Hakka

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For the language/dialect, see Hakka (linguistics).

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Hakka (Template:Zh-tsp, lit. "guest families") are a Han Chinese people whose ancestors are said to originate from around Henan and Shanxi in northern China over 2,700 years ago. Their ancestors migrated southwards several times in history because of social unrest, upheaval, or by invasion of foreign conquerors since the Jin Dynasty (265-420). Subsequent migrations occurred at the end of the Tang Dynasty when China fragmented, during the middle of the Song Dynasty which saw a massive depopulation of the north, and a flood of refugees southward when the Jurchens captured the northern Song capitol, and the fall of the Song to the Mongols in the Yuan Dynasty and when the Ming Dynasty fell to the Manchu who formed the Qing Dynasty.

The term Hakka is thought to be comparatively recent. During the reign of the Qing Kangxi Emperor, the coastal regions were evacuated by imperial edict for almost a decade, due to the influence of the remnants of the Ming court who fled to what is now Taiwan. When the threat was eliminated, Kangxi issued an edict to repopulate the coastal regions once again. To aid the move, each family were given an amount of money to begin their new lives and registered as "Guest Families" (客戶, kèhù). The indigenous settlers who returned to their original lands saw the influx of newcomers. The original inhabitants were protective of their own more fertile lands, and the newcomers were pushed to the outer fringes of fertile plains, or settled in more mountainous regions to eke out a living. As time went by, local antagonisms grew, and it is thought that "Hakka" became a term of abuse used by indigenous settlers aimed at the newcomers. Over time, this muted down, and became adopted as term of self reference for Hakka peoples. The Hakka farmers were known to have used their feet while standing upright to pull weeds off rice paddies, as their cultural pride would not allow them to kneel and crawl on land belonging to the Manchus.

There is an interesting outcome to this scenario, that the newcomers themselves may not all be the ancestors of the Hakka language speakers, since it was a blanket term. Through studies into both Cantonese and Hakka genealogies, some surnames have the same ancestors, though they would not identify with the other's dialect grouping. The Hakka ancestors are thus just one group who migrated southwards. Hakka people are now found in the southern Chinese provinces, cheifly in Guangdong, south western Fujian, southern Jiangxi, southern Hunan, Guangxi, southern Guizhou, south eastern Sichuan, Hainan and Taiwan islands.

Hakka migrants are thought to be from the northern provinces or of non-Chinese aborigines, in respect that there are virtually no authenticate sources that actually provided a documentation of Hakka's migration from the north, besides a few genealogial stemmata from various southern countrysides, the recent genetic evidence might had proved otherwise. Although they are frequently distinctive in culture and language from the surrounding population, they are not considered a separate ethnic group by Chinese and are seen as part of the majority Han Chinese. In these conflicts, indigenous settlers thought that Hakka were not Chinese at all, but due to common ancestry as traced in clan genealogies, Hakka descendants are as Chinese as their neighbours. Hakka were active in the Taiping Rebellion led by the failed Qing scholar Hong Xiuquan who claimed he was the younger brother of Jesus, and led a movement which formed the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom (Taiping Tian Guo).

During the first centuries, the migration of Hakka groups generally trailed behind the whole Han Chinese southern expansion. As a result, Hakkas had to settle on the less desirable lands (mountains etc.). With limited prospects in agriculture, Hakka men have turned more often than other Chinese toward careers in the military or public function. Consequently, Hakka society puts an extra emphasis on the working abilities of women, who had to take up a bigger load of work on the farms while their menfolks were studying or at war. Unlike most Chinese the Hakkas did not practice any Foot-binding. Another consequence was the higher proportion of Hakkas with academic achievement. For example, some Taiwanese believe that the Mei-nung area in Kaohsiung (having a high concentration of Hakka) produced more doctorates than other areas in Taiwan.

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Hakkas in China

Image:Meizhou map2005.jpg

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Hakkas in Guangdong

In Guangdong, the Hakkas comprised about 60% of total population. Worldwide, over 95% of the oversea descended Hakkas came from this region, usually from Huizhou, the Hakkas here live mostly in the eastern part of the province, particularly the so-called Xing-Mei (Xingning-Meixian) Area. Guangxi is the next second large Hakka communites followed by Guangdong. Unlike their kin in Fujian, the Hakkas in the Xingning and Meixian area developed a non-fortress like unique architectural styles, most notably the weilongwu (Chinese: 围龙屋, wéilóngwū) and sijiaolou (Chinese: 四角楼, sìjǐaolóu).

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Hakkas in Fujian

The Hakkas who settled in mountainous south western Fujian province in China developed unique architectural buildings called tu lou, literally meaning earthen structures. Because of the undesirable mountainous regions, the Hakkas set up these unique homes to prevent attack from bandits and marauders. The tu lou are either round or square, and were designed as a large fortress and apartment building in one. The structures typically had only one entranceway and no windows at ground level. Each floor served a different function -- the first hosts a well and livestock, the second is for food storage and the third and higher floors contain living spaces.

(see Hakka architecture)

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Hakkas in Taiwan

In Taiwan, Hakka people contribute to about 15% of the population, and thus form a significant minority. Hakkas emigrated from Guangdong where they escaped conflicts such as the Punti-Hakka Clan Wars. In the 18th and 19th century, there were numerous armed conflicts between the Hakka from the south and Hoklo people from the north; some for economic reasons, some for political reasons. This resulted in mistrust between the two dialect groups for a long time. However, there was still communication of individuals between the two group. For example, in the Hakka language, the word "ho-ló-mà," literally "Hoklo girl," means mistress, and in the Hoklo language, the word "kheh-hiaⁿ," literally "Hakka guy," means a woman's partner in an affair.

