In Asia, a gilded history lies hidden in plain sight

In the 19th century, China was battling foreign invaders, floods, droughts, famine, and political unrest. Thousands of single Chinese men emigrated from their homeland to places like Singapore to work at plantations and docks. “These early immigrants intermarried with the local ladies, and their offspring were also known as Peranakan,” says Angeline Kong, a guide at the Katong Antique House, an antique shop/museum in southeast Singapore.

(Learn why the U.S. has so many Chinatowns.)

According to a 2021 study of DNA profiles of 177 Peranakan Chinese, an average of 5.6 percent Malay ancestry is detectable in present-day community members. Researchers found that the Malay generic markers came primarily from females. That result raised doubt about the Chinese princess myth but gave credence to the theory that Peranakans descend from mixed-race Chinese settlers and Malay communities in the Malay Archipelago. The study also found that 10 percent of the Peranakans had 100 percent Chinese ancestry.

But this finding doesn’t diminish their claim to their heritage. “Being Peranakan is a cultural identity, not an ethnic identity,” Baba Colin Chee, president of the Peranakan Association of Singapore, told the Straits Times.

Ethnically Chinese, culturally Peranakan
The term Peranakan dates to the 15th century A.D., when a legend says that a Chinese princess married the Sultan of Malacca in what is now a port city in Malaysia. Men from her entourage married local women and their children were called “peranakans,” translated as “local born” in Malay.

Some of these early Peranakans eventually moved 150 miles south to Singapore, while others relocated to Penang, a vibrant port city to the north. Today, travelers interested in learning about the evolution of Peranakan culture can visit Melaka and Penang’s capital George Town, both UNESCO World Heritage sites.

Ethnically Chinese, culturally Peranakan
The term Peranakan dates to the 15th century A.D., when a legend says that a Chinese princess married the Sultan of Malacca in what is now a port city in Malaysia. Men from her entourage married local women and their children were called “peranakans,” translated as “local born” in Malay.

Some of these early Peranakans eventually moved 150 miles south to Singapore, while others relocated to Penang, a vibrant port city to the north. Today, travelers interested in learning about the evolution of Peranakan culture can visit Melaka and Penang’s capital George Town, both UNESCO World Heritage sites.

Until now, perhaps. DNA profiling is yielding insights into Peranakan ancestry in Singapore. Based on findings by the Genome Institute of Singapore, researchers have confirmed that Peranakan Chinese have Chinese-Malay ancestry. What has also emerged is that being Peranakan is cultural, not ethnic. This research sheds light on the genetic identity of the community and its long history. The findings might help advance historians’ understanding of the Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia.

The best way to experience Peranakan culture, though, is to dive into the sights, sounds, and tastes of the culture that is undergoing a revival around Singapore.

What does it mean to be a Peranakan? When I was growing up in Singapore in the 1980s, there wasn’t a simple definition for this community which colorfully merges Chinese, Malay, and Western aesthetics, heritage, and values.

As a kid, I’d hear about their vibrant hybrid culture in history class and taste their foods on Lunar New Year, when my Peranakan aunt served aromatic stews of lemongrass and blue ginger, spiced pineapple tarts, and paper-thin wafers called “love letters.” I’d walk by old Peranakan shophouses, with their ornate carved doors and cheerful floral tiles, and wonder how these magical, old-world structures existed amid the skyscrapers.

Even though Peranakan design details are visible in the modern city, the community’s identity has long been shrouded in mystery. Even some Singaporeans who identify as Peranakan, which loosely indicates being of Southern Chinese heritage, can’t quite define the term, let alone explain the fascinating history underpinning the community’s traditions.