkien?

[@learnpenanghokkien]

"Lau33 Hok1kien3" which we often hear people spoke of, especially from the elderly, is in fact the Hokkien literary reading of Literary Chinese. This way of reading was phased out by Modern Standard Mandarin in the first half of the 20th century.

[@Wan-Malaysia]

My hokkien ex-colleague who's 82 yo now (5 Oct 2024) tells me she can't understand the hokkien spoken in KL or Malacca. Why? She is wholly English educated and totally illiterate in hokkien and mandarin.

[@rocketsteel]

Now it's clear why yhe laukek and babas don't get along

[@learnpenanghokkien]

I cannot comment on that.

[@ngbengngee1404]

🧐 You may have left out another group which many said to have arrived and settled at Kelantan Tanah Merah that is older or before the existence of Malaka, 👉🏽 The Kelantan 福建暹/Hokkian Siam group is a group come and settle much earlier than the Melaka. 😅 May be you should revise you titles to West coast West Malaysia and Singapore ? 👌🏽 just kidding 🤣, 👍🏾 Thank you for the video, keep it up 💪🏻 kzbin.info/www/bejne/gYWpYWmioJZghtksi=9J02S-88YkteJMhH

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Thanks for sharing. The details on the Chinese in Kelantan warrants further research. Is it really older and before Melaka? How do we know? I look forward to finding more information that can improve my knowledge of the Kelantan Chinese. When I do, I would love to share about it.

[@siewkee6093]

Gold Medal 😅

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Kam1siah33 lu4 ce33-ce33.

[@henrytan5588]

Actually it was the Hakka community who were leaving Xiamen for the Nanyang. One can find Hakka in many isolated islands in Nanyang. In Kalimantan Indonesia the Hakka are 5th generations . Hakka had settled in PNG and one Hakka was Julius Chan. Other islands are Philippines , Indonesia ,Fiji Mauritius Burma/ Myanma and India/ Madras. The Hokkian did settled in Indonesia Malaya Myanma. The Hakka in Indonesia were 6th generations. The Dutch rule was welcoming of the Hakka Putien in Surubaya and Sarawak Kuching . Mr Tye left out the Hakka migration.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

In future, I would look forward to producing videos on Hakka and Cantonese, there's so much still to talk about, not to cram everything into a single video.

[@henrytan5588]

I am a 4th generation in Penang. Mahathir is a 2nd generation but he claimed to be a Malay when his roots were from Karela India. If Mahathir is Malay then I am Malayan recognised by the British and I am able a BOC. The Baba and Nyonya are natives in Malacca. Yet Mahathir never recognised them but still used the word Migrants or Pengdatang (sic). Then the Malay recognised the Eurasian in Malacca as Bumiputera since their ancestors arrived 300 years ago. There is no such concept of Eurasian. The descendants of Portugal are still Portuguese in genetics.

[@henrytan5588]

The Hokkian that came from Xiamen were traders. It was the Hakka that left their footprint in Kuala Lumpur with Kapitan Yap Ah Loy and encouraged by the British to clear the jungle and forests. In JB there was Kapitan Wong Ah Fook another Hakka.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Yes, yes, correct. These Hokkiens who were traders were in the Lau33khaek3 period, whereas Yap Ah Loy and Wong Ah Fook are part of the Sin3khaek3 period.

[@stevenlow8452]

How do i get in touch with you about the baba nonya history,to learn about my roots,penang/k.l ancestors all all gone only hear by ear only,great,great grandfather came fr saigon,to settle in s,pore during E.I.CO,great grand father was a gheehin/hokkien leader ,s,pore,penang,k.l,they were merchant,tin mining,labour supplier,close to yap ah loy clan,grandfather was the 2nd chief councillor in k.l n hold vase land n mining rights,but all went down the drain aftef the 2nd WW,due to fmly squables,n many fmly hand involved,tried cheacking it in the internet/archive,but came out empty.

[@learnpenanghokkien]

You can always ask me questions here, and what I know, I will share with you. Other than that, you can get my email address from my About page.

[@henrytan5588]

Please use Malaya or West Malay as more than not, both Sarawak and Sabah are never consulted. Peninsula is Tanah Melayu and is the majority while both Sarawak and Sabah have their own agenda and uses the English language for official purposes. Malaya speak Malay and different from the language in both Borneo countries .

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Noted.

[@callebchuan5813]

Recently got to know that the old royal thai kingdom in Ayuthaya had many Chinese residents too . However the Ayuthaya kingdom was destroyed by Burmese invasion in the middle of 18th century . If i remember , it was the Bagan kingdom that destroyed the Ayuthaya kingdom . Then their famous young general came down to the south to get help and managed to restore law and order . He was the famous Chakri founder .

[@learnpenanghokkien]

Yes, you are correct. If you look at when Ayutthaya was established and towards the end of the city, Siam has already received merchants and later the Ming refugees from China.