Breaking the Waves

Translated from 《大眼鸡 越洋人》, a book shortlisted for 2018 Singapore Literature Prize (creative non-fiction, Chinese) by the Singapore Book Council.

This book is dedicated to the Cantonese pioneers who voyaged to Nanyang and contributed to the contemporary Singapore.

The term guanghuizhao (广惠肇, referring to Guangzhou 广州, Huizhou 惠州 and Zhaoqing 肇庆) for Cantonese is not only a geographical concept, but also a century-old brand in Singapore. Over generations, Kwong Wai Siew Peck San Theng and Kwong Wai Shiu Hospital remain immovable in Singapore, and the Yangzheng Foundation continues to serve the people, breaking a stereotypical view of the community, in which ‘the first generation establishes, the second generation preserves, the third generation squanders, and the fourth generation loses everything’.

Nowadays, interracial marriages are common in Singapore and marriages between different dialect groups are beyond count. The younger generations have a vague awareness of their origins and many of them could barely communicate in their dialects. One could only wonder what the future will bring for these Chinese associations that were set up by the forefathers of various dialect groups.