Ler Gai Teochew Di Gor Lai ? Where is your Teochew from? 你的潮州从哪里来?

Senior Teochew: Ler See Teochew Nang?

Junior Teochew: Si

Elder Teochew: Chin Hor, Ler Gai Teochew di gor lai?

Junior Teochew: Eerrrrrr Hougang !!!

The above would be a very typical exchange when an Elder Teochew meets a younger one for the first time and for the younger Singaporean, this could be a tricky one.  Do you say from which part of Singapore or from China? For that matter, do Teochews in Singapore that are relatively young or who are English educated knows where or which part of China they are from? Typically this question refers to which part of China they or their ancestors from?  Even this can be tricky as the naming and boundaries of locations of their ancestors have changed over the years. Based on current day jurisdictions, Teochews in Singapore came from the eastern region of the Guangdong province called Teoswa in Teochew or Chaoshan (潮汕) in Chinese.  This region covers the historical Teochew/ Chaozhou (潮州) counties.  This region  includes the following 3 cities : 

·         Teochew /Chaozhou (潮州) 

·         Swatow /Shantou (汕头)

·         Kit Yeoh /Jieyang (揭阳)

According to China Daily back in 2013, this is the establishment of a new Shantou special economic zone (汕头经济特区) that includes Chaozhou and Jieyang.

Source: Unknown

However, these are not the 3 cities that our Teochews seniors are referring to but the 8 counties from historical Teochew/ Chaozhou (潮州) Prefecture:  

      1.      Teo Ann / Chaoan (潮安)
2.      Teo Yeonh / Chaoyang (潮阳)
3.      Kit Yeonh / Jeiyang (揭阳) 
4.      Phow Leng / Puning (普宁)
5.      Theng Hai / Chenghai (澄海)
6.      Jeow Peng / Raoping (饶平)
7.      Hui Lye / Huilai (惠来)
8.      Hong Soon /Fengshun(丰顺)

Source: An Introduction to the History and Culture of the Teochews in Singapore

How does one figure out which of these Teochew Counties is your ancestors from?  If one is lucky enough to have their grandparents and/or elders around, they should be able to advise as they are likely to be from China or at least they were born in a period where the connection back to China is still closely knitted. Alternatively, parents and relatives can be consulted on their ancestors' origin or one can also ask friends whom we called traditional Teochews. They should be able to advise or at least direct one on how to go about discovering where your Teochew Ancestors are from.

If there is no one alive around to ask, then one can look at their ancestor's tombstone. Typically tradition Chinese tombs would certainly include the origins of the deceased. A typical Teochew tombstone looks something like the one shown below:

Consulted an elder Teochew and was advised that the inscriptions on the tomb show that the ancestral roots are from Teo Yeonh / Chaoyang (潮阳). 

A Catholic tomb photographed by the author at the cemetery behind Church of Saint Joseph.

The inscriptions on the tomb shows that the ancestral roots are from   Hui Lye / Huilai (惠来).

With the disappearance of our cemeteries, most of our ancestors are now housed in at columbariums. One would then need to look at the inscriptions on the Ancestral Tablet (神主牌/ 祖先牌) to trace ones ancestral roots. In Teochew, the Ancestral Tablet is called Seng Chu Pai. 

If one finds going to the tombstone or Ancestral tablet is rather morbid, then one can look at the traditional marriage certificate which would also reflect the couple’s ancestral roots. 

If one has exhausted the above avenues, then I suppose one can try the clan association.  Recalled the 8 counties mentioned earlier, it is because early Teochew immigrants to Singapore in the 19^th Century came from these counties. The number 8 besides being a lucky number from most Chinese, it has significance for the Teochews because of the 8 (Poit or八)counties which eventually led to the formation of the Teowchew Poit Ip Huay Kuan (潮州八邑會館) not just here in Singapore but also overseas where you find Teochew enclaves. Poit Ip Huay Kuan would be the umbrella for all the Teochew Clans here in Singapore.

