Who are the Peranakan Chinese?

- March 09, 2021

A photograph of Peranakan wedding couple from a museum in Singapore. Taken at the wedding of Chung Guat Hooi (daughter of Kapitan Chung Thye Phin) and Khoo Soo Beow (son of Khoo Heng Pan) May 1941, at 29 Church Steet, Penang, built by Capitan Chung Keng Quee and now known as the Pinang Peranakan Mansion. On the right are the bride's brothers, Chung Kok Chuan and Chung Kok Tong.

In the fifteenth century, the first wave of Southern Chinese settlers from Fujian and Guangdong Provinces moved to Nanyang (South Sea), which also known as the region of Southeast Asia. This group of Chinese intermarried with the local Malay women. Intermarriage of Chinese and Malay formed a unique and hybrid ethnic group, mainly in Malay Peninsula and Indonesia Archipelago, they were called the Peranakans. The origin place of Peranakans in Malay Peninsula was Malacca, and then spread into other two Straits Settlements of Penang and Singapore. Peranakans kept their traditional Malay and Chinese culture and adopted Western culture in their daily life. The term ‘Peranakan’ means “local born”, it has been used to refer to the Peranakan Chinese. The Peranakans also known as Baba and Nyonya in Malay Peninsula and Singapore, the former for male and the latter for female. They were sometimes called Straits-born Chinese or King’s Chinese, these terms used interchangeably in Malay Peninsula and Singapore.

Peranakans were mostly wealthy Hokkien (Fujian) merchants who were well educated in English or Chinese schools. Peranakans have controlled almost all the trade activities in Malay Peninsula with the Europeans and other merchants, including opium, coolies, and other eastern and western commodities. Their wealth, hybrid culture and multilingual ability gave them the opportunity to become the dominant ethnic group in the peninsula. Peranakans can easily deal with the Chinese and local Malay merchants as well as European merchants. Interestingly, during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the Peranakans separated themselves from the sinkehs (new Chinese immigrants) because sinkehs were classified as lower-class coolies and indentured workers, in contrast, the Peranakans saw themselves as upper-class ethnic group.

Peranakan’s languages

Although, all the Babas and Nyonyas in the Straits Settlements were classified as Peranakans, but because of the geographical variations, the language that spoken by the Peranakans in Penang, Malacca and Singapore were varied. Penang was the first free port in Malay Peninsula, Penang has attracted Chinese in the region to reside in the island. The main Chinese group were Hokkien Chinese, so the Peranakans in Penang were influenced by the Chinese merchants. Penang Peranakans were mostly Chinese educated and they often spoke in Hokkien dialect rather than Baba Malay in their everyday life. In contrast, the Peranakans in Malacca influenced more by Malay culture, so they usually communicate by using Baba Malay with some Hokkien words and sometimes in English. On the other hand, when Stamford Raffles founded Singapore in 1819, many of the Peranakans from Penang and Malacca started moving to Singapore to seek for new fortune. Many Europeans, especially British, resided in Singapore, as Singapore was the centre of the Straits Settlements from 1832 onwards. Therefore, the Peranakans in Singapore were English educated, and they spoke English and Baba Malay rather than Hokkien, as they need to deal with the Europeans in their businesses.

Nyonya cuisine

Nyonya food is a unique cuisine of blending Chinese ingredients with various distinct spices and cooking techniques used by the Malay community. This has given Nyonya cuisine a rich special flavour which include tangy, aromatic, spicy and herbal. However, there are region variations in Nyonya cooking. Singapore and Malacca Nyonya dishes possessed a strong Indonesian influence, for instance, the use of coconut milk in their dishes. Besides, in the northern part of Malay Peninsula, Nyonya dishes in Penang was influenced by Thai cuisine, the dishes included different types of sour ingredients like tamarind. For example, the sour asam laksa from Penang and the coconut-milk based laksa lemak from southern part of Malay Peninsula and Singapore, both dishes have clearly differentiated the north and south Nyonya dishes and distinguished the used of ingredients. Example of Nyonya signature dishes include babi pongteh, Nyonya style braised pork in fermented soya bean sauce, ayam buah keluak, chicken in tamarind gravy and buah keluak nuts, rendang beef and various colourful kuih, sweet and sticky delicacies. To be a qualified Nyonya, she must grasp the cooking knowledge before she got married. It was because Nyonyas had to prepared Tok Panjang (Long table feast) for various big ceremonies in their house and Nyonyas would demonstrate their cooking skills during the feast, to secure their family’s reputation in Peranakan’s community.

Penang asam laksa

Southern part Malay Peninsula and Singapore curry laksa or laksa lemak

Religions

Peranakan’s religion can be divided into several groups, for example, Buddhism, Daoism, Islam, Catholicism and Protestantism. Early Peranakans had greater influence of Chinese culture, therefore, most of them were Buddhists and Daoists. The ancestral hall in the Baba’s house reflected the Peranakans were deeply influenced by the Chinese culture of filial piety, as they would worship their ancestors every morning and evening, and during festivals. But Peranakan’s religion division also varied in the Straits Settlements. Peranakans in Penang and Malacca were mostly belief in Buddhism and Daoism; however, Peranakans in Singapore were much more influenced by the Europeans, so they were mostly Catholics and Protestants. Unfortunately, after the independence of Malaya, some of the Peranakans converted to Islam, which was to secure their indigenous identity in Malaysia.

Nyonya’s embroidery and beadwork

Embroidery and beadwork are the famous Nyonya’s handicrafts that still exist in some traditional families in Malaysia and Singapore. Back to the old days, Nyonyas need to learn embroidery and beadwork, as they need to make a pair of Kasut Manek (beaded slippers) for their marriage. A traditional Peranakan’s family will require their daughter-in-law possessed these handicraft methods, as it was to verify if she was a qualified Nyonya. Furthermore, baju kebaya and baju panjang were the traditional Nyonya clothing, the former for younger generations and the latter for older generations. Nyonyas will use the traditional Chinese embroidery methods to embroider traditional Chinese and Malay patterns like flowers and Chinese auspicious animals and include some beadwork on the edges of the clothes as decoration. Therefore, baju kebaya has blended Chinese and Malay elements which made them became a unique Nyonya’s clothing.

Kasut manek (beaded slippers)

Baju kebaya

Pantun **and Joget dance**

Peranakan’s traditional entertainments had strong influences by the Malay culture. Pantun is a Malay style poem. Fascinatingly, the pantun that presented by the Peranakans had included Chinese poetic form which usually composed of four lines. During Peranakan’s festive, their highlight entertainment was Joget dance, it was a kind of traditional Malay dance. One of the famous traditional Peranakan’s entertainment was Dondang Sayang, it was a romantic ballad or the ballad which reflected their daily life and emotions. Intriguingly, pantun elements can also be found in Dondang Sayang. While performing the ballad, the Peranakans would include some Malay and Western instruments like rebana, a type of drum, violin, and gong as well as some simple dance moves, which has shown the hybrid culture of Peranakans.

Although some of the Peranakan families still inheriting their unique and hybrid Peranakan culture. But this culture is slowly declining in both Malaysia and Singapore because the Peranakans are ethnic minority and they are assimilating with the mainstream Chinese.

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