Taiwan's Hakka are concentrated in Hsinchu City and Hsinchu County, Miaoli County, and around Jhongli in Taoyuan County and Meinong in Kaohsiung County. In recent decades, many Hakka have moved to Taipei City and Kaohsiung City.

Former President Lee Teng-hui is of Hakka descent.

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Hakkas worldwide

The Hakkas have emigrated to many regions worldwide, notably Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia (West Borneo), Thailand and East Timor.

Hakka people have also emigrated to Australia, Canada, the United States of America, and many countries in Europe, including Great Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Hakka people are also found in South Africa, Tahiti (French Polynesia), Mauritius and the islands of the Caribbean, particularly Jamaica. Most expatriate Hakka in Great Britain have ties to Hong Kong, and may have emigrated when Hong Kong was still a colony of Great Britain. There has been a Hakka community in Calcutta, India of previous, considerable size, but most have migrated to Canada, the United States, Australia, and Taiwan. Today there are about 90-100 million Hakka speakers around the world.

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Prominent Hakkas

The Hakkas have had a disproportionate influence on the course of Chinese and Overseas Chinese history particularly in the field of revolutionary and political leaders. This continues to be true in modern Chinese history where some of the most prominent Chinese leaders have been Hakkas. In the 1980s-90s, the Hakkas had the unique distinction of having all three political heavyweights of all three Chinese-led countries Hakkas at the same time: People's Republic of China's Deng Xiaoping, Republic of China's Lee Teng-hui and Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew.

In addition, Dr Sun Yat-sen, Deng Xiaoping and Lee Kuan Yew, all Hakkas, are three of the four Chinese named as 20th Century's 20 most influential Asians by Time magazine.

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Revolutionaries and politicians

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Government officials

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Literary figures

  • Guo Moruo (1892-1978), famous Chinese literary figure
  • Han Suyin (1917-; Xinyang, Henan), famous author of books on modern China
  • Luo Xianglin (Xingning, Guangdong), the most renowned scholar on Hakka culture and language
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Artists

  • Lin Fengmian (1900 - 1991; Meizhou, Guangdong), aka Lim Foong Min in Hakka - first to harmoniously combine Western and Chinese painting techniques.
  • Jimmy H. Woo (aka Chan Siu Dek, Sanba Town, Taishan, Guangdong, c1915 - 1991), immigrated to America in the early 1930's and taught the five family Chinese martial art, Tsoi Li Ho Fut Hung, more popularly known as Kung Fu San Soo. His lineage is traceable through the Chinese art, Choy Li Fut, and he was noted as one of the four most important individuals to immigrate from the Taishan area.
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Entrepreneurs

  • Yong Koon, founder of Royal Selangor, Malaysia, the largest pewter manufacturer in the world
  • Aw Boon Haw and Aw Boon Par (Yongding, Fujian; born in Burma), philanthropists of Tiger Balm fame
  • Cheong Fatt Tze (1840-1916; Dapu, Guangdong), well-respected business tycoon in South-east Asia who contributed greatly to the interests of Overseas Chinese during China's Qing and Republican era
  • Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah (born in Malaysia), founder and chairman of The Sunway Group of Companies, Malaysia
  • Alan Yau, founder of the Wagamama restaurant chain, Hakkasan, and Yauatcha. Hakkasan and Yauatcha are the only Chinese restaurants in the UK to be awarded a Michelin star.
  • Jimmy Choo, renowned designer of shoes and handbags.
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Entertainers

  • Hong Kong
    • Leslie Cheung (Meixian, Guangdong; born in Hong Kong), late Hong Kong singer/actor
    • Chow Yun-Fat (1955-; Bao'an, Guangdong; born in Hong Kong), Hong Kong and Hollywood actor
    • Leon Lai (1966-; Meixian, Guangdong; born in Beijing), one of the "Four Great Heavenly Kings" of Chinese pop music
    • Alex Man (Bao'an, Guangdong; born in Hong Kong), Hong Kong actor
    • Cherie Chung, Hong Kong actress
    • Jordan Chan (Huiyang, Guangdong; born in Hong Kong), Hong Kong actor
    • Eric Tsang (Wuhua, Guangdong; born in Hong Kong), Hong Kong actor-comedian
    • Francis Yip (Huiyang, Guangdong; born in Hong Kong), Hong Kong singer
    • Deanie Yip (Huiyang, Guangdong; born in Hong Kong), Hong Kong singer/actress
  • Republic of China (Taiwan)
    • Hou Hsiao-Hsien (1947-; Meixian, Guangdong), award-winning Taiwanese film director
    • Lin Feng Qiao, famous Taiwanese actress in 70s-80s, wife of Jackie Chan
    • Luo Dayou, godfather of Taiwan pop music
    • S.H.E, Taiwanese female pop group
      • Hebe Tien
      • Ella Chen
    • Shino Lin, Taiwanese singer
  • People's Republic of China
  • Singapore
  • Malaysia
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See also

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External links

nl:Hakka (volk) ja:客家 fi:Hakka (kansa) sv:Hakka th:แคะ vi:Người Khách Gia zh:客家

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