One final way would be to make use of technology especially the use of social media to trace your roots. There are blogs like those from the Teochew Store where they have a series of 3 blog posts on locating your ancestral village in Teochew. Alternatively one can also join Facebook groups like “潮州民系 Singapore Teochew Group (STG)”, “Singapore TeoChew Nang 🇸🇬”, “Singapore Teochew 新潮人 Sing Dio Nang” etc, and post your questions to these groups and let your fellow Teochew Nangs to help you with the adventure of tracing your ancestral roots. 

Reference :  

1. Calls for creation of new SEZ in Shantou
2. Teochew Store
3. Infopedia : Ngee Ann Kongsi

Teochew Memorial Park

Along Orchard Road, Singapore shopping paradise, you will find the iconic shopping and commercial centre known as Ngee Ann City. A look at this Civic Plaza, it seems to resemble a Chinese Tombstone and this might be further enforced by the fact this was formerly a Teochew Cemetery known as 泰山亭 (Tai Shan Ting ) or Tai Suah Ting in Teochew.  However, this is not true accordingly to Raymond Woo the architect of the building.  He drew inspiration from the Great Wall of China with the intent of reflecting the dignity, solidity and strength of Ngee Ann Kongsi. While the building was not modelled after a Teochew tombstone, it was certainly previously cemetery owned by Ngee Ann Kongsi. The Ngee Ann Kongsi is a Teochew affiliated charitable foundation that was set up by Teochew immigrants from China in the late 19th century. It was set up to look after the well-being of early Teochew immigrants and among other things, the Teochews here have a final resting place

Back in the olden days, Ngee Ann Kongsi used to own burial lands or Teochew cemeteries all over the island. However, with the development of Singapore, these cemeteries were excavated or acquired by our government. For the unclaimed remains from these cemeteries which is about 20,000 of them, Ngee Ann Kongsi setup the Teochew Memorial Park to keep these unclaimed cremated remains. It is a 6-acre memorial park located at 569 Yishun Road and tucked between Yishun Columbarium and Chong Pang Combined Temple. This park was formerly known as 广德山 (Guan De Shan) or Kwong Teck Suah in Teochew, a Teochew cemetery.

As one approaches the entrance of the park and look up at the gate, there is a sign in Chinese 新嘉坡潮州公墓(Singapore Teochew Cemetery), a resting place for the Teochews of the past.

After passing the gate and as you turn around, one would notice another four engraved Chinese characters 追思先人 on the other side of the gate. 追思先人(Remembering ancestors) exhorts visitors to remember our early Teochew migrants. This is a reflection of the heavy emphasis Teochews placed on Ancestral Reverence and the park importance to the local Teochew community in honouring their ancestors, early Teochew migrants and overseas Teochew pioneers.

After the gate, you will see an Obelisk standing in the middle of the park with 新嘉坡潮州公墓 engraved right down the Obelisk.

This park is usually closed to the public and only opened during Ching Ming or Tomb Sweeping Day (清明节), Hungry Ghost Festival  (中元节) and Winter Solstice (冬节). On these occasions, Ngee Ann Kongsi will organise prayer ceremonies with representatives from the Teochew Clans as well as Poit Huay Kuan (八邑会馆) to remember these Teochew pioneers.

It is a pity that the park is only open on 3 occasions during the year and there is no notice at the park to indicate actually when it is open during these 3 occasions. There seems to be no explanation of the significance of the park available or perhaps it is the poor command of the Chinese language that the author is not able to find it. It would be nice too if there were English signage so that Teochew who is Chinese handicapped can also appreciate the importance of this park.   

Furthermore, at the time when we are seeing the fading of the usage of dialects and its associated heritage as well as the disappearance of burial grounds in Singapore, it might be a good idea to include the replicates of the resting place Seah Eu Chin and other 13 leaders (differentiated by surname) who together established Ngee Ann Kongsi back in 1845. This would be another way of honouring their contributions to the Teochew community here. This would also serve to educate the younger generation about the resting place of their forefathers and the unique characteristic of the Teochew tomb.

Resources  :

1. Nee Ann Kongsi
2. Ngee Ann Kongsi (Infopedia)
3. Teochew Memorial Park 
4. An Introduction To The Culture And History of the Teochews In Singapore 
5. Ngee Ann City